Date : Sat, 16 Jul 2005 12:13:18 +0100 (BST)
From : Pete Turnbull <pete@...>
Subject: Re: floppy discs
On Jul 16 2005, 11:10, Tim Fardell wrote:
> Pete Turnbull wrote:
> > On Jul 15 2005, 18:35, Tim Fardell wrote:
> >>
> >>Having said that, I still wouldn't choose it - I'd go for a
> >>low-sample-rate PCM WAV and PKZIP it.
> >
> > That's a bad idea for several reasons.
> >
> > If you stick to basic forms like
> > the original WAV format (which was essentially a byte-swapped
version
> > of the existing AIFF standard) all the standard tools can use it.
>
> Precisely. Completely agree.
>
> > Then, if you want compression, use AIFC or one of the standard
> > compression schemes built into WAV, not an external type.
>
> Well, the idea behind going for PCM WAV is that it's a very very
common format
> that almost anything can deal with.
Yes. That's what AIFF is, basically. I missed that.
> > Lastly, it's not what people are already doing.
>
> Maybe, but just because everyone does something, does that mean it's
the best
> way to do it?
Technically best? No. Most interchangeable? Probably. Think
VHS/Betamax. Lots of people use MP3s, they use one set of tools --
which admittedly typically requires an extra step to create after
capturing the digitised sound -- they're compact, you can carry them
around on an MP3 player, etc.
> My other "platform of interest" is the ZX Spectrum, and for that,
nobody
> bothers to store the original audio - we use .TAP and .TZX format
files.
>
> http://www.worldofspectrum.org/TZXformat.html
>
> I don't know if there is a similar format for Beeb tapes?
Not that I know of. But aren't those just used by emulators? You
can't use them directly with a real Spectrum. MP3s and the like are
used by people who're running real hardware, which is where this thread
started (getting a file into a real Beeb).
--
Pete Peter Turnbull
Network Manager
University of York