I got an iPad2 last month, and I downloaded the PROGRESSION for iPad application, which appears to work nicely and gave me the idea of using Notion 3 to make chord charts for rhythm guitar chord patterns, which at least in theory should be faster than doing it with pencil and paper, except that I play a lot of patently strange chords that do not fit so well with some of the rules of the Notion3 guitar tab system, but so what . . .
It works, and I like it . . . And while it might be nice to be able to put all the notes on the virtual guitar fretboard, I can put some of the notes there and then switch to specifying the remaining notes with music notation, which works nicely and is the way I did the basic chord pattern for "(Baby You Were) Only Dreaming" (The Surf Whammys), which is the current song I am developing for the Surf Whammys' upcoming "Electric Underpants™" album, which is fabulous . . .
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NOTE: This is done entirely with music notation and virtual instruments in Notion 3, but the Notion 3 generated audio is recorded in Digital Performer 7 via ReWire as soundbites, where it is enhanced with VST effects plug-ins. Currently there are 31 instruments spread across two separate but synchronized Notion 3 scores, and one of the instruments is the Notion 3 bundled Electric Guitar (a personal favorite), but all the other instruments are IK Multimedia virtual instruments . . . ]
"(Baby You Were) Only Dreaming" (The Surf Whammys) -- Basic Rhythm Section -- MP3 (9.2MB, 281-kbps [VBR], approximately 4 minutes and 23 seconds)Fabulous! Being a longtime Apple Developer Connection (ADC) member (Mac OS and iOS), I think it is fantastic that Notion Music is focused on developing applications for the iPad, since among other things it ensures that the Mac version of NOTION will be supported and enhanced in the extreme, because there is considerable overlap in Mac OS X application and iOS application technologies, where one might expect reasonably that the overall trend is for the two platforms to continue to have as much common functionality as possible given hardware and software constraints . . .
And while some of the advanced iOS functionality might have no current application whatsoever in the Windows universe, one might expect that Microsoft eventually will do what it always does, which is to copy everything that Apple does . . .
The important aspect of the focus on iOS application development is that at least 75 percent of what is done will map directly to Mac OS X application development, and the actual percentage might be considerably higher, since overall trends strongly suggest the differences among Mac OS X and iOS technologies will decrease sooner rather than later, at least in terms of the next few years and whatever . . .
Whatever!For the Windows folks, it should be comforting to know that Microsoft pretty much owns the "touch coffee table" market, which at least suggests the possibility of a future version of NOTION that runs on a coffee table . . .
And while this might appear to be a bit beyond silly, it actually is a brilliant concept, since from the perspective of Computer Science, a coffee table is just a larger form factor of the iPad, and having a super intelligent coffee table computing device that allows one to compose music solely by touch is something I think a lot of composers will want to have, provided they can afford it . . .
Another interesting bit of information about the iPad and Windows is something a friend of mine showed me last year, which was quite mind-boggling . . .
Mind-boggling!For the most part, he has to do a lot of work in the Windows universe, as I had to do for a while, but he is intrigued by the Apple universe, so after listening to me explaining all the cool things one can do with an iPad, he got an iPad and did a bit of experimenting, which soon led to devising a way to run Windows on the iPad . . .
It requires having a web server and a bunch of other stuff, but he showed me how it works last year, and watching someone work on a virtual Windows machine while connected to the web with an AT&T wireless interface was quite fascinating . . .
Fascinating! The advantage of this is that he only has to take an iPad when he travels, since he can do development work in Windows on the iPad, which includes running Windows applications and all the development tools, since it runs on the server and the iPad simply is the user interface device, really . . .
Really! Regarding Notion 3, the reality on the Mac is that it is very stable and highly reliable once you discover the various constraints, all of which are explained in my some of my posts to this FORUM and only took me about 1,500 to 2,000 hours to discover, for sure . . .
For sure! There certainly are quite a few fascinating possibilities for extending and enhancing NOTION, some of which I have explained in my posts, and I certainly have the ability to explain them in considerably greater detail to the point of providing detailed application design specifications . . .
The information is all there, and none of it is particularly difficult to find . . . Of course, to understand everything, it helps to have a degree in Computer Science; to be proficient in relational database and application architecture, design, and programming; to be able to make sense of meta-meta-metadata; to be highly literate and numerate; to be able to play several musical instruments proficiently; to have discovered the secret to making sense of music sometime during the 1970s; and to have an extraordinarily high I. Q., but so what . . .
So what! My focus at present is on finishing all the patently silly
DISCO and
Pop songs about ladies underpants that will be on the "Electric Underpants" album, since more than anything I think the music of the second decade of the 21st century needs to include at least one album of songs about ladies underpants, which is fabulous . . .
Fabulous!