You are here: Features > Audio > About Audio

About Audio

To enhance your online output, you can insert audio into content, using Flare's tight integration with MadCap Echo. With Echo, you can create audio files that become accessible in a Flash-based, customizable audio player. When users click the audio link, the Audio Player opens with buttons for accessing the sound. Here is an example of an Echo audio link:

This icon represents an audio link. Click the icon to open the audio player and start the sound. Click the icon again to close the audio player.

Steps for incorporating audio

Following are the tasks involved with including audio into your Flare project:

Insert the audio link When you insert an audio link into Flare, you can record a new audio file (e.g., narration) if you have a microphone connected to your computer. Otherwise, you can import an existing Echo audio file (ECSND) that you have previously created. When you are finished, the link will be inserted into the Flare content and the ECSND file will be added to the Content Explorer. You can use the Flare interface to initiate these tasks. See Inserting Audio Links.

Note: If you open MadCap Echo separately, you can import WAV and MP3 files, which are then converted to ECSND files that you can bring into Flare. For steps, see the Echo online Help.
(Optional) Enhance audio files Make any necessary enhancements to the audio file—such as adjusting the volume, inserting silent areas, and recording new sound. These tasks are performed in the Echo interface. For steps, see the Echo online Help.
(Optional) Develop skins The look and feel of the Audio Player is based on the styles and settings applied through the use of a skin. You can create, enhance, and select skins for an audio file in the Echo interface. For steps, see the Echo online Help.

When you build a Flare online target (DotNet Help, HTML Help, WebHelp, WebHelp Plus, WebHelp AIR), the audio output is also generated and incorporated into the Flare output.