About Nicecast

What Is This Document?

This is the Nicecast Manual. Contained within this manual, you'll find tutorials on using Nicecast, detailed explanations of all its settings, and helpful hints for using the application to its full power. Keep reading for tales of intrigue, devilish plot twists, and a surprise ending that will blow your mind.

What Is Nicecast?

Nicecast is the easiest way to broadcast music from OS X, with an internet audio broadcaster and server wrapped in to one applications. Broadcast to the world, or just across your house. Users can tune in to your stream with any streaming MP3 client, on any platform.

From day one, Nicecast was designed to be the simplest way to start broadcasting your audio. With Nicecast, you select a Source from which to draw audio (an application like iTunes or QuickTime, or an input device like a microphone or mixer), set the Quality settings for your stream, set the name and other info you want listeners to see, then start broadcasting. As audio is played from your source, Nicecast takes it and broadcasts it to the server built right in to the application, or to an external server you set. Listeners then tune in and pick up your stream, just like a real radio station.

Nicecast is distributed as a free download, making it easily available to allow you to test it before you purchase it. Use it freely for as long as you need to decide if you want to purchase it. Until you register, Nicecast will overlay static on your broadcast after 20 minutes. This 20 minute trial period resets every time you launch Nicecast.

More information about purchasing Nicecast is available in the Buying Nicecast section of this manual.

For the latest information and updates on Nicecast, come to our website at http://www.rogueamoeba.com/nicecast.

Requirements

-A Macintosh computer
-OS X 10.3.0 or higher

Basic Installation/Removal

To install Nicecast, just drag it from the disk image to your Applications folder.

To uninstall Nicecast, just delete the application.

Nicecast Version History

August 11th, 2005
Nicecast v 1.8.1
Features
 Re-added bandwidth stats
 Re-added and rearranged .m3u Save button

Changes
 Made total listeners and averages stats include the entire life of the server
 Removed metadata when sending to realplayer
 Added timeout to portmap termination
 Made portmap code always remove a mapping before adding one to reduce conflicts
 Added alias from / to /listen

Bug Fixes
 Escaped &<> in XML config file
 Removed dependency on OS libxslt
 Removed dependency on system libxml
 Fixed libxml reference in icecast binary

July 25th, 2005
Nicecast v 1.8
Features
 Local server: Upgraded to icecast2
 Local server: Added ability to kick listeners
 Local server: Added listener password option
 Local server: Added UPnP NAT traversal
 Local server: Added a deny-all robots.txt to deny search engines
 Audio Source: Added System Audio option
 Effects: Added Application Mixer effect plugin

Changes
 Interface: Rearranged help menu
 Interface: Added Advanced button to Source drawer
 Interface: Made left-most speaker icon work as a mute button
 Interface: Transfer statistics no longer tracked
 Interface: Source now remembers configuration when switching source types, but not between runs
 Hijacking: Supports hijacking Dashboard widgets
 Local server: In URL, playlist.pls is now listen.m3u

Bug Fixes
 Audio: Better handling of changes in input audio sample rate
 Local Server: Stream URL now works with QuickTime Player

April 18th, 2005
Nicecast v 1.7.3
NC: Fixed bug where track titles could be sent to the server multiple times
auverse, NC: aucast now handles timeouts better, so Nicecast will hang less
sw4fxPlugins: AppMixer initial checkin
sw4fx: Really fixed window-related crashing bugs
NC: Fixed regression where the Account field would be forgotten/displayed as empty
AHS: Added some more excluded apps
AHKit: Now defaults to using faststart for AAC/ALAC
AHS: Updated to APE 1.4.6
AHKit: added support for Silence Generator fake input device
sw4fxPatchViews: implemented dragging of plugin files directly to patch window
sw4fx: added AUGenerator support
NC: Better error recovery on invalid mount points
sw4fx: Fixed a FXSliders to hitTest: better and not crash
NC: Now handles spaces in the URL field better
sw4fx: fixed toolbar weirdness in AU Cocoa views
AH2, NC: Fixed prefs window popup menu drawing bug

February 4th, 2005
Nicecast v 1.7.2
Bug Fix: Fixed exception error in Install Extras window
Bug Fix: Fixed incorrect archive file naming

January 31st, 2005
Nicecast v 1.7.1
Broadcasting: Fixed crashing bug when filling gaps with silence
Broadcasting: Added new NoiseGenerator to fill gaps with noise
External Servers: Added Public URL field to override the advertised URL
General: Fixed lockup when doing heavy tag editing in iTunes
General: Fixed plugins window toolbar
General: Updated Advanced Hijacking & Device Options dialogs
General: Added hidden retryTimeInterval preference

December 8th, 2004
Nicecast v 1.7
Brief:

+ General
- Now requires 10.3.0 or later
- New Registration window
- Updated manual
- Redid UI layout for 10.3
- Many small bug fixes

+ Broadcasting
- New Silence Generator, will now broadcast filler silence as needed
- New Quality drawer that allows more flexible quality adjustments
- Now only displays your IP address in ".local" format if available
- Adjustable buffer size in VoiceOver effect
+ Audio Device Input
- New Advanced Device Options panel (opt-click Start Broadcast)
- Better handles devices going missing and re-appearing
- Better handles multiple identical devices
+ Effects
- Now supports parallel routing
- New easy-access Master Gain control
- Now supports Cocoa-based AudioUnits
- Knobs now supports scroll wheels


