Control/Dimming - Can I control light cues from a laptop? if so how?

[ionlexvold]

i need help trying to figure out how i can perform light cues from my laptop to a light board (mixer)... is there any software i need to download before i can do this? can i run this software with a hp touchsmart laptop?

[Gretsch]

Um,...yeah...We are going to need a lot more information from you to even give you options. If you can tell us what board you are using that would be a good start...If you aren't using a control desk at all yet and you want to be able to run your lighting system off of a laptop you can try Chamsys, Hog3PC, or a used horizon system. Chamsys is your best option money wise, Hog3pc is probably your most powerful, horizon is really decent but hard to find used and rosco has stopped producing it.

[NickJones]

Originally Posted by ionlexvold

i need help trying to figure out how i can perform light cues from my laptop to a light board (mixer)... is there any software i need to download before i can do this? can i run this software with a hp touchsmart laptop?

It all depends on what console you use, I presume it's a small ish console, and on most consoles it is possible to do this, I had this done on a really simple 12 channel console, I sent MIDI signals and this triggered the Go button. If you don't have a console yet, then USB-DMX widgets are made, using the software in the post above, but just make sure you pick one that matches the software. If you do go with the USB-DMX option then your HP Touchsmart should be fine.

This is cool to be able to do, but we need more info on what type of console (if any) you are using, and realisticly, you use a lighting console to do lighting, as that's what it's designed for, I would sugest not running shows over a network, but it can be great when hanging and focusing to be able to control the lights from on stage.

By the way, introduce yourself in the new members section,

Nick