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I want to write a program that uses shell commands to make changes to audio such as:

pactl set-sink-volume 0 +10%

As I need it during my podcast I want to be able to quickly interact with it via GUI and also use the keyboard to activate functions. Which language would you suggest for programming it? My first guess would be C++ and QT but maybe there are better options.

Blend3rman
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JoschJava
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1 Answers1

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This question may be regarded as opinion-based, because most higher-level programming languages have an interface to the system shell, and the decision is mainly a matter of preference (and only to some part of "the right tool for the right job"). However, here are some hints from my point of view:

  1. If the logic is simple (mainly the calls with fixed or passed parameters, no fancy calculations), use shell scripts. Easy to start with, to implement and to maintain.
  2. For more advanced logic, you'll be better off with a common scripting language like Python, Lua, even Perl if you know how to use it.
  3. C++/Qt makes sense if you want a sophisticated UI experience, but here also Python + PyQt would be an alternative. Altogether compiler languages add some overhead to the development cycle, but provide better runtime performance, which may be an advantage if the application is consuming much processor time and runs permanently.
Murphy
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