ref: 6aa83c4d6c919b4f958ebc20d8f9e06653c3aab9
dir: /README.md/
# ORCΛ
Orca is an [esoteric programming language](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esoteric_programming_language) designed to quickly create procedural sequencers, in which every letter of the alphabet is an operation, where lowercase letters operate on bang, uppercase letters operate each frame.
This application **is not a synthesizer, but a flexible livecoding environment** capable of sending MIDI, OSC & UDP to your audio/visual interfaces, like Ableton, Renoise, VCV Rack or SuperCollider.
If you need <strong>help</strong>, visit the <a href="https://talk.lurk.org/channel/orca" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer" class="external ">chatroom</a> or the <a href="https://llllllll.co/t/orca-live-coding-tool/17689" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer" class="external ">forum</a>.
This is the **C** implementation of the [ORCΛ](https://github.com/hundredrabbits/Orca) language and tools. The livecoding environment for this C version runs in a terminal. It's designed to be power efficient. It can handle large files, even if your terminal is small.
<img src='https://raw.githubusercontent.com/wiki/hundredrabbits/Orca-c/PREVIEW.jpg' width='600'/>
## Quick Start for Debian/Raspbian (Raspberry Pi)
```sh
sudo apt-get install git libncurses5-dev libncursesw5-dev libportmidi-dev
git clone https://github.com/hundredrabbits/Orca-c.git
cd Orca-c
make # Compile orca
build/orca # Run orca
```
To choose your MIDI output device, press `F1` (or `Ctrl+D`) to open the main menu, and then select `MIDI Output...`
```
┌ ORCA ───────────────┐┌ PortMidi Device Selection ─────┐
│ New ││ > (*) #0 - Midi Through Port-0 │
│ Open... ││ ( ) #2 - ES1371 │
│ Save │└────────────────────────────────┘
│ Save As... │
│ │
│ Set BPM... │
│ Set Grid Size... │
│ Auto-fit Grid │
│ │
│ OSC Output... │
│ > MIDI Output... │
│ │
│ Clock & Timing... │
│ Appearance... │
│ │
│ Controls... │
│ Operators... │
│ About ORCA... │
│ │
│ Quit │
└─────────────────────┘
```
## Prerequisites
Core library: A C99 compiler (no VLAs required), plus enough libc for `malloc`, `realloc`, `free`, `memcpy`, `memset`, and `memmove`. (Also, `#pragma once` must be supported.)
Command-line interpreter: The above, plus POSIX, and enough libc for the common string operations (`strlen`, `strcmp`, etc.)
Livecoding terminal UI: The above, plus ncurses (or compatible curses library), and floating point support (for timing.) Optionally, PortMidi can be used to enable direct MIDI output.
## Build
The build script, called simply `tool`, is written in `bash`. It should work with `gcc` (including the `musl-gcc` wrapper), `tcc`, and `clang`, and will automatically detect your compiler. You can manually specify a compiler with the `-c` option.
Currently known to build on macOS (`gcc`, `clang`, `tcc`) and Linux (`gcc`, `musl-gcc`, `tcc`, and `clang`, optionally with `LLD`), and Windows via cygwin or WSL (`gcc` or `clang`, `tcc` untested).
There is a fire-and-forget `make` wrapper around the build script.
PortMidi is an optional dependency. It can be enabled by adding the option `--portmidi` when running the `tool` build script.
Mouse awareness can be disabled by adding the `--no-mouse` option.
### Build using the `tool` build script
Run `./tool help` to see usage info. Examples:
```sh
./tool build -c clang-7 --portmidi orca
# Build the livecoding environment with a compiler
# named clang-7, with optimizations enabled, and
# with PortMidi enabled for MIDI output.
# Binary placed at build/orca
./tool build -d orca
# Debug build of the livecoding environment.
# Binary placed at build/debug/orca
./tool build -d cli
# Debug build of the headless CLI interpreter.
# Binary placed at build/debug/cli
./tool clean
# Same as make clean. Removes build/
```
### Build using the `make` wrapper
```sh
make release # optimized build, binary placed at build/orca
make debug # debugging build, binary placed at build/debug/orca
make clean # removes build/
```
The `make` wrapper will enable `--portmidi` by default. If you run the `tool` build script on its own, `--portmidi` is not enabled by default.
## `orca` Livecoding Environment Usage
```
Usage: orca [options] [file]
General options:
--undo-limit <number> Set the maximum number of undo steps.
If you plan to work with large files,
set this to a low number.
Default: 100
--initial-size <nxn> When creating a new grid file, use these
starting dimensions.
--bpm <number> Set the tempo (beats per minute).
Default: 120
--seed <number> Set the seed for the random function.
Default: 1
-h or --help Print this message and exit.
OSC/MIDI options:
--strict-timing
Reduce the timing jitter of outgoing MIDI and OSC messages.
Uses more CPU time.
--osc-midi-bidule <path>
Set MIDI to be sent via OSC formatted for Plogue Bidule.
The path argument is the path of the Plogue OSC MIDI device.
Example: /OSC_MIDI_0/MIDI
```
### Example: build and run `orca` liveocding environment with MIDI output
```sh
$ ./tool build --portmidi orca # compile orca using build script
$ build/orca # run orca
```
### `orca` Livecoding Environment Controls
```
┌ Controls ───────────────────────────────────────────┐
│ Ctrl+Q Quit │
│ Arrow Keys Move Cursor │
│ Ctrl+D or F1 Open Main Menu │
│ 0-9, A-Z, a-z, Insert Character │
│ ! : % / = # * │
│ Spacebar Play/Pause │
│ Ctrl+Z or Ctrl+U Undo │
│ Ctrl+X Cut │
│ Ctrl+C Copy │
│ Ctrl+V Paste │
│ Ctrl+S Save │
│ Ctrl+F Frame Step Forward │
│ Ctrl+R Reset Frame Number │
│ Ctrl+I or Insert Append/Overwrite Mode │
│ ' (quote) Rectangle Selection Mode │
│ Shift+Arrow Keys Adjust Rectangle Selection │
│ Alt+Arrow Keys Slide Selection │
│ ` (grave) or ~ Slide Selection Mode │
│ Escape Return to Normal Mode or Deselect │
│ ( ) _ + [ ] { } Adjust Grid Size and Rulers │
│ < and > Adjust BPM │
│ ? Controls (this message) │
└─────────────────────────────────────────────────────┘
```
## `cli` command-line interface interpreter
The CLI (`cli` binary) reads from a file and runs the orca simulation for 1 timestep (default) or a specified number (`-t` option) and writes the resulting state of the grid to stdout.
```sh
cli [-t timesteps] infile
```
You can also make `cli` read from stdin:
```sh
echo -e "...\na34\n..." | cli /dev/stdin
```
## Extras
- Support this project through [Patreon](https://patreon.com/100).
- See the [License](LICENSE.md) file for license rights and limitations (MIT).
- Pull Requests are welcome!