tektracker (ttrk)
ttrk is the product of frustration with bad step editors found on pretty much all MIDI sequencers available today. I'm a big fan of trackers, and I wanted to be able to compose MIDI music using a tracker paradigm.
There are five main goals of ttrk:
- Tracker-style step editor, think ScreamTracker3.
- Pattern based sequencer.
- Big, accessable track mute buttons, think Alesis MMT8.
- Realtime editing, never need to push stop.
- All functions directly accessable from the keyboard for rapid editing.
ttrk started in the spring of 1999 as a Qt application. I used it to record a bunch of songs (http://mp3.com/bitblit) and some live shows, but it was very much hacked together based on what I needed at the time. Keeping a GUI app up to date is a pain in the ass, and ttrk has been in need of a rewrite ever since.
The urge to create a console version was two-fold:
- I wanted to use my old computer as a dedicated sequencer, and it doesn't run X.
- To create a sequencer, you need to run as root. I don't like running big X apps as root.
There are some files to help you use ttrk:
- docs/keys.txt Detailed explanation of all keyboard commands.
- docs/usage.txt Detailed notes on how to use ttrk.
I hope that this application will be of some use to you. If you find any bugs or have any suggestions, please let me know.
Billy Biggs
ttrk@dumbterm.net
Feb 2001