Hi there, It seems the Mac Vs PC accessibility studio discussions are still coming up from time to time! <smile> So here's my take on it from what I have heard doing the rounds these days.
Sonar under Windows has many years of accessibility implemented by way of the free JSonar scripts, and also it has many audio effects and soft synth plugins which have been made accessible to us through the front-end mouse clicking program called Hot Spot Clicker, which very very basically, allows the user to move the mouse to desired locations within the application, and click at that spot,, all of this by attaching that function to a hotkey on the keyboard. Using this program, we can now use many plugins which make Midi with Sonar so dynamic. We can use various soft synths such as Dymension Pro,, Session drummer and SFZ; we can use effects such as the suite of Sonitus plugins including reverb, chorus, EQ and Compressors Etc. We can also use some instruments and audio effects which are not part of Sonar directly but are developed by other developers, where users of Sonar have spotted up those plugins for us and made them accessible because of Hot Spot Clicker. So that's the deal with music production accessibility under Windows. On the other hand, Pro Tools under Mac is now becoming accessible. The mac has its very own built-in screen-reader by the way, called Voice over. In manipulating the Mac operating system and other applications under the Mac, I'm told it is very intuitive. However the programmers at ProTools are trying to make pro tools accessible to Voice Over, part by part. Thus far, while it is becoming more accessible very quickly, it is still very quirky. Not only that, they are far from successful at getting Audio FX plugins and soft synth plugins to read in Voice over, and as you must know as a producer, those are what we need access to which make the difference between the average home audio enthusiast and the professional studio engineer. Apparently the reason for the lacking in Pro Tools is that many of the older Pro Tools plugins were programmed in a language not understandable by Voice over, so that Voice Over will only see a blank interface in some cases. So, While you can make basic music with ProTools and use limited effects, your ability to tweek to your liking is very limited. And of course the quirkiness of Pro tools accessibility will slow you down and reduce creativity by forcing more attention to getting around the applications, at least at this stage of their accessibility development. The Mac also comes with a standard program called Garage Band, which also allows you to record your tracks, but it uses the standard midi implementation but having some great sounds, which comes built-in, and again, while it is more accessible, is also very entry-level, with not much scope of using different soft synths, audio effects, Etc. Having said that, I must admit that Apple is really speeding ahead with their focus on accessibility, as compared to former years. However, More than this, I must mention, is that what the Mac gives us as part of their operating system in terms of accessibility via Voice Over, and what they give us in their operating system in terms of music multi-track layering software by way of Garage Band, is far, far, far, far superior to what the Windows people give us from Microsoft in their operating systems on both fronts. Windows gives us Narrator, which is the most hopeless screen-reader ever developed, and they give us no multi-track recording software. Therefore, for the new blind muso who just wants to get started, where all the basic tools are included in one place, the Mac is probably the way to go. They are far behind at the moment when it comes to the serious audio production accessibility tools in Pro Tools and especially the various instruments and effects plugins , but at the speed they are moving forward, I do not think it will take too long before they eventually catch up and even over take us in Windows. Of course, one could argue that Pro tools is the industry standards, and while some blind producers have taken the adventurous plunge, many of us prefer to stick with maximum accessibility to more effects and instruments, which, after all, is what we need to use to make our music. For me personally, the day will come when I will move over to Mac, Voice over and Pro Tools, once I have heard convincing reviews that it is on power with what we have now in Windows, thanks to JSonar, Hot Spot Clicker, and all these great people who make each plugin accessible by getting sighted help and spotting them up for us under Windows. But I think that day when Pro Tools will catch up is far away enough that I need not start holding my breath just yet. Remember that under Windows we have years ahead in mature accessibility development under Sonar and HSC, so the comparison must take that into account. It's your call, really, whether to take the plunge to the Mac side now or later. The advantage of doing it now, is that you can start on your long learning curve, so that by the time things improve with Mac Audio Plugin accessibility and Pro Tools, you should be right in the swing of things by that time. Finally, would be Nice to hear other views also, don't just take my opinion, as I am a Sonar user at the moment and have only heard great things about Mac and how things are coming along with accessibility on that front. I haven't played with it for myself. If anyone wants to discuss this further, you can talk to me on Skype. I will not be able to entertain further E-mail writing because of time limitations on my side. My Skype username is ykhandoo. Full name "Yamuna Jivana dasa". So let's talk instead. If you ad me as a contact on Skype, please mention "Audio Production Accessibility" in the "add a contact" request, so that I can recognize who is requesting me to add them. I am usually available to talk between 6 AM and 2 PM GMT while at work. Kind regards, Yamuna Jivana dasa ----- Original Message ----- From: [email protected] To: JSonar -- JAWS Scripts for Sonar list Sent: Friday, July 22, 2011 6:54 PM Subject: [Jsonar] Windows or mac? Our next purchase, after we actually purchase monitors that work and don't pop and hiss, is a new computer. Darrell is all about mac this and mac that. He says mac is best. Can I use sonar with mac? Are macs blind friendly? I tried to tell him that I didn't think mac would work well with sonar. He isn't really believing me. I'm afraid it would end up being an accessibility issue. If both of us are going to use a computer that's mostly for music... wouldn't it make sense to have something that both of us can use? So remind me again why it's better to have a desktop? Is it a hard drive issue? Would I still be using a audio interface like m audio to plug into everything? What is the difference between a computer designed for music and one that isn't? The bad thing is that I'd also have to get speakers and a monitor to clutter up my already crowded table. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ _______________________________________________ Find JSonar and Sonar FAQs, articles, guides and downloads at jsonar.org. Jsonar mailing list [email protected] http://jsonar.org/mailman/listinfo/jsonar_jsonar.org ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ No virus found in this message. Checked by AVG - www.avg.com Version: 10.0.1390 / Virus Database: 1518/3787 - Release Date: 07/25/11
_______________________________________________ Find JSonar and Sonar FAQs, articles, guides and downloads at jsonar.org. Jsonar mailing list [email protected] http://jsonar.org/mailman/listinfo/jsonar_jsonar.org
