Difference between revisions of "Application:Precorder"

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|name=Precorder
 
|name=Precorder
 
|type=webOS
 
|type=webOS
|version=Version: Alpha 0.3.5 <br />(30 Dec 2009)
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|version=Version: Alpha 0.5.3 <br />(22 Apr 2010)
 
|tag=Utilities
 
|tag=Utilities
 
|screenshot=Precorder_2009-01-12_141733.png
 
|screenshot=Precorder_2009-01-12_141733.png
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== Summary ==  
 
== Summary ==  
  
Precorder has been developed to bridge the gap between the current revision of WebOS and a future release that will enable video recording, although as of February 2010, WebOS 1.4 has been released on all major carriers which includes video recording.  It is capable of recording in multiple combinations of audio and video and includes support for using the built-in LED for lumination while recording in dark areas. Video recorded with Precorder is viewable through Palms built in video application.
+
Precorder is the next generation audio recording app that has been developed by WebOS Internals. Currently, it allows for audio capture from the built in microphone as well as through the headset. It also features a "media capture" mode, which can record virtually any audio stream that is currently playing. Future plans include bluetooth support, timer, ability to record calls, visualizations, and possibly a voice activation mode.  
 +
 
 +
Precorder uses the pulsesrc plugin directly through a gstreamer pipeline, so in theory it allows for more flexability in the future such as variable controls for stream and bitrate, various plugins for mp3. And because it uses a C based service, it can be removed with the Orange+Tap method.  
  
 
== Status ==
 
== Status ==
  
Precorder is ALPHA SOFTWARE developed primarily by ZSoc of WebOS Internals with assistance from a number of other developers (as listed in the Maintainers field in the package metadata).
+
Precorder is ALPHA SOFTWARE developed primarily by ZSoc & PuffTheMagic of WebOS Internals with assistance from a number of other developers (as listed in the Maintainers field in the package metadata). Thus, it is only available through the WebOS Internals testing feed.
 
 
It does not have a viewfinder, cause we technically do not know how to do that (yet?).
 
  
 
== Recent Changes ==
 
== Recent Changes ==
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Note that you cannot install the packages using any other method than the methods below.  Specifically, fileCoaster is not able to install these packages.
 
Note that you cannot install the packages using any other method than the methods below.  Specifically, fileCoaster is not able to install these packages.
  
=== Preware ===
+
=== Installation ===
 
 
Precorder will be added to Preware once it reaches beta status.  Until then, please use the Precorder bootstrap script.
 
 
 
=== Bootstrap Script ===
 
 
 
The easiest (and guaranteed to always be up to date) method of installing the latest packages via the precorder bootstrap script.
 
 
 
Just run the following commands on your Pre.  You can get a command line either via the Terminal application in Preware, or by an SSH connection, or by using the Linux commandline window in WebOS Quick Install.  The precorder bootstrap can also be re-run at any time to safely update Precorder to the latest alpha testing version.
 
 
 
<br>
 
mount -o remount,rw /<br>
 
rm -f precorder-bootstrap
 
<br>
 
wget http://bit.ly/precorder-bootstrap
 
<br>
 
sh precorder-bootstrap
 
  
=== WebOS Quick Install ===
+
Precorder will be added to main Preware once it reaches beta status.  Until then, please install Precorder from Preware/WOSQI using the testing feed. See [http://www.webos-internals.org/wiki/Application:Preware#Adding_Custom_Feeds] for more information on how to do add the testing feed to Preware.
 
 
If you can't use the precorder bootstrap script for some reason, you can also use the following links to download the individual packages and install them with WebOS Quick Install.  Note that these links will quickly get out of date, so please use the precorder bootstrap to always get the latest alpha testing version.
 
 
 
Note that to be able to use WebOS Quick Install to install Precorder, you must first have installed Preware on your device.  See http://install.preware.org for instructions on how to do that.  When Precorder reaches beta status, you will be able to install, update and remove the packages directly in Preware.
 
