Audacity Troubles

Hi all, this is Deborah updating. You probably noticed on our last episode that my end was staticy. That, my friends, was due to Audacity (our recording program). My microphone would be off and it would record static. I have no idea how it started, since it was perfect the first two shows. Then suddenly, you can't stop the white noise. We recorded yesterday (hooray!!!) and my voice was accompanied by, of course, static. Talk about frustration. I decided to uninstall my Audacity and reinstall it after I sent my files to Sarita. Files sent, I uninstalled it then put it back on. I tried recording with my microphone off to see if it still recorded static.

It did.

*Insert frustrated scream here*

So I tried restarting my computer and recording. Still static. Then I start to play around with it, searching in the dinky little help menu and exploring different effects. Then I see a switch called "Output level". I move the little slidy thingy (despite running a podcast, I'm not good with computer terms) and try recording,

Eureka! The static was gone!

Then I try recording my voice. My voice did not record.

Now before you say "You forgot to turn your microphone on, dummy!" let me just say that I am not that slow. My voice did not record while my microhone was on.

Shoot.

Cue the beginnings of panic mode. I move the little slidy thingy up and down again. I move it to its original position. I move it to the opposite end of its original position. Still no voice is being recorded.

Then I remember, when I first downloaded Audacity, it had the recording device set as my nonexistent Microsoft Default Device. I rush to the menu and click on "Preferences." There, right in the middle of the screen, is the recording device setting, set as the nonexistent default. I turn it to my mic. I press record.

My voice recorded.

Without static.

Whoooooooooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Yeah, that's all :)

Deborah