Several years ago, I wrote a similar article which gained some popularity due to getting “stickied” on KVR. I’d been thinking about doing an update for a while, and I was recently given some motivation to finish it by some folks posting in the old thread there and showing interest. The new article is now finished, and has been posted to the Articles page:

A Free Windows-Based Software Studio, 2021 Update

There is a new Articles page (menu link above) here now. I’m in the process of moving stuff previously posted on Steemit to a new home here, and there may be some new stuff of this sort on the way as well. There is also a link to an article about the recent UMAW protests of Spotify written for my “day job,” which I added here too, because I think it’s relevant.

Obscure Audio Software: Hermann Seib’s VSTHost (Win) – Steemit

This time around, we’re looking at a relatively simple program from Hermann Seib (who also has some other really cool stuff available) called VSTHost. You can probably guess what it basically does from the name, it hosts VST(i) plug-ins. However, it does have some features beyond basic plug-in loading, most of which I will try to cover here.

Obscure Audio Software: Michael Klingbeil’s SPEAR (Win/Mac) – Steemit

In this installment of Obscure Audio Software, we’ll be taking a look at a freeware program called SPEAR, an acronym for “Sinusoidal Partial Editing Analysis and Resynthesis”. In a nutshell, it allows you to view and edit a sound as a visual representation of its individual frequencies (partials), and then resynthesize the sound.

The latest edition of Obscure Audio Software:

Obscure Audio Software: Monocasual Laboratories Giada (free, cross-platform loop machine) – Steemit

In this edition of Obscure Audio Software, we’ll be taking a look at a free and open-source loop machine called Giada that is available for Windows, Mac, and Linux called Giada. The developers call it “your hardcore loop machine” and describe it as “a free, minimal, hardcore audio tool for DJs, live performers and electronic musicians”.

Thanks to @falseyedols on Steemit, I learned of a WordPress plug-in called Steempress, which lets you publish WP posts to the Steem blockchain. While I test this plug-in, I thought I would also share my thoughts so far about Steemit in general.

It was frustration with Facebook that got me looking elsewhere. Steemit may not be a replacement for FB in terms of specific features and functions, but at least it actually works most of the time, unlike FB. It doesn’t hide posts from people I follow, unlike FB. I’m also very much into the decentralization thing.

Beside all of that though, I really like the sense of community and support. It has definitely helped to renew my motivation. I’ve also made some new friends and found some great music, shouts out to @nothingbutdirt and @atomcollector for helping greatly with both of those.

It may not be perfect, but I definitely think Steemit is a step in the right direction. It’s also still pretty new, so I’m very curious to see where it might go from here.