Apple just killed their implementation of Java on the Mac – which just happens to be the only really usable implementation of Java on the Mac. There’s no other way to say it: Java developers on the Mac have relied on Apple’s implementation, and that implementation is not moving forward with Mac OS, period. I’m […]

What if you could make any device or any software a re-programmable musical instrument, effect, or soundmaker? Your phone could be a touch-controlled effect, your tablet a sketchpad for interactive drum sequencers. Patches assembled on your desk on a computer could be taken with you in your pocket. And what if you could do all […]

I covered the OTO Machines Biscuit early this year, in particular noting the design process of creating new hardware. Hardware today is back with a vengeance, but with the flexibility of software: the gear is contained in a single object and interface, but can be upgraded just as computer code on a desktop can. Sure […]

As part of their iLife ’11 suite – US$49 or free with a new Mac – Apple announced their updated release of GarageBand. Consistent with the relationship of the two products, much of what’s here has been inherited from Apple’s flagship Logic, albeit in a simplified form that’s friendlier to newcomers. That means several of […]

Image Courtesy of Apple. Any time Apple unveils a new product, someone is likely wondering if it’s a viable choice for music. The answer on the new MacBook Air is probably yes – though for music production, even at a $999 price, you may want to sacrifice a little bit of weight for the specs […]

One of the dumbest things I heard tech pundits say this year – and more than a few did, more than a few times – was that somehow HTML5 was a threat to Adobe. The logic goes something like this: 1. Adobe makes Flash. 2. HTML5 does stuff that Flash does. 3. Apple blocks Flash […]

The radio, sound-playing object. For all the world has changed, music playing is not so radically different when you think of objects and applications. Photo (CC-BY) get directly down. Same as it ever was: With talk of the cloud, streams, special proprietary devices that pipe vendor-specific sounds to particular home stereos, intelligent, always-on access to […]

Moog Music have been busy. Yes, they’re making an iPhone app, but for hardware lovers, there’s also the Slim Phatty, a rack-sized rendition of the Little Phatty announced last week. US$849 list, fourth quarter of this year; Synthtopia reports an $800 street. What does the Slim Phatty get you? Like the Little Phatty, it’s basically […]

Since I was in Texas this weekend, I missed Synthtopia picking up an iPad example, seen below (though it’s useful to have Sam’s instructions, too). Also, our friend Joe Gore details how the whole system works with iPad, including plug-in manipulation and automatic mapping of parameters for plug-in functions. I agree; it’s nicely done. iPad […]