code: public void activateOptions() {
  		/*
  		 * AudioSystem.getAudioInputStream requires jdk 1.3,
  		 * so we use applet.newaudioclip instead
  		 *
  		 */
  		try {
  			clip = Applet.newAudioClip(new URL(audioURL));
  		} catch (MalformedURLException mue) {
              LogLog.error("unable to initialize SoundAppender", mue);}
  		if (clip == null) {
  		      LogLog.error("Unable to initialize SoundAppender");
  		}
  	}
docs: Attempt to initialize the appender by creating a reference to an AudioClip.
  
  Will log a message if format is not supported, file not found, etc.