Mac OS toolbar beta

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Linvincible
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Mac OS toolbar beta

Post by Linvincible »

Hi guys,

just tried the os X toolbar beta
just a comment on the switch to advanced pannel:
the flipping is fun, but 3 times is a bit too much to my taste...
who's for 1 time?

L'invincible

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andy55
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Re: Mac OS toolbar beta

Post by andy55 »

Linvincible wrote:Hi guys,

just tried the os X toolbar beta
just a comment on the switch to advanced pannel:
the flipping is fun, but 3 times is a bit too much to my taste...
who's for 1 time?

L'invincible
hmm... we'll think around with the idea...

any other comments?

andy

Truus
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Post by Truus »

I don't have the toolbar, when I use NOT the fullscreen mode I see the options, but it is gray, what can I do?
I use OSX 10.4.4 on a mac mini and the latest download of G-Force.

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andy55
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Post by andy55 »

Truus wrote:I don't have the toolbar, when I use NOT the fullscreen mode I see the options, but it is gray, what can I do?
I use OSX 10.4.4 on a mac mini and the latest download of G-Force.

Email me w/ your license code and I'll add you to the beta list.

Andy

Truus
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Post by Truus »

I have send an email with my licence code, thank you for your reply :-)

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beeblebrox
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Post by beeblebrox »

Here are a few thoughts on first blush:

It is great to have direct access to the settings rather than via console. Thanks for working on this!

The following suggestions assume that G-Force is running on a secondary monitor and the toolbar GUI is on the primary monitor where there is plenty of real estate:
  • -needs a way to view a list of all waveshapes, colormaps, and flowfields (WCFs) in a single window (instead of via a pop-up). I would rather not have to scroll up and down through a small pop-up list rather than just click directly onto one of the presets in a list of my preferred WCFs that are already visible.
    -needs a way to change length of morphs between WCFs.
    -needs some way of preselecting the WCF that will show up in the list of WCFs to be performed. I could envision hundreds of WCFs on file but only needing to access, say a dozen at a time. Do we still need to go into the GForce data folder and remove the WCFs we don't want?
    -I noticed a problem exists for selecting and deselecting smooth flowfield switching and flowfield transitions. The option doesn't check it just turns to a field that looks like it wants to be edited.
    -If things are changed in the GForce folder is there a way via the toolbar to get it to refresh?
    -Needs a way to preprogram a series of visualizations to be used in succession.
    -I'm having problems getting the built-in audio input sources (chill, etc.) to work.
    -The "next" and "previous" buttons on the WCFs don't seem to go to the next and previous WCFs in the pop up list.
    -For previewing it would be nice to have a slideshow mode that would auto advance incrementally (rather than randomly) and display the name of WCF settings (if desired). If the user liked a look it would be great to have a way to click on a button to save that setting immediately (like the shift/control save we get in G-Force).
    -Is there a way for the keyboard commands to work from the tool bar. Advancing to the next preset using the keyboard would be nice as would the triggering of other presets (such as particles).
Great job guys, I'm looking forward to the final product!


-B

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andy55
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Post by andy55 »

beeblebrox wrote:Here are a few thoughts on first blush:
-needs a way to view a list of all waveshapes, colormaps, and flowfields (WCFs) in a single window (instead of via a pop-up). I would rather not have to scroll up and down through a small pop-up list rather than just click directly onto one of the presets in a list of my preferred WCFs that are already visible.
You can interact w/ a listbox in the advanced controls section. Is that kind of what you're looking for or is there more we should add/change?
beeblebrox wrote: -needs a way to change length of morphs between WCFs.
That's on the to-do list, but won't be in this version.
beeblebrox wrote: -needs some way of preselecting the WCF that will show up in the list of WCFs to be performed. I could envision hundreds of WCFs on file but only needing to access, say a dozen at a time. Do we still need to go into the GForce data folder and remove the WCFs we don't want?
Well, the themes option is designed to take care of this, but your point of
only putting the enabled WCFs (set via the current theme) in the popup menu at a time. We'll put that on the list for features to consider in the next version. As it stands, if an item is disabled in the current theme, then it won't ever show up in the automatic shuffle.
beeblebrox wrote: -I noticed a problem exists for selecting and deselecting smooth flowfield switching and flowfield transitions. The option doesn't check it just turns to a field that looks like it wants to be edited.
Whoops, that'll be fixed in the next beta.
beeblebrox wrote: -If things are changed in the GForce folder is there a way via the toolbar to get it to refresh?
In short, no... the basis for lack of "refresh" support is that most users rarely, if ever, change their GF files.
beeblebrox wrote: -Needs a way to preprogram a series of visualizations to be used in succession.
That stuff takes quit a bit to undertake, so as much as we'd like to see it, it may not happen for a while...
beeblebrox wrote: -I'm having problems getting the built-in audio input sources (chill, etc.) to work.
Can you be more specfic?
beeblebrox wrote: -The "next" and "previous" buttons on the WCFs don't seem to go to the next and previous WCFs in the pop up list.
That's fixed in the next beta (it'll be rolled in a 3.1.3 beta).
beeblebrox wrote: -For previewing it would be nice to have a slideshow mode that would auto advance incrementally (rather than randomly) and display the name of WCF settings (if desired). If the user liked a look it would be great to have a way to click on a button to save that setting immediately (like the shift/control save we get in G-Force).
This is coming in the not-too-distant future for both platforms.
beeblebrox wrote: -Is there a way for the keyboard commands to work from the tool bar. Advancing to the next preset using the keyboard would be nice as would the triggering of other presets (such as particles).
a decent point, but realize that you have key commands in G-Force as well, so that lowers the keyboard support needed on the toolbar. we'll look into adding support.

