New features in this release
- Details of all the major changes since 2.2.2 can be found in Release Notes 2.3.0.
Contents
- Scripting using Python or Perl
- Example advanced script using wxPython to create a new toolbar.
- Real time adjustment of play-at-speed.
- Spectrogram and Wave of same audio shown in the same track.
- Nyquist Effects now translatable.
- Punch and Roll
- Batch Processing
- Macros command replaces Chains
- New Tools menu
- New Save Project menu
- Scriptables added to the Extra menu
- Help Buttons
- Increased legibility of trackname display
- Half-wave option for collapsed tracks
- Sliding Stretch
- Overwriting existing projects
- Use dialog for the name of new labels
- Changed shortcuts for clip navigation
- Bug Fixes
Punch and Roll Recording
We have introduced Punch and Roll Recording into Audacity as one of our most popular and long-standing feature requests.
It is Accessed by: or more simply using its shortcut Shift + D
This enables you to to correct errors easily during the course of a recording session.
- You can stop, back up over a mistake, and continue recording, resulting in one track that eliminates the errors and is properly timed, without the use of cutting, pasting, and clip-moving commands, or mixing of multiple tracks.
- You can do rough editing as you go, with minimal interruption of your performance and less work left until afterwards.
This is likely to be very useful to voice-over artists and audiobook authors enabling them to make rapid corrections of fluffs as they progress.
See Punch and Roll Record for more details.
Batch Processing
A collection of features added to Audacity for 2.3.0 are related. They come from a project to improve batch processing. Listed here, they are described in more detail in following sections. The project led to improved:
- Macros feature (replaces Chains), for repetitive tasks that can be done without using a scripting language.
- Scripting using a scripting language such as Python running outside Audacity.
- The project led to the new tools menu, and the new Scriptables submenus with many new commands.
Macros command replaces Chains
The old Chains command (for batch processing and effect automation) has been replaced by an extended command. Macros can do everything that Chains did before, however there are now many more commands it can use - including new commands that have been created specially for batch processing.
We have changed the user interface integrating the functionality so that you now can view, edit and apply your macros from the same single dialog window, simplifying the usage of macros.
- Re-setting the parameters for commands in macros has been simplified. Now double clicking on a command in a displayed chain will pop up the parameter settings dialog for that command.
- The dialog window can be reduced in size and scope by using the button. This reduced 'Macro Palette' dialog can apply macros to your project, but does not edit them.
- Many more commands are now available to Macros. Previously the commands were mostly effects. Now nearly all menu items are included.
A new menu item has been created, with customizable tools.
- Chains feature renamed as 'Macros'.
- Extended documentation on using Macros for presets and other tasks.
- Dialogs have help buttons
- Some new prebuilt macros are available in Tools, and you can configure and add your own.
- Macros are bindable to key presses.
- New Nyquist Prompt in Tools with enhanced capabilities.
We have created a new submenu from the File Menu called Save Project
This replaces the former Save Project and Save Project As commands and these move into the new submenu. The Save Compressed Copy of Project... is also moved to the new submenu (it was in formerly).
Most importantly we have added a new command to that menu . This is the now the safe and recommended way to make a safety backup copy of a project as you work on it. This could serve either as a single backup copy of the project, or as one of several incremental copies of the project in the state it had at a particular date and time. Unlike "Save As..." using this command will leave your current project open enabling you to continue working on it.
New and submenus in the Extra menu
- 24 New functions in these menus
- These are likely to be particularly useful to VI users.
- Actions that are currently done by mouse that can now be done by keyboard.
- These function too are available from Macros.
Click Scriptables I and Scriptables II to learn more.
Help Buttons
Help buttons 
have been added to the Macros full and reduced dialogs, to some error message dialogs and to some other dialogs that did not previously have them.
Increased legibility of trackname display
Increased legibility of trackname display. the Track Name overlay now has a background.
Half-wave option for collapsed tracks
For collapsed tracks there is now an option settable in Tracks Preferences to show the upper half of the wave display only in order to show a little more detail.
Sliding Stretch replace Sliding Time Scale / Pitch Shift
The effect that was formerly named "Sliding Time Scale / Pitch Shift" has been renamed to "Sliding Stretch" for this release.
This is a simple name change, no other changes have been made to the effect. The change has been made mainly to reduce cerbosity in the menu along with an attempt to make the command name more meaningful.
Overwriting existing projects
In response to many user requests for this we have changed Audacity so that is now possible to overwrite pre-existing projects with or .
In doing so you will get the following warning message and please note that for safety reasons this warning cannot be turned off.
Use dialog for the name of new labels
There is a new option in Tracks Behaviors Preferences for: "Use dialog for the name of new label".
This is off by default, but when enabled creating a label will pop up a dialog box for you to enter the label name (rather than the default behavior of opening the new label itself for editing). When the dialog is closed, focus is returned to the track which was the focus before the dialog opened. This functionality is primarily provided to aid Visually Impaired users who use screen readers, but may be useful to normally sighted users too.
The shortcuts for clip navigation have been changed
- is now Alt + , - was Alt + P
- is now Alt + . - was Alt + N
Bug Fixes
- Windows: Queen Mary 1.7.1 Vamp plug-ins crash Audacity on opening Plug-in Manager - see bug #1244
- Inconsistent behavior when recording with a selection defined see bug #1839
- Ctrl + M does not open label for editing - see bug #1852
- Vertical Zoom in by clicking in the vertical Scale, or context menu, in waveform views is inconsistent see bug #1810
- Deletion of all tracks cannot be undone - see bug #1845
- Timer Record with a selection present can get a truncated recording with data loss - see bug #1851
- Duplicate shortcuts can be created - see bug #1786
Draggable pinned head
... a draggable pin that need not be at the center line ...
Draggable pin might make punch and roll a little more convenient and so be a good companion feature.
See Pinned Recordhead/Playhead on the Timeline page for more details
Bla, bla, blah ...
Links
> Audacity Release Notes 2.3.0 - detailed release notes for this release of Audacity
