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Abbreviations & Terms

The following are a list of commonly used abbreviations and terms:



TermMeaning
ActionThe term used for a Yate script or program.
Action Debug StateA true or false flag which is set by various action statements and can be tested by the Debug statement to control the conditional display of Debug statements.
Action Descriptive TextAn action's description is the first non empty content in a Comment, Force Grouped, Tooltip or Version statement. A search for a description is terminated at the first enabled statement which is not one of the preceding statements or an Empty Line or Constrain Execution to a Single File statement.
Action FileThe term used to describe an action which is a container. These actions are listed in the Action Manager.
Action Runtime SettingA setting or option for an action which is persistent and can be read and written by actions. They are usually used as configuration options for actions.
Action Test StateA true or false flag which is set by various action statements and can be tested by others to control the flow of execution.
APE TagsThe tag representation used by Monkey's Audio (APE) and WavPack files.
Application ListsThere are 13 Lists of data which can be automatically and manually set by Yate. These lists are persistent and include Artist, Composer, Genre and others. There are also ten available Custom Lists. Lists are typically associated with various UI fields to provide popup information and auto-type capability.
ArrayAn ordered list of items, indexed by an integer value from 0 through the number of items minus 1. Arrays are used in Yate Containers.
AtomsThe low level representation of metadata in MPEG-4 files.
Batch ModeBatch mode is the operational state when running an action from the Batch Processor Wizard.
BEXT MetadataMetadata found in some WAV files. This is part of the Broadcast WAV format's bext (Broadcast Audio Extension) chunk. Additional information can be found in BEXT Metadata.
BoxesSame as Atoms.
CCEThe Combined Credits Editor.
CommentA Comment is a multi-line user definable text based metadata field. There is a default comment recognized by most applications and named comments. Comment is also used to refer to an item of metadata in FLAC and OGG files.
ContainersThe only binary data type in Yate. A Container is always an Array or Object.
Control CharactersAll Unicode control characters with the exception of newline (\n) and tab (\-). All invalid Unicode characters are also included.
Context MenuA menu typically displayed on Mac by clicking a mouse with the Control key depressed or by doing a right click. Context menus display functions appropriate for the current context. Yate uses context menus extensively.
CreditA metadata field which assigns roles to people.
CSVComma Separated Values. A delimited text file typically used to encapsulate data in a database representation.
Cue Sheet (Single File)A text file describing the position of tracks contained in a single audio file. Typically the audio file was created by a CD ripper. The cue sheet is required so that players can determine where each track starts.
Cue Sheet (Multiple Files)A text file describing limited metadata for multiple audio files in a cue sheet format. As each described audio track typically has a start at the beginning timing index, there is no inherent necessity for the file.
Custom Edit PanelA user configurable Edit Panel. These panels are configured in the Custom Panel Editor.
Custom FieldA metadata field which has been user defined. Yate supports 100 Custom Fields.
Custom ListMany built in fields such as Artist, Genre, Media Type, etc. can be associated with a list of items. Many of these lists have similar names to the fields in order to ease the association of the field to the list. Yate also has 10 custom lists named Custom List 1 through Custom List 10. These custom lists are available as Custom Fields can also be associated with lists.
Database FileAn external file which can be loaded and manipulated by Yate. Yate supports CSV and TSV text files. Many applications support these formats.
Debug PanelThe panel which is displayed when a Debug statement or breakpoint is encountered in an action.
Default ArtworkThe first artwork item in an audio file.
DPIDots per inch. Yate uses this interchangeably with PPI.
Edit PanelA grouping of a set of controls displaying fields within Audio files. There are 24 built in edit panels and 10 Custom edit panels which are user configurable.
Edit Panel Preset ButtonThere are 10 edit panel preset buttons which are used to switch the current edit panel.
Exception SetA named list of items specifying words and exceptions to case transformations.
Export SetA named list of fields which can be used when producing database files.
FieldAn item of metadata available in an audio file or a tagger.
FLAC CommentSame as Vorbis Comment
FLAC/OGG CommentSame as Vorbis Comment
FrameAn item of metadata available in audio files which store their metadata according to the ID3 specifications.
FTTFile to Tag.
GEOBGeneral Encapsulated Object
Grouped ModeWhen an action is run in Grouped mode, the entire action and the actions it calls, are run as a single group. When the entire group is finished for a single selected file, the group will be run against the next selected file, then the next, until all the selected files have been processed.
ID3The ID3 specifications define a metadata container. The ID3 specification is used in AIFF, DFF, DFS, MP3 and WAV files. Note that the ID3 container is not a file format. It is embedded in an audio file.
