Note: This version of the manual has been superseded.Thanks to
uncloned and
Jojo for hosting this download. They have both provided a stable site for uploading/downloading files for ModPlug and music, and i for one thank them for their contributions.
Now for the news...
OpenMPT Offline Help Manual 1.00 for MPT 1.18.02: Site 1
(Download size = 13.8 MB)
This release is 99% error-free, and includes all corrections and many of the suggestions offered by MPT users. There is a "beginner's" section (though veterans of MPT might find some nuggets of info or friendly reminders), a full Reference Section which details all of ModPlug's elements and functions, appendices ripe with lists of important go-to data, a glossary for new track composers, and a full index.
Here is a more detailed description of changes since the .85 beta OHM:
Pagination: Every page numbered. (When submitting posts about corrections, pls include the page number...)
Corrections/clarifications: Added small changes in wording throughout the manual.
Text: the overall readability has been augmented by increasing the line spacing, justifying the text, and reducing hyphenation -- except for the list paragraphs, and the Reference section excluding the Audio Reference. The idea is that the first section of the OHM should read like a schoolbook, while the Reference section should be more encyclopediac in structure. The FX commands list in Appendix A was also reworked for visual ease, and throughout the manual Channel FX commands were given the same font as the Appendix. All of these changes alone increased the page count by about 10%.
General Options: Altho i did not write up a section devoted entirely to the General Options ("miscellaneous" settings in the General tab of the Setup Options), throughout the manual i have mentioned them in relation to their subjects. For example, "Always Center Active Row" is mentioned in the paragraph on playback highlighting.
Tempo & Speed: Modes are now table-ized in a more compact form.
Instrument Import: After testing, i included a brief mention of importing SoundFont banks.
Instrument Panning: Included a mention of the concept of "pan swing" as it relates to Random Variations and Pitch-Pan.
Instrument Advanced Attributes: Included brief mention of resampling.
Folder Tree; Chapter inserted after Instruments but before Patterns, with info on the functionality of the Folder Tree.
Pattern - Order List: Included mention of contextual menu which can be used to assign patterns in the Order List.
Pattern - Note Events: Moved details of Note Stops to the Reference section on Channel Processing. The remaining table should suffice for beginners.
Sequences: Included mention of same song concept that Jojo brought up. Also mentioned limitations of playback vs. sequences.
Compatibility Export: Added a list of hacks that are not included in a Compat Export. These were verified by Jojo, who understands the code far better than i.
Known Issues: Added list of issues that MPT has with plugins or apps. Gleaned from my own experience as well as the Bug Report section of the forums.
Contributors: Special thanks given.
Reference: Added effect commands that can modify certain parameters (such as NNA control) in their respective paragraphs.
Reference - Samples Page: Reorganized and corrected, as GUI has been modified. Auto Vibrato also tested and written up, and corrected thanks to Jojo -- altho i found it didn't work QUITE as he suggested :wink:...
Reference - Instruments Page: Tested and wrote up Pitch-Tempo Lock. Wrote up subsection on the Status Bar for this page.
Reference - Soundcard Options: Researched and wrote up the settings for Resampling, including the waveform Finite Impulse Response algorithms. I will forget all this information as soon as possible (!).
Reference - Song Properties: Completed descriptions of the settings. Transferred the description of the IT "Old Effects" to the IT FX list in the appendix.
Reference - MIDI Map: Completed and moved for better page layout.
Reference - Keyboard Split: Included graphic for understanding how it works.
Reference - Other Contextual Menus: Added the complete list of contextual menu items from the Folder Tree.
Reference - Audio & MIDI: Finished the knowledge base of audio and MIDI as it relates to MPT. Heavy, some math, but very concise and pertinent info that i think will add to the not-quite-a-newbie user's knowledge for manipulating sound with ModPlug. Lots of research went into this....
Glossary: A decent list of terms that may come up for the reader, in which he may not be clear on, or in which distinctions have gone unspecified (such as "plugins" vs. "VSTs").
Appendix - FX commands: Corrections and updates made.
Index: A complete index of all subjects in the OHM. Regrettably, creating a hyperlinked index would take weeks more, and it will be very difficult when changes had to be made in the future. OpenOffice Writer has a nifty way of indexing in the structure i like, but there is no way to hyperlink the page numbers except MANUALLY linking every one of them. And when i would modify the index later, the hyperlinks would not be retained. So for now the PDF file will not have a linked index.
Table of Contents: I thought about a linked ToC, which can be more easily done with OpenOffice, but it would be rather superfluous (more work for little gain). As far as functionality, a good index beats a ToC -- all a ToC does is prepare the reader with an outline of what he's about to read; he wouldn't use it to look for detailed info. For now i will opt out on that for this release.
