Appendix A. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
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# Appendix A. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

A.1. I can't hear any sound! I see the running red notes but there is no sound! What's wrong?
A.2. I use TiMidity but the sound is distorted and somtimes I have no sound, at all. What's wrong?
A.3. At program start it says: "Error in FT_Open_Face"! What's wrong!
A.4. I use asfxload but I get an error "sfxload: no memory left" and some instruments are missing during replay. What's wrong?
A.5. I cannot install NtEd because I have no root rights. What shall I do?
A.6. May I set lyrics as text blocks below the sheet music? How can I use the score in common texts?
A.7. During program startup I get an error: "Cannot open ALSA MIDI sequencer --> replay won't work ..."! What's wrong ?
A.8. During make step an error occurs: /bin/sh: gdk-pixbuf-csource: command not found. What's wrong ?
A.9. During configure step I get an error: "configure: error: C++ compiler cannot create executables, See `config.log' for more details.". What's wrong?

A.1. | I can't hear any sound! I see the running red notes but there is no sound! What's wrong?

This has nothing to do with NtEd! It is a problem of your MIDI device! All MIDI based applications (for instance kmid (not kmidi !!!) or pmidi) will fail!

First of all: Try to play a MIDI file with kmid (not (!!!) kmidi). As long as kmid does not produce any sound, NtEd (and any other MIDI device based software) will not produce any sound, too! The reason is: Either your soundcard has no hardware MIDI synthesizer or it has a hardware MIDI synthesizer but it is not supported by Linux.

Please refer to the ALSA project page to find out whether the midi device on your sound card is supported.

Before making a lot of effort to emulate the hardware synthesizer by software you should search for a soundfont file on the CD shipped with your soundcard. A soundfont file has the suffix `.sf2` or `.SF2`. Please make sure it is a General MIDI soundfont! If there is such a soundfont file there is a high probability you simply have to load the soundfont onto your soundcard.

To to this you need a program called asfxload. Simply type:

`asfxload` <soundfont>`.sf2`

But even if you cannot find a soundfont file on soundcard CD, you can try to download a soundfont file. I recommand the soundfont mentioned at http://alsa.opensrc.org/8MBGMSFX.SF2.

If asfxload fails your soundcard does not permit loading a soundfont.

There is still a last chance that not all needed moduls are loaded. So as a last attempt type as root:

`modprobe snd_seq_midi`

and repeat the asfxload command.

If asfxload fails again you have to emulate the hardware MIDI synthesizer by software. This works if your computer has enough performance. Windows for instances starts a soft synthesizer automatically if the hardware synthesis does not work. So, be not confused if you can play MIDI files on Windows!

Such emulation software exists for Linux, too. But it is more complicated because:

- You have to start this software "by hand".

- These software MIDI synthesizers need a so-called soundfont, a collection of sample tones of every instrument of a virtual orchestra. These soundfonts are copyrighted, i.e. actually nothing for a free system like Linux.

But there is a (relatively bulky) way! See The TiMidity server detailed instructions!

Note! There are more software synthesizers on Linux, which can be tested. Among them the FluidSynth. See http://www.linux-sound.org for a list.

### Note

You should avoid soft synthesis if the performance of your computer is too small! The antialiasing procedure (smoothing the symbols) of NtEd consumes a lot of performance, and soft synthesis, too! As a result the replay can be uneven especially during page turn over!

A.2. | I use TiMidity but the sound is distorted and somtimes I have no sound, at all. What's wrong?
| Check whether you have a command `pulseaudio`: `which pulseaudio` If you get the path of pulseaudio then follow the instructions in chapter pulseaudio
A.3. | At program start it says: "Error in FT_Open_Face"! What's wrong!
| You have not installed the program! Please type (as root): `make install` Refer also to INSTALL file shipped with the `nted-x.y.z.tgz` archive.
A.4. | I use asfxload but I get an error "sfxload: no memory left" and some instruments are missing during replay. What's wrong?

Don't believe the many rumours on different mailing lists! I have bad news for you: You have to build a new kernel. Terrible, I know! If you feel unable to do this then try to use the TiMidity server.

Otherwise download the kernel and change in

`arch/x86/include/asm/dma.h`:

`#define MAX_DMA32_PFN ((4UL * 1024 * 1024 * 1024) >> PAGE_SHIFT)`

against:

`#define MAX_DMA32_PFN ((2UL * 1024 * 1024 * 1024) >> PAGE_SHIFT)`

Then build the kernel! Refer to https://lists.ubuntu.com/archives/universe-bugs/2009-March/068812.html for more details!

A.5. | I cannot install NtEd because I have no root rights. What shall I do?

You can use the `--prefix` option to install the NtEd in an arbitrary directory below your $HOME directory. Please refer also to INSTALL file shipped with the `nted-x.y.z.tgz` archive.

Furthermore, if you want to avoid the `make install` command then set an environment variable `NTED_FONT_DIR` to the directory where the `nted/ntedfont.pfa` is situated.

For instance, assume the `ntedfont.pfa` is at `/home/smith/datafiles/nted/ntedfont.pfa` type at command prompt:

`export NTED_FONT_DIR=/home/smith/datafiles`

if you have a bash or sh shell.

If you're using a csh or tcsh type:

`setenv NTED_FONT_DIR /home/smith/datafiles`

To find out your shell type:

`echo $SHELL`

at command promt.

A.6. | May I set lyrics as text blocks below the sheet music? How can I use the score in common texts?
| This would require to write a musical score editor and a text editor! This is too complex! But have a look at: http://vsr.informatik.tu-chemnitz.de/staff/jan/nted/use_nted_in_text.xhtml There you can find some proposals about that topic.
A.7. | During program startup I get an error: "Cannot open ALSA MIDI sequencer --> replay won't work ..."! What's wrong ?
| That means you either have no ALSA sound system. Or you have an ALSA sound system but for complicated reasons your ALSA midi sequencer is not initialized. In many cases this is due to a missing module. Therefore try (as root): `modprobe snd-seq-midi` and restart NtEd.
A.8. | During make step an error occurs: `/bin/sh: gdk-pixbuf-csource: command not found`. What's wrong ?

This has to do with your PATH environment variable. Many Linuxes place the program gdk-pixbuf-csource at `/opt/gnome/bin`. Actually this should be in your PATH. But under certain circumstances this is not the case. If so then make sure `/opt/gnome/bin` is in your PATH. If you have a (t)csh shell type:

`setenv PATH "$PATH:/opt/gnome/bin"`

If you have another shell type:

`export PATH=$PATH:/opt/gnome/bin`

To determine your shell type:

`echo $SHELL`

A.9. | During configure step I get an error: "configure: error: C++ compiler cannot create executables, See `config.log' for more details.". What's wrong?
| Ok, you can inspect the `config.log`. But this is presumably superfluous, because in most cases that means: You have no C++ compiler installed.

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