Cue sheet (computing)

A cue sheet, or cue file, is a metadata book which describes how the advance of a CD or DVDcitation needed are laid out. Cue bedding are stored as apparent argument files and frequently accept a ".cue" filename extension. CDRWIN aboriginal alien cue sheets,1 which are now accurate by abounding optical disc assembly applications and media players.

Cue bedding can call abounding types of audio and abstracts CDs. The capital abstracts (including audio) for a CD declared by a cue area is stored in one or added files referenced by the cue sheet. The abstracts files may be audio files (commonly in MP3 or WAV format), or apparent disc images (sometimes with a ".bin" extension). Cue bedding additionally specify clue lengths, and CD-Text including clue and disc titles and performers. They are abnormally advantageous back adding audio stored in a distinct book into assorted songs or tracks.

The name "cue sheet" originates from the "send cue sheet" SCSI/ATA command in optical disc authoring.1 The blueprint for that command defines a cue area architecture absolute mostly the aforementioned information, but in a tabular, bifold abstracts structure, rather than a argument file.2

Audio file playback

An absolute multi-track audio CD may be ripped to a distinct audio book and a cue sheet. Howevercomputer application audio players and accouterments agenda audio players generally amusement anniversary audio book as a distinct playlist entry, which can accomplish it difficult to baddest and analyze the alone tracks. A accepted band-aid is to breach the aboriginal audio book into a alternation of abstracted files, one per track.

Another access is for the audio amateur to abutment the cue area directly. This may absorb accouterment a fresh playlist (for example, an added window) for the capacity of the cue sheet, or abacus an access for anniversary clue anon into the capital playlist.

Cue sheet syntax

A cue area is a apparent argument book absolute commands with one or added parameters. The commands usually administer either to the accomplished disc or to an alone track, depending on the accurate command and the context. They may call the blueprint of abstracts to be written, or CD-Text (metadata). The aboriginal blueprint of the cue area syntax and semantics appears in the CDRWIN User Guide.3



The accepted commands are:4

Essential commands

FILE

Names a book absolute the abstracts and its architecture (such as MP3, and WAV audio book formats, and apparent "binary" disc images)

TRACK

Defines a clue context, accouterment its cardinal and blazon or approach (for instance AUDIO or assorted CD-ROM modes). Some commands that chase this command administer to the clue rather than the absolute disc.

INDEX

Indicates an basis (position) aural the accepted FILE. The position is defined in mm:ss:ff (minute-second-frame) format. There are 75 such frames per additional of audio. In the ambience of cue sheets, "frames" accredit to CD sectors, admitting a different, lower-level anatomy in CDs additionally actuality accepted as frames.5 INDEX 01 denotes the alpha of the track, while INDEX 00 denotes the pregap. The pregap of Clue 1 is acclimated for Hidden Clue One Audio (HTOA).

PREGAP and POSTGAP

Indicates the breadth of a track's pregap or postgap, which is not stored in any abstracts file. The breadth is defined in the aforementioned minute-second-frame architecture as for INDEX.

CD-Text and other metadata commands

REM

Adds a animadversion that usually has no address on the accounting CD at all, with the barring of some applications that use it to abundance added metadata (e.g. Exact Audio Copy writes some added fields, which foobar2000 can read)

CDTEXTFILE

Identifies a book absolute CD-Text information

FLAGS

Sets subcode flags of a track

CATALOG

Contains the UPC/EAN cipher of the disc

ISRC

Define the ISRC of the accepted TRACK

TITLE, PERFORMER and SONGWRITER

CD-Text metadata; applies to the accomplished disc or a specific track, depending on the context