User:CJWillardPryde

AUDACITY: A FREE AUDIO EDITOR AND RECORDER

Audacity 2-1-2 running on Windows10.png

Screenshot: v2.1.2

And now a brief commercial message

Who gets credit for Audacity?

Started by Dominic Mazzoni and Roger Dannenberg in the fall of 1999 at Carnegie Mellon University.
Currently 11 team members responsible for care and feeding (AKA development and support)
Scores of people outside the core team volunteer time and energy to development, translation, and bug-fixes
Audacity benefits from the work of countless others participating in projects on which the software depends for features
I helped build Audacity and SO CAN YOU!

How does Audacity get paid for?

NOT by you! Software is free and open source
Development is done by volunteers (Translation: It's paid for through the time and expertise of generous people who expect nothing in return)
Donations gladly accepted
Just enough advertising is done to "keep the lights on" (e.g., pay for bandwidth; secure namespace)

The user experience

Who's using Audacity?

NOT professional recording engineers - they're probably busy with Ableton or its highly advanced ilk
People who may have a limited budget but a wealth of... independent spirit!
People who want to do basic recording and editing (e.g., Putting lyrics over instruments; Shortening a "raw" interview)
People willing and able to "fiddle" with third-party add-ons (Read: "The more you want to do, the more computer-literate you must be")
Hardcore DIY nerds who prefer to use Linux and/or build their own features

What skills will I need?

A reasonable question to ask. And in some cases it's easily answered. This is not one of those cases.

In this case the question is akin to my asking you, "How long is a rope?" You would try not to furrow your brow as you guided me with questions of your own meant to reveal the more specific goals and requirements underlying my question.

But here's something you might consider:

If you can install software on your own, you can probably record your voice and play it back
If you can navigate online user communities, and are willing to struggle, you can probably "multi-track" and use effects
If you can answer questions for other users and point out problems, you can probably use advanced features and third party add-ons
If you can build your own drivers and features, you can probably help improve the software as a volunteer developer
If that sounds daunting, reconsider DIY; you may wish to pay for software that comes with a support contract or hire a technician

Use case scenario for linguists: Translation

Plan the interview

Identify your TO and FROM language
Choose a word/phrase for translation
Identify a willing victim... participant... interviewee... you get the idea

Obtain the audio

Sit with the interviewee and begin recording (Any device will do, but we'll assume it's your smartphone)
Ask them to translate the word/phrase you've chosen FROM language x TO language y
Explore common uses of the word and/or probe for the nuances that literal translation misses
Stop recording when you have 2 to 4 minutes of content

Play with the software

Tip: Anything in bold and italic below is language used by Audacity in the software, and is central to achieving what is described (REMINDER: A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF STRUGGLE IS INHERENT IN DIY LEARNING)

Find the import function - move your recording into Audacity
Choose a name for the project - save project as that name in a deliberate location
Play the raw clip and YOU DECIDE on key information - select and duplicate those pieces
Find the name function - change the name of each duplicated audio clip
Place tracks in desired sequence - locate move track up (or down) to achieve this
Remove unwanted empty space - select and cut are used for this purpose
Record a track explaining what your audience heard in the appropriate place - find and use add new for this
Create an MP3 containing what you want that flows logically - export audio is required (Caution: Don't forget to mute the raw/master track)
Say "Tada!" out loud

References

Oh, and here's a link back to the FNEL 382 homepage