[What means? 'midi i/o error : buffer overflow']

MIDI I/O errors were addressed with improvements in the MIDI support of WATCHOUT 5.3.

[WO Android app]

But is there an android app, ...

As stated above - yes, since the WATCHOUT 4.2 introduction of WATCHOUT Remote..

 

... or prospects for one, for android phones, like the iPhone remote app? I'm gonna be upgrading my phone soon and want to stick with android, but will switch to an iPhone, if that is the only way to get the Watchout remote app on a smartphone.

Thanks!

The standard WATCHOUT Systems Manager Adobe Air WATCHOUT Remote application

should work on an Android system with Adobe Air installed. - Adobe AIR - Android Apps on Google Play

[Edge blend problem]

We are getting a dark streak at the edge blend and even a problem with a hard edge. Any tips??? URGENT, since we have a show going up next week.

 

Watchout v. 5.1

Projectors: Christie DHD 800

 

We've tried everything in preferences.

 

Thanks!

 

Without specifying the display signal connection type, it is hard to narrow it down.

 

A dark streak in the edge blend is a common issue when driving the projector with an analog signal (VGA).

One reason it occurs is when the signal is not accurately aligned to the projectors chip(s)

due to the interpolation ambiguities of the analog signal.

i.e. if the signal overshoots or undershoots the chip, a dark band in blends will result.

Aligning the display raster to the chip is an extra step needed with analog driven projection systems.

This does not usually occur with digital driven systems.

 

This was actually addressed in older user guides, but it was dropped in recent revisions.

i.e. current User Guide makes no mention of analog connections, just assumes the world has gone digital

 

Another possible cause for banding – particularly near the edges of images –

is long or faulty VGA cables. Try connecting the display directly to the

computer using a short VGA cable to see if this has any effect. ...

[setting location of show cache on display machine?]

And before anyone asks, I'll answer the logical next question ...
"If it is better to install WATCHOUT in the desired location, why does the ShowPath switch exist?"

Before WATCHOUT 5, this was needed much more, still has relevance in some systems today.
I use the ShowPath switch (documented in the linked post above)
to create a single backup computer that is preloaded as backup for multiple display computers.

When preparing a single computer to be ready as a backup for multiple display computers ...

For each display computer to be backed up, on the single backup computer:

• create a unique folder (I name the folder with the display name from the show file combined with the last field of the IP address)
• create a unique shortcut for each display computer with the ShowPath command to point at its corresponding folder (I collect these on the desktop and name each one the same name as the folder it points at)

For each display computer to be backed up ...

• set the computer's IP address to the address of the display computer to be backed up
• start watchpoint from the shortcut setup for the display that corresponds to that IP address
• open watchmaker and go online, populating the folder for that display computer

• rinse, repeat i.e. quit watchpoint, repeat from above step "set the computer's IP address..." to preload for each display computer.

When it is time to use it as a backup, two steps,

• set the IP address to match the computer being replaced
• copy the shortcut for that display position to startup items.

Restart - good to go

[setting location of show cache on display machine?]

Hi,

 

Hopefully I am just missing something simple. I have a machine with a SSD system disk and a RAID array of multiple SSDs to give my display machine lots of media bandwidth (I plan on playing multiple HD videos at once). Is there a way to move the cache folder to another location? I want the cache to be on the RAID rather than the system disk. Do I just have to move the whole application folder there?

No, do not move the application folder.

You must install it there, do not move it there.

If it is not installed there, use the add / remove software control panel (or whatever they are calling it this time around)

and uninstall WATCHOUT, then reinstall it in the correct location.

 

Seems like a preference setting would be in order, but I can not find that.

Thanks,

Eric.

There is a way to do this and it is covered in a post in this forum - Forcing WO display pc's to use second disk

However, it is better to do what is mentioned above, it will always work the same.

If you use the modified shortcut trick in that post, start from the wrong shortcut and the show will "disappear".

[Running Watchout without a production computer]

Is it possible to do this with one license key? ie. Create a watchout presentation on one computer and then run the production side and display side from the same computer?

 

No.

 

While it is not supported, it is possible to run production side and display side on the same computer for the purpose of loading a completed show into the display side. It will still require two license keys to do this, one for each of the WATCHOUT software applications running. The trick to load the display in this manner is clumsy and not appropriate for the production process.

