Instructions for using
Web Audio Guru
(You must be connected to the internet
for the links to work)
You now
have the ability to easily add your MP3 files to web pages as streaming
media. To make setup as easy as possible
I’ve outline in detail exactly what is required of you. Please note that these instructions assume
you already have an MP3 file prepared.
If not, either prepare one or use an existing MP3 to practice with.
You will
also need to have the latest flash media player installed on your computer. If
you notice that the files on your local computer do not seem to work, try
updating your plugin by going to:
Macromedia
Flash Player Installation Site
Now let’s
have some fun shall we?
Setup:
1.
Unzip
the file webaudioguru.zip to an empty directory.
2.
Open
up the file called sample.html. You’ll
see all of the available players and which player name they correspond to. You’ll also find the code you need directly
below each player. Copy and paste the code from the player you want to use into
your html page. Once you’ve done that you only need to change the two
occurrences of the MP3 file from ‘yourfilename.mp3’ to the actual name of your
MP3 file. If you look at the sample.html
page you’ll see they are in bold text.
HINT: If your file is in the same directory as the player you do not need to
put anything in front of the file name.
If you’re connecting to a file in a different directory or on a different
server I recommend you use the complete url such as http://www.yourdomain.com/filename.mp3
IMPORTANT: Do not change anything else in this
code or you risk having the player not work. I also recommend that you do not
save any changes you’ve made to the original files. Instead rename them
something else. This way you’ll always have the originals to work from.
3.
Now
that you’ve gotten that taken care of, all you need to do is upload your saved web page(s) along with
the player and the MP3 file(s) you wish to stream to your visitors and then
test it out.
4.
If
something isn’t working properly make sure you double check that nothing has
been changed other than the MP3 filename and that the correct paths to the
mp3’s as well as the player are given.
5.
You
may also want to let your visitor know (a tiny link below the player) that if
they are having trouble viewing seeing or using the buttons that they may need
to update to the latest flash plugin.
The url to direct them to is: http://macromedia.com/shockwave/download/download.cgi?P1_Prod_Version=ShockwaveFlash
If you’ve
got more than one of the same player on a web page you only need to have one
copy of the actual player in the directory for them all to work. If, however,
you have more than one player you will either need to have a copy of each in
the same directory or you will need to tell your web page where to find it by
giving the web player name an url in front of it.
Play around
with it a little, and if you have any questions, please feel free to ask. I’m
more than happy to help.
When you
downloaded this package you were also provided several bonus players with
different looking buttons. If you want
to use them, follow the setup instructions above for each player. It’s all the same. Just remember not to change the originals!
Feel free
to alter the dimensions of the players to suit your needs. If you have any problems feel free to contact
me at webaudioguru@moondogpublishing.com
You are
free to use the provided shockwave files for your own personal use. You may not
give them away or alter them in any way.
Doing so would be a copyright violation and is punishable by law.
Known issues:
With this
version of Web Audio Guru multiple sound files can be played at the same time
(I'm
working on fixing this).
The MP3
files that you use should be saved at the following rate: 22050, 16bit, 56kbps or less or
you'll get
some very strange effects (too slow, too fast etc.) This is not a limitation of Web
Audio Guru,
but a limitation of macromedia flash.
The most
important part of the above is the 22050.
Otherwise, play around with the kbps to make the file size larger or
smaller. Keep in mind that with smaller
files comes poorer quality.
Have fun!
Shawn Farley
Web Audio Guru
P.S. I want
to hear about your experiences with Web Audio Guru. Send me a note at shawn@moondogpublishing.com or better
yet, send me an audio recording of how much you like Web Audio Guru. Not sure what to say? Send me an e-mail and
I’ll help you out.