MultiPlay - New Version In Development

[David Duffy]

On Playlist cues (and I totally agree that these could easily be merged with Audio cues), is there a possibility of being able to set a crossfade time between tracks...

 

After some experimenting I've decided to leave playlst cues separate from audio cues. I am looking into the crossfade function for playlists though.

 

And speaking of playlists, If a playlist could be edited while active/playing (like Winisd..) that would be also very handy.

 

Hmmm... that could be tricky. I'll have to ponder on that one.

 

That’s exactly what Qlab does - there’s an “edit” mode and a “show” mode - in Show mode, all the superfluous stuff disappears, and the buttons become a bit more difficult to miss!

 

I've just implemented a full screen mode that's toggled by the F11 key.

 

Feature discussion is starting to happen in the new MultiPlay forum. I've also put some short videos up on my YouTube channel.

[alistermorton]

Guess what prompted me, Bruce ;-)

[stillwave]

Lovely to see Multiplay back in development.

Small feature request that would be useful is either when multiple audio cues are selected or could be when they're checked a total show length in the status bar akin to the sum / average of selected cells in the status bar in spreadsheets?

I'm thinking for when foh staff ask how long til the interval for instance could highlight the cues up to the interval & it would sum the audio track lengths + fade times.

[David Duffy]

That sounds possible. The result would only make sense if all of those cues played one after the other. I'll create a thread in the MultiPlay forum to discuss.

[EdK]

I've been using Multiplay for many years...as far back as XP days....mainly in Community or High School Theatre. Currently running 2.5.5.0 successfully on Windows 10. I simply run it in Admin mode and Windows XP or 7 mode with no issues (other than existing bugs which happen regardless of Windows version).

 

An unusual bug I experience in 2.5.5.0:

I frequently add several audio cues at the same time by selecting multiple files in order to populate a Production. All my file name are numbered in sequence. When I insert multiple files, the first file in the group ends up at the end of the production. For example, filenames start with 01, 02, 03, 04, etc After inserting multiple files at one time, file 01 ends up at the end of the production but everything else is still in sequence.

 

 

Was wondering if you could add a couple usability functions.

 

-Provide a means to 'lock' the first few cue lines so that they don't scroll off when scrolling through a large show. Often, I use the first 2-3 lines as 'Memo' lines to provide instructions to whoever is operating MP at the time. Often, in Community Theatre, they recruit students to run the show and the same person may not be available at every show. Some of the instructions I provide for them are reminders to place the PC into Airplane Mode, disable Anti-virus/Malware software and other automated functions that you don't want starting unannounced (as many Windows programs do). Much like locking rows in Excel.

 

-If Cue controls icons are displayed (GO, STOP, etc) and keyboard shortcut keys are assigned to those functions, display the keyboard shortcut with the icon. If the Cue control icons are not displayed, provide a means to display the assigned keyboard shortcut functions in their place.

 

-Often, script references can be longer than the allowed space to be displayed in it's entirety. This particularly happens when several other columns are displayed also. Perhaps allow the text within the script reference to 'wrap' to a second line. Much like 'wrapping' within an Excel cell.

 

Ed

[David Duffy]

The file select oddity has always been there. It's partly to do with the way the Windows open dialog works.

 

Not sure if the locked rows in the cue list would be possible. Maybe a general production notes window would do?

 

I think someone asked me about a shortcut list that could be shown somewhere a while back.

 

I'll have a look at how hard it would be to make the cue list rows auto size (height) when the text doesn't fit.

[EdK]

The file select oddity has always been there. It's partly to do with the way the Windows open dialog works.

 

Not sure if the locked rows in the cue list would be possible. Maybe a general production notes window would do?

 

I think someone asked me about a shortcut list that could be shown somewhere a while back.

 

I'll have a look at how hard it would be to make the cue list rows auto size (height) when the text doesn't fit.

 

General Production notes window is a good idea provided it is automatically displayed when the production is loaded/opened. User can close the window. Anything that would bring the production notes to the users attention when loading/opening a production.

 

As for the shortcuts, manipulating a mouse/pointer during a show to GO, STOP, etc can be cumbersome and if using an external mouse, batteries can go dead, and a touch-pad pointer can be problematic especially if the user forgets to turn off "tap to click". Keyboard shortcuts IMO are more reliable.

 

Had one other idea- Could the Cue Control window be made to 'float' anywhere on the screen and be resizeable?

.

 

 

[alistermorton]

The file select oddity has always been there. It's partly to do with the way the Windows open dialog works.

 

Interestingly, if I write a quick C# application to create a file open dialog and make a multiple selection, they are presented in the same order that they appear in the directory listing. I wonder if this is a change in behaviour.

 

I'm about to write a native test app to test the theory ... sems to be the same. Presented in the order they're selected.

Edited July 24, 2019 by alistermorton

[David Duffy]

Had one other idea- Could the Cue Control window be made to 'float' anywhere on the screen and be resizeable?

 

As far as I know any window can already be floated in MultiPlay. Resizing doesn't currently occur for any controls however. I'd have to look into how feasible that is.

[David Duffy]

Interestingly, if I write a quick C# application to create a file open dialog and make a multiple selection, they are presented in the same order that they appear in the directory listing.

 

I did just find a bug in MultiPlay 2.5.5.0 that caused the "one file out of order" issue when you added multiple files to an empty cue list. That is fixed in version 3.

 

Like you, I do find that the open dialog results are always sorted (per the current sort method), even if you select them in non sequential order.

[David Duffy]

-Often, script references can be longer than the allowed space to be displayed in it's entirety. This particularly happens when several other columns are displayed also. Perhaps allow the text within the script reference to 'wrap' to a second line. Much like 'wrapping' within an Excel cell.

 

I've had a play with word wrapping and auto row height and have now added a checkbox to the General Configuration called "Grid Auto Row Height". It's mostly working now. Feel free to join the MultiPlay forum and let me know of more ideas. :)

[alistermorton]

Interestingly, if I write a quick C# application to create a file open dialog and make a multiple selection, they are presented in the same order that they appear in the directory listing.

 

I did just find a bug in MultiPlay 2.5.5.0 that caused the "one file out of order" issue when you added multiple files to an empty cue list. That is fixed in version 3.

 

Ah, excellent news.

 

 

 

[EdK]

Interestingly, if I write a quick C# application to create a file open dialog and make a multiple selection, they are presented in the same order that they appear in the directory listing.

 

I did just find a bug in MultiPlay 2.5.5.0 that caused the "one file out of order" issue when you added multiple files to an empty cue list. That is fixed in version 3.

 

Ah, excellent news.

 

 

 

 

Oops...I apologize for not knowing the windows can be floated. It didn't dawn on me that you can drag the window by selecting the border of the window.

 

Thanks for correcting the file out of order bug and for looking into the auto row height.

[David Duffy]

Thanks for correcting the file out of order bug and for looking into the auto row height.

 

Not only did I look into it, I implemented it today! There's a video of it in action on my YouTube channel. :)

[David Duffy]

Lots more code has been written, new features added and bugs fixed. Hoping to have a beta release ready soon. :)

 

I'm always looking for input / feedback on existing and future features.