DronesoundTV

Viewer-Controlled Ambient Noise Livestream

An Implementation of the StageGhost Performance Bot

User Guide 1.1

March 21, 2016

What is DronesoundTV?

DronesoundTV (or “DTV”) is an automated audio/video ambient sound live stream operated via chat-bot, and curated by its own viewers in real-time. Viewers control nearly every aspect of the stream, including visual layout, sound effects, and music.

What is Dronesound?

Dronesound (or “Drone Music”) is a genre of formless ambient sound that is mostly non-musical in nature - like an audible collage. Like “ambient noise machines” it is listened toindirectly as audio “background” , not directly like music.

Next Generation Ambient Sound

DTV is the first ambient noise machine with access to over 1 million sounds and a genre-driven engine for creating any environment real or imaginary. Really, this is a new kind of machine.

Basic Operation

Dronebot is responsible for all facets of the channel operation. You control it by typing commands directly into chat. This includes all elements of the sound and visuals.

What You Control

Dronebot generates a constant background mix from a themed collection of keywords called a “mood.” You add sounds by providing keywords, but can also change the mood, changing all keywords.

The Latest Commands

The bot is easily updated and new commands may be added at any time. The Commands command always lists every command available to you, according to your access and configuration options. Secret commands are never listed.

Entering Commands

Dronebot accepts commands without any special characters or case. To support the habits of other bots it also accepts many variations, all of which are equivalent:

COMMANDS        Commands        commands        !commands

Access Levels, Secret Commands, Personal Commands

Some commands are available only to subscribers, others are invisible to the Commands command. Where relevant those are called out. Elite users can make their own commands!

Command Reference

This list is in order of use and complexity, not alphabetical.

Commands                                

Example:        Commands
Typing this will list the latest commands available to you now, at your access level.

Status                                

Example:        Status
Displays key information about Dronebot, the channel and the sound.

Drone

Example:        Drone interview
Type Drone followed by a keyword to find related sounds from Freesound, and add them to the mix. Keywords must be one word, but hyphens can work well, such as "submarine-ping" or "am-radio". See “Advanced Droning” for many more options.

Creds

Example:        Creds
Reports the most recent keyword, sample played, and links to rate, download or comment. Example output: Choir/josemdavid http://freesound.org/people/josemdavid/sounds/331330/

Tip                                

Display a random tip about DronesoundTV. An alternative to reading this manual.

Filter

Examples:        Filter                        Filter 1337                

Use Filter to check or adjust the low-pass filter, a “Butterworth response-type” single-pole filter with 6 dB roll-off around the set frequency. At low settings, it can get quite "burbly" - the best settings are usually between 900 and 3000. Type Filter with nothing else to report the current setting.

Mood

Examples:        Mood                        Mood arcade

While Drone adds one sound to the mix by keyword, Mood changes the underlying collection of keywords used throughout. Type Mood by itself for a list of the available moods.

Mix

Examples:        Mix random                Mix http://soundcloud.com/thegreendutch/spirit-jazz-fu
Play a download-enabled SoundCloud track, with the share link. Track must allow download. Use Mix random to play from a pre-defined playlist. Mix again repeats the previous song.

Bg

Examples:        Bg                        Bg me
Type Bg to change the background to a random image. You can also set the background to your profile image with Bg me. Note that setting a COLOR usually clears the background.

Color

Examples:        Color                        Color 3300ff
Color sets the background to a color instead of an image. Use standard “RGB” notation, or pick one at http://colorpicker.com and paste it in. Use Color alone to check the current value.

Title

Example:        Title Starting Soon: Social Hour!
Change the title of the livestream, to any text 90 characters or less. This is an exclusive feature available in no other bot!

Theme

Example:        Theme                        Theme default
Theme changes the entire screen layout. Theme by itself will show the latest choices. Some themes are informative, others are funky. Some handle Color and Bg differently. Explore!

Hype

Example:        Hype
Displays a special “hype display” showcasing recent visitors to the channel.

