Cool and Open Source Tools :Cool and Open Source Tools http://audacity.sourceforge.net/ Sound Creation and Editing with Audacity


What is Audacity? :What is Audacity? Software to create, edit and output audio Free/ Open-source software Available for Mac OS X, Windows, GNU/Linux and other operating systems See site for other operating systems Versions: Audacity 1.2.6 – stable version Audacity 1.3.3 Beta – not stable version - new features - good for advanced users


Audacity 1.2.6 :Audacity 1.2.6 We are going to work with Audacity 1.2.6


What Can I do with Audacity? :What Can I do with Audacity? Use it to: Record live audio (need a microphone) Edit ogg vorbis, mp3 and wav sound files Cut, copy, splice, and mix sound together Use other filters and effects to do advanced sound editing Output Ogg Vorbis, MP3, and WAV files


Audacity Project Ideas :Audacity Project Ideas Record an audio introduction for your online course! Create audio insights or examples for online tutorials. Offer your online lectures in mp3 format. (Pod-cast your lectures) Edit sound files for adding to PowerPoint, animations, web pages and online courses.


Project Samples :Project Samples Record a brief audio introductionand put it in your online course.


Project Samples :Create short Audio insights or examples to supplement a web page tutorial Project Samples


Project Samples :Edit or create sound effects or loops for PowerPoint, Web Pages or Online Course. Some Free Sound Effects to get you started: http://www.a1freesoundeffects.com/ http://www.flashkit.com/soundfx/ http://simplythebest.net/sounds/WAV/sound_effects_WAV/ Project Samples


Slide 9:Audacity’s Online Help Sectionhttp://audacity.sourceforge.net/help/ Frequently Asked Questions Documentation Tutorials Wiki


Audacity Help Section :Audacity’s built-in Help section will explain what each of the tools are. Audacity Help Section


Portable Applications: Audacity :Portable Applications: Audacity http://portableapps.com/ - small applications that can be downloaded and saved to a portable device, such as, a thumb drive. The application will open and run directly out of the folder/ off of the thumb drive. Requires no installation of files to the computer system. http://portableapps.com/apps/music_video/audacity_portable You’ll still need to download the mp3 file and save it to the portable application folder.


Getting Started :Getting Started Downloading Audacity: System Requirements: Windows 98, ME, 2000, XPWindows 95/ NT 4.0 - not supported Audacity runs best with at least 64 MB RAM & 300 MHz processor. http://audacity.sourceforge.net/download/


Downloading the MP3 Encoder :Downloading the MP3 Encoder Optional Downloads Are you going to create MP3 files? You’ll need the LAME MP3 encoder (download this now) ! Save the file to your Audacity folder.


LAME DOWNLOAD PAGE :LAME DOWNLOAD PAGE http://lame.buanzo.com.ar/ Click this link to start the download for Windows. Choose Save File, it’ll save the file to your downloads file by default or ask you where you want to save the file.


Installing the LAME FILE :Installing the LAME FILE “Lame_v3.98.2_for_Audacity_on_Windows.exe” file will be saved to your computer. Locate where you’ve save this file and double-click the file to run it. Click the Run button. The set-up wizard will open, click the Next> button. Read and accept the agreement and click Next> button again.


Installing the LAME FILE :Installing the LAME FILE Click Browse and Select Either the Audacity Portable folder that you downloaded from Portable Apps.com or select the Audacity folderon your hard-drive, likelyin the Programs folder. This will save the file youneed to the same folderas your Audacity application.


Installing the LAME FILE :Installing the LAME FILE Click Browse and Select Either the Audacity Portable folder that you downloaded from Portable Apps.com or select the Audacity folderon your hard-drive, likelyin the Programs folder. This will save the file youneed to the same folderas your Audacity application. Click Next> and Install. Click Finish.


Getting Started with Audacity :Getting Started with Audacity Double-click Audacity Icon to open the software. Click Edit > Choose Preferences.


Setting Preferences :Setting Preferences Edit>Preferences Audio I/O settings tab: select your speakers from the playback device drop-down. Select your microphone from the recording device (note: if you have problems getting your microphone or speakers to work; you may have to go to the control panel and Sound settings on your computer to get them working.) Quality tab:Default Sample Rate: an audio CD has a sample rate of 44,100 Hz or 44.1 kHz (this is the default) can leave defaults set


Setting Preferences :Setting Preferences Edit>Preferences File Formats tab: Under the MP3 Export Setup section at the bottom. Click Find Library button. Click Yes. We’re going to located the lame_enc.dll file that we saved to the Audacity folder earlier. Browse to your AudacityPortable folder or your Audacity folder (likely on your hard-drive and in the Programs folder). Select the lame_enc.dll and click Open.


