Use OpenStep's Ni.snd in OS X

Aug 04, '08 07:30:00AM

Contributed by: poenn

I had OpenStep running in a virtual machine for quite a long time before I got the idea to extract and convert the Ni.snd to something that OS X can play back.

For those who don't know: OpenStep had many of the same system sounds found in today's OS X. However, OS X lacks the most important one from OpenStep -- it's the "Ni" sound from Monty Python's Knights who say Ni. This hint presupposes that you have access to an OpenStep installation, as I don't know if the sound was included with NextStep.

  1. In OpenStep, find the sound file, which is located at /NextLibrary/Sounds/Ni.snd
  2. Somehow, move the file over to your Mac. Since I use a virtual machine, I first tried to use NFS for that, but failed miserably. So I installed OmniWeb 3 and mailed the sound file to myself. Astonishing that the webmail site (GMX) even worked in the old browser, but it did!
  3. On your Mac, put Ni.snd in /System » Library » Sounds (authentication required!).
You can now select Ni in System Preferences » Sound, and enjoy the greatest warning sound ever made!

[robg adds: I would save the file in either the top-level Library » Sounds folder, or my user's Library » Sounds folder, instead of in the System folder. Sounds added to either spot should be visible in the Sound System Preferences panel. I'm sure enterprising readers could use a web search engine to find a "Ni" sound effect file without having to first install OpenStep in a virtual machine. The general version of this hint is that it appears any ".snd" file from OpenStep (and probably NextStep) works natively in OS X.]

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Mac OS X Hints
http://hints.macworld.com/article.php?story=20080731040423517