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andy55
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Post by andy55 »

andy55 wrote:
beeblebrox wrote:Here are a few thoughts on first blush:
-needs a way to view a list of all waveshapes, colormaps, and flowfields (WCFs) in a single window (instead of via a pop-up). I would rather not have to scroll up and down through a small pop-up list rather than just click directly onto one of the presets in a list of my preferred WCFs that are already visible.
You can interact w/ a listbox in the advanced controls section. Is that kind of what you're looking for or is there more we should add/change?
beeblebrox wrote: -needs a way to change length of morphs between WCFs.
That's on the to-do list, but won't be in this version.
beeblebrox wrote: -needs some way of preselecting the WCF that will show up in the list of WCFs to be performed. I could envision hundreds of WCFs on file but only needing to access, say a dozen at a time. Do we still need to go into the GForce data folder and remove the WCFs we don't want?
Well, the themes option is designed to take care of this, but your point of
only putting the enabled WCFs (set via the current theme) in the popup menu is taken. We'll put that on the list for features to consider in the next version. As it stands, if an item is disabled in the current theme, then it won't ever show up in the automatic shuffle.
beeblebrox wrote: -I noticed a problem exists for selecting and deselecting smooth flowfield switching and flowfield transitions. The option doesn't check it just turns to a field that looks like it wants to be edited.
Whoops, that'll be fixed in the next beta.
beeblebrox wrote: -If things are changed in the GForce folder is there a way via the toolbar to get it to refresh?
In short, no... the basis for lack of "refresh" support is that most users rarely, if ever, change their GF files.
beeblebrox wrote: -Needs a way to preprogram a series of visualizations to be used in succession.
That stuff takes quit a bit to undertake, so as much as we'd like to see it, it may not happen for a while...
beeblebrox wrote: -I'm having problems getting the built-in audio input sources (chill, etc.) to work.
Can you be more specfic?
beeblebrox wrote: -The "next" and "previous" buttons on the WCFs don't seem to go to the next and previous WCFs in the pop up list.
That's fixed in the next beta (it'll be rolled in a 3.1.3 beta).
beeblebrox wrote: -For previewing it would be nice to have a slideshow mode that would auto advance incrementally (rather than randomly) and display the name of WCF settings (if desired). If the user liked a look it would be great to have a way to click on a button to save that setting immediately (like the shift/control save we get in G-Force).
This is coming in the not-too-distant future for both platforms.
beeblebrox wrote: -Is there a way for the keyboard commands to work from the tool bar. Advancing to the next preset using the keyboard would be nice as would the triggering of other presets (such as particles).
a decent point, but realize that you have key commands in G-Force as well, so that lowers the keyboard support needed on the toolbar. we'll look into adding support.

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beeblebrox
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Post by beeblebrox »

Andy, thanks for your response, my responses below:
andy55 wrote:
beeblebrox wrote:Here are a few thoughts on first blush:
-needs a way to view a list of all waveshapes, colormaps, and flowfields (WCFs) in a single window (instead of via a pop-up). I would rather not have to scroll up and down through a small pop-up list rather than just click directly onto one of the presets in a list of my preferred WCFs that are already visible.
You can interact w/ a listbox in the advanced controls section. Is that kind of what you're looking for or is there more we should add/change?
This appears to be a list of what will be shuffled. I want to use the toolbar in a live presentation environment in our church so shuffling is not a feature I will ever use. What I was looking for was a way to pare down the list of available WCFs rather than editing the GF folder itself (which I can certainly do but it would be nice to have a way to simply deselect the WCFs I don't want.)
andy55 wrote:
beeblebrox wrote: -needs some way of preselecting the WCF that will show up in the list of WCFs to be performed. I could envision hundreds of WCFs on file but only needing to access, say a dozen at a time. Do we still need to go into the GForce data folder and remove the WCFs we don't want?
Well, the themes option is designed to take care of this, but your point of
only putting the enabled WCFs (set via the current theme) in the popup menu at a time. We'll put that on the list for features to consider in the next version. As it stands, if an item is disabled in the current theme, then it won't ever show up in the automatic shuffle.
The theme concept would be great if a user could also have a way to choose what WCFs would be in the list of available WCFs. As I said above, shuffling is not a feature I use so anything related to it (i.e. the current theme methodology) is not something I need for live performance. What is important for live performance applications would be to have a way for themes to reflect a group of WCFs that are available for manual playback on command. If they can't be ordered from within the Toolbar this could be done manually by the user in the GF folder using a numbered naming schema that would order them.

