Macros

Peter 23Jan13 Nomenclature: I created this page with the title "Chains - for batch processing" - in an email Gale suggested ths similar "Chains (for batch processing). My original choice was the simpler "Chains" - Gale commented that "Chains of effects are advanced terminology ... this I think is the very reason the page was called Batch Processing in the first place" and "Is it not also true that many of the Forum questions about our Chains feature are expressed using "batch" terminology?"

• Ed 6Feb13: maybe I'm repeating myself - I think that page titles should be in title case (Chains - for Batch Processing; Chains - for Effect Automation and Batch Processing etc. - removed to the numbered bullets as it made it hard to vote

Peter 6Feb13 Possible page titles (note this page is designed to repace the current Batch Processing page):

• Chains with a tagline on the front page link: "for batch processing")
• Chains with a tagline on the front page link: "for batch processing and macros")
• Chains of effects with a tagline on the front page link: "for batch processing")
• Chains of effects with a tagline on the front page link: "for batch processing and macros")
• Chains - for batch processing
• Chains - for batch processing and macros
• Chains (for batch processing)
• Chains (for batch processing and macros)
• Chains of effects - for batch processing
• Chains of effects - for batch processing and macros
• Chains of effects (for batch processing)
• Chains of effects (for batch processing and macros)

• Chains - for effect automation and batch processing

• Ed +1 (or swap the referents: "Chains - for batch processing and effect automation"

• Chains - for effect automation or batch processing
• Chains - for batch processing and effects automation
  • Peter 7Feb13: +1 (I'm assuming based on Gale's and Ed's comments that this is likely to be the prefered title)
• Chains - for batch processing and effects sequences

Peter 6Feb13 Question: are search engines more likely to pick up on "batch processing" if we embed that in the page title rather than just carry it in the page and on the front page tagline?

• Gale 06Feb13: Yes. If we've decided to refer to both use cases in the title, I don't think "macros" is a good choice for the most naïve users. I think "and" is better than "or" given a "batch processing" could include long effects sequences even if it often doesn't.
  • Gale (later):. I prefer "batch processing" first as in "Chains - for batch processing and effects automation" ("batch processing" being more common and familiar to the naïve than "effects automation"). I think "effects" should be plural, not singular.
    • Peter 7Feb13: I've un-bolded the no-hopers and outsider candidates.

A "Chain" is a sequence of pre-set automated commands (mainly effects) that you can to apply to audio. Any built-in or Nyquist effect shown in the Effect Menu can be added to a chain. An Export command (four are available - 16-bit WAV, MP3, FLAC & OGG) is required to save an audio file.

The two uses of Chains are for batch processing and for effects automation.

The two uses for Chains

Peter 7Feb13: Just why do the H3 headers come out so much bolder and stronger than the H2s? Surely that;s the wrong way around?

• Gale 07Feb13: Because that's what the CSS says:

h3, h4, h5, h6 {
	border-bottom: none;
	font-weight: bold;
}

If you want something else I suggest you raise it on -manual.

Batch Processing

Batch processing in Audacity is effected by applying a chain of effects in preset order on a number of imported audio files, this can save time and repetitive effort.

Example of typical usage: Compressing the dynamic range of a number of WAV files, then converting them to MP3

Ed 6Feb13: one item does not make a bulleted list; I would like to see one or two more simple examples and then the bulleted list would make sense, otherwise, use a colon instead of an asterisk.

Effects automation

You can directly apply a chain of effects to tracks in the active Audacity project window. If you repeatedly use the same set of effects to process your projects this can help to ensure consistent processing (also saves time and repetitive effort).

Example of typical usage: Noise removal, bass boosting then normalizing a track or tracks in a project.

Peter 6Feb13: I'm not wedded to the use of the word "Macro" here, but I struggled to think of an alternative. It did mean that I had to give that brief expanation of what a macro is in its original IT usage. Usable alternative suggestions warmly welcomed.

• Update: Gale's latest suggestion for page titles leads me to think the "Effect automation" may be much prefererrable to Macro.
  
• Ed 6Feb13: I really do not think the parenthetical italicized sentence "This is similar to the usage of macros in IT ... task less tedious." adds anything here other than confusion. "effect automation" works for me
  
• Ed 6Feb13: Again, one item does not make a bulleted list, either expand the list or get rid of the bullet.
  • Peter 7Feb13: changed the title of this section - so now there is no need to explain what macros are in programming - removed the redundant sentence.

Workflow

There are two Chain commands in the File Menu, Edit Chains and Apply Chain. The workflow is:

1. First, use File > Edit Chains... to create a new Chain or to edit an existing Chain (if required)
2. Second, use File > Apply Chain... to select one of the existing chains and apply it to:
   • the project in the current window (this is essentially a method of effects automation) or
   • a selected list of external audio files (this is essentially an unattended batch processing of many individual items).

Edit Chains

Enables you to either edit, remove or rename existing Chains, or add a new Chain. The Chain can include a number of common Audacity functions and effects to be executed in any order you specify. In many cases, the parameters for each command in the Chain can be specified within the Edit Chains window.

Ed 6Feb13: the above final sentence "Any built-in…save an audio file." is redundant - a direct (before I changed it) quote from the intro; I also think that it is slightly misleading or confusing which is why I changed the intro.

• Peter 7Feb13: agree, removed.

Accessed by: File > Edit Chains...

The left hand box in the dialog box (labeled Chains) Chains contains a list of already defined chains. You can define the name of a new chain and select which chain is active by using the Add, Remove and Rename buttons.

The right hand box (labeled Chain) lists the ordered sequence of commands for the chain selected in the "Chains" box on the left. Here you can add or remove commands for the selected chain, change the order in which the commands execute in the chain, or edit the parameters for some effects in the chain.

For further details see the Edit Chains page.

Apply Chain

Enables you to select a Chain and apply it to either the entirety of the current project, to a single audio file or to a group of specifically selected audio files in a single directory.

Accessed by: File > Apply Chain...

The dialog window contains the list of all your current chains. Use left-click (or use the Up or Down arrow on the keyboard) to select the Chain you want to apply.

Then use the Apply to Current Project button for effects automation or the Apply to Files button to apply the selected chain to a set of files which you select (ou must have a new, empty Audacity Project window open to use this option).

For more details see the Apply Chain page.