With this update, we also realized that Audio Hijack Pro had just celebrated its tenth birthday. First released on March 3rd, 2003, the app remains incredibly popular, gaining thousands of new users each year. Today’s release marks the 59th release of Audio Hijack Pro, and it’s still going strong. Given the many changes over the years, it’s useful to give a quick overview on where things stand with the app.

Realtime Audio Capture

Audio Hijack Pro’s most basic functionality is its ability to capture audio coming from other applications (as well as audio devices, of course). Audio Hijack Pro has always been able to capture audio on a per-application level. This is definitely the preferred way to capture audio, as it means beeps and blips from other applications won’t ruin a recording. Just select your desired source application and click Record, and Audio Hijack Pro will capture and record that app’s audio.

Alternatively, using the System Audio source, you can capture all audio currently playing on your Mac. Recording from System Audio requires the installation of the Instant On extra, but once you’ve got that installed, you’ll be able to grab everything into one file.

Audio Hijack Pro can start capturing audio from other applications and devices right out of the box, with no installer required. It simply needs to launch the application from which you wish to capture audio (or re-launch it, if it’s already open). This same technology is used in our simplified recorder Piezo, which is sold via the Mac App Store.

For additional functionality, the application will offer to install our Instant On extra. This extra works to improve audio capture for Audio Hijack Pro, as well as Airfoil and Nicecast, and it’s in use on tens of thousands of Macs around the world. With Instant On installed, Audio Hijack Pro can capture audio from running applications without needing to relaunch them (very handy!). Instant On also makes it possible to record System Audio, as mentioned above.

Worth mentioning, Instant On no longer uses the long-deprecated Application Enhancer (APE) framework. In order to make grabbing audio as robust as possible, we’ve developed our own dedicated audio capture system in-house, one which relies on no private system APIs.

OS Support

The current version of Audio Hijack Pro supports Mac OS X 10.6 – Mac OS X 10.8 (all the way up to the current 10.8.3, of course). We also provide Legacy versions of our software, for users on older OSes. We’re committed to keeping our software working for you even as Apple releases new updates. We strive to have support for new versions of Mac OS X as soon as humanly possible.

Future Plans

How about the future? Over Audio Hijack Pro’s dozens of releases, we’ve added great new features and functionality. However, it’s been some time since the app has had a truly major new version. As you’ve likely seen, our audio editor Fission hit version 2 last year, followed by a substantial version 2.1 released a couple months later.

The recent updates to Fission are great, but they’re also making it clear that Audio Hijack Pro should get some love as well. Fear not, as we’ve got a lot of plans for the future of Audio Hijack Pro and audio recording on the Mac. We’ve been hard at work implementing these ideas, and should have exciting Audio Hijack Pro-related news to share in the near future.

More to Come

Closing

For now though, just be sure to grab the latest update right from our site and enjoy! Keep your eyes on this site, as well as our Twitter feed, for more news soon.

Piezo’s new Retina UI (scaled down slightly to fit!)

Piezo marks our second app with full Retina support, along with our audio editor Fission. While we’ve made small Retina-related improvements in our other apps, we don’t yet have full Retina support in Airfoil, Audio Hijack Pro, or Nicecast. That’s likely to come in their next major updates (versions 5, 3, and 2, respectively), which are still in the planning stages. Stay tuned though – as more machines, and more users gain Retina quality visuals, we’ll certainly want to be there!

For now, you can get version 1.2.2 from the Piezo page, or via the Mac App Store. It’s a free update, so be sure to grab it now.

A Major Update to Instant On

After much effort and testing, the latest version of Airfoil for Windows now includes a major update to Instant On, the built-in component to capture audio seamlessly. When Airfoil was first unveiled, its ability to capture audio usually required the quitting and re-opening of your source app. To work around the need for that cumbersome relaunching, we created Instant On, a technology to allow Airfoil to grab audio from applications instantly. While this worked well, there are some applications that don’t produce audio at all, others that don’t produce audio you’d want to capture, and some which just don’t work properly when Instant On is running.

