Help: help cant understand computers

Subject: help cant understand computers
From: GUEST,ruby
Date: 20 Jul 00 - 01:11 PM

okay this is gonna sound really stupid i know but im not all that good with computers and cant work it out .when i first used digital tradition on my friends computer i would search a song and get the words and the notes(is that called tablature?)and you could press a button and it would play the tune but my friend would always bring it up on screen for me as i was even more computer illiterate then than i am now .so now i can only ever get lyrics and chords and i dont understand ! any help would be really appreciated thankyou love ruby

Subject: RE: Help: help cant understand computers
From: MMario
Date: 20 Jul 00 - 02:13 PM

ruby, are you talking about HERE, at the mudcat, or when you search a downloaded copy of the Digital Tradition. They are two different beasts as to how you go about hearing things. For those songs with tunes here at the mudcat, at the bottom of the page there will be a "click here" to play, and you click it and it should play.

Subject: RE: Help: help cant understand computers
From:
Date: 20 Jul 00 - 09:31 PM

You do need some hardware and software in order to "play" computer files. Most new computer systems have them. If your computer is old, have a maven check that you have a sound card and MIDI playing software.

You need further software for seeing the "notes". By the way usually "notes" mean the standard musical notation which tells you the pitch and duration of each note. You can use this to play any musical instrument. "Tablature" tells you where to put your fingers on the instrument. There is tablature for harmonicas, keyboards, etc; but when we folkies say "tablature" we usually mean guitar tablature. Classical musicians insist upon standard musical notation; but us folkies can argue for hours as to which is better--tablature or notes.

Finally, what you say about understanding computers, Ruby. Remember what the great British scientist Heavyside said. "I don't have to understand my digestive system to enjoy a good steak."

Murray

PS There is another notation for music used on the net called "ABC". It tells you the notes to play and the duration using a different system. It is harder for a human to read; but there are computer programs that convert it to musical notation or to sound files. Their form is such that they are easy to transmit and they are pretty much independent of computer system.

Subject: RE: Help: help cant understand computers
From: Dulci46
Date: 20 Jul 00 - 09:37 PM

Where do you get the tabulature at all I've ever found is lyrics and chords and sometimes a blue clicky thing to hear it.

Subject: RE: Help: help cant understand computers
From: GUEST
Date: 20 Jul 00 - 10:30 PM

There is a reference thread at http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=21857 which should answer all your questions about printing and playing. If not just ask again here. Regards, John in Brisbane

Subject: Versions of the Digital Tradition
From: Joe Offer
Date: 20 Jul 00 - 10:33 PM

Well, I guess you could say there are five different versions of our Digital Tradition Folk Song Database.

• On the Internet, you can access the Digital Tradition here at the Mudcat Cafe by putting words from the song into the blue search box that appears on almost every page. When you get to the song, there is often a link at the bottom of the lyrics that says "click to play" (try this one and see if it will work)
• Also on the Internet, you can find a site called Yet Another Digital Tradition, which offers our tunes in various formats, including standard notation on a GIF (picture) file.
  
  In our blue search box, you'll find a dropdown menu marked "Digitrad Links" that will lead you to a link where you can download your own copy (click) of the Digital Tradition and run it on your own computer without being on the Internet.
• The DOS version of the database also runds on Windows, so it's probably the most popular version. It displays the lyrics, and it will also play the tunes of songs on all buy a few computers (it won't play on mine). You move the cursor bar down the lyrics to where it says play.exe, hit "enter", and the tune should play.
• If you have certain MacIntosh computers, you can download a spiff Mac version of the database. I've never seen it, but I understand that it displays the tune and plays it.
• Then there's the UNIX version of the database, which I know nothing about. It's in ASCII, which means it's just the text of the database without any of the fancy features.

So, that's what we have. Feel free to ask us for help.
-Joe Offer-

Subject: RE: Help: help cant understand computers
From: MMario
Date: 21 Jul 00 - 09:13 AM

Dear Sandy Claws....Thank you for JOEOFFER who can put into words how to do all the stuff we need to