Feature request for light keyboards

[Alex P]

Hi,

first of all, a big thank you for piano booster. I am loving it! :D

Next, the feature request: I own a Casio Light Keyboard. Every key has a red light that get turned on when you press the key, or flashes a short time before the note when you enter "learning mode" with the loaded songs.

I noticed that using pianobooster with MIDI out to the keyboard lights the keys excalty when they should be pressed, I had an idea for a new feature: why not send a MIDI event slightly before the note so to light the (next) key? :)

This feature should be activatable only when the main MIDI out is set to fsynth/timidity or an external expander, so to not play the note beforehand.

Summarizing, it should just play the same midi track/channel but 2-400 ms before the "official" one on a different MIDI out.

Thanks again for your software!
ye.

[Louis B.]

 Thanks for your suggestion but since I don't own a Casio key board I probably won't implement this feature. It is Open Source so you or others have the freedom to make the changes your self. You could also try using a midi sequencer and edit the midi file your self to copy and time shift the piano part as required to make your keyboard light light up early. I am interested to know that the lights work for you though.

However I have just completed something you may find more useful for beginners and that is to name the notes. One of the key skills in learning to sight read music is to keep your eye on the score and not to constantly look down at your hands. If you add a strip labeling the notes like this one




Naming the notes should help with this skill as you can key your eye on the score. Are you are on Linux if you are you should be able you compile the latest code from svn and see if that meets your needs?


svn co https://pianobooster.svn.sourceforge.net/svnroot/pianobooster/trunk/PianoBooster

 If you do try this code can you please let me know if this works OK for you.

Louis