Post by Henry on Oct 9, 2018 18:38:44 GMT
When I got my Motif ES7 workstation, the previous owner was kind enough to include the original CD-ROMs, which among other things contained a copy of the SQ01 sequencer. Being a Sonar addict at the time, I never saw much use in SQ01 initially. I sort-of re-discovered it a few years ago, though, when I decided to set up an old computer with my beloved SW1000XG sound card, an MU128 sound module and the mLAN interface of my Motif ES (they all require rather old computer hardware). Although a few functions I remembered from XGworks 2.0 were missing in SQ01, I found the similarity and relative simplicity appealing.
I later stumbled across some online screenshots of XGworks ST and SOL, which piqued my interest because they both looked an awful lot like SQ01. I learned that they were Japanese-only, but when I got in touch with John, he had managed to buy a copy of XGworks ST from Japan. He had noticed that, although the installers and Help files were in Japanese, XGworks ST actually had an English GUI. He had also noticed some striking technical similarities between ST and SQ01, including the fact that some installation folders were common between the two, and that software modules from ST were also recognised by SQ01. Thanks to him, I was inspired to give SOL a try. From there, it's been a learning process, and I'm only happy to share what I now know.
How do I even install this damn thing???
So you finally have the SOL (or XGworks ST) software on a CD-ROM, and your Windows XP computer ready to go (if you want to install on Windows Vista or newer, make sure you read this first), only to find that you can't read what the installer says?!! Yes, the on-screen instructions are in Japanese. A more detailed walkthrough will be provided, but there's one sure-fire way you can get through this stage, almost with your eyes shut: Through the entire installation dialog, the "OK" and "Next" buttons are always highlighted by default. As long as you're satisfied with the default installation settings, it's only a matter of clicking those highlighted buttons all the way through.
Lost for help - the translations:
Having gotten past the initial language barrier during installation, if you have some experience with XGworks or other DAWs, the SOL sequencer is probably going to be rather self-explanatory. If you need to learn the details first, however, you'll quickly find that the built-in Help function is of little use: Although the software, once installed, displays English menus and tools, the Help files are all in Japanese...
Most of the needed Help files can actually be found in the SQ01 distribution. If you have it installed, these files will have you covered in many situations:
- About.chm
- AudioMix.chm (- if you got SQ01 with a Motif synthesizer. Other bundles may have the Arrange.chm file or a .pdf about the XG Editor instead.)
- Effect.chm
- List.chm
- midimix.chm
- MPjob.chm
- Piano.chm
- QA.chm
- Rack.chm
- SQ01.chm
- Trackview.chm
Starting from the above, John had already gotten underway translating the missing Help files for XGworks ST. With his kind advice, I was able to pitch in using SOL2. The process is time-consuming, and oftentimes suffers from a lack of priority against other things imparted by life in general, but the resulting files are now nearing completion. A download site hasn't been set up for these files yet, but please get in touch if you're interested!
Parts of SOL/XGworks ST, that are not covered by the SQ01 files, involve the following:
- Arrange.chm (the AutoArrange window - translated)
- Artic.chm (the AutoArticulation window - translated)
- Drum.chm (the Drum view - translated)
- Staff.chm (the Staff view - translated)
- SOL.chm (mostly the same as SQ01.chm, but also stuff not found elsewhere - not completed)
- TimeSlice.chm (the TimeSlice audio algorithm - not completed)
- TimeStretch.chm (the TimeStretch audio algorithm - not completed)
- vtsr.chm (the Voice-to-Score R function - not completed)
- Yougo.chm (technical terminology - not completed)
How to replace the Japanese Help files?
You will recognise the Help files by their *.chm extension, and also from the file icons, which in Windows 7 will look like the above image. After installing the SOL sequencer, the original Help files are located in the SOL and SOL Common subfolders within the Program Files folder of your system hard drive. For 64-bit operating systems, the default directories are "C:\Program Files (x86)\SOL" and "C:\Program Files (x86)\SOL Common".
Note: If you have installed XGworks ST instead of SOL, the folders are "C:\Program Files (x86)\XGworks ST" and "C:\Program Files (x86)\SOL Common".
We have maintained the original file names for our translated versions, so that you can simply copy-paste the translated files into the above folders, and access them directly from SOL's Help menu.
- When pasting, you will be asked if you would like to replace the original file(s). Doing this is recommended to avoid renaming, which would otherwise prevent SOL's menu from pointing to the right document.
- If you for some reason want to keep the original files, please copy them to another folder first.
- Some of the files are duplicated in the two folders, so make sure you replace them in both locations!
We sincerely hope the files will prove helpful to you! 
What about the manual, then?
The original SOL2 manual is a 180+ page book, and translating it would require learning to read Kanji first. Although I have great respect for the Japanese, it probably won't happen anytime soon. Not that it would be needed, though: The contents of the manual seem to be identical to what you'll already find in the Help files.
What about this weird window that says *£@[#}$^¨ ?
It would seem like Yamaha were actually preparing to market SOL in other parts of the world, because the GUI is actually in English if installed on a computer with non-Japanese language settings. I'd say that they completed 99% of the work, but there are some instances where you'll come accross a bunch of odd symbols. These are mainly small pop-up dialogs with an "OK" button (reminding you e.g. to select an audio input before starting the "Voice-to-Score R" function). Although I don't have an exhaustive overview of these areas as of yet, you shouldn't let this scare you at all.
The optional "Pitch Bend & Chord Window" components, that you can still download from Yamaha's Japanese website, haven't been translated at all. The same applies to some editor plugins for instruments/devices that weren't sold outside of Japan, such as the MU2000. I've done experiments translating these modules' *.dll files, in order to remedy this. Results are very promising, but I haven't tested these thoroughly and I'm not ready to share them just yet. I'll keep you posted, though! 
- H -