DMX Console that Works in Banks?

[Stevens R. Miller]

Oh, yeah, I do get that, but no 5-4-3-2-1. Once started, how do you exit the desk program?

 

[RickR]

Hit "Displays" or F9 to get the "CIA" browser to pop up. If it's on something else just keep hitting that key. Then double click on Exit, then enter to confirm. On an actual desk "Power Off" is right next to "Exit"

Complete lighting software is complex enough that going into it with little knowledge of consoles or of that program is setting yourself up for confusion. One of my favorite lines "When all else fails, read the directions."

 

[dbaxter]

I don't think software should make you jump through an obscure hoop like that, however.

 

[Stevens R. Miller]

Complete lighting software is complex enough that going into it with little knowledge of consoles or of that program is setting yourself up for confusion.

It's not a lot to ask of a program in the year 2016 that it be easy to exit.

One of my favorite lines "When all else fails, read the directions."

It didn't come with any.

 

[sjobergsson]

But the opposite annoy me a bit in avolites titan one cause its so easy to shut the software down in the middle of a show but probably a confirmation would be enough

Skickat från min GT-I9505 via Tapatalk

 

[Stevens R. Miller]

But the opposite annoy me a bit in avolites titan one cause its so easy to shut the software down in the middle of a show...

It's not a lot to ask of a program in the year 2016 that it not shut down easily when you don't want it to, either.

 

[Scarrgo]

There should have been an option where you downloaded the software to also download the manual

As stated above, it is a very complex software to be able to all the things that people ask of it, it can be daunting...

And have you gone and looked at any of the training videos that they offer? they can also be very helpful...

I use it on my laptop, {command+Q}(mac) exits the program.

Not being a software writer, just an end user, why add another layer of interface to contend with, to me, I see it as I am running the console from my laptop and I am armed with the shortcut sheet...

and if you feel that it should have a different/better GUI, ETC has a great user forum, and they listen to what people ask/need of the console software...

While yes I am an ETC/Apple/Coke/Levi/many other silly thigs Fan boy, but I also believe that you should look and find what works best for you, there are many great products out there, and some of those folks are right here on Controlbooth, and would be very happy to answer any question that you have...

Please keep asking questions, we also want to try and be of help

Have a great day...

Sean...

 

[Stevens R. Miller]

There should have been an option where you downloaded the software to also download the manual

They offer it as a compressed .zip library. Standard practice is to include the docs in that, along with the code.

Not being a software writer, just an end user, why add another layer of interface to contend with, to me, I see it as I am running the console from my laptop and I am armed with the shortcut sheet...

Well, as a software writer, my view is that the user can be expected to know the standard interface conventions for the operating system of their machine. That's not an accident. Microsoft, Apple, and other OS vendors have spent years refining the part of their code that is generally called the "window manager" so that the functions common to virtually all applications (shutting down perhaps being the one that truly every application supports, but opening and closing files, cutting and pasting, asking for help, and so on are nearly universal or, at least, can universally be implemented the same way) have no learning curve. The industry decision to adopt such standards has long been heralded as the reason computers became mainstream appliances, instead of remaining laboratory instruments. For almost as long, programs that can makes use of a window manager's conventional implementations of the near-universal functions that program shares with lots of others, but doesn't make use of them, have been reviled and criticized as being either designed in ignorance, arrogance, or both.

If I understand you correctly, their decision makes it very natural for a user with experience on the physical hardware to feel like they are in a familiar context. That makes sense, except that one virtue to ETC of making Nomad freely downloadable is that it will be the entry point for lots of us who don't have access to a physical device, but might learn to like their product so much that we later decide to buy one. Making that kind of person's first encounter with the product become a frustrating exercise in coping with a unique GUI (when that problem was tossed to the curb a very long time ago) is not, imho, in ETC's own best interests.

And here's a funny thing about that: in that "setting" page you mentioned, it can be set to run in a standard window, instead of taking over the whole screen (full-screen mode, in some vernaculars). When you do that, the stock features provided by the window manager appear, and one can exit the program with a single mouse-click (well, a second click confirms that one wishes to exit, but that is also according to standard convention). As a loss-leader marketing tool, I think ETC would be better off if that were the initial configuration of the software, with it maybe suggesting at first start-up that it can be run in full-screen mode for old hands like you who will already know how that interface works.

Please keep asking questions, we also want to try and be of help

Thanks! This is a great forum and I have received an awful lot of collegial support and encouragement here already. It can be hard to find forums like this, so, when I do find one, I try to give back. Since I'm really, really new to theater tech, I can't help much directly (not yet, anyway), but, as we are talking about software (my main profession), let me offer to help with any Java programming questions people have through another fine forum, coderanch.com, where I am a moderator. Folks there are helpful and collegial too, so feel free to ask us for help if you ever get into Java coding.

 

[RickR]

I agree completely with 99% of what you say. They should use existing software standards, at least in the basic computer functions. There is a whole other set of issues in File>Open, Save As, Merge that they finally made minor improvements on in the last update. Just following the standards would have prevented an enormous amount of work and confusion.

I suspect much if it is legacy from the earliest Eos days. (2006ish) I'm pretty sure an offline program was envisioned even back then but it might have been they thought only console owners would use the program, so oddities wouldn't matter. I've also seen quite a trend towards avoiding manuals. My kids (college age) were taught to read them, but have the attitude that the program should be self explanatory. Lots of other programs make you get it separately or use an online wiki-manual. Paper is rare!

Let me add that you (and others) help me with your questions. Part of why I'm here and on other forums is to learn how others view issues. I learned a long time ago that people don't all think the same way! So hearing your problems and what concerns you expands my knowledge of how my clients might think. I also sharpen my skills at explaining this stuff on you poor folks that aren't paying for it. So thank you!

 

[Stevens R. Miller]

I've also seen quite a trend towards avoiding manuals.

My dad was an engineer and a dedicated home handy-man. I remember being 14 and watching him make something-or-other in his shop one day. Whatever it was, it must have seemed impressive to me, because I asked him, "Dad, how do you know how to do so much?" Lately, I've been repeating what he said to me to my own son, who happens to be 14 now. He said, "most things are easy, if you read the instructions."

 

[Dionysus]

My dad was an engineer and a dedicated home handy-man. I remember being 14 and watching him make something-or-other in his shop one day. Whatever it was, it must have seemed impressive to me, because I asked him, "Dad, how do you know how to do so much?" Lately, I've been repeating what he said to me to my own son, who happens to be 14 now. He said, "most things are easy, if you read the instructions."

I would suggest when starting out changing the "console mode" (you see that on the startup and config window before loading) to "element" instead of "eos" as it is a little less complicated and daunting. It is now the same as an element console, less like the ION, but has the same limitations (which will be just fine for you). Fewer "buttons" and controls to look at as well.