manual/include/clips-overview.html

<p>
	The <dfn>Clips</dfn> browser provides a way to easily reuse little pieces
	of music across sessions. You can also drop audio and MIDI clips on a
	timeline in the <a href="@@clips-in-the-editor">Editor window</a> or use
	them in trigger slots in the <a href="@@clips-in-the-cue-window">Cue window</a>.
</p>

<h2>Clips Browser Interface</h2>

<p>
	In the Editor window, the Clips browser is part of the Editor sidebar
	and thus can be hidden from the main window. In the Cue window, the Clips
	browser is an essential part of the workflow and is always visible.
</p>

<figure class="right">
  <img src="/images/clips-browser.png" width="400px" alt="The Clips browser">
  <figcaption>
    The Clips browser
  </figcaption>
</figure>

<p>
	The Clips browser has three main parts:
</p>

<ol>
	<li>Selector of clip library locations</li>
	<li>List of clips, with a treeview where necessary</li>
	<li>Preview options</li>
</ol>

<h2>Library Locations</h2>

<p>
	The <dfn>Clips</dfn> browser is capable of handling multiple locations
	of clips and loops. There are several types of locations supported by the
	browser:
</p>

<ol>
	<li>
		<dfn>Ardour Bundled Content</dfn>: these are all the audio and MIDI
		files shipped along with an official Ardour build.
	</li>
	<li>
		<dfn>FreeSound</dfn>: all clips previously downloaded from FreeSound.org.
	</li>
	<li>
		<dfn>Custom folder</dfn>: it's a single user-defined location
		on a local or remote disk that you can write to. The folder is defined
		on the <kbd class="menu">Triggering</kbd> page of the
		<kbd class="menu">Preferences</kbd> dialog and is preserved across
		sessions.
	</li>
	<li>
		<dfn>Additional locations</dfn>: typically those are locations where
		you store existing clips/loops libraries acquired elsewhere. You can
		have as many as you like, please see <a href="@@adding-3rd-party-clip-libraries">Adding 3rd Party Clip Libraries</a> chapter for more info. These locations
		are also preserved across sessions.
	</li>
	<li>
		<dfn>Other locations</dfn>: this is a one-off access to a location
		where clips and loops are stored. This location is not preserved across
		sessions.
	</li>
</ol>

<h2>List of Clips</h2>

<p>
	The Clips browser will provide access to all supported media file types
	available in a selected location. Typically those would be, WAV, FLAC,
	and MID files.
</p>

<p>
	If there are subfolders in the clip library's folder, the Clips browser
	will display them using as a tree view. The browser will also lazy-load
	subfolders: instead of loading the entire list of all supported files
	in the library location, it will only display top-level folders and load
	their content when you start expanding subfolders you are interested in.
</p>

<h2>Preview Options</h2>

<p>
	The preview section has simple playback controls, a volume control, as well as 
	an option to automatically play back a clip when you click it in the list.
	For MIDI clips, you can also select a virtual instrument (Ardour defaults
	to ACE Reasonable Synth).
</p>

<p>
	When playing a clip, Ardour will automatically pause the transport
	and resume playback when the clip playback is done. Ardour will also
	use the audition channel for playback, so you can control the preview
	volume using the monitor level control in the
	<a href="@@monitor-section">Monitor</a> section of the <dfn>Mixer</dfn>.
</p>