With our latest update, Instant On now affects only a curated whitelist of audio applications. This list contains the most common applications our customers use with Airfoil for Windows, including Foobar 2000, Spotify, Chrome, Firefox, and more. You can view and edit the Application List at any time in Airfoil’s Preferences window. Any applications on this list won’t need to be re-launched when Airfoil captures audio from them.

Airfoil’s Instant On Whitelist

When you attempt to intercept audio from a running application that isn’t yet on the approved list, Airfoil will offer to add it to the list, so future relaunches won’t be necessary.

Of course, Instant On is still entirely optional, just as before. For the best experience, we definitely recommend activating it. To do so, just click the “Enable Instant On” checkbox in Airfoil Preferences window:

With Instant On, the need for Airfoil to relaunch running applications to capture their audio vanishes, and things work as smoothly as possible. Best of all, with the new whitelist, issues that were once rare will disappear completely.

And More

This update also marks the first release where Airfoil is fully scriptable, allowing for control by other applications. For more details on scripting Airfoil, see this link. As usual, this update also includes has a handful of small improvements and fixes, and we always recommend using the latest version. So update your copy of Airfoil for Windows now!

Now in Airfoil for Windows 3.4 we have full out-of-process COM scripting support, which should allow 3rd party apps in just about any language (any language that supports COM that is), to interact with and control Airfoil for Windows.

For example, suppose you wanted to get a list of all recent sources using Windows JScript:

var airfoilApp = WScript.CreateObject("RogueAmoeba.Airfoil");

var recentSources = airfoilApp.GetRecentSources();
for(var i = 0; i < recentSources.Count(); i++)
{
	var audioSource = recentSources.Item(i);
	WScript.Echo("Recent source " + i + " is " + audioSource.Name());
}

Or maybe you'd like to see if a certain application is running, and if it is, tell Airfoil for Windows to start intercepting its audio:

var airfoilApp = WScript.CreateObject("RogueAmoeba.Airfoil");

var runningSources = airfoilApp.GetRunningSources();
for(var i = 0; i < runningSources.Count(); i++)
{
	var audioSource = runningSources.Item(i);
	WScript.Echo("Running source " + i + " is " + audioSource.Name());
	
	// The Id() method returns the full path to the source, so 
	// we have to look at just the ending.
	if(endsWith(audioSource.Id().toLowerCase(),"firefox.exe"))
	{
		airfoilApp.SetCurrentSource(audioSource);
	}
}

function endsWith(str, suffix) 
{
    return str.indexOf(suffix, str.length - suffix.length) !== -1;
}

Interfacing with and controlling remote speakers is just as easy. This script enumerates the list of remote speakers that Airfoil for Windows can see, adjusts their volume, and then connects to any speaker that isn't currently connected:

var airfoilApp = WScript.CreateObject("RogueAmoeba.Airfoil");
var speakerCollection = airfoilApp.GetSpeakers();

for (var i = 0; i < speakerCollection.Count(); i++)
{
	var speaker = speakerCollection.Item(i);
	WScript.Echo("Speaker " + i + " is " + speaker.Name() + "\n");
	
	// Set the volume to half and connect if it isn't already connected
	speaker.SetVolume(0.5);
	if(!speaker.Connected())
	{
		speaker.Connect();
	}
}

Finally, you can also request to be notified of various events, including when source metadata changes:

var airfoilApp = WScript.CreateObject("RogueAmoeba.Airfoil", "AirfoilApp_");
var metadataProvider = airfoilApp.GetCurrentMetadata(); 

function AirfoilApp_OnMetadataChanged()
{
	WScript.Echo("Metadata Was Changed.");
	if(metadataProvider.ProvidesTrackMetadata())
	{
		WScript.Echo("Current track: " + metadataProvider.Title());
	}
}

There is plenty of other functionality provided by the scripting interface which isn't shown in the above examples. You can find the complete documentation of the API here:

Airfoil for Windows API Documentation and Examples

If you create a script or application to control Airfoil, be sure to let us know!

