What's new in this version

16-bit sampling

Audio Notes Recorder now offers you higher recording quality through 16-bit sampling. Pay attention to bit-depth parameter when creating new cassette files for recording. Older versions of the program did not have it because they could only do 8-bit sampling. Of course, if you choose 16-bit sampling then the same length of recording takes double space in a cassette file comparing to 8-bit sampling.

What was new in version 6.3

Compatibility with Vista's Sound and Volume Mixer dialogs

Vista handles audio in somewhat different way than previous versions of Windows. Most notably each audio program installed on the computer got its own volume slider in Volume Mixer dialog. Audio Notes Recorder is now fully compatible with all those changes so you can use it on Vista computers without problems.

What was new in version 6.2

Sound effects available for export/send

When you want to export a recording or send it by email from the program you can now apply sound effects at the same time. You should simply enable "Apply Sound Effects" in the Export Options dialog you get at the beginnig of the export/send process. Please note that if none of the effects is enabled then this option will not be available.

Run without tray icon

If you want to run Audio Notes Recorder without its icon being placed in the tray area of the taskbar simply enable "Run without Tray Icon" option that is available on the General tab of the program's Settings/Options dialog.

What was new in version 6.1

Live control for sound effects

This version of the program allows you to change sound effect parameters during playback. Simply bring up the effects dialog (Settings - Effects - Controls, or directly through Alt-F keyboard shortcut), change  parameters you want and click Apply for immediate effect.

What was new in version 6.0

Playback sound effects

Four sound effects are now available for playback: echo, equalizer, flanger and pitch. Each effect has its own controls and parameters. To access them simply click Settings and choose an effect from the list of Effects. You can use any number of effects at the same time.

What was new in version 5.9

Split message option

This is a new option of the message editor. It allows you to split a message in two or three parts depending on positions of cut markers. So, usage is pretty much the same as when you are making cut-outs, but with this option nothing is discarded, the message is just replaced with two or three messages derived from it. To access the message editor right click on the ticker area of the program's front panel and choose Edit Message.

What was new in version 5.8

Appending messages from one cassette file to another

To access this new option right click on the ticker area and choose Rearrange Cassette. Then click on Append to Existing Cassette, choose a target cassette file and click Save. Of course, before appending you can rearrange the source cassette file, delete messages, merge or change their order. After appending is completed the program will automatically open the target cassette file and position you on the first appended message in it. The source cassette file will remain unchanged.

What was new in version 5.7

8KHz and 48KHz sampling rates

Two new sampling rates are available when creating a new cassette file. Low quality 8KHz sampling rate is to be used when the most important thing is to keep the cassette file as small as possible regardless of the sound quality. Also, this sampling rate has to be used with some microphones that would otherwise produce bad recordings. On the other hand, with 48KHz sampling rate cassette files end up six times bigger for the same length of recording, but those could be very useful as input for some speech recognition software.

What was new in version 5.6

Pre-amplifier

With this option you can increase/decrease the signal level of recorded sound. The available range is from -100% (total silence) to +100% (double the input signal level). Please note that this kind of amplification is artificial so depending on the input signal it can come to degradation in sound quality if peaks get cut off. To access pre-amplifier right click on the program's icon in the system tray, choose Settings/Options and go to Recording tab.

What was new in version 5.5

Automatic message division when exporting/recording

When exporting messages you can now tell the program to break them in files with maximum length that you set in minutes. For example, if you are exporting a message of 40 minutes and want to break it into 15 minutes files then you will get three files as a result, first two 15 minutes long and the last one with remaining 10 minutes. The option is available for all six file types that the program can create on exporting.

You can also enable "break message while recording" option within recording settings, set maximum message length there and the program will automatically create new message during recording whenever current message reaches that limit without recording interruption.

Sending attachments through default email client

For sending attachments the program will no longer use its own direct connection with SMTP server. Instead, it will open new message dialog directly in your default email client and attach the file there so you can send the message like any other email and have the ability to keep it for later reference or use.

Mixing balance control

This is an improvement to mixing messages option introduced in the previous version. Now you can also set mixing balance to give one of the messages you mix more "weight" in the result you get.

What was new in version 5.3

Scheduled recordings

Audio Notes Recorder is now improved to allow unattended scheduled recordings. That means you can create a scheduled task to launch the program at some moment in the future, start recording from selected sound source, then also stop recording and exit the program. Various recurrence patterns are also available and all this was made possible by adding special program control interface so another one of our programs called Smooth Program Scheduler can talk to Audio Notes Recorder and automate its actions.

True, to use this new feature you need to have one more program called Smooth Program Scheduler that is specialized for scheduling automated tasks. However, good news here is that that scheduling program is completely free. You can download Smooth Program Scheduler from its homepage and be ready for action soon after installing it on your computer. For detailed instructions on setting up a scheduled recording please refer to help files in Smooth Program Scheduler.

