tutorials:general:getting-started
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This article will give you a quick overview of the mAirList Radio Automation and will help you to get started with the software. | This article will give you a quick overview of the mAirList Radio Automation and will help you to get started with the software. | ||
- | ===== Download and installation ===== | ||
- | Software downloads are generally available here: http://www.mairlist.com/ | + | ===== Documentation for Version 6.3 ===== |
- | You will find that there are usually multiple releases to choose from. If you are new to mAirList, please choose the newest version which is not marked as " | + | :!: //Work in progress// |
- | <WRAP round tip> | + | * [[tutorials: |
- | Note that all " | + | * [[tutorials: |
- | </ | + | * [[tutorials: |
+ | * [[tutorials: | ||
+ | * [[tutorials: | ||
+ | * [[tutorials: | ||
+ | * [[tutorials: | ||
- | For each release available on the download page, you will find a couple | + | Below is the rest of the old tutorial for version 5.3 until the documentation for version 6.3 is complete. |
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- | * **Setup**: This is the recommended download, a regular Windows installer that will install the software under '' | ||
- | * **Zip**: An alternative distribution for advanced users that does not come with an installer, but which is simply unzipped anywhere on your hard disk. One important difference is that the setup version uses a central location for storing the configuration files (the folder recommended by Windows, typically inside '' | ||
- | * **Changelog**: | ||
- | * **Snapshot**: | ||
- | * **Older versions**: If, for any reason, you must go back to an older version of this release, you will find it here. | ||
- | As a beginner, just download the setup and run it. | ||
- | ===== Updating ===== | ||
- | Updates within the same minor version (e.g. 6.0.0 to 6.0.1, 6.0.2, 6.0.3 and so on) can just be installed by downloading and running the new setup - it will install "on top" of the current installation, | ||
- | Each new minor release (when the middle version number changes) will be installed **as a separate application**. This is so you can keep your existing installation intact while configuring and testing the new version. | ||
- | So for example, when you have 6.0.3 running and run the setup for 6.1.0, you will see two applications in the Windows Start Menu, " | ||
- | ===== Demo and trial license ===== | ||
- | mAirList comes with a demo license that will let you run the software for 30 minutes at a time (you can choose the type of edition during setup). So when you start mAirList for the first time, you will probably see a message like this: | ||
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- | In order to activate a 14-day trial version or install/ | ||
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- | To activate a purchased license from your mAirList customer account, click the Download license and follow the instructions on screen. | ||
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- | The 14-day trial can be found on the rightmost tab of that window: | ||
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- | Click the //Visit Website// button and follow the instructions displayed in your web browser. As part of the process, you will be asked to copy a text block back into the License Manager: | ||
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- | Now click //Install License//, then close the License Manager, and your 14-day trial is ready to use. | ||
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- | If, for any reason, you need to run the License Manager again later, you will find it in the mAirList group of the Windows Start Menu, or in the //About// dialog inside the mAirList main window. | ||
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- | ===== Main window overview ===== | ||
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- | We are now ready to run mAirList for the first time. This is what the main window (or playout window) looks like: | ||
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- | The most important areas of the main windows are: | ||
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- | - **Playlist**: | ||
- | - **Players**: | ||
- | - **Cartwall**: | ||
- | - **Browser**: | ||
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- | ===== Working with the playlist ===== | ||
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- | The first thing we learn is to work with the main playlist and players. | ||
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- | ==== Add audio files ==== | ||
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- | Before we can play audio items in the main players A and B, we must add files to the playlist. There are many ways to do this, e.g.: | ||
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- | - Drag audio files from Windows Explorer into the playlist | ||
- | - Use the //Insert// button in the main toolbar | ||
- | - Open a playlist file from the menu next to the //Open// button in the main toolbar | ||
- | - Open a directory in the browser area (4), then drag items from the browser into the playlist | ||
- | - ... | ||
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- | The players are set to Auto Load mode by default, so as soon as you add files to the playlist, the players will load the topmost items automatically: | ||
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- | ==== ASSIST mode ==== | ||
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- | ASSIST mode, also called Live Assist, is the operation mode where a DJ is present and operating the studio manually. It's called live assist because you will find various features that will assist the DJ in this task, e.g. ramp/intro display etc. To start a player, just click the //Play// button: | ||
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- | Do you see the big red numbers? This is the ramp countdown, because the song happened to have cue points set already. You will learn how to do this using the Cue Editor later in this tutorial. | ||
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- | Wait for the first song to finish, or click the //Fade Out// or //Stop// button, then start player B: | ||
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- | Notice that the first song is automatically removed from the playlist and moved to the Recycle Bin browser on the right. This behavior can be adjusted in the config later. | ||
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- | Starting and stopping the player is usually not something you would do with the mouse in a real studio. Instead, mAirList offers various remote control options. We'll discuss the basics of remote control later in this tutorial. | ||
- | ==== AUTO mode ==== | ||
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- | By clicking the red AUTO button in the toolbar above the playlist, you engage automation mode. While in automation mode, mAirList will start and stop the players automatically, | ||
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- | You can toggle between AUTO and ASSIST mode at any time by clicking the buttons in the toolbar. Depending on the configuration, | ||
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- | ==== Fades and Auto Cue ==== | ||
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- | Unlike primitive " | ||
