                             =FunktrackerGOLD=

                A FREEWARE Digital Module Tracker for Unix

                              By Jason Nunn
                    Authorship is reserved 1994,1996

                                =Contacts=

                              32 Rothdale Rd
                               Moil Darwin
                          Northern Territory 0810
                                AUSTRALIA

             <email changes too much, therefore not provided>


                             =Contributors=

            FreeBSD port - Brian Nielsen <norman@iesd.auc.dk>
      Interface Enhancement - Michael.Will@student.uni-tuebingen.de
           addnstr routine - Stephane DUBON <twinsen@etca.fr>

                          = 0.0 Beta Testers=

                Jim "Trixter" Leonard <trixter@mcs.com>
                  Joey Hess <joey@kite.preferred.com>
              Predrag Balorda <pele@ezun123.ds.ulcc.ac.uk>
                      Casey Ryder <cees@coso.com>


----------------------------------------------------------------------------

FunktrackerGOLD is a "born again" DOS32 Funktracker 1.08d, for Unix. It is
used to compose digital audio music.

This is a project i've been working on since about February 96. Here, my
previous DOS32 Funktracker project (funk108d.zip) has been ported over to
Linux/FREEBSD. The goal is to make an Xwindows editor. But, at the moment,
only a curses editor has be implemented, which performs quite admirably
non-preemptively. It's good to have a curses version anyway, some Unix
users don't run Xwindows. Besides that, this is the very first time i have
written anything big in Unix. Writing a smaller (and simpler) text based
editor would be a good thing while i'm still "learning as a go".


A little Funktracker History..


The whole "Funktracker" thing started out in July 94. I had just learn't
protected mode assembly programming, and i had no p-mode music code to use
with my new demos... so i looked around for an editor with source code.
After about 2 weeks looking around, and asking people, I was sure there
existed no such tracker. The only ones i could see were in "closed" (no
source code) projects like ST3 and MTM. It was sickening to see groups
such as Future Crew, Renaissance and Triton releasing their highly popular
music trackers without any source code. It didn't seem fair to me.
Trackers are a form of a "standard", and with a standard MUST come source
code. I found it rather cruel of them not to release source code.. 

So, I then went to work writing the brand new module format using Adam
Seychells DOS32 Protected Mode extender. Due to work constraints, progress
was far slower than usual. It took about 5 months to get the first release
out (which was about January 95). Funktracker is far by the most
successful and popular programming project i have ever undertaken. I've
had much feedback about this project. Funktracker has very few bugs. The
only bugs it possesses are those it inherits from DOS32. The DOS32 version
compiled with the latest (1.08d) version of Funktracker doesn't work under
Windows95 for instance. 

The DOS32 editor was great for what it was intended for. I have used 
Funktracker for two demos to date- The Music Contest 3 demo (April 95), 
and my very last demo before leaving the demo scene- From Real 2 SuperReal 
(Jan 96)..

The specification itself allowed for both 8 and 16 bit samples, with
multichannel editing and playback, yet the DOS32 editor would only allow
you to create 8 channel, 8 bit modules. As i encompassed the format around
the PAS16 and SB16 cards, i wanted demos to run as fast as possible using 
this playback code. So, 8 channels, become fixed for efficiency reasons. 

With the transferring over to Linux, The DOS32 Funktracker project is in
limbo right now. If i am to release any future Microsoft OS related
versions of Funktracker, i would probably have to find/learn and even pay
for a new DOS extender. After 3 years of DOS32 lifecycle, Adam Seychell
has told me that he will be shit canning the project. The emergence of
HackWin95 effectively rendered it obsolete.. There is much work to be done
with Adams DOS32 project, as it's currently bugged to the eyeballs (when i
first discovered DOS32 back in V2.41, it actually had very few bugs). So,
the chances of this happening are very small.  I currently exercise an
"anti Microsoft, anti Bill Gates, anti Windows95"  stance. As you are
using Linux too, i assume you have the same opinion ;). 

Anyway, I hope you enjoy using FunktrackerGOLD. If you like it, please 
greet me. I like to here what you think about it. Funktracker is ofcourse 
FREEWARE, so, feel free to use this in any your projects etc (i'm not 
sure if Unix are ready for PC/Amiga style demos yet?).




4 - Instructions for Use
------------------------

ok, i'll show you a few basic keys and layout of the editor, but you're 
going to have to refer to the fickle.h file for the key lay out. To put 
it bluntly (and in the Unix spirit of things), the source code _IS_ the 
documention!. I'll do a proper job of when i'm in the mood, i still don't 
have the motivation/will power/courage to face documentation tasks these 
days.


On the command menu, you have "New Song" (obivous), "Load Song" 
(obvious), "SET SNG DIR" (this allows you to set the song directory prior
to loading it). "OPTIMISE".. now this function is interesting. It will
make the module as small as possible by removing any unused
patterns/samples and tracks. "CHG TRCKS" allows you to add more tracks, or
to remove tracks from a module.  Tracks for both the above functions are
added/deducted on the right side.  "08bit -> 16" allows you to convert 8
bit modules to 16 bit modules and "16bit -> 08" allows you to convert 8
bit to 16 bit modules. All these functions will save the new song will a
"*", so that you can always revert back to a prevously converted/washed
module. 


loading a song:

 - goto load menu and hit enter
 - select song with sticky bar (select either *.Funk or *.fnk, they are 
the same thing)

(NB/ with the file loader, you can now rename files. see instructions on 
the screen)

 - press either 'P', 'O', or 'L' to start playing song.
 - press any key to stop

new song:
 - goto new, hit enter,
 - enter new name of song,
 - enter precision
 - enter channel size
 - hit "OK"

load sample:
 - hit "!" to goto sample editor
 - hit space
 - select a *.WAV,*.RAW or *.SND file.

(you can play samples before loading them by using the keyboard keys, and 
rename them. Refer to the instructions on screen.)

 - hit enter

basic operation of pattern editor:

 - usual keys for entering notes
 - use space to delete note
 - enter to set pattern break
 - '`' entered RLO
 - '[' edit sample number of slot (entered a sample number in a blank 
slot will produce a Sample Only slot)
 - 'D' delete slot in channel
 - 'I' insert slot in channel
 -  T toggles channel on/off
 - '-' '='  -/+ pattern
 - ';' ''' -/+ octave
 - ',' '.' -/+ sample number
 - 'B' begin block
 - 'E' end block
 - 'Z' delete block
 - 'C' copy block
 - 'V' paste block
 - 'M' user Command Assister to add command to slot


Sequence editor operations:

 - '[' to change pattern number in slot
 - 'D' delete pattern number
 - 'I' insert pattern number
 - 'S' to set loop back point
 - 'T' change the BPM setting


global:

 - 'S' save song
 - 'A' save as a .MOD file
 - 'Q' quit back to main menu
 - '!' goto sample editor
 - '@' goto sequence editor
 - '#' goto pattern editor




                                    ooo0ooo
