[Cialug] Linux audio programming

[Daniel A. Ramaley]

A number of years ago i wrote a program that generates audio. I wrote it 
to output using OSS, since that was the standard way of doing audio at 
the time (late 90s). I'm thinking of modernizing the program but can't 
discern what the most standard/compatible way of outputting audio is 
today. It seems that component of Linux has fragmented a bit. Should i 
target Alsa? Pulse? SDL? Something else? Looking for suggestions; my 
goal is to do a rewrite and then not have to touch it for another 15-20 
years as i did when i wrote the original. I'm looking to learn 1 current 
audio standard well enough to write code that targets it, but not 
looking to become an expert in all the choices available these days.

The reason i'm considering doing this is 1) to get a bit of practice 
with somewhat low-level programming since i've not done it in awhile, 
and 2) to make it work better on modern systems. The old version still 
runs, but it is unable to share the audio device (and refuses to run if 
some other application is using it) and the audio it produces sounds 
choppy and incorrect leading me to think that while the Linux audio 
stack still supports OSS, it isn't handling it perfectly anymore.

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Daniel A. Ramaley  |  Network Engineer 2
Drake Technology Services (DTS) | Drake University

T: +1 515 271-4540
F: +1 515 271-1938
E: daniel.ramaley at drake.edu