Path: utzoo!utgpu!watmath!clyde!att!osu-cis!tut.cis.ohio-state.edu!mailrus!jarvis.csri.toronto.edu!me!radio.astro!helios!utpsych!davidb
From: davidb@utpsych.toronto.edu (David Brodbeck)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.amiga
Subject: Re: 1.4 Hopes and Dreams
Message-ID: <1989Mar22.225808.14552@utpsych.toronto.edu>
Date: 22 Mar 89 22:58:08 GMT
References: <9526@orstcs.CS.ORST.EDU>
Reply-To: davidb@psych.toronto.edu (David Brodbeck)
Distribution: na
Organization: Psychology, U. of Toronto
Lines: 45

In article <9526@orstcs.CS.ORST.EDU> richarr@nikola.UUCP (Robert Steven Richardson) writes:
>I am sure there are far more important and pressing features to add in
>1.4 than the following suggestion, but let me qualify why I think it
>should be considered.  The Amiga is not just the best machine for many
>applications, but it is also often a FUN machine to use and tailor to
>one's personal tastes.  Bearing that in mind, here lies my suggestion:
>
>A system beep() function.  Any program calls this function, and all it
>does is play an IFF sample file stored in SYS:s/beep-sample.
>
>The volume of the beep could be adjusted in preferences, as well as   
>the default filename.  To conserve space on the workbench disk, the
>"factory shipped sample" could be a simple sawtooth wave of a short
>duration.  An ambitious user could change the beep-sample file with
>whatever they want to customize the machine.  This can already be done,
>by the way, on the MacInTrash.  So why can't we?
>
>A possible extension of the idea would be two functions:  attentionbeep()
>and  errorbeep().  You could configure these to play two different samples.
>THe first sample could be something like "Hey! I'm waiting", and the other
>could be "I'm sorry Dave, but I'm afraid I can't do that."
>
>While I'm far from a competent operating system programmer, the above
>seems fairly simple and small to implement, and could be a lot of fun
>to use.  I would be eternally grateful if this was implemented.
>
>Thanks,
>Bob Richardson
>richarr@nikola.cs.orst.edu
>220 NW 21st, Corvallis OR 97330
>503-758-5018
>
>PS: How about BSD 4.3 Unix on ROM for $39.95?  Might be popular!
>(And a C-64 version too--the CP/M cartridge is too out of date)


This beep() function idea would be admittedly frivolous but kinda cool.  
Where would space be found to store the sample (WB is pretty full now
minus the demos, though I could deal without the notepad and the
calculator.

Daveman
davidb@psych.toronto.edu
brodbeck@vm.utcs.utoronto.ca
Remember - Chickadees have episodic memory