Disklavier

Thanks, Gene for great link to midi software for Mac.  I didn't mean to start a PC/Mac war, 
but just felt that it might not be necessary to purchase a PC to transfer midi files to a PC 
formatted disk for use with a disklavier.   

I am assuming the Mark III reads midi files as does the Mark IV.   I have found a program 
for the Mac that allows me to edit the filenames of midis on my Mac, as well as convert 
midis from SMF 0 or SMF 1.  This software is Midiswing and works on the newer OS X Mac 
system.   Editting title of song using the Midiswing software can sometimes be easier than 
doing it on the pda or tablet available on the Mark IV.  

I do have a very old PC that I used to use when converting midis for an old piano using 
Pianodisc format using Giebler software.  But as it was not connected to internet, I had to 
transfer the midis from Mac via CD's to the old PC and then convert to correct format for 
the the Piano using pianodisc floppies.  It was a pain and now find the direct transfer via 
Mac option on Disklavier IV "To/From PC" wirelessly a nice feature.  

I plan to try the direct connection of Disklavier Mark IV  via ethernet cable  to my Mac 
Portable with "sharing internet" enabled on that Mac to see if I can access the streaming 
radio midis.  Not sure if this feature will be viable and will be dependent on monthly 
service fee.   

The Giebler software however old it is, was still an easy program to use in making midis 
useable by the pianodisc systems and I found it invaluable when I owned a piano with 
pianodisc format.  

Joan


.--- In disklavier@yahoogroups.com, Gene Kennon <gkennon@...> wrote:
>
> For Mac users or those that want to be, 1) both iTunes (free) and
> SoundConverter will convert from midi to WAV (CD), 2)  for a $39 drive, Macs
> can read PC diskettes/files (midi), 3) the Disklavier will format diskettes
> in the proper format, 4) Bootcamp (free from Apple) will
> write/transfer/format files to the diskettes, 5) mtool is available in the
> public domain and on Mac download forums, and 6) ESEQ conversion for Mac is
> available at http://download.goo.ne.jp/software/category/mac/art/music/midi/
> 
> However, a good low-level programmer could make one app, or convert the
> existing group PC utilites, and obviate the above options.
> 
> 
> On 6/6/07 10:52 PM, "Mark Fontana" <mfontana@...> wrote:
> 
> >  
> >  
> >  
> > 
> > 
> > 
> > On Wed, 6 Jun 2007, Matthew Walworth wrote:
> > 
> >> > What is ridiculous is that Yamaha makes the Cadillac of pianos and
> >> > requires the Volkswagon of computers to interact with it. Joan is
> >> > absolutely correct that, while arguably necessary, the suggestion
> >> > will strike any Mac user as ridiculous.
> > 
> > Maybe I'm confused here, but I don't think Yamaha is forcing anyone to
> > use a PC.  They don't provide much in the way of tools to enhance the
> > Disklavier from EITHER platform, do they? The existing Windows tools
> > mentioned on this forum like Root-A-Ripper and dkvutils were written by
> > fellow Disklavier owners or enthusiasts, and most of them are fairly
> > old.  The Giebler utilities for Disklavier are SO old (early 1990s) that
> > the 8 MHz Mac Classic (running System 6 or System 7) was the current
> > model of Macintosh at the time!
> > 
> > One could obviate the need for a Windows PC by writing (or making it
> > worth someone's time to write) some Mac software to perform the same
> > functions as these PC utilities.  I have to believe that formatting DOS
> > floppies and reading and writing them via low-level disk access must be
> > possible on a Mac, although you might need to run the app as a
> > privileged user to do it.  Linux users can access DOS diskettes (even
> > without mounting them) using a set of command-line utilities called
> > "mtools" - perhaps this could be ported to the Mac platform, if it
> > hasn't been already?  This would give Mac users the ability to format
> > and transfer files to and from Disklavier floppies.  Command line
> > utilities to convert to and from ESEQ format would be fairly
> > straightforward to write.  The CD encoding software MID2PianoCD could be
> > ported fairly readily by someone familiar with Mac GUI programming.
> > 
> > I'm willing to help with this effort, but I don't have a Mac available
> > for development yet, and it's not my primary day-to-day platform.  But
> > as Vista appears to be the most obnoxious and bloated version of Windows
> > yet, I'm giving serious consideration to joining the Mac camp within the
> > next year or two when Microsoft begins forcing people to upgrade from
> > XP.  I should probably buy a Mac mini to play with in the meantime...
> > 
> > Mark Fontana
> > 
> >  
> >
>