******************************************************** * * * Copyright 1987 by Jeff deRienzo All Rights Reserved * * * ******************************************************** User Instructions for Amiga Tab ----------------------- | System Requirements | ----------------------- Hardware ======== Requires an Amiga-1000 (or compatible) computer with 512K memory. Software ======== Amiga Kickstart Version 1.2 or later. Runs under Workbench Version 1.2 or later. -------------------------- | Installing the Program | -------------------------- For installation instructions, please read the file named README. --------------------- | Using the Program | --------------------- Starting ======== Start the tab program by opening a tab icon. The type of icon you open (banjo or guitar) determines the type of instrument you'll get. To start a brand new tab, open the "Empty" icon and then use the "Name" command to rename your tab. The Basics ========== Tab gives you two windows in the Workbench screen. One window is the palette window. It contains two cursors, the edit cursor (cross) and the select cursor (arrow). It also contains fret symbols (numbers) and time symbols (notes and rests). To pick up either cursor just click on it with the left mouse button. To pick any fret or time just click on it with the left mouse button. The other window is the tab window. It contains the actual tablature for the song. The tab window's title is the name of the song. You can change the title with the "Name" command. You add notes to the tablature with the edit cursor (cross) when you click in the tab window with the left mouse button. You select notes in the tab window by clicking the left mouse button on them with the select cursor (arrow). Many of the commands operate on the currently selected notes. You can select multiple notes by holding down the shift key and clicking on the notes or by holding down the left mouse button and "drawing-through" the notes you want to select. When the program is unable to perform a command it displays an error message in the Workbench Screen's title bar. Commands ======== Commands are chosen and executed by holding down the right mouse button, moving the pointer up to the menu bar to pull down a command menu, and releasing the button over the desired command in the menu. There are four command menus: 1. Project - These commands operate on the entire tablature. They rename, load, and save your work. 2. Edit - These commands operate on whatever notes are currently selected. They allow you to change notes in the tab. 3. Play - These commands play the notes in the tab. 4. Options - These commands let you change some aspects of the current tab. The Project Menu ================ The commands in the project menu allow you to perform program and disc file control. These commands let you load songs from disc, save songs to disc, and exit the program. Load ---- The Load command reads a project from the disc into the tab window. (i.e. a project that you've previously created and saved with the Save or Exit command) When you choose Load a requester box appears in the window. Type the name of the tab you wish to load and then hit the "Return" key. The program will attempt to find the tab and load it into the window. Save ---- The Save command writes the tab which is currently in the tab window onto the disc. The name which appears in the tab window's title is the name which will be used for the saved tab. You can save your current tab at any time and as often as you want. Save writes the tab to disc and leaves your current tab still in the tab window. Name ---- The Name command allows you to change the name of the tab which you're currently working on (in preparation for a Save command). When you choose Name, a requester will appear in the tab window. Type the new name in the requester and hit the "Return" key. Quit ---- Quit terminates your current program session without saving anything. Exit ---- Exit ends your current session. When you choose the Exit command, the program will first Save your current tab and then terminate. To terminate without saving your current tab, use the Quit command. Iconify ------- Iconify causes both tab windows to be replaced by a tiny icon window. The tab program is still running (sort of...) but won't accept input or commands. Double-Click the icon to restore your tab windows. The Edit Menu ============= The edit menu contains commands which allow you to modify the notes of your current tab. All of the edit commands (except for Select All) require that you have selected some notes in the current tab window with the select cursor (arrow). Selected notes are displayed in a different color than normal notes. Delete ------ The Delete command deletes all of the currently selected notes from the tab. Select All ---------- Select All is a way to select notes without using the select cursor or the mouse. The Select All command selects every note in the tab. It is useful when you want to perform an edit command on every note, but picking each note individually would be time-consuming. Slide ----- The Slide command connects two notes as a slide with a connecting line between them. Notes which are connected this way will be played to sound a smooth transition from the first to the second. Slides affect both the way notes are displayed and the way they are played. To Un-Slide two notes just select them and use the Slide command again. Note that you must have exactly two notes selected, they must be on the same string, and there must be no notes in between them on that string in order for Slide to work. You can use the slide command to substitute for the other stringed instrument techniques of "Hammer-On" and "Pull-Off." Choke ----- The Choke command applies a "choke" mark to all of the currently selected notes. When a choked note is played its attack portion is sounded normally and then its sustain portion is sounded between one and two frets higher in order to simulate the sound that you would get if you pushed the string sideways immediately after picking it. Choked notes are marked with a small up-arrow. To Un-Choke a note just select it and use the Choke command again. Triplet ------- The Triplet command connects 3 notes as a triplet. You must have exactly 3 succesive notes selected. To remove the triplet timing from a triplet just select the triplet and re-issue the triplet command. Copy ---- The Copy command copies every selected note to a new location in the tab. To use Copy, first select the notes that you want to copy. Then choose Copy from the Edit Menu. The cursor will change to the "copy cursor." This lets you know that you are in copy mode. Now move the cursor to the place in the tab that you want the copied notes to go -- the destination -- and click the left mouse button again. The destination location is the place where the first selected note will be copied. Other selected notes will be copied to new locations relative to your destination click. If you change your mind and don't wish to copy anything then just click the left mouse button in the palette window on one of the other cursors, or choose any other command from one of the menus. You can not use the Copy command to copy notes onto themselves -- i.e. Clicking the copy cursor on a selected note is illegal and aborts the copy command. After the copy is done, the cursor will revert to either the select or edit cursor (whichever was active before you chose Copy). New Time -------- The New Time command takes every note which is currently selected and changes its timing to the current timing. The "current timing" is the timing which is currently selected (and highlighted) in the palette window. For example; if the quarter-note symbol is currently selected in the palette window then the New Time command will cause all currently selected notes in the tab window to become quarter- notes. The Play Menu ============= These commands allow you to play the current tab through whatever speaker system you've connected. Play All -------- The Play All command plays every note in the current tab. Play Selected ------------- The Play Selected command plays all of the currently selected notes. Loop ---- The Loop command plays every note in the tab. Then it goes back to the beginning of the tab and plays it all over again. Forever. To stop the Loop command just click the left mouse button anywhere in the tab window or the palette window. The playing will stop next time it gets to the end of the tab. The Options Menu ================ These commands apply globally to the entire tab. Their settings are saved with the tab (when you Exit or Save) and used when you later Load the tab. BPM --- The BPM (Beats Per Minute) command sets the overall speed of playback for the entire tab. When you choose BPM a requester will appear in the window. Type the new value and then hit the "Return" key. Tune ---- The Tune command allows you to re-tune the instrument. When you choose the Tune command a requester will appear in the tab window. This requester has five slider gadgets on it (or six if your current tab is a guitar tab). Each of the sliders corresponds to one of the strings. The top one is the first string. Each slider has a "knob" which is a square positioned somewhere inside the slider. To re-tune a string pick its slider by clicking on the knob with the left mouse button and, while still holding the mouse button down, move the mouse from side to side to change the pitch of the string. Release the mouse button to stop tuning the string. When you click the "Apply" box the new tuning you've created will be used for the current tab. If, instead, you click the "Cancel" box the new tuning will be thrown away and won't be used. Sustain ------- Sustain controls the amount of time a note's sound lingers after it is picked. You can set this time by choosing the Sustain command. When you choose Sustain a requester will appear in the window. Type the new value and hit the "Return" key. Larger numbers produce a longer sustain.