How are the MIDIs implemented?

[eXodus]

I have always wondered just how the MIDI customising is done. I haven't found any players or sequencers that can set start and end times, or handle looping at all. Is all this being done through MIDI software handwritten for ZC/ZQuest? Are there some strings being pulled in another MIDI Library or lesser known MIDI functions (not that I know much about the spec)? Is it - or can it be made - available for public use?

Please bear in mind that this is about how ZQuest and ZC play MIDI files, and has nothing to do with how the ZQuest user sets up music in his quest...

P.S.: Can anything be done about having a similar level of control over MP3s? I know there is the whole "MP3 you use may not be the same one the user decides on" thing, but is it even possible?

[zhila]

Allegro Low LEvel Gaming ROutines (http://alleg.sourceforge.net)

MIDI Functions

'nuff said

[Dart Zaidyer]

I always thought start/end/loop was a standard feature in midi that nobody ever bothers to support anymore. It used to be done all the time back when midi was the popular standard for PC games.
Could have easily been a program trick, though.

As far as MP3 looping: It would definitely have to be a program trick. However, OGG has built-in looping features you can take advantage of, and it's easy enough to convert an MP3 to OGG format...

[eXodus]

Of course! Why didn't I think of checking Allegro? Everything else in ZC is done with it. Well, I guess I've got a partial Allegro wrapper for GameMaker to write...

As for the Ogg Vorbis suggestion from Dart Zaidyer, what does it take to get the options there? Is it similar to Allegro, or is the loop thing part of the conversion process?