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Change Tween Track on Multiple Cues at Once


Steve Farris

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I am currently working on a show that has multiple cues with corner tween points.  They are all the same, so I can adjust one cue, then copy and paste the tween track to the other cues.

 

What I am wondering is if there is a shortcut or quick method to do the paste on to multiple cues at once.  So far, all I can find is the ability to paste to a single cue.

 

For instance, with moving a cue there is a command under "Edit" that I can apply to multiple cues at once.  I am looking for a similar function to use on tween tracks.

 

As it currently stands, I will have to touch approximately 50 cues.  Not impossible, but a bit time consuming.

 

Any thoughts would be appreciated!  Maybe I missed something obvious, but I can't find it.

 

Steve

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Use an input in the tween value for each of the 50 cues,

and then the out of the ordinary part,

have watchout talk to itself to set the input value.

 

So set up an input for the value, for this example we will name it Corner1

Name: Corner1

type: TCP

IP address: 127.0.0.1 (localhost)

port: if using watchmaker: 3040, if using cluster mode: 3039

string cue: use two cues about 0.1 seconds apart for cluster mode,

for watchmaker all you need is String Cue 2

in the example below value is set to 0.5 (50%)

 

String cue 1: authenticate 1$0D

String Cue 2: setInput Corner1 0.5$0D

I will setup inputs and cues for both watchmaker and cluster mode,

optionally with the cues on conditional layers if you are comfortable with that

Without the conditional layers, the one not used will error, but no harm from that.

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Steve, if i understand you correctly, you have media on a certain point in your projection surface, you need to adjust that, and any other media positioned on that position in the projection surface?

Well, if that's the case, use a virtual display. You just position all that media in the virtual display and position the single virtual display cue in the correct position. Then all you have to do is adjust the corners of the virtual display and all your cues are the same.

 

Good luck!

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If the setting is static (i.e., doesn't change over time), you should be able to just connect it to an Input, as Jim suggests, and then set its value in the Input window. No need for the external loop-back control hocus pokus. In this way, the Input merely acts aas a variable, shared by all those cues, allowing you to set the value(s) in one place for all of them.

 

Mike

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That is already available and exactly what I suggested.

i.e. the generic input can be used as a generic variable.

Sorry JFK. I didn't mean to imply that your technique was wrong. I have used it numerous times, often by resetting state through network via string just like you suggest. :)

 

I was just taking the opportunity to ask for another elegant solution.

I also have many other motives for asking for Generic Variables to be permitted in Formulas or to even pipe them back to inputs (although this is clunkier than need be), such as Master Tween Tracks, waveform generators,  or something even as simple as tweenable inputs, or presetting state.

 

The dissolve rate back in to an input is limiting. Tweening it would be joyful. Generic Variable in formulas.... would be sooooo cool. 

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The thread is about what he can make work today.

 

Some might argue that generic inputs as variables is elegant in its own rite.

 

The other stuff might be better placed here: Feature requests? - POST here

 

OK, I understand the forum means different things to different people.

I use it as a knowledge base, the better the thread describes a contribution,

it is less likely to be overlooked, easier to find when needed.

 

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Perhaps I'm missing something here, but isn't that exactly what a Generic Input provides? I.e., a "variable" that can be set (internally, or from the outside) and subsequently used in formulae?

 

That is my point, so yes.

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To be clear this pertains to a Wishlist item and is currently not supported in 6.14.

Basically. Being able to pipe Generic Variables to Formulas(e), including the ability to use tween values would enable:

 

  • A method for keeping everything in the program without a roundtrip to the network stack
  • A visual way to animate complex variables. Especially usefully when fine timing needs to be achieved with other elements
  • An animators/artists approach to dynamically alter variables. Just sending Fade values to Generic Input doesn't always yield the most appealing results, e.g. for in Ease-In/Out on position tweens 

Does this begin to illustrate why I think this would be useful?

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OK, back to the original problem.  Thanks Jim for pointing me in the proper direction.  Between you and Thomas, I have now created the proper variables to achieve what I wanted quickly.

 

I still have the issue of having to touch each cue that I have already made.  I can not find a way to globally copy the formula I need to each cue.  With corner tweens, each cue has 8 parameters so that means I have to click and enter 8 times on each cue. I have 4 projectors, so that means 36 variables to be entered for each "look".   It would be really helpful to be able to copy and paste the formulas from one cue to another, much like we currently copy tween points.  This is where the generic variables that Shoman mentions could come in handy.  As it stands, the best method I can come up with is to copy and paste cues that already have all the variables, then replace the media with the correct media.  I still have to manually transfer any other tween points that I have already entered on specific cues.  It will be a tedious task, but worth the time savings when I get to the show site.

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... As it stands, the best method I can come up with is to copy and paste cues that already have all the variables, then replace the media with the correct media.  I still have to manually transfer any other tween points that I have already entered on specific cues.  It will be a tedious task, but worth the time savings when I get to the show site.

 

To copy all corners with Formulas you can:

  1. Select a clip that currently has Formulas, 
  2. Press Tab to make tweens/formulas the active pane
  3. ctrl-a to Select all
  4. ctrl-c to Copy all
  5. Select Clip without Corner Tween track
  6. ctr-v to Paste

This works on ALL the Tween tracks obviously. It does however grab the Formulas too. I didn't notice a way just to do isolated single/multiple Formulas 

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Shoman, thanks for the tip (I did not know that tab moved put me in the tween field without selecting a particular tween track).  That did help streamline the process, although I still had to touch every cue.

 

Walter - it does appear that virtual displays would be an alternate solution.  However, I have experience with using variables so that wasn't as hard to wrap my head around.  I think if I was starting from scratch, I might think about virtual displays.  Since I already had a program built, I'm not sure that would have been any faster to implement.

 

Thanks all for the suggestions, I am in a much better place for our move into the hall.

 

steve

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Hi

I have often felt there is a need for a "deep clip board" in WO.

The ability to store things that i often recall in regards to tweens.

This position tween, this opacity tween, these colour or tint parameters.

Its fine to copy one thing from one piece of media to another or even several but sometimes a show requires different but similar programming for various pieces of content.

Can you copy tween info to a simple text file and then simply recall it?

Is there something within WO that could achieve this?

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Can you copy tween info to a simple text file and then simply recall it?

 

Yes

 

Is there something within WO that could achieve this?

 

Not yet. But that was an idea pretty high up on the wish list. Some kind of "snippet library" with tweens and other frequently used pieces of functionality, that could be dragged onto cues, or applied using an assigned keyboard shortcut. Didn't happen on my watch. But there's still hope...

 

Mike

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