Cakewalk is no cakewalk. Like a lot of software, it parallels the analog rather than developing a system that is easier to use. Sure, it saves by digitalizing expensive components but overall, there is a net increase in complexity. A trained studio tech would recognize most of the features in Cakewalk and I do not mean that as a compliment. Cakewalk is so based in the analog that it even contains modules to duplicate errors that don’t exist digitally. Unless the software averts the requirement for technical knowledge, is it really progress?Sure, I’m critical, but I was not raised with or around musicians. I had to figure out every step and every note on my own, nor did I ever learn anything in school that helped me with music. Cakewalk is designed so even a dummy can get it to work. However, getting it to work well is another matter. The lyrics element uses a series of hyphens to display and scroll the words in time to the music. But it tends to follow a melody track. What if that melody track is played on bagpipes or some other instrument you don’t want?
Those people who synthesize Karaoke tracks have got to be one troop of sorry individuals. Just because there is an instrument called a vibraphone does not mean you actually use it. I chose Stafford’s “Spiders & Snakes” as my test bed as I knew the tune. The Karaoke version is played on instruments that decidedly don’t exist in the original, including the ocarina, calliope and what on Earth is a charang?
Reasoning that most music I play has a drum track, I put the lyrics into that space. I can’t explain it when sometimes the lyrics just stop displaying in the middle of a song. Take heart, less than a week ago I had no idea how these things even worked. Now I’m failing grade six instead of grade one.
News concerning the property. I received a call from Mike de Lucas, the manager of the Mardi Gras casino across the way. They have been doing construction work directly across from Forest Wally and he phoned to assure us they were aware of the need for quiet in the area. Furthermore, there had in the past been eastward facing floodlights that lit up our area and the casino had voluntarily removed them. The lot requires increased security, he explained, because people have been cutting a hole in the back fence to cross the lot. I know exactly the neighborhood he is talking about because we have never seen anyone walking across that lot in the daylight.
The casino is not doing well. According to young Eric, there has been a large turnover in management during the past weeks. I’ve been telling you their parking lot has been seriously empty for years.
Trivia. What is the bicycle land speed record set in 1973? It apparently still stands at 138.674 mph. I once did something like 24 mph on mine down a ramp and I’ll never do that again. What? You want details? Okay, I’ll be nice. It was pretty much an ordinary bicycle except for an enormous front sprocket almost the size of the tires. The bike could not be ridden less than 55 mph, so the cyclist was towed up to high speed, whence he let go of the rope and pedaled up from there. Now you know.
