Get error message when I use save as...

[JaZZedUp]

I too am getting this error message but I have not tried the work around that has been stated above. I am using 1.3.9 (Beta) Unicode on a Win2k laptop.

What I have done instead is to "save as compressed project" which works by compressing each track into an Ogg Vorbis file format. It then at least is retrievable but I'm not sure how much this lossy compression compromises the source audio.

What I have noticed is that even when it fails, it still rights the directory "songname_data" before reporting that the disk is full or write protected (which of course it is neither). The directory is created but it remains empty and the the .aup file never gets created.

[kozikowski]

<<<the disk is full or write protected>>>

That's the error you get when you use bad filenames. Upper and lower case letters, numbers, underscore and dash. That's the whole list. No dates, no slash marks, no punctuation. I have to move files around a large company, so I don't use spaces, either.

FX-VoiceCapture_20090913.wav

Koz

[JaZZedUp]

Thanks Koz,
I was saving the projects in C:Program FilesAudacity 1.3 Beta (Unicode)ProjectsSong NameSong Name.aup

The results that I was getting was intermittent and I don't think that I had any strange punctuation beyond the "space" between words. I did use Caps and lowercase though. I've since moved (copied) the files over to C:Documents and SettingsMyNameMy DocumentsAudacityProjectsSong Name

So just relocating the files to this new directory structure allowed me to open the Ogg/Vorbus compressed project files and then save the project into the "native" file format. This would indicate to me that the pathname with the word (Unicode) might have been the problem as the Song Names didn't change. The problem though shouldn't have been intermittent if that was the issue, as the pathname remained consistent across all saved projects.

I will be continuing adding projects to the new path and update the listserv when and if the problem returns.

[Sparky26]

I am new to Audacity - today. I am recording some voiceover work for a wed training demo. I am trying to Export > Save as > and the only file types I get in the drop-dwon box is " . XML" any advice ? I need to save as a .WAV file. am I mising something in my preferences? Am I missing some sort of file to process/save as .WAV?

Thanks.

Paula

[Gale Andrews]

Just relocating the files to this new directory structure allowed me to open the Ogg/Vorbus compressed project files and then save the project into the "native" file format. This would indicate to me that the pathname with the word (Unicode) might have been the problem as the Song Names didn't change. The problem though shouldn't have been intermittent if that was the issue, as the pathname remained consistent across all saved projects.

We don't believe the path name is the issue, but moving the data (for example by coping to a new project window) is key to the workaround. As we've asked several times, we need a copy of the project (.aup file and _data folder or temporary folder) at the time the saving fails in order to figure out the problem. Please see the instructions earlier in this topic.

Audacity 1.3 is a Unicode program and supports use of Unicode characters that are legal and supported as file name characters in the operating system. On Windows, which is more restrictive in this regard than Linux and Mac, these characters cannot be used in file and folder names:

/ : * ? " < > |

If you are saving audio or project files for your own use (not sending them to other users, or distributing them via e-mail or the internet) there is no reason whatsoever you cannot use spaces or brackets ( ) in the file or folder name.

I agree that (for example) using Export Multiple in Audacity 1.2 with system-illegal characters in the track or label names can give "disk full/write-protected" errors. However 1.3 has had detection for system-illegal file names in export multiple for some time. Try putting ? in a label then export multiple in 1.3.9 on Windows and you will get a dialogue that asks you to choose a valid character. Unfortunately when doing normal single export or saving a project there is no dialogue yet when you enter certain illegal characters, it just pushes you straight back to the export or save dialogue. But it won't let you save with that illegal character.

So while what Koz says about restricting your choice of file name characters is good advice to make the file portable, and is essential for 1.2, it does not apply to 1.3 so please let's understand this now. If you use an alphanumeric character or a punctuation mark that you would normally use for your particular language, including Russian characters like ывщш or East Asian characters, it is not a problem for Audacity 1.3 providing you use a character that the operating system supports in file names, and providing you use the files on your own machine. If you find an instance where it is a problem, tell us about it and we'll fix it.

As for the OGG compressed project files, they are slightly lossy, so if you save a compressed project, reopen it, resave as a compressed project then re-open that, you will get cumulative loss of fidelity (even though when Audacity re-opens the compressed project it decompresses the audio).


Gale

[Gale Andrews]

I am new to Audacity - today. I am recording some voiceover work for a wed training demo. I am trying to Export > Save as > and the only file types I get in the drop-dwon box is " . XML" any advice ? I need to save as a .WAV file. am I mising something in my preferences? Am I missing some sort of file to process/save as .WAV?

The question you are asking is not about "is disk full or protected" error messages. To save confusion it is always best to start a fresh topic with a relevant subject, unless you are 100% sure you have a comment or question that is relevant to the topic you are posting to, and you are on *exactly* the same operating system as the other users in that topic.

In current Audacity 1.3 versions, the Metadata Editor appears before the Export window instead of after it. This point is noted in the 1.3.9 Release Notes.

Note the Metadata Editor appears when exporting to any format, not just to MP3. After the Metadata Editor appears, simply enter the metadata you require (if any), then click OK and the
Export Window will appear. Please feel free to browse the draft Manual for 1.3.9 to learn more about this version.

If you do not use metadata, you can go to the Libraries tab of Preferences and uncheck "Show Metadata Editor prior to export step". Then the export commands will go straight to the Export dialogue. Preferences are at the bottom of the Edit menu.


Gale

[Gale Andrews]

Going back to the topic error (disk full/not writable when saving a project), I think we've worked out that having a completely silent track (or a track containing a blockfile that is nothing but absolute silence) may trigger the error. These conditions do not reproduce the error with 100% reliability, though.

Having a blockfile that is is nothing but absolute silence means that at Audacity default settings of 32-bit quality/44100 Hz, at least 6 seconds of audio would be absolute silence. If you receive the error with no absolute silences in the audio, we'd be especially interested in a copy of the project file and _data folder (assuming you otherwise have space and permissions to save the project of course).



Gale

[Gale Andrews]

We've now got a fix in place in our 1.3.10 Alpha Nightly Builds so that the project saving problems we could reproduce where there was silence in the project have been fixed.

So if you encounter a false error with the disk being "full/not writable" please try the Nightly Build. If that build still gives these spurious errors, please send us the .aup file and _data folder.

Thanks



Gale

[saulecker]

I ran into this too and the fix for me was to go into the preferences and change the directory to something other than the default temp directory. Personally I chose my recording directory and created a new folder there called temp. Since making that change I haven't had this problem.

[Gale Andrews]

I ran into this too and the fix for me was to go into the preferences and change the directory to something other than the default temp directory. Personally I chose my recording directory and created a new folder there called temp. Since making that change I haven't had this problem.

OK, so if you don't mind experimenting, does the Nightly Build (1.3.10 Alpha) have the same issue if you reset the 1.3 .cfg Preferences file, so that the default temporary location is used?

To use the Nightly Build, extract the contents of the zip to a new folder and double-click audacity.exe from that new folder to launch it. It will not affect any installation of 1.3.9 you may have.

We're not saying we have completely fixed this yet, we don't know. But we can't fix it further unless someone finds steps to reproduce the issue in 1.3.10 and sends us the project file and _data folder.

Thanks


Gale