Auto labelling - possible?

[waxcylinder]

so 1, 2, 3, 4, ... toward infinity, but only for that project. All projects starting at "1".

+1, yes only for that project. All projects starting at "1"

What about if you add auto labels at 0, 10, 20 .... seconds (say, 32 labels)
1---------2---------3...

and then add auto labels at 5, 15, 25... seconds

Should you get:
1----33----2----34----3----35...

or
1---2----3----4----5----6...

I'd go for the former "1----33----2----34----3----35..." if you're daft enough to do that (rather than just adding 5-second auto labels in the first place ... )

If you start worrying about that you also need to worry about what if the user has already manually created numeric labels

KISS as you stated earlier (otherwise it ends up FUBAR)

Peter

[Gale Andrews]

so 1, 2, 3, 4, ... toward infinity, but only for that project. All projects starting at "1".

+1 all projects start at 1.

What about if you add auto labels at 0, 10, 20 .... seconds (say, 32 labels)
1---------2---------3...

and then add auto labels at 5, 15, 25... seconds

Should you get:
1----33----2----34----3----35...

or
1---2----3----4----5----6...

I would say 1---2----3----4----5----6 because the use case of this is probably going to result in Export Multiple. Otherwise I will have to request a feature to "sort labels".

Where will user access auto labels? If there are no options, as a toggle in Tracks Menu?

I agree with Steve that any single specification will satisfy only a minority. I stick to my previous suggestion of having a text input box for advanced users to specify what they require. Something like apps that write media files provide for determining how files should be named choosing from date, time, file metadata and so on.


Gale

[steve]

If you start worrying about that you also need to worry about what if the user has already manually created numeric labels

absolutely
I'm asking because it is far more time efficient to decide on the specification before it is designed than to design it and then argue about the specification.

[steve]

Where will user access auto labels?

It is intended as a "one click" operation, so all it requires is an option in the key binding preferences.
I realise that it would then be somewhat "hidden", but this feature has not had a large number of requests (none before Simonsmithster as far as I'm aware).

[Gale Andrews]

Where will user access auto labels?

It is intended as a "one click" operation, so all it requires is an option in the key binding preferences.
I realise that it would then be somewhat "hidden", but this feature has not had a large number of requests (none before Simonsmithster as far as I'm aware).

I suggested a toggle in Tracks Menu because if we wanted that would allow autolabel to work with Add Label At Selection as well as Add Label At Playback Position, and only costs one binding or menu item. With the toggle on, CTRL + M or CTRL + B do autolabel. I would imagine there are use cases to autolabel with Add Label At Selection.

If this is to be a new command "Autolabel at playback position" then I still think it should be in the Tracks Menu for discoverability (or perhaps in a new "Labels" menu).


Gale

[steve]

I suggested a toggle in Tracks Menu because if we wanted that would allow autolabel to work with Add Label At Selection as well as Add Label At Playback Position, and only costs one binding or menu item. With the toggle on, CTRL + M or CTRL + B do autolabel. I would imagine there are use cases to autolabel with Add Label At Selection.

If this is to be a new command "Autolabel at playback position" then I still think it should be in the Tracks Menu for discoverability (or perhaps in a new "Labels" menu).

As I wrote previously, there could be any number of "and could we just add..." features. I'm only voting +1 for the simple and basic core feature, ie. press a key and an incremented numbered label is produced.

[waxcylinder]

If this is to be a new command "Autolabel at playback position" then I still think it should be in the Tracks Menu for discoverability (or perhaps in a new "Labels" menu).

Good thinking.

Or to keep things simpler we could always just numerically autolabel with each use of Ctrl+M or Tracks>Add label at playback position - provided the user can edit those labels while recording/playing (as they can now) then they can overtype the number if they don't want it.

But for the use case of creating tracks for a CD as you record (for example when transcribing LPs or tapes) this could be very useful.

Peter

[Gale Andrews]

I suggested a toggle in Tracks Menu because if we wanted that would allow autolabel to work with Add Label At Selection as well as Add Label At Playback Position, and only costs one binding or menu item. With the toggle on, CTRL + M or CTRL + B do autolabel. I would imagine there are use cases to autolabel with Add Label At Selection.

If this is to be a new command "Autolabel at playback position" then I still think it should be in the Tracks Menu for discoverability (or perhaps in a new "Labels" menu).

As I wrote previously, there could be any number of "and could we just add..." features. I'm only voting +1 for the simple and basic core feature, ie. press a key and an incremented numbered label is produced.

Which does not solve the request that started this. If we want to save space we could add "Autolabel Options..." to the right-click label context menu for a label opened with the new key. I'm voting for options plus my idea of a text box to set custom labelling parameters.

And as I wrote previously, one key cannot both add label at playback position and at the selection position. If there is no playback, does your new key do nothing, or does it add an autolabel at the selection? Doing nothing does not seem very useful. If the new key autolabelled the selection when there was no playback, it could be a reasonable alternative to the "toggle" idea.


Gale

[Gale Andrews]

to keep things simpler we could always just numerically autolabel with each use of Ctrl+M or Tracks>Add label at playback position - provided the user can edit those labels while recording/playing (as they can now) then they can overtype the number if they don't want it.

We could, but that would require automatically selecting the autolabel text, otherwise you could not overtype by just starting to type.

Note that Bill's request specified automatically closing the label. If we also made it return focus to an audio track that would allow the convenience of the user (or us) setting an unmodifed shortcut to perform the autolabel, and avoid a fumble-fingered key press creating an unwanted label at the selection.

On the whole I'm not keen on just doing the autolabel anyway.


Gale

[steve]

I'm only voting +1 for the simple and basic core feature, ie. press a key and an incremented numbered label is produced.

Which does not solve the request that started this.

Simonsmithster wrote: "I wonder is there a function within audacity that would automatically generate and apply a label in a recording timeline? Ie I press control . And I get a label, but the label is automatically generated with a simple two or three letter string."
That seems pretty close. The only difference is whether to return a "simple two or three letter string" or to return "an incremented number".
An incremented number is not Simonsmithster's first choice, but I'm guessing that he would be happy with that, as it appears would Bill.

If there is no playback, does your new key do nothing, or does it add an autolabel at the selection? Doing nothing does not seem very useful. If the new key autolabelled the selection when there was no playback, it could be a reasonable alternative to the "toggle" idea.

Certainly "we could just add" a behaviour for when playback is stopped.
We could also "just add" an option for different coloured labels (as requested on the Pro Tools forum).
We could "just add" anything anyone wants, but if we do, will this enhancement ever see the light of day?