Missing Audio

[melvoid]

I recently did a bit of housekeeping on my computer. I moved some stuff and resaved. Suddenly, I'm missing bits of audio within a project. The visual waveform is there, but the audio is gone.

I seem to remember a setting in Preferences somewhere that can keep this from happening, but is there a way to get it to find that missing audio?

thanks

[steve]

Audacity Projects are made of two parts:
1) The .AUP file
2) The audio data.

The .AUP file does not contain any audio. It is like a "score" that arranges all of the data fragments to create the project.
The audio data may either be in the project "_data" folder, or may be external to the project.

When you record something, the audio data is always placed in the "_data" folder.
When you import a compressed audio file (such as an MP3 file), the audio data is always placed in the "_data" folder.

When you import a uncompressed audio file (such as a WAV file) the audio may be copied in the "_data" folder, or it may be used directly from its current location on your computer system. This depends on whether you have the setting "Edit menu > Preferences > File Formats > Make a copy of the file before editing (safer)" selected.

To get the audio back into your project you need to replace all of the audio data that is used by the project into its original location.

For more information see here: http://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/File_Management_Tips

On this forum we always advise people "don't delete or move anything until your project is complete and safely exported as a WAV file".

[whomper]

....
.. is there a way to get it to find that missing audio?
thanks

maybe
search for *.au* in your pc
move all the files back to where they used to be
or
move them all to one folder
edit the aup to point to the new au location

[steve]

maybe
search for *.au* in your pc

The missing audio data may not be .au files
(see here: http://wiki.audacityteam.org/wiki/File_Management_Tips )

or
move them all to one folder
edit the aup to point to the new au location

Is there a tutorial for how to do that, or are you going to provide step by step instructions?
Yes that is possible, but it could involve hours of editing hundreds of lines of XML and has to be done perfectly or there's no show.

[whomper]

didnt say it would be easy
but if you are desperate to get to the data...

far better to move back where it came from
than export to a new directory

i will see if i can recall how i did it
the time i screwed up like this
and write up the steps