Hi Everyone,

After an extended beta testing phase, I'm delighted to announce the public release of reViSiT 1.6, in both Standard and Professional editions, with many, many updates and new features - and several prompted by actual scientific research!

 For Standard Users looking to upgrade to the Professional edition (and until I get a web store established), see here. 

reViSiT 1.6 includes:

• Pattern Layers (Professional Edition only) 
  As in photo editing, reViSiT now allows you to layer up to 4 patterns on top of each other. Each pattern's data is mixed together at playback, allowing you to overlay patterns on top of a base layer, dynamically replacing any data in that underneath. For example, if higher layer has any data (notes, effects, volume entries, etc.) in track 3, row 3, then reViSiT will use it instead of data in the layer below. Accordingly, the Order List (F11) now has spaces for an additional 3 pattern entries at each stage of playback. Layers can be used in many ways, such as separating patterns into melodic, harmonic and rhythmic parts (using different channels, which can then combined in the final mix) or writing a template base pattern which you can then add to or override as necessary.
  
  
• Polyphonic MIDI-triggered Patterns  (Professional Edition only) 
  With the new layer features, you can now trigger up to 4 patterns at once, the ranking of which is determined by the order in which you hit keys. This allows you to arrange and mix your song on-the-fly, by striking different chords on your MIDI keyboard. Different keys contribute different elements to the overall texture of your music. For example, C-5 could contain a harmony in C Major, whereas C#5 and D-5 contain different melodies. Similarly, E-5 and F-5 might contain percussive components that could be added, such as a bass and snare part in one, and a hi-hat or shaker part in the other. You can use the parts to jam with different arrangements or textures live, or you could use a sequencer’s MIDI editors and tracks to visually arrange your tracker song with the mouse.
  
  
• Pattern Browser (Esc in Pattern Editor) and Pattern Management  (Professional Edition only) 
  To give you a broader overview of your music, reViSiT now offers a screen showing thumbnails of patterns, with tools to manage them (move, copy, insert, delete). This should help you to move about quickly and keep track of the wider song, between episodes of low-level note editing, in the Pattern Editor. To further help you identify and remember what patterns (or layers) represent, reViSiT now allows you to use 3-letter labels in place of Pattern Index, which is set using Pattern Options (F2 in Pattern Editor), visible in the Browser, and can be used in the Order List. It is also possible to trigger pattern or song playback from the Browser, and now also the Order List itself.
   
• Significant improvements in performance and memory usage
  Among other tweaks, reViSiT now uses a more advanced memory handler for pattern data, no longer storing empty rows, tracks or patterns in memory. This can reduce the memory footprint to as little as 20mb, and should do so without significantly impacting performance, which itself has been drastically improved thanks to several tweaks of the audio engine. 
   
• Work flow improvements and other changes 
  The Order List (F11) has seen a number of improvements besides layer support. Reorder Patterns (Alt-R), so that they appear in the Pattern Editor in an order matching the Order List; use Pattern Labels (set in Pattern Options, F2 in Pattern Editor) to identify patterns and order list entries instead of remembering numbers. There's also improved cursoring in text boxes (Home, End, Ctrl-Left/Right for word skip) and improved sample waveform display. A handful of niggles and improvements have also been made, relating to window management, MIDI, 32-bit sample support, and many others - see below for a full list of changes.  
   

Downloads:

• reViSiT Standard: http://www.nashnet.co.uk/english/revisit/download.htm
• reViSiT Professional: http://www.nashnet.co.uk/experiment/download.asp

Let me know how you get along, by posting and stay tuned to the forum for news of several exciting features to appear in reViSiT during 2012...

Enjoy!
Chris

reViSiT v1.6 (* Professional Edition only)

[ADD] * Pattern Layers (mixes up to 4 patterns).
[ADD] * Polyphonic MIDI-triggered patterns.
[ADD] * Pattern Browser (Escape from Pattern Editor).
[ADD] Redesigned Order List with up to 4 entries.
[ADD] Pattern Re-order (Alt-R, in Order List).
[ADD] Pattern Labels (in Pattern Options & Order List).
[ADD] Play Pattern / Song from Cursor in Order List.
[ADD] Support for 24/32-bit floating-point WAV samples.
[ADD] Home and End cursoring in text boxes.
[ADD] Skip word/number (Ctrl-Left/Right) in text boxes.
[MOD] * Piano graphic for pattern -> pitch map.
[MOD] * Set instrument macro now affects subrows.
[MOD] Significant audio performance improvements.
[MOD] Further improved memory usage (up to 40mb less).
[MOD] Minor aesthetic changes (notably Order List, F11).
[MOD] Song Variables moved to new Pattern Browser.
[MOD] Insert next (n) inserts 0 in empty order list.
[MOD] Instrument label in toolbar updates as edited.
[MOD] Go To Pattern (in Order List) now Ctrl-G.
[MOD] Insert Next Pattern (in Order List) now Alt-N.
[MOD] Improved auto-complete for instrument labels.
[MOD] Maximum Axx resolution increased to 100.
[MOD] Improved waveform preview.
[MOD] Improved Microsoft Wave compatibility.
[MOD] Host dialogs no longer appear behind reViSiT.
[MOD] reViSiT font defaults to narrower width.
[FIX] * Note mask highlights not correct for pan/depth.
[FIX] * Subrows in newly extended pattern not accesible.
[FIX] Maximise issues on multiple monitors.
[FIX] Update icon out of position.
[FIX] Instrument names to long on MIDI import.
[FIX] Phase flipped in 32-bit int samples.
[FIX] 32-bit int samples louder than other bit depths.
[FIX] Edited instrument labels not updated in toolbar.
[FIX] Instrument list tails in Pattern Editor cut off.
[FIX] Column separators misaligned at bottom.
[FIX] Muting MIDI channels not triggering Note Offs.
[FIX] Unmuting MIDI channels leads to hanging notes.
[FIX] Pattern graphics not fully updated upon New.
[FIX] Max initial resolution reduced to 100.