 
 
You can install the GstService ([http://ipkg.preware.org/feeds/webos-internals/testing/armv7/org.webosinternals.gstservice_0.3.5_armv7.ipk Pre] or [http://ipkg.preware.org/feeds/webos-internals/testing/armv6/org.webosinternals.gstservice_0.3.5_armv6.ipk Pixi]) and [http://ipkg.preware.org/feeds/webos-internals/testing/all/org.webosinternals.precorder_0.3.5_all.ipk Precorder] ipkg files with [http://www.webos-internals.org/wiki/Tutorials_webOS_Installing_An_Ipk#WebOS_Quick_Install_Method WebOS Quick Install]. (Note that these links may be out of date if we forget to update them every time we release a new version)
 
 
 
# Save the gstservice and and Precorder ipk's to your local computer.
 
# Install [[Tutorials_webOS_Installing_An_Ipk#WebOS_Quick_Install_Method|WebOS Quick Install]]
 
# Drag the gstservice IPK into the center of the WebOS Quick install window.
 
# Click the Install button.
 
# Drag the Precorder application ipk into the center of the WebOS Quick Install window.
 
# Click the install button.
 
  
 
== License ==
 
== License ==
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== Operating notes ==
 
== Operating notes ==
  
When precorder is first launched you will see the main screen. Only one button is currently functional.  Tapping the 'Record Now' button will begin recording video to the /media/internal location on the pre making these videos available to be copied via USB. They will be located in the root of the USB drive when connected to your computer.
+
When precorder is first launched you will see the main screen. Precorder will default to the Microphone mode. Tap the Record button to start recording audio. Once you have finished capturing, hit the Stop button. There might be a slight wait before you can hit Record again.  
=== Viewfinder ===
+
 
Note that you are not able to see the video as it is recording. There is no viewfinder.  It is currently technically infeasible to create a viewfinder (but maybe someone will work out how to do it). (For a description of why it is technically infeasible, and to make suggestions, ask questions, please see [http://www.webos-internals.org/wiki/Application_talk:Precorder#Viewfinder_discussion this section in the discussion page].)
+
Tap the Media Capture button to record currently playing audio. Note that some apps (Video, Youtube, etc) will stop playing if the card is minimized. To capture audio from these sources, you must start the recording in Precorder then switch to the other app and start playback.
=== Controls ===
+
 
When you tap the 'Record Now' button the screen will change to notify you that Precorder is currently capturing audio and video. There is a 'Stop recording' button located on the screen. Tapping this button stops the audio/video capture and returns you to the main view.
 
 
=== Customization ===
 
=== Customization ===
 
There are several features of Precorder that can be customized.  All of these settings are available via the preferences option within the Precorder menu.  The table below lists all possible preferences.  Options in bold represent defaults.
 
There are several features of Precorder that can be customized.  All of these settings are available via the preferences option within the Precorder menu.  The table below lists all possible preferences.  Options in bold represent defaults.
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{{!}}Possible Selections
 
{{!}}Possible Selections
 
{{!}}-
 
{{!}}-
{{!}}Audio Format
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{{!}}Stream Rate
{{!}}Select what format you would like the audio stream to be saved in.
+
{{!}}Select what rate you would like Precorder to record in. Anything larger than 16000 may not work.
{{!}}'''AAC''', AMRNB, MP3
+
{{!}}8000,11025,12000,'''16000''',22050
 
{{!}}-
 
{{!}}-
{{!}}Video Format
+
{{!}}Bitrate
{{!}}Select what format you would like the video stream to be saved in.
+
{{!}}Select the bitrate that the audio should be encoded in. This will determine the size of the audio file, with larger bitrates corresponding to better quality and larger filesizes.
{{!}}Mpeg-4, H.263, '''H.264/AVC'''
+
{{!}}64,'''96''',128
 
{{!}}-
 
{{!}}-
{{!}}Container
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{{!}}Quality
{{!}}Select what multimedia container the audio/video streams will be in.
+
{{!}}Adjust the quality of the audio stream. May affect encoding speed.
{{!}}'''mp4''', 3gp
+
{{!}}Best,'''Medium''',Worst
 
{{!}}-
 
{{!}}-
{{!}}Media Source
 
{{!}}What would you like Precorder to capture?
 
{{!}}Audio only, Video only, '''Both'''
 
{{!}}-
 
{{!}}Flash
 
{{!}}Would you like to use the built in LED for illumination?
 
{{!}}'''Off''', Low, Medium, High
 
 
{{!}}}
 
{{!}}}
 
</TD></TR></Table>
 
</TD></TR></Table>
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Precorder is currently in Alpha stages and as such is in a constant state of flux with new features being added and old functionality being modified.  Please use this software at your own risk.  Due to the alpha nature of the software, please check the discussion page for a more accurate list of bugs and/or feature requests.
 
Precorder is currently in Alpha stages and as such is in a constant state of flux with new features being added and old functionality being modified.  Please use this software at your own risk.  Due to the alpha nature of the software, please check the discussion page for a more accurate list of bugs and/or feature requests.
  