[Adding Decklink Duo SDI to display PCs w/ Decklink SDI]

Hey folks,

 

I am looking at adding an additional capture card to our existing rigs. We have a Decklink SDI single channel cap card in each of our display PCs and we are looking at adding another Decklink Duo for a total of 3 SDI input channels. My question is, does anyone see any problems with that? We are using ASUS Sabretooth X58 motherboards with Sapphire HD 6970s.

It should be possible.

The BlackMagic Design drivers are a bit of a challenge, seems newer is not always better,

and the combination of BMD driver, motherboard vendor / BIOS version and WATCHOUT version

can be a bit tricky.

I would only attempt this with lots of time to work through the tweaking and testing,

you do not want to be finding anomalies on show site - find and fix them in pre-site testing.

 

Be very aware of PCIe x4 (and higher) slots that may step down to x1 function

depending on slots chosen, other PCIe cards in the system, mb bios settings.

 

The Decklink SDI requires one PCIe x1 slot.

The Decklink Duo SDI requires one PCIe x4 slot.

 

The stepped upgrades are bit of a barrier to simply using one

DeckLink Quad SDI, which requires just one PCIe x4 slot.

 

Also, as a side question, has anyone had any luck reducing live source frame latency to the screen with blackburst sync from switching/camera control to the cap cards? We just got a new sync generator but we have not had the chance to test it out yet.

Thanks,

Ron a.k.a MediacoAB

 

No, providing a reference signal to the capture card will not reduce delay.

If anything, it adds to it ever so slightly, as the captured signal is 'shaken' to match reference.

[Routed Watchout?]

Another possibility is a WATCHOUT production computer with multiple NICs. (like ethernet and WiFi on a laptop.)

Seems the TCP traffic routes correctly, but the UDP multicast goes out the wrong NIC.

You can quickly confirm this by disabling the second NIC and determining if normal operation is restored.

If it is, and both NICs are needed, re-order the NICs to get around this.

You could try this procedure ...

 

Navigate to Network and Sharing Center > Change Adapter Settings (or simply type ncpa.cpl in Run).

Next, hit Alt to bring up the menu and click Advanced > Advanced Settings....

Then, simply reorder your network connections on the Adapters and Bindings page

so that your WATCHOUT NIC is first.

 

A reboot may be required for the settings to go into affect.

[not enough storage is available to complete this operation]

I had the following error Message

 

-not enough storage is available to complete this operation-

 

I got 2 identical computer display , win 64 , intel i7 2600k 3.5ghz, 8 gb ram , ssd 250g 20% full

and one of them is giving me a error

 

where should I start to look ??

 

I have seen this occur a few times when the customer installed VNC on the computer.

(WATCHOUT already installs VNC).

Simply uninstalling the second VNC copy was not enough to correct,

as the second VNC install mucked with WATCHOUT VNC registry settings

and the uninstall does not put the WATCHOUT settings back.

Fortunately they were using Show Sage WATCHOUT computers,

so a simple Acronis restore of the original tuned and tested installation cured the issue.

[Fix loading stutter with RAID 0?]

sashahc, what is the frame rate of your 1080p videos?

 

What processor and SSD is used?

/jonas

That is certainly a valid question. HP Z800 is fairly generic.

Covers two motherboards, 14 potential processors and even more drive storage options.

Both the available motherboards indicated in the above spec are for aging standards

replaced in 2011 with higher throughput versions.

Seems those motherboards only support SATA-II,

SATA-III with double the throughput would usually be required for the demands you indicate.

 

Would we see performance improvement by making the media disc a striped RAID array? Alternately, is there a way to do preloading so it doesn't interfere with the video starting?

Depends on if the limiting factor is the drive throughput, motherboard throughput or processor throughput (QPI).

With such a general spec, it is impossible to tell.

[help!! I can't add computer screen...]

... If done so already, uninstall first.

/jonas

Uninstalling a second VNC installation may not be enough.

You may need to repair or re-install WATCHOUT,

as the uninstall of the second VNC copy does not restore the registry settings for the WATCHOUT installed copy.

ymmv

[Barco Serial Control]

I'm looking to control the shutters of several different projectors, some with PJLink, one without. The without is a Barco SLM r12+ and I need to control the shutter with some RS232.

