1. Installation and Setup Procedures

You can find all files needed to install Csound at the following website:   ftp://ftp.maths.bath.ac.uk/pub/dream/newest/

Csound on a Win9X machine
Get the following file from the above website:
csound_new409.zip  -- This contains all the necessary files you need to get started. Get the latest version if 409 is superceded.

In addition, I highly recommended that you get these files, as the beginner may find them quite helpful:
csound_win409.zip   -- This contains the GUI winsound.exe for rendering audio files, an invaluable asset for the Csound beginner.
Winhlp_for_csound_408.zip   -- This is a reference manual in Windows-help format. Get whichever version is current with your version of Csound.

To get Csound up and running on your computer, do the following:

1. After downloading the above files, create a Csound directory (preferably in your root folder) and 5 (or 6) subdirectories within Csound, naming them along these lines:
- analysis (for analyses of sound files which you create)
- bin (to store the Csound executables)
- soundcode (for the orchestra and score files)
- output (where your resultant audio files can go)
- samples (for any audio samples you are manipulating within Csound)
- winsound (only if you downloaded this Windows GUI)

2. Using a zip utility, unzip the contents of csound_new409.zip into your bin directory. Unzip the contents of csound_win409.zip into your Winsound folder.

3. You can edit your autoexec.bat file to get Csound working correctly. The autoexec.bat file is usually found in the root directory of your main hard drive. In it, you must add "c:\Csound\bin;" to your SET PATH line (if you do not have a set path line, insert the following line: "SET PATH=%PATH%;C:\windows\system;c:\Csound\Bin;")

Alternatively, modify this startcsound.bat file appropriately, and put it wherever you like already on your path, e.g. into c:\windows\command\.

set PATH=%path%d:d:\csound\bin;
set SFDIR=d:\csound\output
set SSDIR=d:\csound\samples
set SADIR=d:\csound\analysis 

4. Add the following three lines to the end of your autoexec.bat file:
SET SFDIR=c:\Csound\Output
SET SSDIR=c:\Csound\Samples
SET SADIR=c:\Csound\Analysis

5. Save your autoexec.bat file and reboot your computer. You should be ready to go! If you got WinSound, then you can start by double clicking "winsound.exe." From there, you can choose your output parameters, select an .orc and a .sco file to render, and get to work. If you did not get WinSound, see section 2 for details on running Csound from the commmand line.

Running Csound on a Mac

If you are installing Csound onto a PPC, G3, or similar machine, you will want to get your files from the following site: http://www.concentric.net/~Mingalls/software/csound/. This has the latest files and front ends that you will find useful.

The steps you will need to take are largely self-explanatory, and the software will help you along in this regard. You will need to select a text editor, and define your default directories for sound files, samples, and analyses before you begin. You may also need to over-ride your sample and control rate variables (since the Apple sound manager can only be set at certain rates). This can be done in the options menu of the Csound program, and set your sample-rate to 44100 (or 22050) and your control rate to 4410.

Running Csound on an Irix/Linux

Installation instructions for these machines will be provided upon request.

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