Hi ! I'm writing this mail because at this point I'm seeing that the Linux Audio Development community is still going aimlessly on how to develop powerful audio applications. As we know, one of the key factors missing nowadays is audio plugins and synth plugins. Some audio plugin needs can be covered by LADSPA, but in other cases you need a lot more complex interfaces than just a few sliders.. (like is compressor with curves, graphical equalizers with band feedback, parametrics, multiband compressors, voice autotunning, surround spatial repositioning.. and everything available of course, that would become more intuitive and useful with more feedback) Also there is the need for instrument plugins, single or multi timbral (so you dont have to load all the instances at once). DSSI provides this (except the multitimbral) but you have to write the interface separated than the core, which not only is more difficult to program, but also very limiting because in many cases you cant show with much detail what is going inside the synth, like editing a sample, draw freeform envelopes, edit the oscilator generator, etc. And better not talk about effects, which need spectrums, vus, and other kind of complex feedback. So, I'm sure that many of you have asked yourselves, why cant we have a VST-like plugin architecture for Linux? The following are excuses: -Because we need core and interface separation, this way we warranty a clean design and network transparency -Because it would force both interface and core to be memory locked, as a result of being a jack clients, forcing more physical memory to be used -Because separating interface and core makes for a clear design. And I say, ALL THIS IS LIES. Every single of such reasons are of no concern to musicans. If I just want to make music, I would not care about any of such reasons. I'd just fire up an application and make music. All that seems to me more like academia-speech than real reasons. You can believe them or not, but it's PROVEN that none of these are needed to make music. However, there is a one and single reason of why we dont have VST-Like plugins in Linux: -It is impossible to make a plugin in a widget toolkit that will be hosted by another widget toolkit. (say, gtk on qt, or fltk on fox). Why is this? The answer is simple.. X11. An X client connects to the Xserver (via unix socket/tcp/wathever) then stays blocked in that connection until it receives events (keypress/mouse/etc), which are sent to the event loop. It is then the toolkit (gtk/qt/etc) the one responsible for handling the events. This way, even if you load many toolkits at the same time, and even each opens a connection... one of them has to stay blocked in the event loop. This is the REAL reason why we cant make a VST-Like plugin API in Linux, or EVEN port opensource VST plugins and use them here. Up to now, nobody has really bothered in solving this problem, instead most just attempt finding a workaround. So what I am proposing is to SOLVE this problem.. how? -Designing a library that will act as intermediate between the toolkits and the X Connection, handling the event loops for all of them, so they can run together. -Placing this library in freedesktop.org -Encouraging toolkit makers to support this library, and porting them to it As you see, this is not a simple task, and much less something I can do alone, so I will need help!! I am very sure that at some point we will get support from other groups which will also benefit from this. So before anything, I'd like to know who is interested in this, and who would like to help, offer experience, etc. Well, hope I get any feedback Cheers! Juan