"Starting from 1987 with the release of 'Soundtracker', trackers became a new type of music program which spawned the 'mod' (module) audio file standard. The Mod audio standard is considered the audio format that started it all in the world of computer music. After Soundtracker many clones (which often were reverse engineered and improved) appeared, including Noisetracker, Startrekker, and Protracker. Many derivatives also appeared, including OctaMED and Oktalyzer. In the period from 1985 to 1995 when Amiga audio (which was standard in Amiga computers) was of greater quality than other home computers, PC compatible systems began to be equipped with 8-bit audio cards inserted into 16-bit ISA bus slots. Soundtracker Module files were used on PC computers and were considered the only serious 8-bit audio standard for creating music. The worldwide usage of these programs led to the creation of the 'MOD-scene'. Eventually the PC world evolved to 16-bit audio cards, and Mod files were slowly abandoned."
