Short: V1.0 Plays MIDI Files via GMPlay & cli.datatype Author: dbusse@primus-online.de (Dirk Busse) Uploader: dbusse@primus-online.de (Dirk Busse) Type: util/dtype Requires: GMPlay and cli.datatype Pre-History & Description: Did you ever wonder why IBrowse never plays Midi background sounds? You could setup a external viewer audio/midi with the command $GMDIR/GMPlay and the arguments <>CON:100/80/500/120/GMPlay "%f" V=400 B=2 PRI=21 If you load a Midi file via the URL, IBrowse plays it. But when you load a web page with a Midi background sound, IBrowse doesn't plays it. The reason is: IBrowse loads background sound only via datatypes. So my idee was to write a datatype which forwards the file to GMplay. My knowledges of programming datatypes and of programming in C are nearly zero. I didn't found an example datatype in assembler, but I found the cli.datatype. The first solution (starting directly GMPlay via cli.datatype) wasn't very well. The second solution (starting GMplay via a shell script via cli.datatype) was a little better. But it doen't works "clean". So I wrote a little assembler program "PlayMidi", which gives a little note to the caller (for example MultiView), breaks the actually GMPlay (you couldn't start GMPlay twice) and runs GMPlay with the new file. Installation: - You need a successfully installed GMPlay. (Aminet:mus/midi/GMPlay13.lha) - You need a successfully installed cli.datatype. (AMinet:util/dtype/clidt_39_2.lha) - copy "c/PlayMidi" somewhere in your path (for example in c:) - copy "datatypes/MIDI" to devs:datatypes - create a env variable GMDIR with the path of GMPlay. for example with: setenv envarc:GMDIR "DH0:MIDI/GMPlay" - create a env variable PlayMidiGMopts with your options which you want to use for GMPlay. for example with: setenv envarc:PlayMidiGMopts ">CON:100/80/510/120/GMPlay V=400 B=2 PRI=21" (You could use there all GMPlay options. Now you could simple use PlayMidi instead of GMPlay for playing your Midi files.) - add to the file envarc:datatypes/cli.prefs the following line: MIDI COMMAND=PlayMidi "%s" - That's all! Now IBrowse should play Midi background sounds! Now also every datatype viewer like MultiView should play midi files. (- Setting up IBrowse External Viewers for Midi support: Type: audio/midi and audio/x-midi Mime: midi mid kar Action: Ext. viewer Viewer: PlayMidi Arguments: "%f" ) Example envarc-files and the source code of PlayMidi is also in the archive. Author: Dirk Busse Kropsburgstraße 8 D-67141 Neuhofen Germany <100.141999@germanynet.de> Questions&Answers: Q: Where are pages on the Internet with Midi background sounds? A: For example at: http://www.elaborate-bytes.com/deutsch/firma/index.htm and at: http://www.brenner-sievritts.com/hauptmenu.htm Q: IBrowse doesn't plays Midi-Files from the GMPlay archive as background sound. A: IBrowse plays only background sounds with the datatype class sound. The Midi-Files from the GMPlay archive are xpk-packed. Xpk isn't a sound datatype class. But this shouldn't be a problem. If you open the Midi file directly, IBrowse should play it. And as background sound you must not use packed Midi files. Because xpk isn't a standard in the Internet. It's only a standard on the Amiga. If you have some other questions or problems, you could send me a EMail or letter. History: 1.0 (07.May 1999) - First version. ============================= Archive contents ============================= Original Packed Ratio Date Time Name -------- ------- ----- --------- -------- ------------- 3745 1622 56.6% 08-May-99 00:15:32 PlayMidi.readme 112 84 25.0% 04-May-99 20:48:20 +MIDI 467 278 40.4% 04-May-99 20:48:20 +MIDI.info 25 25 0.0% 17-Apr-99 17:34:12 +GMDIR 44 44 0.0% 07-May-99 20:49:50 +PlayMidiGMopts 2201 791 64.0% 08-May-99 11:06:54 +PlayMidi.s 608 284 53.2% 08-May-99 11:06:58 +PlayMidi -------- ------- ----- --------- -------- 7202 3128 56.5% 14-May-99 21:51:00 7 files