Dice

Example:        Dice               Dice 20 8 8
Generate random dice results. Rolls one six-sided die (“d6”) by default, or multiple dice of any sides; separate each with a space. For example “Dice 20 8 8” rolls one 20-sided die and two 8-sided die.

Door

Example:        Door              Door North           Door N
An example game using the bot’s extensible user command support. Guide Roverbot 3000 through a procedurally-generated maze. Unlocking doors by unscrambling words, meet NPCs (non-player characters), observe their schedules and who knows what else?  Type Door help for instructions.

Shoutout

Example:        Shoutout
Dronebot delivers a personalized “shoutout” to you in chat and often on-screen as well.

Bonus for Reading this Far

Thank you! You learn the secret of the hidden Janitor command - an epic tale of heartache, redemption and nekked janitors in Kiss Army underwear. "TWENTY BUCKS!"

Continue reading to learn about the advanced commands, subscriber-only bonus features, and background on the project.

Sub

An exclusive feature of StageGhost. If you have subscribed and are certain that your YouTube subscriptions are not set to “private”, the Sub command will instruct Dronebot to subscribe back to you. This the first such bot to offer this capability.

Important: The sub-back commands requires that your subscriptions not be set as private in your YouTube privacy settings, which you can check at https://www.youtube.com/account_privacy 

The Sub command can not do its job if “Keep all my subscriptions private” is checked.

The Sub command will not work unless your “subscription” privacy settings look like this.

Your liked videos can remain private. You can even reset your permissions after you run Sub.

Subscriber-Only Bonus Features

Channel subscribers access powerful secret or beta commands.

{Disappearing Ink}

Subscribers get our “disappearing ink”: Put a dash in front of any text, and it will disappear:

                - This message will self destruct in 15 seconds

.Commands                                

The subscriber version of .Commands gives a current list of subscriber-only commands.

.Eject

Example:        .Eject
Stops any currently-playing musical track started by the Mix command. Only subs can do this!

.Ansi

Example:        .Ansi M6Dnur
Add to DTV's ANSI animations! 1) Choose (or make) a gif at http://makeagif.com under 5 seconds long. 2) Type .Ansi followed by the MakeAGif ID. It will be processed and replace the "showcase" animation. Keep an eye out and you'll see it show-up before long.

.Style

This is an early beta command! With the .Style command, advanced users who know HTML and CSS can create their own screen layouts and install them on DronesoundTV. Type .Style to get started. Complete details on this feature are in the works.

Advanced Droning

With advanced use, DronesoundTV is any kind of noise generator you can think of.

By FreeSound ID or Author Name

Find sounds on http://freesound.org and use the SoundID or author name. For example:
                Drone 331330
                Drone TexasMusicForge
Note: Only sounds between 20 and 120 seconds long can be played.:

By BPM

You can add sounds with a given Beats Per Minute:
                Drone 90bpm
                Drone 140bpm

About Multiple Keywords

Simpler keywords tend to work best, but if you know what you’re doing you can be very specific with hyphenated searches. These also decrease the chances you  will hear something new, but that might be your intent in some circumstances.

For example, this search could result in either submarine sounds or sub-bass synths sounds:

                Drone sub

This one might sometimes find the sound of ping pong balls:

                Drone ping

Whereas this would almost certainly find the famous “ping” sound:

                Drone submarine-ping

People, Resources, Systems

DronesoundTV is a Conceptual Art project under development by Interactive Designer "OkBop" and lo-fi performance artist "Die, Master Monkey" (stage name for Gary Arthur Douglas II).

Subscribe and stay tuned to this project as we will soon be offering StageGhost as a kit which you can use to deliver your own automated live stream themed however you like.

The following media resources, APIs and tools  play a critical role in the system:

• Raspberry Pi / Raspbian Lite
• Freesound.org API (thank you!!)
• YouTube Data and LiveStream APIs (thank you!!)
• MakeAGif.com, Sox, img2txt, caca-utils
• Perl, Java/script and a little Python

At the time of this writing, DronesoundTV is most easily accessed at:

http://dronesoundtv.com

DronesoundTV Big Diagram @ Hackaday.io

https://cdn.hackaday.io/images/10261470291442867.png