can only have one audio output program working at a time

Please install libflashsupport or use 8.10's asoundconf set-pulseaudio after installing libasound2-plugins.

As discussed at UDS, remaining with 8.04 requires backports of 4 source packages from intrepid{,-updates}: alsa-lib (generates libasound2*), alsa-plugins (generates libasound2-plugins), pulseaudio (lots of binaries), and flashplugin-nonfree if applicable. In the case of a 64-bit system, you may need to backport nspluginwrapper, too.

Audacity will need to be invoked as: pasuspender -- /usr/bin/audacity .
Skype will need to be configured to use pcm.pulse .
Virtualbox will need to be a newer version than in 8.04, and you may need to use pasuspender.

You proposed a olution, but I don't understand it yet,
would you like to explain me and all other duplicated bug subscribers what we should do to get things done.

e.g. : running Wine Skype Pidgin and rhytmbox at the same time ?

libflash support and libasound2 and plugins are also installed.

asoundconf set-pulseaudio
didn't take a effect on my system

(Using up to date interpid 8.10 on a intel c2d laptop)

http://www.pulseaudio.org/ticket/198

The above link is specific to Wine and highlights Wine misusing the ALSA API, and ALSA therefore ignoring what Wine is trying to do. Sounds like the Wine guys have fixed it.

For VirtualBox I am on 2.1.4 and I have it set to use PulseAudio. When I boot the VM the application appears in pavucontrol as you would expect, so it's clearly using Pulse, and I do get audio.

And yet when I boot the VM, Amarok -> xine -> PulseAudio stops working. Yes, I am sure Amarok is using PulseAudio and not ALSA. So I think VirtualBox is trying to do something that PulseAudio does not like; now we just have to work out whether VirtualBox or PulseAudio is the problem.

the issue seems to be solved with one wine update.
So skyping with the non OSS version is possible during playing windows games like WOW.
BUt strangely the Microphone is blocked for skype if you use wine.

As i don't have this issue anymore (wine, skype, totem, vbox ...) are all using PA now I'll unsubscribe.

Marking as fixed since PA is the default and applications now use PA correctly.

This is not fixed for me using up to date karmic.

 I had to change my audio setting in the (nonfree) version of VirtualBox to OSS to get audio to work on the guest OS. Now while the guest OS is running, I don't get any audio from the host OS (Karmic)

Stil not fixed in Lucid....

I have purged, replaced all the PulseAudio componenets and rebooted and restarted, but nothing seems to work...Skype has refused to produce any sound. This problem must have been created by a recently installed or updated application as a similar computer, in the office, currently, has no such issues. I have taken the precaution of blocking all updates until this problem can be resolved, as I believe it was caused through a standard system update. (The OS is Ubuntu 14.04, 32bit).

ubuntu 16.04