Printable PagesHere is a list of page ranges in case you'd like to print up only certain information from the OHM .pdf file to keep on the side as a handy reference. Remember this only applies to the OHM 1.0 -- future editions may change these pages.
Channel FX (IT/MPTM)..........140-146
Channel FX (MOD)....................130-132
Channel FX (S3M)....................137-140
Channel FX (XM).....................133-136
Clipboard (copy & paste), Reference 105-106
Compatibility Mode tables...........
Envelope Loop table.................23
General page, Reference.............60-63
Hexadecimal, interpreting...........1
Index...............................159-168
Instruments page, Reference.........73-77
Keyboard shortcuts, definitions.....151-158
Macros, Reference...................95-96
Macros, using.......................36-41
MIDI CC#s, standard.................149-150
MIDI Input, enabling................128
MIDI Output, enabling...............129
Note FX.............................148
Note Stop descriptions..............122-123
Note Stop table.....................31
Order List, using...................28-29
Pattern page, Reference.............64-65
Samples page, Reference.............69-72
Tempo Modes.........................11
Tunings, Reference..................92-93
Tunings, using......................54-56
VSTs (plugins)......................49-53
Releasing your own version of the OHMOver at the ModPlug page at sourceforge.net, the source files for the OHM can be found
here. Included in the source archive file (at the link above) are the original OpenOffice document (.odt), the Master File and its subdocuments, images used (most in .jpg format), and other files related to my research for this manual (usually encapsulated html files). If you have no use for anything other than the PDF, you can delete all the other files. I have not attempted to save the file in any format except the one in which i worked. If you don't have OpenOffice and need to access the .odt, you can download the full package at openoffice.org. It is free (it's the open-source version of Microsoft Office) but it's a hefty download.
Undoubtedly some of you may wish to translate the OHM, convert to another format, or just simply present it a different way. YOU ARE FREE TO DO SO -- this manual and all files in the archive file at the link above is open to the public to do with whatever they wish. However, i ask that, if you make changes to your copy of the archive, you rename it so as not to confuse either Googlers or future users of MPT. Also, when uploading changes to the source, DO NOT DELETE THE
SOURCE IMAGES. You may, however, update them for your own version in case of chages to the GUI or if you have a better graphic to clarify the concept even more.
For the devs and admin, any changes to MPT should be recorded in the SUBDOCS of the master file (not my completed version), and of course these changes should be included in the changelog for MPT as well, so authors of other versions of the OHM can easily keep up with updates and new features. When the OHM is updated for a coinciding release of a new MPT build, change the first line of the first subdoc to the current build version (e.g. 1.18.10 or whatever), then save the master document (OHM Master.odm) as a .pdf or .html.Which brings us to alternate versions of the OHM. I'm sure no one in these forums minds if you release your own version, but let us agree to a naming format so everyone knows which does what.
>>When providing a link to your own version of the OHM, title the file something distinctive and perhaps a bit "proprietary", such as "MPT OHM - Rakib v1.1" or "Uncloned OHM 1.2b - Professional Edition".
>>If it's a translation, make that clear also in the file name: "MPTOHM 1.0 (Espanol)" or "MPTOHM_Deutsch_jojo_v1.5" or the like.
>>If you are converting it to another format, changing the extension isn't enough. Use "ModPlug_HELPFILE_1.18" or "OHM_WindowsCHM."[/list]
The object is to differentiate other versions from the "original", "official" PDF, and if possible, to help googlers or users know what they're downloading.
I would also like to ask that if you make your release available, make it AS EASY AS POSSIBLE to download. Avoid DL sites where you have to register or which are not trustworthy (y'know, like FILEPLANET!).
For now, this brings to an end a 2-year-long project. I intend to keep up with corrections and updates, just not as often. I have devoted hundreds of hours (and fortunately no money) to its writing, and i hope it helps for years to come. I think i can see that the help manual, even the beta versions, has helped to attract a few young (or at least new) trackers to ModPlug. This was the goal -- to make using MPT as easy as possible to learn. I had about 2 years between finding MPT, and composing good tracks with it. That's WAY too long. Hopefully this manual will shorten that learning time for new composers.
I intend, however, for there to be an OHM 2.0 several months down the road, which will include:
1. A Quick-Start section, for those who'd rather not read before trying it out!!

2. A fully LINKED index (somehow!).
3. Addenda on using some of the more complex plugins with MPT (still waiting on those write-ups!).
4. Hopefully many new features that our devs have introduced.
5. Sound examples for Channel FX.
You are still free to critique this edition, but if it's really nitpicky, you might wanna do your own release of the OHM. Correctional observations are always welcome, as is praise i guess (altho i wonder how much that accomplishes! :LOL:).
Now to get back to writing MUSIC!