Understanding Rogue Amoebas Free Software Offerings

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Rogue Amoeba Software, a company specializing in audio applications for Apple Macintosh, has offered several free software products over the years. These freebies, available through their official website, have provided users with useful audio tools at no cost. The company's free offerings include utilities like LineIn and SoundSource, which serve specific audio manipulation needs for Mac users.

One of the notable freebies mentioned across multiple sources is SoundSource, a menubar utility that allows users to easily change their audio input and output sources with a single click. According to Source [4], version 1.2 of SoundSource was released with improvements, having been "recoded from the ground up for better performance" and featuring "an option to open the Audio MIDI Setup application." This utility provides a convenient alternative to accessing the Sound Preference Pane in System Preferences, making it particularly useful for those who regularly switch between different audio sources such as microphones or line-in inputs during audio editing or podcasting. SoundSource is available as a free download from Rogue Amoeba's Freebies Page.

Another free offering mentioned in the sources is LineIn, described in Source [5] as "a very simply freebie, built to replicate a feature from Mac OS 9 that was lost in the move to OS X: the ability to play microphone audio through to the Mac's speakers." LineIn was used by Audio Hijack to record from input devices, indicating its integration with the company's other products.

Detour, initially released on July 3, 2003, was another application that eventually became available as a freebie after being retired. According to Source [5], Detour was "Rogue Amoeba's initial attempt at an audio control utility" that provided functionality for adjusting per-app volume and output devices. However, it faced "hardware-related issues outside our control" and difficulties in selling a third-party System Preference, leading to its retirement in late 2005. Despite being retired, Detour remained available as a freebie, though it was no longer supported. The functionality Detour provided has since been incorporated into SoundSource.

Intermission, described as a "DVR for audio on the Mac," was another application that was retired. While it kept a recording of audio allowing users to rewind, it "did not prove to be a financial success" and was eventually discontinued. Some of its functionality has been integrated into the "Time Shift" block in Audio Hijack.

The company has communicated with customers through newsletters, as evidenced by Source [1], which mentions that subscribers were on the list because they "at some point bought or expressed interest in a Rogue Amoeba product." These newsletters informed customers about updates to existing products and the availability of new freebies. The April 2003 newsletter specifically mentioned the release of two small freebies - LineIn and SoundSource, along with an update to Audio Hijack Pro.

Rogue Amoeba's freebies have been accessible through their official website, specifically the Freebies Page, as mentioned in Source [2] and Source [4]. The company has also engaged in promotional activities, such as sponsoring the Daring Fireball RSS feed, as noted in Source [3].

In 2005, Rogue Amoeba experienced several milestones, including hiring their first full-time employee, Mike, in August, and retiring Detour in October, as mentioned in Source [6]. By December of that year, they had developed the first versions of Audio Hijack Pro that worked fully on Intel Chip Based Macs.

In conclusion, Rogue Amoeba Software has offered several free software products to Mac users over the years, including SoundSource, LineIn, and the retired Detour. These freebies have provided valuable audio manipulation tools, with some eventually being incorporated into the company's commercial products. While the specific availability and status of these freebies may have changed since the time of these sources, they represent the company's history of providing useful tools to the Mac audio community.

Sources

1. Rogue Amoeba Newsletter Update
2. Geekspeak Podcast Episode
3. Daring Fireball RSS Sponsorship
4. SoundSource 1.2 Release
5. Retired Apps Information
6. 2005 Year in Review