Introduction
If you don't already know the basics of using tags, go ahead and ignore this whole workshop (or ask questions below).  I am not going to take the time to explain all the basics on how to use tags.  Come back next time for that one.

The Tags:  <EMBED>  and <BGSOUND>
There are two basic HTML tags for posting sounds.  In the detailed instructions of how each works, I am going to use "Chopsticks".  I associate "Chopsticks" with the beginner piano player, so why not in the beginning sound workshop?  :-)

 
<EMBED>
The EMBED tag is a general tag first implemented by Netscape to add many types of
 media into your Web page (including sounds & movies).

When using the EMBED tag to include music on your Web site, the one required attribute
 is SRC. This attribute defines the name and path to the file to be played. You need to
 make sure that the file you would like to play is on the Web server, and the path to it is
 accurate.

 The other attributes you should know when using the EMBED tag to play music are
 HIDDEN, AUTOSTART, and LOOP. HIDDEN is used as a stand alone attribute and
 tells the browser to show nothing to the reader when playing the music. Without this
 attribute, the browser might show a control panel to allow your readers to adjust the
 volume of the sound or start and stop the music. AUTOSTART and LOOP can be either
 true or false.

If you would like to have the file chop.mid played once with no control panel, you
 would add a tag to the BODY of your document that looks like:

     <EMBED src="//www.mybonbon.com/midi-go-round/chop.mid" HIDDEN AUTOSTART="true" LOOP="false">

Change the LOOP attribute to "true" to make it play endlessly while the person is on your page/post.

One thing to keep in mind when using sound files on your posts (or Web pages) is that some people
 would rather listen to music of their own choice rather than yours. If you use the EMBED  tag without the HIDDEN attribute, you give your readers the choice, which may keep them from instantly surfing to another Web site (or posting gripes about your topics)  ;-).   It would look like this:

and the source code for the console is:

    <EMBED src="//www.mybonbon.com/midi-go-round/chop.mid" AUTOSTART="true" LOOP="false" volume="75" width="140" height="60" controls="console">
 
 

<BGSOUND>
The <BGSOUND> tag is only supported by Internet Explorer, other browsers simply ignore
 this tag. When your Web page is downloaded, this tag will then download and play the
 indicated sound file as background for your Web page.

 This tag requires the SRC attribute to indicate the path and file to be played (or the address on the Internet of the file). Internet Explorer recognizes three sound file types: WAV, AU, and MID.

 The only other attribute for the EMBED tag is the LOOP attribute. This tells the browser
 how many times to play the indicated sound file. If you would like it to loop for as long as
 the reader is on the page, you would make the loop "infinite".

 If you would like to have the file chop.mid played twice, you would add a tag to the
 BODY of your document (or in the message area of a post)  that looks like:

     <BGSOURCE src="//www.mybonbon.com/midi-go-round/chop.mid" LOOP="2">

 If you would like the file to play continuously, you would change the loop to

    <BGSOURCE src="//www.mybonbon.com/midi-go-round/chop.mid" LOOP="infinite">
 

You still want to learn more???
Ok, you are on your way to true "Nerdship", but you asked for it:

• A small tutorial I made on posting sounds in Javascript
• A small tutorial I made on how to make the Netscape Consoles (regular sized and small) - thanks to Bear's wonderful use of consoles.
• A very detailed information page on embedding sounds and how it works.  From HTML Goodies.

Now it's time to practice!
May I recommend that you kindly practice with the consoles?  It's going to be nuts if everyone practices with all their sounds overlapping in this topic.  Can you imagine?  OIY!

Best Wishes,
Starie Eyes
 

Next session
Introduction to HTML (Hyper-Text Markup Language), including <tags> and how to find the answer to "How did they do that?".