The very first panel I did (“A Word from the Developers”), alongside Dan Moren, Guy English, and Rob Rhyne, did get recorded (almost all of it, anyway). You can see a short clip on “saying no” right here, and check out a link to the full talk as well. We discussed many of the challenges facing aspiring and nascent app developers, with Rob and Guy sounding intelligent and me along for the ride.

As usual, I had a great time at a very busy show, with both the expo and conference portions being well-attended and having lots to offer. I continue to recommend attending Macworld/iWorld to anyone who’s interested – the iFan pass is a particularly good deal, especially when purchased early.

“A Word from the Developers”

(January 31st, 11 AM, Macworld Live stage)

First up, I’ll be on a developer panel run by Macworld’s Dan Moren. Along with Rogue Amoeba alumnus Guy English (now working on a great new app called Napkin) and Rob Rhyne (of contract shop Martian Craft), we’ll be discussing the decisions developers make every day as we try to make the best possible apps for mass audiences. This talk is open to all attendees.

“iCloud, App Stores & Other Things to Fear: Has Apple Forgotten Power Users?”

(January 31st, 1 PM, Room 2014)

Next up, I’ll be joining Macworld’s Lex Friedman for a panel chock full of writers. Also on that panel will be John Gruber (of Daring Fireball fame), Rene Ritchie (of iMore.com), and Matthew Panzarino (of The Next Web). We’ll be talking about the changing approach Apple has taken in the past half-decade, as they’ve taken over the mass-market.

“Answer, Please: An Apple Trivia Extravaganza with Glitz, Glamour & Great Prizes”

(January 31st, 3 PM, Room 2011)

Finally, Dan Moren and I will be combining our powers once again, to host a trivia event for the ages! The description may be overstating the glitz and the glamour, but I can assure you that the prizes are indeed great, thanks to our generous sponsors. Show off your Apple knowledge, and you could win the nifty olloclip iPhone camera lens (check them out at booth #716 in the Exhibit Hall), Studio Neat’s wonderful Cosmonaut stylus (they’re over at booth #554), BusyMac’s fabulous calendar BusyCal (visit the Appalooza area to find them), and more!

So bring a team of up to 6 people, along with all the Apple knowledge you can cram into your brain. We can’t promise this event will be as educational or informative as other talks, but we’re betting it’ll be more fun. Best of all, you could walk out of there with a great prize from our sponsors.

Getting In

To get in to the 1 PM and 3 PM events, you’ll need an iFan pass. Fortunately, with this link you can get pick one up for half-price, just $50. If you win one of our fantastic prizes, that pass will have paid for itself. Plus, the iFan pass will get you in to all the other Tech Talks, as well as the Special Events, including actors Ashton Kutcher and Josh Gad discussing their upcoming film jOBS, hip-hop star will.i.am talking about the future, and veteran of Saturday Night Live Fred Armisen talking technology and creativity. Be sure to order your iFan pass by January 30th to save.

Alternately, you can get a free Exhibit Hall pass through that link, but the iFan pass is really the best way to see it all (and the only way to get a chance at those prizes).

I hope to see you at Macworld!

If you’ve got a Kindle Fire, or simply prefer the Amazon Appstore on any other Android device, you’ll now be able to find Airfoil Speakers in Amazon’s store. Though we submitted the app at the same time we released it in the Google Play store (seven weeks ago), Airfoil Speakers for Android has only just now been approved — quite the delay. Nevertheless, the wait is over. Read more about Airfoil Speakers for Android or just head over to the Amazon Appstore directly to download and getting sending audio to your Android device.

Since its initial release in September, we’ve put out a decent-size update in the form of version 2.1, which offered full Retina compatibility, support for the AAC-HE audio format and MP3 CBR (in addition to VBR), as well many other improvements. We’re now working on squashing various bugs. We’ve already released a bug fix version 2.1.1, and have lots of great updates and improvements to come.