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- | Setting a proper Fade Out point for all songs in your library is an important but also time-consuming task. mAirList' | ||
- | ==== Prelistening (PFL) and the Cue Editor ==== | ||
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- | The playlist offers two basic ways of prelistening (or " | ||
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- | The first method is to double-click an item in the playlist to bring up its Properties dialog, and then switch to the //Cue Editor// tab. As a shortcut, right-click the item and choose //PFL// from the popup menu, this will open the Properties dialog, switch to the PFL tab and start playback right away: | ||
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- | The second method can be used for items that are already loaded into an (idle) player. Just click the small " | ||
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- | In the upper part of the Cue Editor, the audio waveform of the item is displayed. It is generated in realtime, so it may take a few seconds before it is displayed, depending on the file size. Use the mouse buttons and mouse wheel to navigate or zoom into the waveform. | ||
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- | The buttons below the waveform are used to start/stop playback, engage the END MON function (which will play the last 10 seconds of the item), or zoom the waveform if you decide not to use the mouse wheel for that. | ||
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- | And then there is the list of cue markers: | ||
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- | * **Cue In**: The point where playback starts, typically used to cut off any silence at the beginning of the track; will be set by Auto Cue for any new track. | ||
- | * **Fade In**: The point where the full volume is reached, so you get a fade from Cue In to Fade In. Very rarely used in radio, left empty most of the time. | ||
- | * **Ramp 1/2/3**: Also called " | ||
- | * **Hook In/ | ||
- | * **Loop In/Loop Out**: The section of the item used when playing in Loop mode. Can be used for music beds etc., very useful when playing through the Cartwall. | ||
- | * **Outro**: The opposite of Ramp, the point where the vocals end. The progress bar will turn into a different color at this point. | ||
- | * **Start Next**: The point where the next song is to be started in AUTO mode. When left empty, the next song will start at Fade Out, Cue Out or EOF. | ||
- | * **Fade Out**: The point where the song is to be faded out in AUTO mode. Will also start the next song unless a specific Start Next marker is set. This point is set automatically by the Auto Cue function and can be adjusted manually. | ||
- | * **Fade End**: Can be used together with Fade Out to fine-tune the duration of the fade. | ||
- | * **Cue Out**: Where playback stops. Just like Cue In it's used to cut off silence, and set by Auto Cue. | ||
- | * **Anchor**: A special point that facilitates backtiming calculations when using Fixed Times (not part of this tutorial). When this marker is set, all timing calculations will refer to this point rather than the beginning (or Cue In) of the item. | ||
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- | Operations on cue markers can be made using the buttons in the table, or straight within the waveform display: | ||
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- | * To set a cue marker, click the //SET// button during PFL playback, or drag it with the mouse from the list into the waveform. | ||
- | * To adjust the position of a marker, click the arrow buttons, or move it with the mouse in the waveform display. | ||
- | * To delete a marker, click the //X// button, or use the mouse to drag it out of the waveform. | ||
- | * To prelisten to a marker (start playback from the associated position), use the //TEST// button, or double-click the marker in the waveform. | ||
- | * To re-engage the Auto Cue function, reverting any manual changes, click the //AUTO// button. This is only available for Cue In, Fade Out and Cue Out. | ||
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- | Note that cue markers are not permanently preserved unless you export them to the file tag, MMD file, or a database. See the section on storing metadata below. | ||
- | ==== Mix Editor ==== | ||
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- | The Mix Editor is another way to edit the cue markers of one or more items. It is some sort of multi-track cue editor. You can open it in various ways, the easiest is to select two or more items with the mouse (hold down Shift), and then click the //Mix Editor// button in the toolbar. | ||
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- | Setting and adjusting cue markers in the Mix Editor works pretty much like the Cue Editor, just drag them around with the mouse (to set a new marker, drag it from the respective button at the lower edge of the dialog into the waveform). You can also drag the entire waveform with the mouse in order to adjust the Start Next marker of the preceding items. The Mix Editor has a built-in prelisten function, and changes you make are reflected in the audio output instantly. | ||
- | ==== Editing metadata ==== | ||
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- | When you explore the other tabs of the Properties dialog, you will find that there are many other things you can edit here. The most important tab would be the //General// tab which allows editing of the basic metadata fields like artist, title etc.: | ||
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- | Another important tab is the // | ||
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- | By default, attribute values are displayed in the //Other Attributes// | ||
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- | ==== Storing metadata ==== | ||
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- | Any changes you make in the Properties dialog, including cue markers and attributes, will be " | ||
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- | To make your metadata changes permanent, mAirList offers three ways of exporting the metadata, found in the menu that appears when you click the // | ||
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- | * **File tag**: Metadata is stored in an XML block in a hidden part of the ID3v2 tag. Only works for MP3 files, and not of the file is currently loaded into a player (the file will be locked on disk then). | ||
- | * **MMD file**: Metadata is stored in a small XML file (file extension '' | ||
- | * **Database**: | ||
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- | When you re-add the same file to the playlist or cartwall later, mAirList will detect the existing metadata and use it. | ||
===== Cartwall ===== | ===== Cartwall ===== | ||
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All logging mechanisms use a set of [[reference: | All logging mechanisms use a set of [[reference: | ||
- | There is a //Item Type// tab in the properties of any logging mechanism where you can select the type of items to be logged - e.g. to filter out any item type but music for the online playlist on your website: | + | There is an //Item Type// tab in the properties of any logging mechanism where you can select the type of items to be logged - e.g. to filter out any item type but music for the online playlist on your website: |
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tutorials/general/getting-started.txt · Last modified: 2021/07/22 08:41 by tondose