Question

I have a sound file that I use throughout my program:

NSString *soundPath1 = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:@"mysound" ofType:@"mp3"];
NSURL *soundFile1 = [[NSURL alloc] initFileURLWithPath:soundPath1];   
soundFilePlayer1 = [[AVAudioPlayer alloc] initWithContentsOfURL:soundFile1 error:nil];
[soundFilePlayer1 prepareToPlay];   

So soundFilePlayer1 is defined in my .h file because I need it to be global.

Now… do I need to release soundFilePlayer1 and soundFile1? (and soundPath1?)

If so… where do I do this?
I think I need to release soundFilePlayer1 in: (but do I need to stop it first since it may be playing when they exit the program?)

- (void)dealloc {
   [soundFilePlayer1 release];
}

what about the other files… where do I release those?
Thanks

Answer 1

Remember a simple rule of thumb. Only release if you have called alloc, init, or new on the object. So, you’ll want to release soundFile1. Alternatively, you can use a convenience method and have the sound file added to the autorelease pool automatically:

NSString *path = [[NSBundle mainBundle] pathForResource:@"sound" ofType:@"mp3"];
NSURL *file = [NSURL fileURLWithPath:path]; //autoreleased
player = [[AVAudioPlayer alloc] initWithContentsOfURL:file error:nil];

if([player prepareToPlay]){
    [player play];
}  

And yes, you can release player (soundFilePlayer1) in dealloc, but if you’re not looping the audio file there’s a better way. Conform to the AVAudioPlayerDelegate:

@interface YourView : UIViewController <AVAudioPlayerDelegate> { //example

Then implement the method here:

-(void)audioPlayerDidFinishPlaying:(AVAudioPlayer *)player successfully:(BOOL)flag {
    //your audio file is done, you can release safely
    [player release];
}