Using Audacity in the Podcast Studio

1st step: Make sure all hardware is connected correctly (see photos below).

2nd step: Turn on computer and sign into your Davidson account.

3rd step: Open Audacity.

If it's not on your desktop, click on the Windows button on the bottom left of the screen and search for "Audacity."

4th step: Change preferences in Audacity if needed (there are two simple ways to do so).

Under/by “host” it should say “MME.”
Under/by “playback device” use “Microsoft Sound Mapper.”
Under/by “recording device” also use “input(s) 1&2” or "input(s) 3&4" which works for either set 1&2 or set 3&4 depending on which you're using.
Under/by “channels” is on you can choose either "2 (stereo)" or “1 (Mono)” depending on what you prefer.

1st step: Recording

To begin recording, click the red circular record button. Press stop or “spacebar” to stop the recording.

Raise the “gain” on the left hand side of the audio clip or using the knobs on the Soundcloud board to increase volume if necessary.

2nd step: Saving your Audacity File

Click on File → Save As…
Name your file and chose a location to save your file.
Upload the audacity file to your Dropbox, Google Drive, or One Drive account to edit on a different computer.

3rd step: Exporting your file into a WAV or MP3

When you wish to export your project, click on File → Export Audio… (Ctrl + Shift + E)
Name your file and it will by default export as a WAV file, but if you want to change it to an MP3, click on “save as type” and change it from WAV to MP3. For your reference, a WAV file is a large format file that is good to edit in other AV projects (podcasts, videos, or art projects), while MP3s are compressed files meant to be played on many types of devices.
Upload the audio file to your Dropbox, Google Drive, or One Drive account to edit on a different computer.

Open Audacity and all all audio clips to the file.
To move audio clips in your arrangement, use the “Time shift tool”, which looks like this “←→”, and is to the right of the zoom tool (a magnifying glass).
To trim your audio clips use the “multi-tool mode” which looks like an asterix, and is to the right of the time shift tool. The multi-tool mode enables you to highlight your audio clips. Once highlighted it then gives you access to the tools to the right of the multi-tool button, including the “cut”, “copy”, “paste”, “trim audio”, and “silence audio” tools which you can use to further edit your clip.
Upload the audio file to your Dropbox, Google Drive, or One Drive account to edit on a different computer.