Maximum MIDI
By Paul Messick
Price: $49.95
1997
455 Pages
Includes CD-ROM
ISBN# 1-884777-44-9
Published by:
Manning Publications Co.
3 Lewis St.
Greenwich CT 06830
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Maximum MIDI
Music Applications in C++
reviewed by
Charlie Morris
This is a book for programmers who wish to write applications that use MIDI. The Musical Instrument Digital Interface is a system for allowing various electonic music devices to communicate. For more details see the MIDI primer over at The Tapeless Studio. Examples of an application that might use MIDI are games, instructional tools, and of course musical tools such as sequencers, composing packages, and patch editors.
November 1, 1997
Maximum MIDI is no MIDI primer, nor is it about how to use existing MIDI applications. It is about how to program applications in C++ that use MIDI. Naturally, it begins with an in-depth explanation of how MIDI works, but then proceeds into the nuts and bolts of programming.
I may as well admit that I, no programmer, made it through only the first 2 chapters before the code closed over my head, so this review must be considered only a quick overview. The book is well-written and neatly edited, and I think I can say that if you are a developer or programmer, and want to learn more about incorporating MIDI into C++ applications, you won't be disappointed with Maximum MIDI. There are lots of code examples, and several handy C and C++ routines are included on the CD-ROM.
Maximum MIDI Table of Contents:
- MIDI and Windows 95
- The Musical Instrument Digital Interface
- Using MIDI in Windows
- Sending MIDI
- Receiving MIDI
- System Exclusive Messages
- Keeping Time
- MaxMidi Synchronization
- I Want My C++
- Using the ToolKit with Microsoft Visual C++
- Handling Sysex Messages in C++
- A Simple Sequencer
- Standard MIDI Files
- Enhancing the Sequencer
- Go Forth and Write
Appendices:
- The MIDI ToolKit APIs
- MaxMidi DLL Source Code
- MaxMidi C++ Classes Source Code
- MidiSpy, SxLib, and MaxSeq Source Code
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