Inline ActionAn action which is embedded in an Action File.
Interactive ModeIn Interactive mode, actions operate in the foreground on the currently selected files.
Key-Value ListsKey-Value Lists are a pseudo action datatype. They are an interpretation of text in a string such that elements consisting of a key and a value are separated by an implied or explicit delimiter.
ListsLists are a pseudo action datatype. They are an interpretation of text in a string such that elements are separated by an implied or explicit delimiter. Not to be confused with Application Lists.
List Aware FieldAlso called a popup field. These are fields which can be associated with a Application List. They have a popup control to the right of the field which will displayed the associated application list.
m3u File (Extended)An m3u file format which specifies the duration in seconds as well as a track's title in the file. More information can be found in m3u File Formats.
m3u File (Standard)The most common m3u file format which contains no information other than a single path reference for each file. More information can be found in m3u File Formats.
m3u File (Yate)A Yate twist on the m3u file format which includes a Yate Track ID for each file. This information potentially allows a Yate action to correct entries where a file has been renamed or moved. More information can be found in m3u File Formats.
Media TypeSame as Mime Type
MFEThe Multi Field Editor.
Mime TypeAn two part identifier used to describe content. Yate primarily uses mime types when describing an artwork item. These are typically image/jpeg or image/png.
MPEG-4 ContainerAn audio file format used by M4A, M4B, M4R, M4V, and MP4 files.
Multi Value DelimiterThe text sequence used to separate multiple values in fields. The default and recommended delimiter is ;;;
Named VariablesVariables which are unique and have no per track association. The values in these variables are only available while running an action.
Newline CharactersIncludes Linefeed (\n), Carriage Return (\&000D), Next Line (\&0085), Line Separator (\&0028) and Paragraph Separator (\&2029).
Normalized UDTIA name used by Yate to represent common UDTIs which have different names in different audio formats. Yate handles the appropriate transformations when reading and writing the values.
ObjectAn unordered representation of names associated with values. A name in an object's name:value pair is case sensitive. Objects are used in Yate Containers.
OGG ContainerAn audio file format used to contain various types of audio streams. Yate supports Ogg Vorbis and Opus files.
Open ModeThe Open Mode determines how Yate opens items and in some cases changes the operation of certain functions. More information can be found The Open Mode
Persistent IDA Persistent ID is an identifier describing the location of an audio or video file in iTunes/Music/TV. The ID is a sequence of hexadecimal digits. Yate prefixes a Music PID with an M and a TV PID with a V.
PIDAn abbreviation for Persistent ID.
plist Fileplist (Property List) files are XML files which are essentially dictionaries containing keys and values. Yate uses these files whenever it exports data.
Popup FieldSee List Aware Field.
PPIPixels per inch. Often confused with DPI (dots per inch). Sometimes the two terms are used interchangeably.
Query DatabaseA Database open for querying in an action has per cell addressability.
Replacement SetA named list of items specifying a from and to pattern. Replacement sets are typically used with renaming and case transformations.
Runtime Settings SetA named list of items specifying a setting and value. These sets are used to store action runtime settings.
Runtime State StackA stack of metadata states which can be manipulated by an action. The stack is automatically removed when an action terminates.
Staging PlaylistA Yate database file used to accumulate tracks for inclusion in an audio playlist.
Stepwise ModeWhen an action is run in Stepwise mode, every statement is effectively run in parallel on each active file, before proceeding to the next.
System VariablesVariables which are unique and have no per track association. There are 10 System Variables. The values in these variables persist when the application is closed.
Tag SetA collection of fields which can be selected or deselected. A set can be marked as being inverted which implies all fields except the selected fields. Tag sets can be programmatically read and modified.
Track VariablesThere are 16 Track Variables available in every audio file named Variable 0 through Variable 15. The values in these variables are only available while running an action.
TSVTab Separated Values. A delimited text file typically used to encapsulate data in a database representation.
UD TextSame as UDTI.
UDTIAbbreviation for User Defined Text Info Item.
UD URLSame as UDURL.
UDURLAbbreviation for User Defined URL.
UFIDAbbreviation for Unique File Identifier.
UIDAbbreviation for Unique Identifier.
VariablesWhen not qualified by Track, System or Named, a Track Variable is assumed.
Vorbis CommentThe low level representation of metadata used by FLAC and OGG files. Unlike Frames and Atoms, Vorbis Comments are case insensitive and are typically represented in upper case characters.
Whitespace CharactersIn Yate for all intent and purpose this means spaces and tab characters.