All:
hijack: Added environment cleaner to coreaudiolite
ihs: Implemented hardcoded exclude list
libah: Implemented silence generator

auverse: added channel selector options to auline
auverse: added channel selector options to auplayer
auverse: added device buffer size option to auline
auverse: Added paranoia checks to auproc
auverse: added ring buffer size option to player

sw4fx: Implemented AudioUnit CocoaUI support; fixed framework bundle id
sw4fxViews: Added workaround weird crashing bug in -[FXSlotView setFX:]; probably an NSView bug
sw4fxViews: FXKnob now supports scroll wheels

AHKit: Added Silence Gen. options to Advanced Hijacking panel
AHKit: Finalized AHDeviceOptionsPanel
AHKit: Fixed broken Cancel button in Hijacking Opts. Panel
AHKit: Fixed bug where device popup menu would not show duplicate devices
AHKit: LineIn sources now handle devices going missing and reappearing better

Protein: New registration window
Protein: Registration text field no longer accepts CRs, LFs or tabs
Protein: Turned NSExceptionHandler stuff off

Apps: Added bundlelabler (apps now show more complete version info in the about box)
Apps: Bumped Min-OS requirement to 10.3
Apps: Noise-adder now ramps up
Apps: Now built with gcc3.3

Docs: Redid NC pages with stylesheet
Docs: Updated

NC: .local address no longer used if it does not reserve lookuo
NC: Adjusted AppleEvent timeout some more
NC: Drops quality if skips are detected (not realtime though)
NC: Fixed rare NSArray-related exception
NC: More work on Quality drawer
NC: Now puts icecast binary in Executable folder (should solve launch path access problems
NC: Quality Drawer: Options always enabled now
NC: Redid 'Custom' quality selector
NC: Server window: Now shows Delete Sever confirmation sheet
NC: Silence Filler is now always enabled
NC: Track titles handle &, =, and ? better now
NC: Tweaked nibs

August 9th, 2004
Nicecast v 1.6
+ New Instant Hijack Component makes the use of Application Enhancers (APE) optional
+ Added Recent Tracks Log to Preferences window
+ Added new Archiving formats (AAC and ALAC)
+ Fixed Bug With Source setting and 10.3.5
- Moved Plugins window to About Plugins in Nicecast menu
- Added debugging options window
- Added CoreAudio changed version alert

May 18th, 2004
Nicecast v 1.5.5
+ Support for grabbing track titles from Ask The DJ (v1.6+)
+ New Help window
+ Added 64kbps encoding setting (see Custom...)
+ Now supports iTunes 4.5 for displaying track titles to listeners
+ New Help System
+ Fixed a track titles crash with iTunes

April 5th, 2004
Nicecast v 1.5.1
+ Support for grabbing track titles from Ask The DJ (v1.6+)
+ Now uses CoreAudioLite to hijack apps that arent running yet
+ Local IP Address now included in Share drawer
- Updated to AHS 1.2.5
- Updated to latest AudioHijackKit, Protein
- Mostly fixed skip handler crasher
- Now always send track titles to Shoutcast servers
- Improved Live365 url generation
- Added Start Archiving/Stop Archiving/archiving AppleScript support
- Threaded Track Title Grabber
- Improved icecast2 url generation

February 17th, 2004
Nicecast v 1.5.0
+ Updated to AHS 1.2.4, w/ iTunes crossfade support
+ Added support for reading 'manual' track titles (see details somewhere else)
+ Added Hijack Options dialog (Option-click Start Broadcast)
+ icecast2 support
+ Network Address Overriding
+ Nicecast Server Checker
+ Added support for reading MegaSeg (2.7.1 and up) track titles
- Redid Address field in Server window
- Added iChat workaround
- Added Genre popup to Info drawer
- Changed gfx on New/Delete in Server drawer
- Fixed too many memory leaks to admit to
- Removed Hostname warning from icecast
- Threaded Stats loading
- Fixed sending of (null) track titles
- Added Details button to Server Checker
- Reorganized Prefs window
- If icecast fails to bind on port, now tries port+100
- Added 32kbs/11khz option (User requested)
- Now correctly sets streams Public/Private flag
- Dropped in new libah
- Implemented meta-data info for Live365
- Added new Account field to Servers window (for L365)
- Dropped in new VoiceOver w/o Hard Play-thru
- Dock icon now updates correctly on quit
- Now sets 'public' streams flag to true
- Added "alwaysSendTrackTitles" hidden pref
- Added pref to turn the animated Dock icon off
- Added animated Dock icon
- Added Listener Connect/Disconnect sound prefs
- Added (visible) Stream Logo pref
- Added warning if Stop Broadcasting when users are connected
- Added Dock Badge
- Fixed icecast http admin access
- General improvements to the track title system
- Fixed bad memory leak
- Started rewrite on track title grabbing code
- Track Titles are now loaded immediately when broadcasting starts (instead of after 10 seconds)
- Stream Tracker now asks ra.net for track url & refresh rate
- Fixed Stream Tracker checkbox to be disabled when it should be
- Added 48/44/mono encoding option (User Requested)
- Recent Track Log hidden pref (recentTrackLogsFile)

December 8th, 2003
Nicecast v 1.0.0
-Changes too numerous to list

October 28th, 2003
Nicecast Preview
-Brand Spankin' New