xref: /netbsd-src/share/man/man4/midi.4 (revision 89c5a767f8fc7a4633b2d409966e2becbb98ff92)
1.\" $NetBSD: midi.4,v 1.12 1999/11/15 18:55:28 augustss Exp $
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6.\" This code is derived from software contributed to The NetBSD Foundation
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37.Dd August 6, 1998
38.Dt MIDI 4
39.Os
40.Sh NAME
41.Nm midi
42.Nd device-independent MIDI driver layer
43.Sh SYNOPSIS
44.Cd "midi* at eap?"
45.Cd "midi* at mpu?"
46.Cd "midi* at opl?"
47.Cd "midi* at pcppi?"
48.Cd "midi* at sb?"
49.\" .Cd "midi* at wss?"
50.Cd "pseudo-device sequencer"
51.Pp
52.Fd #include <sys/types.h>
53.Fd #include <sys/midiio.h>
54.Sh DESCRIPTION
55The
56.Nm
57driver provides support for various MIDI peripherals.
58It provides a uniform programming interface layer above different
59underlying MIDI hardware drivers.  The MIDI hardware can be of many
60different kinds, e.g., an external synthesizer on a MIDI port (or a serial port),
61the PC speaker, an internal FM synth, or a wavetable synth.
62.Pp
63There are two device file types available for MIDI operation:
64.Pa /dev/rmidiN ,
65and
66.Pa /dev/music .
67The
68.Pa /dev/rmidiN
69devices provides raw access to a MIDI device.  Data written is sent
70to the physical device as fast as possible and is uninterpreted.
71Reading from the device returns data as soon as it becomes available.
72A moderate amount of buffering is available both for reading and writing.
73The raw MIDI devices are mostly useful for non realtime operations, such as
74downloading patches to a device, since it is hard to get the accurate timing
75needed for quality music from a user program.  But the devices can act as
76a simple patchboard for MIDI devices.  For example, a MIDI keyboard could
77be connected to a synthesizer by the command
78.Cd "cat -u /dev/rmidi1 >/dev/rmidi2"
79.Pp
80The
81.Pa /dev/music
82device is a MIDI sequencer device.  Data sent to and from this device
83not only contains the information sent to the MIDI device, but also
84timing information.  The kernel will make sure that data is sent
85to the physical device at the indicated time.  The sequencer device
86uses the
87.Pa /dev/rmidiN
88devices internally and they are unavailable when used by the sequencer.
89.Pp
90The API for the sequencer device is binary compatible with the OSS sequencer
91interface.
92.Sh FILES
93.Bl -tag -width /dev/sequencer -compact
94.It Pa /dev/rmidiN
95.It Pa /dev/music
96.It Pa /dev/sequencer
97.El
98.Sh SEE ALSO
99.Xr audio 4 ,
100.Xr ioctl 2 ,
101.Xr midiplay 1 ,
102.Xr mpu 4 ,
103.Xr opl 4 ,
104.Xr ossaudio 3 .
105.br
106For ports using the ISA bus:
107.Xr mpu 4 ,
108.Xr pcppi 4 ,
109.Xr sb 4
110.Sh HISTORY
111The
112.Nm
113driver first appeared in
114.Nx 1.4 .
115.Sh BUGS
116This man page is very incomplete.
117.Pp
118