scripting software

[liame]

does any one use any scripting software like ShowDirector, Finalefireworks, or visual show director etc.? Is there something better out there, is there something to avoid?

[clr8ter]

I seriously want to try Show Creator from COBRA, but alas, I have an Apple computer.

[Bazerk]

I seriously want to try Show Creator from COBRA, but alas, I have an Apple computer.

You can use excel to write your scripts just like the cobras software just minus the pretty interface. In saying that, I love the cobra show creator software. It's easy to use and obviously works seemlessly with my firing system.

[clr8ter]

Yeah, I know. That's what I am currently doing. But, I find that hard to do. I think I need the pretty interface. One issue with using Excell is that if you have to change the time on one thing, you have to manually erase and change every one that comes after that. After doing that 3 or 4 times in one script, it gets old, fast. I'm assuming that CSC takes care of that.

[Bazerk]

Yeah, I know. That's what I am currently doing. But, I find that hard to do. I think I need the pretty interface. One issue with using Excell is that if you have to change the time on one thing, you have to manually erase and change every one that comes after that. After doing that 3 or 4 times in one script, it gets old, fast. I'm assuming that CSC takes care of that.

Actually it doesn't. Not automatically anyways. I suggested that to them and they said they would most likely add it into with an update. However, it is very easy in the software to change things pretty quickly. My last show had 100+ cues and I needed to change cue 5. Took me about 3 mins to readjust the following times.

[clr8ter]

Oh. Well, ok. I guess 3 min does'nt sound too bad.

[nlarson]

If you create your spread sheet so that fire time from start is calculated and "delay before next effect blooms" is what you actually input and work from, you can add, delete, cut and paste lines and the timing between shots stays as you want it. By keeping timing of shot after relative to the shot before, its a more complicated spread sheet to design, but much easier to edit.

This pays off when you have riffs that you want to repeat, or sections or flights from other shows you want to bring in. You only have to change unit / cue to match your load out. I know our firing system converts everything to relative times anyway to handle cake pauses, deadman pauses and smooth out on the fly "lock outs" of effects. By the way, what I call a cake pause is a pause after firing an effect of unknown duration, where the operator hits the continue button when they determine enough is enough. Is there a better term for this?

[clr8ter]

So instead of just inputting actual time, you're telling the program to add things up, and any change you would make is taken care of for you....is that approximately right?

[nlarson]

Yes, it helps if you know a couple of things - time from ignition to effect start (rise time) and Duration of effect. Then you essentially program based around the time the effect is visible. Add in a bit of a delay for arts sake or to let eyes adjust between effects. In the end, the spreadsheet calculates the relative ignition time and delay after (to ensure effect is not walked on).

For example, a flight of 3" and 6" glitter shells would have a long duration or delay after, but the 6" shells would be fired before the 3"s due to rise time, so they all bloom together. To the firing system, its co launch a bunch of 6"s, wait 2 seconds, co launch a bunch of 3"s, and wait 10 seconds.

You can copy and export the data without formulas and unneeded columns to get it to a format your system can import.