Re: [webkit-dev] Adding Web MIDI API support to WebCore
(Resending to list, having some email issues…) From: ext Maciej Stachowiak mailto:m...@apple.com>> > OK, but - sending low-level MIDI commands in binary form is extremely > unlikely to be the most effective way to get music out of your sound card. > While in the past, games or audio software may have used MIDI rendered by an > internal soundcard, my > understanding is that nowadways this is almost never done. MIDI is mainly > used for truly external outputs and inputs. I believe you're referring to the general MIDI built-in synthesizer common in sound cards, which is of course there but not what I'm referring to :) You can use MIDI to control pure-software synthesizers that are connected via CoreMIDI (or other OS-specific interfaces), or to control specialized pure-software programs like Logic or Cubase. I would say that using MIDI in a mainstream way requires either specialized hardware or specialized software, though it could potentially be used completely with WebAudio to create something like a software synthesizer. Still I would have to agree that this is an obscure API, and in general I would prefer to maybe find a common place outside of the webkit project to implement random navigator.foobar APIs and have them work on top of some WebKit public APIs. ___ webkit-dev mailing list webkit-dev@lists.webkit.org http://lists.webkit.org/mailman/listinfo/webkit-dev
Re: [webkit-dev] Adding Web MIDI API support to WebCore
On Jan 19, 2013, at 11:20 AM, noam.rosent...@nokia.com wrote: > > > From: ext Maciej Stachowiak > > Is this API useful in any way for users who do not have specialized and > > somewhat uncommon hardware devices? > You don't need a particular hardware to play MIDI; only a sound card. OK, but - sending low-level MIDI commands in binary form is extremely unlikely to be the most effective way to get music out of your sound card. While in the past, games or audio software may have used MIDI rendered by an internal soundcard, my understanding is that nowadways this is almost never done. MIDI is mainly used for truly external outputs and inputs. The spec describes its own purpose like this: "The Web MIDI API is intended to enable direct access to devices that respond to MIDI - external synthesizers or lighting systems, for example, or even the software synthesizers that are built in to many common operating systems. The Web MIDI API is also explicitly designed to enable a new class of applications on the web that can respond to MIDI controller inputs - using external hardware controllers with physical buttons, knobs and sliders (as well as musical controllers like keyboard, guitar or wind instrument controllers) to control web applications." On the face of it, this sounds like a non-mainstream use case. Regards, Maciej ___ webkit-dev mailing list webkit-dev@lists.webkit.org http://lists.webkit.org/mailman/listinfo/webkit-dev
Re: [webkit-dev] Adding Web MIDI API support to WebCore
On Jan 19, 2013, at 8:56 AM, Takashi Toyoshima wrote: > Thank you everyone for your feedback. > > We realize that adding a new API is something to be considered very > carefully and know that we need to get general WebKit buy-in before > proceeding with any development here. It's very true that each new > feature has its costs and benefits. I do hope we can have some good > discussions about the idea in all its different facets, because it's > being taken very seriously in the public-audio working group: > > http://www.w3.org/TR/2012/WD-webmidi-20121025/. > > The API proposal is still in draft stage, of course I think the answers to my two earlier questions would help us understand the level of buy-in beyond the WebKit community: - Are any other browser engines planning to implement this? (I couldn't tell from looking at the public-au...@w3.org archives). - Is this API useful in any way for users who do not have specialized and somewhat uncommon hardware devices? Regards, Maciej > On Fri, Jan 18, 2013 at 7:51 PM, Takashi Toyoshima > wrote: >> Hi webkit-dev, >> >> I want to let you know that I plan to add Web MIDI API support to WebKit. >> This support will be behind the ENABLE_WEB_MIDI feature define. >> >> See the master bug for Web MIDI API: >> https://bugs.webkit.org/show_bug.cgi?id=107250 >> >> I'll enable this feature in Chromium port once the implementation >> becomes ready for that. >> >> Thanks, > ___ > webkit-dev mailing list > webkit-dev@lists.webkit.org > http://lists.webkit.org/mailman/listinfo/webkit-dev ___ webkit-dev mailing list webkit-dev@lists.webkit.org http://lists.webkit.org/mailman/listinfo/webkit-dev
Re: [webkit-dev] Adding Web MIDI API support to WebCore
Thank you everyone for your feedback. We realize that adding a new API is something to be considered very carefully and know that we need to get general WebKit buy-in before proceeding with any development here. It's very true that each new feature has its costs and benefits. I do hope we can have some good discussions about the idea in all its different facets, because it's being taken very seriously in the public-audio working group: http://www.w3.org/TR/2012/WD-webmidi-20121025/. The API proposal is still in draft stage, of course. On Fri, Jan 18, 2013 at 7:51 PM, Takashi Toyoshima wrote: > Hi webkit-dev, > > I want to let you know that I plan to add Web MIDI API support to WebKit. > This support will be behind the ENABLE_WEB_MIDI feature define. > > See the master bug for Web MIDI API: > https://bugs.webkit.org/show_bug.cgi?id=107250 > > I'll enable this feature in Chromium port once the implementation > becomes ready for that. > > Thanks, ___ webkit-dev mailing list webkit-dev@lists.webkit.org http://lists.webkit.org/mailman/listinfo/webkit-dev
Re: [webkit-dev] Adding Web MIDI API support to WebCore
On Saturday 19 January 2013, Benjamin Poulain wrote: > On Fri, Jan 18, 2013 at 3:04 PM, Levi Weintraub wrote: > > I see that this is intended to go in as a "module". My understanding is > > that concept was created to allow this sort of thing with minimal impact > > to core functionality. > > I don't think that is the concern at hand, but rather how healthy is our > Web platform. > > > MIDI is uncommon, low level, and that W3C spec does not make useful > abstractions. > There are already few native apps that use MIDI. I am curious what is > pushing for supporting MIDI on the Web. > I agree. The problem isn't even that MIDI is uncommon. The question is: Why can't this be done with more generic Web APIs, if they are not good enough, perhaps they should be improved instead of making a new very specific API. It seems from my quick reading that all Web MIDI does is probe for MIDI support and devices, and offer a way to send MIDI messages to them with a high-res timestamp. Surely this could be done using a more generic API. `Allan ___ webkit-dev mailing list webkit-dev@lists.webkit.org http://lists.webkit.org/mailman/listinfo/webkit-dev