*First run on any phone will cause a blank output.
+
*You may have issues recording from videos. Currently, it may take up to 30 seconds to encode the audio when doing a media capture from video.
**Simply start recording, wait a moment, and stop recording, wait a moment. After that, it should be fine.
 
 
 
*Getting the video light to work may cause 2 starts. Should be a 1-time-only process.
 
*2 minute limitation of recording. Once the video hits 2 minutes, the video data is lost and outputs a blank file.
 
  
 
== Source Code ==
 
== Source Code ==

Revision as of 01:31, 23 April 2010

« Go Back to the Utilities application list
Precorder 2009-01-12 141733.png

Precorder - Version: Alpha 0.5.3
(22 Apr 2010)

Summary

Precorder is the next generation audio recording app that has been developed by WebOS Internals. Currently, it allows for audio capture from the built in microphone as well as through the headset. It also features a "media capture" mode, which can record virtually any audio stream that is currently playing. Future plans include bluetooth support, timer, ability to record calls, visualizations, and possibly a voice activation mode.

Precorder uses the pulsesrc plugin directly through a gstreamer pipeline, so in theory it allows for more flexability in the future such as variable controls for stream and bitrate, various plugins for mp3. And because it uses a C based service, it can be removed with the Orange+Tap method.

Status

Precorder is ALPHA SOFTWARE developed primarily by ZSoc & PuffTheMagic of WebOS Internals with assistance from a number of other developers (as listed in the Maintainers field in the package metadata). Thus, it is only available through the WebOS Internals testing feed.

Recent Changes

Even though Precorder in alpha state is not available for download in Preware (it will be when it goes into beta), once you install Precorder it appears in the Installed Packages section and you can see the package changelogs there.

Donations

Please see the official PreCentral thread first post at http://forums.precentral.net/2059462-post1.html for the donation link. Since this is a wiki that anyone can edit, we do not put the donation link here.

Installation

Note that you cannot install the packages using any other method than the methods below. Specifically, fileCoaster is not able to install these packages.

Installation

Precorder will be added to main Preware once it reaches beta status. Until then, please install Precorder from Preware/WOSQI using the testing feed. See [1] for more information on how to do add the testing feed to Preware.

License

The GStreamer Service package is MIT Open Source licensed. The Precorder application is GPLv2 Open Source licensed.

Operating notes

When precorder is first launched you will see the main screen. Precorder will default to the Microphone mode. Tap the Record button to start recording audio. Once you have finished capturing, hit the Stop button. There might be a slight wait before you can hit Record again.

Tap the Media Capture button to record currently playing audio. Note that some apps (Video, Youtube, etc) will stop playing if the card is minimized. To capture audio from these sources, you must start the recording in Precorder then switch to the other app and start playback.

Customization

There are several features of Precorder that can be customized. All of these settings are available via the preferences option within the Precorder menu. The table below lists all possible preferences. Options in bold represent defaults.

Option Description Possible Selections
Stream Rate Select what rate you would like Precorder to record in. Anything larger than 16000 may not work. 8000,11025,12000,16000,22050
Bitrate Select the bitrate that the audio should be encoded in. This will determine the size of the audio file, with larger bitrates corresponding to better quality and larger filesizes. 64,96,128
Quality Adjust the quality of the audio stream. May affect encoding speed. Best,Medium,Worst

Recent enhancements

0.3.5

  • Fixed the gst-launch path for webOS 1.3.5

0.3.3

  • Video player launch button now changes to "Play Last Recorded" after recording a video
  • Killswitch on card close should avoid most crashing issues
  • Minor bug fixes


0.3.0

  • LED brightness now selectable
  • Launch button added to launch video player
  • Videos now are saved in /media/internal/video


0.2.3

  • fixed css bug (correctly pushing the record button to the bottom of the screen)
  • added icon for launcher

Known bugs

Precorder is currently in Alpha stages and as such is in a constant state of flux with new features being added and old functionality being modified. Please use this software at your own risk. Due to the alpha nature of the software, please check the discussion page for a more accurate list of bugs and/or feature requests.

  • You may have issues recording from videos. Currently, it may take up to 30 seconds to encode the audio when doing a media capture from video.

Source Code

Source at git.webos-internals.org

Packages in the webos-internals testing feed

Screenshots

Precorder Main View Precorder Recording View Precorder Preferences View Precorder Finished Recording View Palm OEM video app