andy55 wrote:
beeblebrox wrote: -If things are changed in the GForce folder is there a way via the toolbar to get it to refresh?
In short, no... the basis for lack of "refresh" support is that most users rarely, if ever, change their GF files.
For me it is mostly the addition of different color maps. Not a problem if no refresh from the tool bar is available, I can do it the old fashioned way.
andy55 wrote:
beeblebrox wrote: -Needs a way to preprogram a series of visualizations to be used in succession.
That stuff takes quit a bit to undertake, so as much as we'd like to see it, it may not happen for a while...
Well, if you can put it on your list that would be great. Think of it like queueing up a "playlist" of upcoming WCFs. When I do visualizations in our church services I would like to be able to get them set up in advance so they match the music being presented on stage.
andy55 wrote:
beeblebrox wrote: -I'm having problems getting the built-in audio input sources (chill, etc.) to work.
Can you be more specfic?
Just that I only get movement to the Waveshape when I have the "audio in" selected. I get no action from the "chill" and other built-in audio generators.
andy55 wrote:
beeblebrox wrote: -Is there a way for the keyboard commands to work from the tool bar. Advancing to the next preset using the keyboard would be nice as would the triggering of other presets (such as particles).
a decent point, but realize that you have key commands in G-Force as well, so that lowers the keyboard support needed on the toolbar. we'll look into adding support.
This may or may not be a huge deal but certain keyboard commands are nice to have (volume and responsiveness as well as next and previous WCF).

Summary: Most important to me is to see the whole list of available WCFs in one window rather than a pop up and a way to keep that list to only those WCFs I want to use. In that list it would be nice to have some way to know which WCF setting is currently active. If there is a window that has all the available WCFs displayed at once then the currently active setting could just be highlighted or checkmarked.

Thanks again Andy, et. al for a promising beta.

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Post by willrob »

Given the thousands of config items, I don't see how you could see all of them in one window.

On the Mac, back in OS9 days, there were certain applications [I don't remember what they were right now] that used a two window method of Adding features. A main pane would open with two smaller windows. A list of itmes was presented in one window, and when one or more was selected an "Add" button was highlighted, which when clicked would add the items to the other window.

An interface like this, which would eneable us to select from a config hlding area and then move itmes into an active area (and then maybe save that as a theme source) would be easy to manipulate for the end user. But it may be hell to program.

Short of that a "Script Matrix" would be nice. That's a term I just made up; but I invision it as a kind of form into which we copy and paste the names of flowfields, wave shapes, and colormaps—without all those anoying parenthesis and commas—with the form supplying them instead in the background. Then that "script" could be saved much as a current script is saved, given a name, applied to a theme or called up within another script. It's not a solution for the Toolbar, but it would speed up the scripting process greatly.

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beeblebrox
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Post by beeblebrox »

Primarily what I am looking for vis a vis live presentation use and with regard to the window of available settings is this:

Three columns in a window with all of the available Waveshapes in one, all the available Colormaps in the next, and all of the Flowfields in the third column. Call this the WCF selector window.

Assuming that either a.) the "advanced" tab in the toolbar allowed you to refine the list in the WCF selector window, or b.)the user filtered out the unneeded WCFs manually inside the G-Force folder, this would leave a shorter list of possible settings in the WCF selector window.

When using G-Force live the V-Jay might want to (and probably would) have culled the list down to say 20 Waveshapes, 30 colormaps, and maybe just 3 or 4 Flowfields (given that flowfields stall the display when doing transitions).

This would be a very manageable GUI addition to the Toolbar and would allow the V-Jay to double-click directly on any preset in the WCF selector window quickly rather than having to scroll through a long pop up list.

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beeblebrox
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Post by beeblebrox »

Bug ( 1.0b4 (65)): Previous and Next buttons do not affect flowfield setting.

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Post by andy55 »

beeblebrox wrote:Bug ( 1.0b4 (65)): Previous and Next buttons do not affect flowfield setting.
Are you sure that you don't have smooth flowfield switching on and that you downloaded th 3.1.3 beta after PM EST? The prev/next buttons for FlowFields seem to work fine.

andy

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beeblebrox
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Post by beeblebrox »

andy55 wrote:
beeblebrox wrote:Bug ( 1.0b4 (65)): Previous and Next buttons do not affect flowfield setting.
Are you sure that you don't have smooth flowfield switching on and that you downloaded th 3.1.3 beta after PM EST? The prev/next buttons for FlowFields seem to work fine.

andy
So smooth flowfield switching makes switching from one flowfield to the next impossible (that was the problem BTW)?

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andy55
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Post by andy55 »

beeblebrox wrote:
andy55 wrote:
beeblebrox wrote:Bug ( 1.0b4 (65)): Previous and Next buttons do not affect flowfield setting.
Are you sure that you don't have smooth flowfield switching on and that you downloaded th 3.1.3 beta after PM EST? The prev/next buttons for FlowFields seem to work fine.

andy
So smooth flowfield switching makes switching from one flowfield to the next impossible (that was the problem BTW)?
No, just press the button once and wait a few seconds and watch.

Andy

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