[Photos and Images] [Sound without Fury] [Video and Movies ] [Non-linear Navigation] [Teach Yourself]

 Sound and Audio

To work with digital audio, you need a recorder, another media capture device or an existing sound file. To get ready for editing, you need to know the format by which your audio is available. Uncompressed audio, like any other kind of uncompressed media file, is big. For web use, we often edit a file for its sound and content, then export it in a format that includes compression.

Audacity is a free, simple-to-use software for Macs or PCs used widely in the world of podcasting, audio blogging and sound on the Internet. If you use a Mac, Garageband has a built in audio editing for multiple-track podcasts that works well, too. Another good basic audio editing tool is QuickTime, the movie edit software, which can be upgraded for $29 to QuickTime Pro.

Audio capture

NEW: Recording with several mics, flash memory, under $200 http://digitalmedia.oreilly.com/2007/09/13/review-zoom-h2-surround-recorder.html

We aren't talking about recording music or natural sounds here. We are concerned with voice recordings of interviews or talking. You can record audio with many MP3 players from the iPod to the iRiver. iPod needs an external mic and only records mono, but for voice and podcasts, that's fine. There is a fine audio recorder from Olympus that costs less than $100, the WSM-300M. It has a direct USB to computer connector - all you need to get started. Later, you can get an external microphone if you like.

When you connect your recorder to computer (USB connection), make sure you have iTunes installed (Mac or PC), then your audio will open in iTunes automatically. If you download WMA files (Windows Player format) and want to easily convert them, you can use EasyWMA, which is only $10.00. "EasyWMA allows you to convert wma, wmv audio, asf and ogg vorbis files to aiff, mp3, m4a or wav so that you can play your favorite songs in iTunes or any other player on your Mac."

If you want to record ANYTHING -- like iChats, skype, even the sounds of your Mac, use Wiretap http://www.ambrosiasw.com/utilities/wiretap/ This application costs $69, but if you want to podcast or do interviews from your computer and include them in podcasts without a lot of fuss, that might be way to go for you.

Audio Formats

You can read all about audio formats, but here is a handy chart that highlights the basics:

MP3 is a codec (handles the compression and decompression of the sound file) that compresses audio files. It produces good sound quality and small file sizes. Export your edited files as .mp3 files for use in web pages. An alternative is to use QuickTime Pro to edit and output treat the file like a movie with no video stream, or output the audio as MP3.

Audio editing

Thanks to Mindy McAdams, a pro in the area of teaching multimedia, her latest on teaching audio recording and her previous quick and easy-to-use guide to editing with Audacity. We like to use QuickTime (the Pro version) to edit and format audio, too. Garageband, which is part of iLife for Mac, is a handy tool for audio-editing multiple tracks and outputing your file as a podcast. If you want to purchase iLife, be aware that Apple updates it in January. If you buy mid-year or later, you pay full price and don't get any kind of upgrade when the new version comes out.

Audio on the Web

You edited your audio and have it available an MP3 file. Once it is uploaded to a server, you can either link to the file and then play it, or you can "embed" your audio file and a player in a web page. Looking to "call it in?" Try g-cast.com and you can phone in an audio file that will be converted into MP3.

How to record a phone call using Skype

Skype is a voice over internet protocol (VOIP) client. You can use it to interview someone, and record right from Skype.

Teaching Audio

[Teaching Audio  or "How to" Vocalo]