First, does anyone have a PDF of the command codes for the 12+ ? I've got several other codes, but not this one.

Sorry, can't help with that. Have you tried Barco?

 

Although, for the serial control, I would highly recommend using an IP to serial converter with a WATCHOUT IP string device.

That way you are not relying on a serial port in a display computer, more flexible,

replacing a computer in the system will be easier.

 

Secondly, here's what I've managed to piece together at home without trying it in the space yet. Please let me know if I'm missing anything you can see

 

0x80 0x7E 0x00 0x22 0x42 0x00 0x80 0x7F $oD

(start byte)(proj#)(shutter )(null)(end byte)(carriage return)

 

In the string cue, you would enter that exactly as ...

 

$80$7E$00$22$42$00$80$7F$0D

 

The 0x prefix is shorthand to indicate a hex value. The WATCHOUT string cue uses the dollar sign prefix instead.

 

there is no letter o in hex, only valid letters are A-B-C-D-E-F (10-15) along with the numbers 0-9

 

Should I use quotes?

No

 

Should I not use spaces?

Yes, if I interpret the wording of the question correctly - i.e. no spaces.

A space in a string cue has the exact same effect as sending $20

[Question, cores Vs. frequency]

... The choice of two cards rgb-E1S instead of E2s was only because in case of necessity can remove a card and install it in another pc

 

Understand the desire for flexibility, but running the GPU at x16 and two PCIe x4 slots requires a motherboard suited to the task. Pretty sure the E2S reduces that to GPU at x16 and just one x4 slot. We did encounter motherboards with the physical slots that could not run the three card combination without slowing something down. Either the GPU would stepdown to x8 or one of the x4 slots would step down to x1. In one case where there were five slots with physical connections at x4 or higher, it was dependent on which slots were chosen and additional x1 cards factored in too. Test under full load to confirm the mb supports enough PCIe lanes to get the job done with all cards at full rated speed.

[Question, cores Vs. frequency]

Just a quick note:

...

- graphic card is not involved more because of video capture. It's a bus and processor intensive task.

...

/jonas

Isn't the processor throughput and workload dependent on the Live Video - Deinterlacing setting?

Interlaced video is deinterlaced in the cpu, and that is an intensive task,

but when receiving progressive video and deinterlacing is set to none,

doesn't the stream bypass the cpu and dma direct to the GPU,

eliminating the cpu load?

[freezing video first frame]

Is there a feature or some way to freeze my videos first frame before it starts?

 

No.

 

yes, its called In-Time in video cue properties

 

That is not what in-time does.

---

 

It is simple to open the video in any video editing tool (even QuickTime Pro)

and copy a frame from the video so that you can use it as a still.

 

The In-Time is not working for me...

I put 3 seconds on In-Time, then the video starts 3 seconds foward and don't freeze at any moment.

Should this be a bug with my watchout, should i reinstall?

No bugs here.

[Edge blend at 16']

I am doing a two projector edge blend. I have two Sanyo PLC XP200L projectors (1024x768) with 1" lenses. I have 16 feet of through distance and I am looking to do a 25% overlap. My question is will 25% be enough overlap? I am looking to do a 28' image with the two projectors. If my math is right it would be a 4' overlap (256 pixels). Do you think this is doable?

Thanks.

 

Yes, absolutely 25% is enough.

And your 256 pixel result is very good too, as your projector will have 256 steps of intensity per pixel,

that would be considered an ideal situation.

[Midi control from ETC Eos lighting console]

Great. The lighting console has USB out. So I would purchase two Moto fast lanes? One at the lighting console and one at the WO production computer ...

The lighting console should have a standard MIDI jack built in like the one on the FastLane USB box,

you should only need one FastLane USB for the WATCHOUT computer.

 

and run a 125' midi cable between them. Would I have to barrel two midi cable together to make that distance?

I looked online for a 150' midi cable but couldn't find one.

Thanks,

Brent

 

Connecting multiple MIDI cables with barrels is valid.

Could also make your own custom length or order one from

one of the houses online who offer custom cable services, like Cables to Go.