Mixing messages

Using this option you will be able to mix two recorded messages into one new message. To access the option right click on the ticker area of the program's front panel and choose Mix Messages. Then just select messages you want to mix and click Ok. Before clicking Ok you can also click Test to hear what you will get as the result.

What was new in version 5.2

Transcription playback mode

This unique operation mode is designed to make transcribing recorded material easier. With option enabled playback first goes for some time, then it pauses automatically and finally rewinds a little bit to start a new cycle. The idea is to minimize interaction with the program while transcribing. You can adjust all parameters for this mode so with some experimenting you should be able to find the winning combination - in ideal case you would just start the playback once and type everything in a single pass.

Temporary folder location

While the program is working it has to create some temporary files. By default, those temporary files are saved to the same folder where cassette files are saved. Now you can change the location for temporary files and set it to either temporary folder used by the Windows itself (system) or any other folder you want (custom). Setting a custom folder is a good option when you have additional hard drive with plenty of free space.

What was new in version 5.0

Message Editor

Built-in message editor gives you the opportunity to make cut-outs and thus clean the recording of parts you do not want to keep. It is as simple as marking the cut-out using the set of options available for positioning within the recording and clicking on Cut.

What was new in version 4.0

Support for OGG Vorbis sound file format (export and import)

OGG Vorbis is an audio compression format that is roughly comparable to other formats used to store and play digital music, such as MP3, VQF, AAC, and other digital audio formats. It is already supported by many sound programs and you are now able to export and import sound files in this format with Audio Notes Recorder, too. Export to OGG Vorbis does not depend on any external programs/codecs and it will work for all sound qualities available in Audio Notes Recorder.

 

What was new in version 3.5

Loop Message

Among previously available options, right clicking on Audio Notes Recorder's icon in the system tray will allow you to select the Loop Message option. This option, when selected, will make ANR automatically play the same message over and over again.

Enhanced Export Cassette

Now, when you choose to export the cassette file, you will have the new option of having each message within the cassette file exported as a separate sound file, in addition to having the entire cassette exported as a single sound file. Exported sound files will be automatically numbered.

What was new in version 3.4

Separator Sound selection (cassette export)

Settings/Options dialog includes new option to choose your own sound separator WAV file. This option affects a whole digital cassette export only when there is more than one message to export. You can also choose to stay with default sound separator or not use sound separator at all.

What was new in version 3.3

Use Windows/ANR Volume Controls Switch

Settings menu includes an option to bring up Volume Controls utility. This version of the program gives you a radio buttons pair to choose which Volume Controls utility program should bring up when that option is used - Audio Notes Recorder's or Windows's. Radio buttons are located on the Settings/Options dialog. Default choice is Windows Volume Controls.

If Audio Notes Recorder's Volume Controls utility is selected you will get access to all sound card volume controls (playback and recording) at one place. Number of available sliders depends solely on the installed driver. However, some drivers could cause problems with this feature, so if you have problems with Audio Notes Recorder's Volume Controls utility you have to switch back to using Windows Volume Controls.

What was new in version 3.2

Instant Rewind / Playback Pause Rewind

This option is designed to make transcribing messages easier. First you set the parameter "Instant and Playback Pause Rewind" available on Settings/Options dialog to the desired time offset. Just enter zero (0) if you do not want to use it.

Then each time you release Playback Pause the program will automatically rewind the message for that time offset and continue with playback.

Additionally, there is a new Off-Focus shortcut (Down Arrow, see Available Shortcuts dialog, Off-Focus Mode tab) that gives you the opportunity to Instant Rewind your message on-the-fly during playback without stopping it.

Insert Recording

Now you can insert new recordings into existing messages at desired location. It works from Stop, Play and Paused Play modes when you press Ctrl key and click on Record.

On Stop Rewind (for digital cassettes only)

By default Audio Notes Recorder automatically rewinds to message start when playback is stopped. Now you can change this behaviour by disabling "On stop rewind to message start" option in Settings/Options dialog; in that case message will not rewind automatically. This option affects only digital cassettes.

Extended Off-Focus shortcut Keys

New shortcut keys available in Off-Focus mode are: Rewind, Forward, Volume Up, Volume Down, Play Faster and Play Slower. They will give you more control over the program when working in other programs.

Ticker still mode

If you find scrolling ticker annoying you can now turn scrolling off by selecting None as scrolling direction. Right click on the ticker area to find Direction parameter.

What was new in version 3.0

Export to MP3

In addition to exporting recordings to uncompressed WAV sound file format, Audio Notes Recorder is now capable to export messages or cassettes to compressed MP3 sound file format with significant reduction in resulting file size.

