Does Audacity prompt when there are updates?

[msjenyvere]

I am trying to get my public library system to install Audacity on our teen computers. We use Deep Freeze on our systems, software that returns the computer hard drives back to the "original" state after each reboot. Because of this, the IT staff is concerned about the frequency of software updates.

Can anybody tell me... does Audacity ever auto-update or prompt the user to do so? Are there updates between versions? How frequently are new versions made available?

Thanks for your help!
Jennifer
Tampa-Hillsborough County Public Libraries

[steve]

Audacity does not auto update and does not prompt the user to do so.

Version updates are rather infrequent.
Audacity 1.0 was released in June 2002
1.2.6 has been the stable version of Audacity for (I would guess) the last couple of years.
This version is no longer being developed and will be superseded by Audacity 1.4.0

Audacity 1.3.0 beta was released in November 2005.
The current beta version is 1.3.5
Audacity 1.3.x will be the basis for the next stable version (1.4.0) which will hopefully be released some time next year.

I am not a spokesperson for Audacity, just an experienced user, but I would say that if you are looking for a reliable version for computers running Windows, Audacity v.1.3.4 is probably a good bet until Audacity 1.4 is released. The reason for this recommendation is because 1.3.4 is reasonably up to date (released November last year) so it has most of the features of the latest version, and in spite of its "beta" label, it is very stable on Windows computers.

News of new releases can be found on the main Audacity web site: http://audacityteam.org/

Note that if exporting audio in MP3 format is required, it is also necessary to install LAME: http://audacityteam.org/download/lame

[msjenyvere]

thanks, Steve! That's exactly what they needed!