Qtractor 0.5.1 - The Bravo Yankee return!

Summer is now long gone, obviously fall has already begun. As winter looms on the horizon the year steadily marches into its due end. (oh crap!...)

Today marks the day of this second public release while on the TYOQA age. It also marks yet another birthday of mine. One more year's gone, one less to go. Be happy! I hope you'd like my party as soon you get over from yesterday's bitten fruit showtime^*.

Now's the time...

Yes, it's "bravo" alright, not "beta" nor anything else. Despite any previous existing codename. Now, it's all dumb-down easy to predict any next release codenames, a matter of convergence and fact that just chalks one less of a burden on me :)

Believe it or not, this is the best and, allegedly, the most stable release ever. Ain't them all? ;)

Release highlights:

• Linked (aka. ref-counted) audio/MIDI clips (NEW)
• Aux-Send pseudo-plugin (NEW)
• Direct-access plugin parameter slider (NEW)
• MIDI file player (NEW)
• Automatic time-stretching of audio clips on tempo-map changes (FIX)
• Improved native Linux VST support (FIX)
• Improved JACK-Session support (FIX)
• Improved generic plugin form (FIX)
• MIDI-fx plugin support (NEW)
• Audio bus/ports auto-connect option (NEW)
• First translation call (Czech) (NEW)

* ps. as a matter of fact, bitten fruit's boss passed away on this very day; seconding his own beliefs he must have been reincarnated somehow... I wish him a jolly new journey ;)

Website:

Project page:

Downloads:

• source tarball:
  qtractor-0.5.1.tar.gz
• source package (openSUSE 11.4):
  qtractor-0.5.1-4.rncbc.suse114.src.rpm
• binary packages (openSUSE 11.4):
  qtractor-0.5.1-4.rncbc.suse114.i586.rpm
  qtractor-0.5.1-4.rncbc.suse114.x86_64.rpm
• from the paleolithic shelves: user manual:
  qtractor-0.3.0-user-manual.pdf

Weblog (upstream support):

http://www.rncbc.org


License:

Qtractor is free, open-source software, distributed under the terms of the GNU General Public License (GPL) version 2 or later.


Change-log:

• More LADISH support: SIGTERM signal is now trapped for graceful application close.
• Improved paste-repeat snap precision when dealing with large repeat counts.
• Czech (cs) translation added, by Pavel Fric.
• Added a few snap-to-beat divisors (unusual Beat/5, Beat/7, Beat/9 and Beat/10) for completeness sake.
• Such a simple change of mind with a visual twist: the "A" track automation button/menu has now been
  moved to the right-most, as it belongs ;)
• Auto-connection of dedicated audio outputs is now optional for default audio master bus, metronome, player and MIDI instrument plugin dedicated audio outputs.
• Finally, after a pitiful large brain-dead period, generic plugin forms are now showing all possible controllable plugin parameters featuring a paged, tabbed dialog, whenever applicable.
• Special hack/fix for JUCE based native VST plugins, which are the most actually found with a GUI editor, skipping explicit shared library unloading and thus avoiding some mysterious crashes on session close and/or application exit.
• Support for MIDI-fx plugins (native VST and/or LV2) is now implemented and functional (intra-chain only).
• Instrument plugin bank/program selection was found broken or dead in the water, specially on VSTi, now finally fixed again.
• VST plugin parameter value display on generic form is now back in business (were dead regarding value changes).
• All plugin's provided GUI editors are now honored by being popped up first, instead of the usual but good old generic plugin form.
• Long overdue implementation of a dedicated MIDI file player is now accessible from the MIDI files widget; one can play the whole SMF or just a single track or channel.
• Update to a newer VeSTige header, probably fixing an old 32 vs. 64 bit mismatch.
• Avoid JACK session filenames/paths to be ever shown; also avoid all buses ports (re)connections when JACK sessions are (re)loaded, given the fact that session management will take care of just that; more also, untitled/default session names are now also picked up to match current LADISH project name, obviously given by LADISH_PROJECT_NAME environment variable, whenever present (as suggested by Nedko Ardaunov).
• Paste-repeat floating selection has been fixed (was showing only the last repeated selection).
• Coherence of tempo changes on audio and MIDI clips, whether automatic time-stretching is in effect, has been slightly improved, hopefully fixed.
• Bold attempt to get linked (aka. ref-counted) audio and MIDI clips into practice (EXPERIMENTAL).
• Main track view now showing all clips above the grid.
• Added support for both new and older (deprecated URI) lv2_external_ui extension (by Nedko Ardaunov).
• Following yet another great idea, and implementation, by Holger Dehnhardt, who already brought us the new aux-send insert plugin, thanks again, the so-called direct access control option is now featured for any plugin parameter right from plugin listings eg. mixer strips.
• General resource consumption and management has been slightly improved, due to internal buses allocation optimization.
• Fixed nasty crash-bug that was severely affecting all sessions that had at least one insert (pseudo-)plugin on any audio input bus.
• All automation curve nodes are now relocated whenever disparate session sample-rate is detected on load.
• New aux-send/insert pseudo-plugin is now introduced, allowing to route any track audio output to any other audio output bus besides the nominal one -- thanks to an original implementation from Holger Dehnhardt.
• New immediate edit/loop-range settings from current clip extents, accessible on the main menu (Clip/Range Set, Loop Set) and from MIDI clip editor menu as well (File/Range Set, Loop Set).
• MIDI Names XML files (*.midnam) may now be imported into MIDI instrument definitions. (EXPERIMENTAL)
• Avoid cursor reset while editing MIDI events list (fixes bug #3380259, reported by Frank Neumann).
• Just some typos fixing (patch #3378382 by c-korn).
• Track view automation curve editing mode has been slightly fixed, now allowing for other previously existing point-and-click mouse operations.
• Default automation curve mode is now preserved (following a suggestion by Alexandre Prokoudine, thanks).

Enjoy && Cheers!