Music Factory
by Widgit Software
AT LAST!! An age appropriate fun activity for older students - making computer generated music with full switch access!
Music Factory was such a hit at the Spectronics and Zygo Australia Assistive Technology Summits at the end of 2000 – we could hardly wait to have it in our hands! Many Summit delegates wanted to play with it themselves and commented that their own teenage children (with disabilities and without) would love to spend hours with the program. So we are very happy to announce that it has arrived in Australia now!
This program is about listening to sounds and building your own music from pre-defined sound clips. Most students enjoy making music, particularly when they can be confident the results will be excellent. This program provides melodies, riffs and rhythmic patterns which can be combined in thousands of ways from simple to complex. Clever programming by Widgit Software ensures that any combination will always work and sound great! A variety of styles provides something for every age group.
Make your own music in real time without help from others!
- Start with one or two instruments
- Play the patterns sequentially
- Add different types of sounds – choose your instruments and build up parts at a time
- Listen carefully to how the different sounds and instruments fit together
- Choose different combinations of instruments
- Make chord changes
- Program your own chord sequences alongside the music
- Alter the tempo
- Add drum fills
Build and record compositions
Flip between real-time mode and composition, listen and then record.
- Choose the music you want from several styles including Reggae, Blues, Techno, Salsa, Waltz and others
- Choose the instruments or sounds to suit your mood
- Choose the sound elements for each instrument
Watch your composition scroll as it is played, then save and edit your compositions, and just have fun with the music!!
Access Options
Several alternate access options are built into the program, including operation of all program features via single switch or two switch access. The switch control menu allows you to set the switch connection, number of switches and the scanning rate.
IntelliKeys overlay files are provided on the Music Factory CD – ready to be printed out. Overlay Sender and Overlay Printer are also supplied with the program, so you are able to fully control all features of the program from an IntelliKeys USB keyboard without needing to own the full Overlay Maker program.
- Large clear icons for mouse and trackball
- Switch access for users with physical difficulties
- Keyboard access as an alternative to mouse
- Overlay Keyboard and IntelliKeys overlays
- Save all you settings for different users
- touch screen for direct access
Watch the Widgit website for additional music styles which will be available for download in the near future. You will simply need your Music Factory registration number to download the files.
A demonstration version of Music Factory is now available for download from the Widgit website too. This demonstration copy will give you a feel for this fun program – but you will be limited to using only one of the music sets (reggae) built into the full program.
A Network Version of the program is also available now. The network version comes with an unlimited site licence and offers the advantage of not requiring that the CD be in the CD-ROM drive of the computer to run the program. The single user version of Music Factory, however, needs to be installed individually on the machine of each user, and the CD is required in the machine to run the program.
Requirements and ResourcesexpandClick to collapse
Music Factory is written using Microsoft DirectX technologies. For optimum speed and appearance it requires the following recommended computer specifications.
- Multimedia PC with CD ROM
- Windows 95 or higher or Windows NT4 plus, including XP
- Pentium Processor 200MHz (300 MHz recommended)
- 32 MB RAM
- Sound Card – Microsoft DirectX compatible
- 1MB SVGA Video Card (2MB recommended)
- And good quality computer speakers will enhance the fun!
View/Download
- Music Factory User Manual (pdf 372 KB)
- Music Factory Demo (11 MB)
- Widgit Software Solutions for Inclusion and Special Educational Needs (4.6 MB)
Visit
Music Factory is targeted at the following age ranges:
- All Ages
Music Factory is designed to foster development in the areas of:
- Switch use
- Music
- Cause-and-effect
- Switch timing
- Choosing with a switch
Users can access Music Factory in the following ways:
- Mouse/ Trackball/ Joystick
- Keyboard
- IntelliKeys
- Touchscreen
- Single Switch
- Multiple Switches
For more information on "Music Factory" read the following articles:
For answers to Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) and technical support visit:
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