Automating the Mix?

I am having trouble automating my files in Music Creator 2003. According to the help section, the program is capable of doing so (unless I'm mistaken). However, in order to automate, supposedly I have to go to the Automation Toolbar, which, along with the Sync Toolbar, cannot be turned on. When I look at the Toolbar window, all the different toolbars have boxes next to them which you can check to turn on/off, but Sync and Automation are both in gray and I cannot do this.

I'm having the same problem with the Enable Stretching button in the Loop Construction view.

Any input as to what to do about this would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks, and happy new year!

I was trying to automate the faders in the mixing console. It's nearly impossible to get good mixes for my songs when I try to manipulate each track with volume envelopes and nodes - I lose a lot of the subtleties that automated fader recording would allow.

Is there any way to connect a real (hardware) mixer and manipulate it that way? And if so, can anyone reccomend an affordable but decent compatible mixer?

Also, why can I create loops and change the tempo with the metronome but not enable stretching? I can't use the Set Original BPM feature or Enable Stretching. Will that present problems? It doesn't seem like it is but I will admit I don't understand much about this part of the recording process.

Thanks!