Another notable change is the use of “alphanumeric” registration codes starting with v4.8.8. This will give us more code possibilities and reduce the (extremely small) chance that two people wind up with the same code. We hope it will also reduce piracy…

But it’s important to note that this change (alphanumeric codes) will not work with earlier versions of SonicMood. If you want to run an earlier version for some reason (not recommended, by the way), then you can email us for another code.

We had some fun playing around with the color “schemes” that you can change from the Preferences window (“windows” page). Now the default scheme is “midnight” and there are some pretty bright schemes added Don’t forget you can always make your own if you don’t like ours
Be sure to check out the Mood “sharing” page on our web site. (http://www.sonicmood.com/MoodSharing.htm). We’ve added another set of Moods in a Mood file by Patrick EL MELIANI, our resident SonicMood genius! He’s a true musical artist and really knows his way around SonicMood. Thanks Patrick!

We’ve also added a file courtesy of another user, Jack Huntington. While in Maui recently, Jack recorded the “early birds” who make a racket at 6:25 in the AM! He’s kindly supplied us with a copy of said recording which we’ve posted in a zip file on the Mood “sharing” page (it’s “Maui Birds early am.zip”). Thank you Jack!

That’s about it. For a list of all changes for this version, go to the web site here:
http://www.sonicmood.com/SonicMoodHistory.htm

Take care all,
John

1. Combined all the edit controls that worked on individual instruments into one page called “Individual Note Properties.” That and a few other changes in the “Mood Info/Edit” window should make editing Moods easier.
2. Changed the timing and volume variation controls to work on each instrument individually.
3. Each instrument can set its own # of notes now, although the maximum number of notes playing at any time is still 16.
4. Changed the method of setting pause and sustain times from directly specifying a time in seconds to setting a “tempo” (in Beats Per Minute) and a note value (quarter note, eighth note, etc.)
5. Changed the “Mood Tempo” slider into a “Relative Tempo (%)” slider on the SonicMood window to be compatible with the idea of “tempo” and note values (quarter note, etc.)
6. Enabled the use of the mousewheel to adjust all sliders (volume, pan, etc.) and the time/date digits in the sleep/wake/TimeOfDay windows.
7. Tweaked the MIDI note generation to work more reliably with new features like the ability to adjust the number of notes for each instrument individually.
8. The “Instrument Groups” (pianos, strings, etc.) are saved and restored now.
9. Updated some of the Mood instrumental settings to make them more pleasing.
10. Moved the synthisizer list to the preferences window.
11. Made cosmetic changes to the “default” color scheme to make it more “mainstream”.
12. Changed the slider knobs to round and tweaked the location of slider elements a little to give more space.
13. Added background color to the “Mood Info/Edit” window. Fixed the text so its color would contrast properly with the background color.
14. Saved a little space at the top of the SonicMood window and now the “zoomed” height is 60, not 65.
15. Fixed a bug with the “Clear All” and “Restore” buttons/functions on the Keyboard Window. They weren’t working.
16. Fixed a bug the was causing fast notes to sometimes not continue after a few seconds.
17. Fixed a bug that kept buttons from darkening when pressed.

 

We’re back in business!

John

We live in Paradise, CA, and have been in the middle of a number of threatening fires collectively called “the Lightning Complex”.

Yesterday we were told to evacuate and are currently in a motel about 50 miles from our home.

I have the automatic registration software here so if you purchase SonicMood I will be able to register you from the motel There might be a slightly longer delay (usually you receive your registration within half an hour) if I’m out for a short time, but I’ll keep checking for sales, don’t worry

Thank you for your understanding!

Take care everybody,
John

So here’s another update - another few bugs fixed and that’s about it. For the record they are:

• Added the number of checkmarked Moods or Scenes to each marquee’s timer progress bar when in that mode.
• Changed the label above the soundfiles list to include a color background for highlighting the text.
• Fixed an “out of bounds” error when changing Themes after updating from an old version (before v3) of SonicMood.
• Fixed a bug that caused fast Moods to stall when the Mood timer changed from a slow Mood to a fast Mood.
• Fixed a bug that caused the SonicMood window’s listboxes to not be sized right if SonicMood starts “zoomed” to a small size and is then “zoomed” to its normal size.
• Fixed a bug that caused the Progress Bar Mode display to overlap the elapsed and total time values in the marquee if the timer was on and the SonicMood window was “zoomed” to its small size.

So if you want it, here it is:
http://www.sonicmood.com/SonicMoodDownloads.htm

and enjoy!

John

So I’ve fixed a few bugs that were pointed out to me, added a couple of handy features that were suggested, and changed a couple of things I found annoying…

We’re so trapped, tho, that I’m afraid I’m near to introducing another update. That’d be v4.8.6.2… Coming soon to a web site near you!

Keep the faith, baby!

John

The biggest change is an re-factoring of the sound generation components. There is a lot of timing going on to handle note generation and synchronization. The way the many timers were handled before was fairly cumbersome and would have been difficult to expand upon. The change makes expansion of the MIDI section of the software much easier. I’m thinking a future version of SonicMood will allow for multiple sets of three instruments so it will be possible to add an accompaniment to the main theme of the Mood.

Other changes involve the handling of the soundfiles and the scenes. They are now kept in a location apart from the preferences and default Mood file. Addition of soundfiles and general soundfile maintenance should be easier with this new arrangement.Finally, we made some improvements to the sleep, wake, and time of day timer controls and the way the scale and pattern lists are displayed. Along with lots of little “tweaks” to get the interface easier to use.

Hope you like it!

John

1. Holding the “shift” key down while sliding the instruments or soundfiles volume slider will set the volume of all the Moods, not just the one currently playing.
2. The “Scene list” is now on a sheet window attached to the “Scene” window.
3. Put the current elapsed timer mode in the “progress bar timer area” of the marquee.
4. Improved the behavior of the elapsed timer so it won’t start up if the current Theme contains no Moods.

More to follow!☺