Section 76. Add a Third-Party Visualizer


76. Add a Third-Party Visualizer

BEFORE YOU BEGIN

38 Use the iTunes Visualizer


iTunes comes with a Visualizer whose shifting shapes present such an ever-changing array of eye candy that you might never get tired of it. However, millions of people out there are using iTunes now, and their tastes in eye candy vary. Many third-party shareware software developers have created visualizers of their own which are packaged as plug-ins , or small encapsulated pieces of software that can be easily added to iTunes to enhance its capabilities.

This task shows how you can add a third-party visualizer to iTunes using as an example G-Force by Andy O'Meara, the visualizer on which the default iTunes Visualizer was based, and which has developed many of its own distinctive behaviors and features over the years . Many iTunes' users prefer G-Force's vaster array of unique and surprising effects over iTunes' more subdued ones.

WEB RESOURCES

http://www.soundspectrum.com/

Home of G-Force, the most popular third-party visualizer plug-in for iTunes and other music players.

http://www.apple.com/downloads/macosx/ipod_itunes

The Apple Downloads site has links to many third-party visualizers, as well as other useful iTunes plug-ins. Note that not all software featured at this site is available for both Mac and Windows.


1.
Download the Third-Party Visualizer

Visit the site from which the visualizer can be obtained (SoundSpectrum in this case, http://www.soundspectrum.com); download the visualizer, which is available as a free trial version and as a registered version with more features for a small fee. Download the installer package appropriate for your system.

2.
Install the Plug-In

Follow the instructions in the downloaded folder or disk image to install the plug-in. In the case of G-Force, double-click the extracted .exe or .pkg file to run the installer program.

NOTE

You must quit iTunes before running the installer for the plug-in.

3.
Select the Third-Party Visualizer

Launch iTunes. In the Visualizer menu, you should now see a G-Force option along with the iTunes Visualizer option. Choose G-Force to switch to the newly installed visualizer.

76. Add a Third-Party Visualizer


4.
Adjust Visualizer Options

Activate the visualizer by choosing Visualizer, Turn Visualizer On or by clicking the Visualizer button in the lower-right corner of the iTunes window (see 38 Use the iTunes Visualizer ). Let it play according to its own internal scripts and heuristics; you'll probably find it entertaining enough to just leave it to its own devices.

Like the iTunes Visualizer, G-Force has a number of options you can select to customize its behavior. Some visualizers allow you to use the Options button in the upper-right corner of the iTunes' window to access their controls, but G-Force's options and help system is available only by pressing the H key. This command reveals a wealth of scripting and real-time control commands that are far beyond the scope of this bookrefer to the visualizer's own documentation for more information on how to use these controls.



iPod + iTunes for Windows and Mac in a Snap
iPod + iTunes for Windows and Mac in a Snap (2nd Edition)
ISBN: 0672328992
EAN: 2147483647
Year: 2005
Pages: 152
Authors: Brian Tiemann

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