[linux-audio-user] Making Audio on Linux Just Work: (1) defining the goals

[Christoph Eckert]

> PLAYBACK
>          
>           - play a compressed audio file
>                 * user driven (e.g. play(1))
>                 * app driven (e.g. {kde,gnome_play}_audiofile())
>           - play a PCM encoded audio file (specifics as above)
>           - hear system sounds
>           - VOIP
>           - game audio
>           - music composition
>           - music editing
>           - video post production
              - Watching DVD with n.1 sound
              - Easy MIDI file playback (Timidity comes to my mind)
              - Play along with prerecorded audio
                (playing guitar/synths along ogg files)
              - Play along with sequenced audio
                (playing guitar/synths along arrangements including
                MIDI/audio)
              - Karaoke

>  RECORDING
>      
>           - record from hardware inputs
>               * use default audio interface
>               * use other audio interface
>               * specify which h/w input to use
>               * control input gain
>           - record from other application(s)
                e.g. recording VIOP calls
              - answering machine
>           - record from live (network-delivered) compressed audio
>                   streams


[...]


>  ROUTING
>
>           - route audio to specific h/w among several installed
>             devices
>           - route audio between applications 
>           - route audio across network
              - easy sharing of audio across networks (see iTunes)
>           
>  MULTIUSER
>
>           - which of the above should work in a multi-user scenario?
>
>  MISC
>      
>           - use multiple soundcards as a single logical device
              - unplug USB & Firewire devices even if they are in use
                (I even sometimes forget that jackd is still running and 
                 unplug my USB device, and my system isn't very happy
                 about this ;-)
              - Easy access to Master Volume/Mute functions
                (e.g. muting audio playback when Phone/VOIP is ringing)




Best regards


    ce