If you haven’t tried Fission yet, you can learn more right here.

By running Airfoil Speakers on your Android device and coupling it with Airfoil, you can play audio from any Mac or Windows machine, all around the house. Now anything playing on your computer can be heard on your Android phone or tablet too.

Airfoil Speakers receiving audio on Android

A Few Notes

Here’s a few items worth noting while you use the app.

• Due to issues with the operating system itself, Airfoil Speakers for Android will not always play in sync with other AirPlay receivers. We’re still working on this, but at this time you can manually adjust the delay using the slider in Settings. If you tweak this and find a stable value, please report in with your device type and Android version, along with that ideal latency value.

• Airfoil Speakers for Android currently receives audio solely from Airfoil for Mac or Airfoil for Windows. In the future, we’ll see about making it possible to receive audio directly from iOS and iTunes.

• Airfoil Speakers for Android does not currently offer reverse connect or remote control, two features found in some other versions of Airfoil Speakers. We’ll see what happens there.

• We have no current plans for Airfoil for Android (that is, an application which would send audio from Android out to AirPlay receivers). Android does not currently provide the level of access needed to create this. We’ll see what happens in the future, however.

Stay Tuned

As you can see by the version number, this is just the initial public release. We have plans for updates and more features, so keep an eye out. For now, just grab Airfoil Speakers for Android 1.0, and enjoy!

Now, we’re pleased to release Fission 2.1. This is a major update, with a lot of useful changes and improvements our users have asked for, and we’re eager to get it in your hands.

New and Improved

So, what’s new? The first thing some of our users will notice is that Fission 2.1 is now fully Retina-ready. So, if you’ve got a 15″ Retina MacBook Pro or the new 13″ model, Fission will look gorgeous on your display.¹

We’ve also got some new features and functionality. For audiophiles, Fission now offers both VBR and CBR MP3 exporting, in its Custom settings, and also features support for high-efficiency AAC (HE-AAC) exporting. Fission can now open and import audio from more formats, open files dragged directly from iTunes, write iTunes-style AIFF tags, export to many more sample rates, and much more.

MP3 CBR and HE-AAC are now available in Fission’s Custom settings.

And of course, we’ve squashed a slew of bugs. Most importantly, an alert which could appear when trying to save a file has been fixed. Support for slightly malformed FLAC files has been improved as well, along with other improvements to the Batch Converter. We’re also properly handling extensions in Save panels, correctly handling album artwork in file icons, avoiding overwriting files imported via QuickTime, and fixed many other small issues.

This update fixes and improves myriad items on our list, and should improve the experience of using Fission for all of our users. Get it today!

Updating to Fission 2.1

If you purchased directly through our store, Fission is immediately available for download. You can head over to the Fission page or just open your copy of Fission 2 and choose Check for Update from the Fission menu. This is a free update for all users of Fission 2, so get it now.

If you purchased Fission via the Mac App Store, you’ll need to wait for Apple to approve the update we’ve submitted. We’ve strived to have simultaneous releases in the past, and hope to continue to do so in the future. However, recent extended waits for approval by Apple’s review team have convinced us it’s in the best interest of our direct purchasers to provide Fission 2.1 to them as quickly as possible, despite the fact the Mac App Store version is not yet available for download.

We’ll have the Mac App Store version updated as soon as Apple allows, and we’ll update this post when it’s available.

Update (November 20th, 2012): Apple has finally approved Fission 2.1, and it’s now available on the Mac App Store. Click here to get it.

Upgrading

If you’re still using Fission 1, now’s a great time to upgrade! You can do so at a greatly-discounted price, right here.

Footnotes:

1. We’re slowly working on Retina updates for all of our software. Next up is likely to be Piezo, hopefully by the end of the year, then others to follow. Stay tuned!   ↩