[Midi control from ETC Eos lighting console]

Hello all,

I am trying to trigger a timeline from a ETC Eos lighting console. Just wondering what hardware I would need to do this and how I would set up Watchout to see the trigger. Right now I am running WO 4.5. I don't own any midi interfaces. I have heard that m audio has a usb to midi interface. The WO display computer will be about 125' from the lighting console. So if there is some distance between them.

Any suggestion would be great.

Thanks,

Brent

 

 

Any MIDI interface that is compatible with the version of Windows you are running should do well.

I personally use the MOTU FastLane USB. Relatively inexpensive, easy to find,

almost any musical instrument store will typically carry it.

 

I have used it successfully with WATCHOUT 4 and WATCHOUT 5 running on

Windows XP Home 32 bit and Windows 7 Professional, both 32 and 64 bit.

 

I have used it to chase MSC from a lighting console connected to Production (WATCHOUT 4 and WATCHOUT 5.0+)

and have also used it connected directly to WATCHOUT 5.1+ Display (no production station),

works like a charm. reference: WATCHOUT 5.1 - MIDI Show Control and DMX inputs in cluster mode, show report

 

Your 125' / 40m MIDI cable length should not be a problem

[WORemote]

Hi

 

I've just downloaded the WORemote app for the iphone. I've tried to connect to the main computer where i work but nothing happens. I have three computers that I think are the display computers and the one that I work with. Which of them should I connect to with the WORemote?

 

WATCHOUT Remote only works with standalone display computers (a cluster), the production computer must not be connected.

As long as the production computer is connected, WATCHOUT Remote will not connect.

With the production computer removed, WATCHOUT remote can connect to any display computer, does not matter which one you connect to,

all display computers used in a show contain the necessary information to be the "cluster master".

Once you connect to a display computer and select a show, which designates it as the "cluster master",

the cluster master will communicate with all other needed display

computers (cluster members) needed to run the show, and all display computers will respond as a group.

[Best video converter for windows and mac]

What video converter programs or apps that is best to convert into Mpeg for watchout Display?

 

That information has been posted here earlier under the topic: MPEG Settings

[Watchpoint startup at computer startup]

The only thing I have added to the shortcut is "Cmd.txt", only having put the project name within the Cmd.txt file.

 

Maybe I am taking that to literally, but simply making a text file with just the .watch file name will not work.

Please post the full contents of your cmd.txt file for us to evaluate.

[Playing 3D in Watchout Version 5.2]

Please look into this thread:

 

http://dataton.com/forum/topic/206-stereoscopic-setup

 

As of now, content made for Active glasses and 120Hz, will not work properly

WATCHOUT 5 supports PASSIVE 3D/Stereoscopy, Infitec or Polarized, 1 file per eye/per screen output.

One needs dual projectors per screen.

 

Hope this helps,

/jonas

 

From a WATCHOUT perspective that is certainly the case.

 

The guys at Christie Digital tell me they offer projector models

where a single 3D projector provides independent left and right eye inputs that

will accepts the separate left eye right eye feeds provided by WATCHOUT,

and the projector combines them into the single output for use with active glasses.

I am pretty sure the Christie Mirage WU20K-J 3D 3-DLP projector is in that category,

but you should confirm that with Christie.

[Live video by using Intensity Pro]

No, this is not new.

You only use capture on Production for preview purposes, you cannot "push" the live input to the Display/s.

One need to install the capture card in the Display computer in order for Live capture to work.

 

Hope this helps,

/jonas

 

and to extend on that, you do not need a capture card on Production, only display.

A capture card on Production is optional, if you do not put one there,

the live feed window will appear as a default thumbnail image in Production preview.

It has been that way in WATCHOUT since the live video option was added to WATCHOUT long ago.

[Dynamic Image server Dongles and network video]

...Can one run the server safely from their production machine during a show? Has anyone done it?...

Yes, but to do so, the machine running both production and dynamic image server must then have two keys connected.

Also, when running both software packages on the same machine, dynamic images will not be available in production preview.

[Watchout 5 and successful surround/multichannel audio setup]

Hi all

we're looking at adding multichannel audio capability to our new WO5 displays, and the ECHO Audiofire 8 looks good. How do audio files need to be presented? can we use multiple stereo WAVs and assign these to outputs, ...

Yes, provided the channel assignment is done in the file itself - WATCHOUT can not assign output channels.

An Adobe Air utility to change channel assignments of wav files is available here: channelshifter.air