Contextual menu to select different config?

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Fofer
Posts: 5
Joined: Wed Jun 16, 2004 11:41 am

Contextual menu to select different config?

Post by Fofer »

Just updated to the newest WhiteCap... great stuff! I recall in an earlier version I used to be able to pull up a contextual menu while the WhiteCap visualizer was running, in order to select another config immediately (as opposed to just using , and . to move one at a time from one to the next.)

When I pull up the contextual menu now it's not there anymore. Was this feature removed recently, or am I missing something?

Thanks for any feedback.

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JayPro
Posts: 738
Joined: Sat May 01, 2004 10:51 pm
Location: Huntington Station, Long Island, New York

Yes...

Post by JayPro »

I do recall it was removed some time ago. As a long time user myself, I personally thought that the pull-down idea seemed a bit intrusive and somehow detracted from the look.
There is right now an entire debate here as to how a potentially redesigned Graphic User Interface (for both WhiteCap and G-Force) can make it easier to control things for you the user.

JwP
"God is syntax."

Fofer
Posts: 5
Joined: Wed Jun 16, 2004 11:41 am

Post by Fofer »

I see, thanks for the reply. I can see how pulling up the contextual menu in the middle of a large-screen audio presentation at a club might look clunky.

Yet at the same time, when I want to demo WhiteCap for friends while listening to music at my house, there's no easy way to show them the many configs to choose from, nor is there a way to "browse" through configs by name just to check out ones that might be interesting. (As it stands now you pretty much have to jump from one to the next and hope a good one pops up.)

I know that I can map "favorite" configs to specific hotkeys, but this is only available to a seasoned user who has used WhiteCap long enough to be familiar with all of the available configs. I've seen many newbies sample WhiteCap for a few minutes, and and assume it just has that one (first) config... what they don't realize it's actually got close to 200 seperate visualizers with personalities all their own. Losing immediate access to all of them sells WhiteCap short.

Maybe the installed configs can show up as a sub-menu to WhiteCap in the Visualizer menu?

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JayPro
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Joined: Sat May 01, 2004 10:51 pm
Location: Huntington Station, Long Island, New York

Post by JayPro »

Fofer wrote:
Yet at the same time, when I want to demo WhiteCap for friends while listening to music at my house, there's no easy way to show them the many configs to choose from, nor is there a way to "browse" through configs by name just to check out ones that might be interesting. (As it stands now you pretty much have to jump from one to the next and hope a good one pops up.)
Not necessarily. Use the period and comma keys to toggle either forward or backward. Simple as that. Sure, I'd also like to see a GUI for this kinda thing instead of using the H key to call up the on-screen console. In due time, though. 8)
"God is syntax."

Fofer
Posts: 5
Joined: Wed Jun 16, 2004 11:41 am

Post by Fofer »

JayPro wrote:
Fofer wrote:
Yet at the same time, when I want to demo WhiteCap for friends while listening to music at my house, there's no easy way to show them the many configs to choose from, nor is there a way to "browse" through configs by name just to check out ones that might be interesting. (As it stands now you pretty much have to jump from one to the next and hope a good one pops up.)
Not necessarily. Use the period and comma keys to toggle either forward or backward. Simple as that. Sure, I'd also like to see a GUI for this kinda thing instead of using the H key to call up the on-screen console. In due time, though. 8)
As I mentioned in my post, I'm aware of the period and comma keys to manually change back and forth between configs. However, they don't seem to display in any semblance of order... I could be wrong, but it seems random to me. (It's certainly not alphabetical.)

Let's say, for example, I want to check out the Rainbow Ball config right now. I don't know how I'd do it. Even if switching configs manually was the answer, I'd have to hit the period key about 118 times to get there.

(Another example: if I see a cool config like "Paging Dr. Jones" and want to tell a friend to check it out, I wouldn't know a way to tell them how!)

This omission (a way to manually select a config) is exacerbated by the fact that the config names can't display permanently, you have to hit "L" to identify which one you're currently seeing. It would be nice if there was a key to hit so that the config title display automatically, or permanently... so as to allow the user to keep track of their favorites, add them to scripts, etc. (Pretty sure that used to be available at one point in iTunes WhiteCap as well.)

In the end, WhiteCap is my favorite visualizer precisely because it has so many configs. Its like 200 visualizers in one, and it never gets boring. But without a way to peruse through them methodically, the visualizer is crippled. Most newcomers don't even realize the power of WhiteCap, and the lack of manual control over what config is currently playing sells the visualizer short.

I think we're on the same page here, it sure would be nice to see the old "browser" menu back, or some reasonable facsimile. But to suggest that the current implementation ("hitting the , and . keys") is feasible is missing the point. There's no comparison. I also don't like when new versions of software I love removes features I'd come to appreciate. I can understand turning them off as a default, but at least allow the die-hard user the option of re-enabling them. After all, command-clicking while the visualizer is running *already* brings up a contextual menu, so what would be the big deal of adding the config menus there? It's not a mandatory step, but something thats available to folks who want to use it.

That said, I trust Andy has great things up his sleeves and I look forward to any and all updates.

duane
Posts: 17
Joined: Fri Feb 11, 2005 2:35 am

Any progress on this?

Post by duane »

This would be a great feature! I would like it in g-force.
To easily call up config combinations and A-B them.
The keys are a a pain too!

To easily jump to any FF, WS, sprite, CM listed on a browser menu!

Then easily dump config combinations to .txt file or a favorites list.

Those are my suggestions!

Duane

spindrjr
Posts: 1
Joined: Fri Apr 01, 2005 12:41 am

Post by spindrjr »

I agree. Whitecap's old feature that let you select which config you wanted instantly by name was its best feature. I'm disappointed that its missing from this version and am tempted to revert to an old version just to get it back. Why not just make it a sub-menu under the spot where restart slideshow is?

Matt

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