Updates of the popular miniMusic NotePad and BeatPad music applications were made available today. Both are now enhanced for the TapWave Zodiac Palm Powered handheld computer. The new versions of the software can access the Yamaha sound card built into all Zodiac models to produce rich polyphonic sound (meaning many different tones can be played simultaneously). With NotePad, users can quickly write songs (using music notation or a graphical notation, or by playing an on-screen piano keyboard), edit the songs, play them back or export the songs to a desktop computer. BeatPad is pattern based, letting a user quickly design looping patterns for drums and other instruments and change everything about the patterns while they play.

Although NotePad already includes a software synthesizer designed to provide polyphonic sound on most Palm Powered handhelds, the dedicated sound card in the Zodiac offers greater polyphony and more instrument timbres than are currently offered with the software synth. BeatPad does not yet include a built-in synthesizer so without the sound card it would only be able to play one sound at a time. Now Zodiac users can truly enjoy the full capabilities of both of these applications (users must install the free 1.1 ROM upgrade available from www.TapWave.com)

"Desktop and laptop computers have used dedicated sound cards and video cards for a long time," says Chad Mealey, president of miniMusic. "We are glad to see a company like TapWave design a handheld computer that takes sound and video seriously and offers so much for the user. With these software upgrades, the Zodiac may now be the best handheld computer available for creating, editing and playing music."

The new upgrades also fix a few problems and add a few other features. NotePad now draws music notation correctly on PalmOne handhelds that use "Color Themes" with colored backgrounds and the software synthesizer now deals correctly with the volume being set to zero (silence). BeatPad now has high resolution color graphics and adds very slow tempos for sparse ambient patterns. BeatPad 1.1 is already under development and is expected to ship in the next two months with a software synthesizer and many other new features.

NotePad and BeatPad are just two of the applications currently available from miniMusic. EarTrain teaches recognition of musical intervals, the foundation of chords and scales, and BugBand drills the basics of reading musical notation and teaches sight reading for both piano and guitar. Also available are previews of new products like SpinPad, SynthPad and MixPad.

Pricing, Availability, and Distribution

The NotePad 1.2.1 Upgrade will be free for all current owners of NotePad, or it can purchased for $29.95 from the miniMusic website. BeatPad 1.0.7 will also be a free upgrade or can be purchased for $29.95. Both applications are included in the miniMusic Mobile Software Pack available for $59.95 on-line and from select retail outlets (Mobile Software Pack owners must register on the miniMusic website or by mail to get the free upgrade). Free demos of all miniMusic software titles are currently available for download from the miniMusic web-site at www.miniMusic.com and from other Palm OS software distributors.

About miniMusic

Based in San Francisco, miniMusic provides portable music tools for composition, education, performance, and entertainment so that musical ideas can be explored anywhere and anytime, giving individuals the freedom of musical expression on their own terms. Shipping applications include NotePad, BeatPad, EarTrain and BugBand and a Palm-to-MIDI hardware interface.

For more information please visit the miniMusic website at http://www.miniMusic.com