Export to MP3 is available in two ways: one is standard export to MP3 sound file and the other is export to stand alone executable (EXE) file containing both a little player and recorded material compressed in MP3 format.

Note: Export to MP3 is available on conditional basis as it requires Fraunhofer IIS MPEG Layer3 (MP3) codec to be already installed on your computer. Also, if you are going to use Export to MP3 in EXE option, please bear in mind that the same MP3 codec has to be installed on all computers that are to play that EXE file.

This new option makes adding messages from WAV or MP3 sound files to Audio Notes Recorder digital/analog cassette an easy operation. Of course, like for exporting to MP3 options, Fraunhofer IIS MPEG Layer3 (MP3) codec has to be already installed on your computer so Audio Notes Recorder can import sound from MP3 files.

You are using digital cassette and it is full of different messages. You would like to make some order on it. Try using Audio Notes Recorder's powerful Rearrange Cassette option. It will give you the opportunity to move messages up or down the list, delete more than one at a time, merge two or more messages into one and save all those changes at once to the current or brand new cassette.

What was new in version 2.1

Keyboard Shortcuts

Once memorized, keyboard shortcuts dramatically improve working efficiency. Getting to know them is a worthy effort and we have tried to make it as easy for you as possible. There is also a special set of configurable basic commands shortcuts which could be enabled for use even when Audio Notes Recorder is minimized to systray and does not have focus. Use F12 key throughout the program to bring up available keyboard shortcuts help screen.

Very useful for navigating across long recordings, Exact Time Positioner is now available in Play Mode, too.

Mouse wheel gives you an ultimate scrolling experience. Audio Notes Recorder uses it for Rewind/Forward and Exact Time Positioner (when you keep Ctrl or Ctrl+Shift pressed) with a special feature for fine tuning roll event resolution.

We have completely rewritten our Volume Controls utility. Now it should work properly with much broader specter of sound cards and drivers. Alas, we know there will always be some combination to make an exception, so please keep us informed on that subject.

Audio Notes Recorder is shaped type of application so it does not have a title bar where you could check whether it has a focus or not when it is On-Top. With program On-Top just look at its icon in systray: standard blue icon indicates On-Focus and gold icon Off-Focus. Focus is important for using keyboard shortcuts. When it is off, only the special set of Off-Focus Mode keyboard shortcuts might be used.

What was new in version 2.0

User Defined Maximum Cassette Size

We got rid of that annoying fixed 20MB maximum cassette size limit. Now you can set it according to your preferences.

There is no such thing as 100% reliability in modern software design, with so many different and constantly changing conditions present at the operation time, but one have to try to come as near to perfection as possible. We have strengthened Audio Notes Recorder with this special auto recovery feature designed to protect recorded data integrity. If there would be a crash of the operating system or the program itself while recording was still in progress, Audio Notes Recorder would try to minimize the damage automatically upon its next start.

When recorded message is long, standard Rewind and Forward commands are not efficient enough and Exact Time Positioner is here to make the hard work easy. If you click on time counter small window will pop-up with a slider representing total message length. Click anywhere on it for a direct jump or click and drag for more precise positioning. Logically, the beginning of the message is on the left side of the slider. Currently, this new feature is available only in stop mode.

Share your recordings with unbeatable comfort. This feature provides you with the ability to export any message or cassette to executable file containing both a little player and recorded material itself. Everything one has to do is to double-click on a file to start playback.

ANR's default design is posh indeed, but for those who like changes and want to be always trendy, we are introducing fully skinnable interface. You can visit skins collection at our site to look at the latest designs and download them for free.

How much time for recording do I have on a 50MB cassette? This useful program startup screen has the answer. Of course, you can turn it off at any time and call it back through Settings menu when necessary.

Note: This option is not available on Windows 95 computers.

Provides access to all sound card volume controls at one place. Number of sliders shown depends solely on the installed driver. Some drivers could cause problems with this feature. Unfortunately, we are not in a position to do anything about that but recommend avoiding ANR's volume controls in such cases.

This feature is designed especially for digital cassettes. It is accessible either by clicking on the current message number or by holding Ctrl when clicking on Play button. Small window will pop-up with a list of all messages recorded on the current digital cassette. Choose one to go directly to its beginning. If used through Ctrl-Play combination, chosen message will start playing automatically.

Just place a mouse pointer over the microphone on default skin and tooltip will show you the state of a check box attached to microphone in recording control of your sound card. Of course, you can turn ON or OFF microphone directly by a double-click.

When exporting a message or cassette to WAV, EXE or for direct E-Mail sending, you will be prompted to lower sound quality in order to reduce exported file size.

Nothing much to say about this one, we have simply forgotten to include it in version 1.0.

Well known option standard for many programs now available in Audio Notes Recorder as well.