Audacity Interface :Draw Tool This is used for modifyingindividual samples. Audacity Interface


Audacity Interface :Selection Tool You’ll use the selection tool within your audio track to place the playhead at certain points of your audio track and to select/ highlight sections of your track. Audacity Interface


Audacity Interface :Envelope Tool You’ll use this tool to select and change the volume of a certain part of your track over time. Audacity Interface


Audacity Interface :Zoom Tool Zoom in and out on the audio track. (Shift-Key to zoom out) Zoom Tools Audacity Interface


Audacity Interface :Audio Controls Play, Pause, Stop, go to the beginning, go to the end of a soundtrack. Start Recording (red circle) Audacity Interface


Audacity Interface :Main Menu This menu is used for set-up, starting a new project, applying filters and effects, etc… Audacity Interface


Audacity Interface :Edit Toolbar All of these buttons are shortcuts for actions that can also be performed using the main menu. Audacity Interface


Audacity Interface :Meter Toolbar Monitor the input and output audio levels. Audacity Interface Speaker/ Microphone volume levels


Importing/Opening a File :Importing/Opening a File Files you can open: .wav, .mp3, .aiff, .au, .ogg (if plug-in downloaded) You can copy tracks from a CD and open them Be aware of copyright if you do this! A few tips: Make a copy of your original file and open that in Audacity. Or as soon as you open the file, save it as another name. Keeping the original file may save you a headache later (especially if you plan to do a lot of editing to the file.) You should be able to play your file now.


Importing/Opening a File :Importing/Opening a File To open a file in Audacity: Select “Project”> “Import Audio” from the main menu and navigate to your file. Select it and press ok. It will open in Audacity on an “Audio Track”.


Recording a File :Recording a File Create a new project: File> New When you create a new file, Audacity always opens a new window – save this as a new project (.aup file) Saving the project file, Audacity creates an .aup file – this aup file only opens in Audacity and is your original Audacity work. Save this for more editing later and for preserving your original file. Save your project: give it a name and choose the location.


Recording a File :Recording a File Check your preferences before recording File>Preferences Make sure the recording device is set to your microphone You may have to check your connections and settings in the sound control panel. You’re ready to record: Click the Red Record button and the Yellow Stop button when you’re finished.  Save your Project File> Save Project


Editing the Audio track :Editing the Audio track The Audio Track: The title of the track Mono or Stereo Sample rate Vertical ruler Waveform Mute Solo Gain slider


Editing the Audio track :Editing the Audio track Selecting sections of the waveform.


Editing the Audio track :Editing the Audio track Cutting, Copying, and Pasting Select the section you want to edit – copy, cut and paste to a new track or the same track Project > New Audio Track


Using Filters & Effects :Using Filters & Effects The Amplify Filter: Effect > Amplify Change the volume of a selected section of your audio. Check “Don’t Allow Clipping” Keeps the audio fromgoing beyond the range of the waveform


Using Filters & Effects :Using Filters & Effects The Noise Removal File: Effect > Noise Removal Remove background noise from your recording. You first select a small sample of background noise from your track. Choose the effect and click “Get Noise Profile”. Now select all of the track that you want to remove noise from and choose the effect again. Experiment with how much noise should be removed usingthe slider.


Outputting a File :Outputting a File File> Export As… wav, mp3, ogg File>Export Selection As… wav, mp3, ogg Exporting as mp3 requires LAME Encoder plug-in Fill-out ID3 Tags for mp3


Pod Casting :Pod Casting You can just output your files to mp3 and put a link to them on your own webpage or online course for your students to download. It’s ideal to upload the mp3 files to a streaming site like www.divshare.com and use the embed code to paste in a course item in Blackboard. Pod Casting mp3 files involves uploading them to the internet and creating an RSS feed. Remember this makes your mp3 available to anyone/ everyone.


Pod Casting Resources :Pod Casting Resources http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podcasting All about podcasting http://learninginhand.com/podcasting/ http://Podcasting-Tools.com/ http://poducateme.com/ “How to create a Podcast”


Audacity Resources :Audacity Resources http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Audacity http://audacity.sourceforge.net/ http://audacity.sourceforge.net/manual-1.2/index.html http://www.agnula.org/documentation/dp_tutorials/audacity/


Contact Information :Contact Information Brandy Thatcher Instructional Media DeveloperInstructional Innovation & Faculty Development Illinois Central College bthatcher@icc.edu Good luck with your Audacity Projects !!