For the sake of closure to this thread (I can't seem to forget it exists, and I don't like leaving things unfinished):
This idea has ballooned something fierce, and half a year later I find myself reading the USB specification, soldering microchips and staying up late pouring over datasheets. I am to make a pretty fancy midi sequencer if all goes well - what is to be a more direct conduit for my thoughts than a keyboard and mouse (and all around A+ fun toy
).
For what it's worth, I find Reaper to be a deeply inspirational piece of software. The modularity and neatness of it; as well as the work ethic of the creators drives me to try achieve similar heights. I felt good buying Reaper, and I'm still feeling good owning it. Somewhere in the hopefully not too distant future I hope to give something back to this community and Cockos; more than $60 and a half-assed thread ^_^