LMMS wish list

With the new VST(i) patch recently integrated into the current GIT version of LMMS, I've began wondering what else I could possibly want. LMMS will probably have these new features in the next official version, which will hopefully be released sometime this month or next. VST parameters can be accessed via LMMS interface knobs allowing the user to connect them to controllers and even automate them. If this isn't enough of a boon, VST preset saving and loading are thrown in for good measure.

Considering this, I've decided to throw out all my crazy ideas about what new features I'd like to see in LMMS. I'd temporarily underestimated the power of open-source, so I think some slingshot overestimation is in order. The point isn't really to be realistic here. I also know that if I had any integrity I'd get into the meat and bones of LMMS and develop some of these features myself. I'm thinking about giving a crack at it.

That said, I'm going to start out with the automation editor. You all know I've been wanting some kind of control point curve or line drawing setup for quite awhile. Having to draw curves by hand, and drawing lines the way it is done now makes automation a little too cumbersome.

Too ensure your security in my not just being another "Make LMMS more like X proprietary application" guy, I bring you something I cooked up over time. If you consider the current controller rack, and the controllers available, I think it's a bit lacking selection-wise. I don't know of other music software that comes with say, and envelope controller. While an envelope controller would be higher priority, since it also solves the problem where LMMS lacks a pitch envelope, virtual MIDI controllers like knobs, sliders, and buttons would also be quite useful. I used to use some old school virtual MIDI controller rack awhile back, but that required jack and didn't always work properly.


Now I'm really just dreaming here, in a kind of sky is the limit way. An accompanying or built in synth editor would be awesome. Like, amazing awesome. Like really hacking awesomely amazing. Like-oh skip it. It would rock. I'm not suggesting something like synth-edit. Probably the best way would be to create an elaborate instrument plugin with this type of feature. I'm thinking something kind of like what BEAST tried to do here:

Not only for anything in this post, but for my next wish especially, feel free to hit me up in the comments with an "RTFM, n00b!" and a link to the relevant manual section. I'd like to see LMMS more plugin friendly. I'm not talking about VST(i) plugin friendly, I'm talking things like instrument plugins and controller plugins(provided controllers are done via plugins.) It looks to me(who might be wrong) like you have to re-compile LMMS for every new set of plugins. This doesn't make a lot of sense to me. Add in the fact that LMMS doesn't seem to have easy support for Linux native DSSI(VST) plugins, and there is a feature hole many music producers would love to have filled.

Anything else... I guess not that I can think of right now (other than a new logo and less lame default theme). Oh yea, we also need more people to use it. ;)


        --LazerBlade