Hi Thelightinggal,
Direct Selects are just a shortcut to recalling already recorded data types. It sounds to me that the missing piece here is an understanding of palettes and which data they record.
Focus Palettes record only data that has been classified as Focus data. Typically, that is Pan and Tilt information. It can also include related functions such as MSpeed if applicable.
Color Palettes record only data that has been classified as Color data. This usually includes color mixing channels (HSI/
CMY/
RGB etc...), scrollers, color wheels, and other color related functions.
Beam Palettes record data that that has been classified as "Beam" realated. This is usually the catch all for the remaining parameters including
strobe, gobos, prisms,
zoom, hard/soft focus, shutters, and other parameters that affect the beam.
Palette (All) Palettes are a special type of
palette that record all of the non-intensity parameters including Focus, Color, and Beam parameters. These are useful when the light has to be pointed at a specific spot with the
zoom and
iris set to a specific size... as an example.
Every type of
palette is an object that stores data that can be referenced later. When presets are recorded using a
palette reference, they don't store the exact data of the device in the
preset, they store a reference to a
palette that then recalls the data stored in the
palette. When you change the data stored in the
palette, all of the presets that used that
palette reference update to the changed data automatically.
So, in your example: you would want to record the positioning of the Revolution where it has to hit the same spot several times in the show to a Focus
Palette. Then when you want to recall that position to be able to record it into a
preset, then you would select the
channel and press the direct select that has the proper positioning Focus
Palette to move the
fixture to the recorded position. Then you can record that positioning into the
preset. If you were to have your director decided that the spot where they need to be has to move for every time they stand there, you could then just rerecord the Focus
Palette that you used and every
preset that you recorded using the direct select to recall that
palette would update to the new positioning.
Your example of storing the
strobe in to a
palette could be accomplished doing using the same process but instead of recording a Focus
Palette, you would record a Beam
Palette.
Using the
console to pre-program the Revolutions to follow an actor is not an easy task. There are several threads here discussing the merits of this action. If you are intent on doing this, you will likely need to program not only the starting and end
point, but also several points in between to follow the path that the actor will take. You will also want to train the actor to follow the same path at the same speed every time, every night. To have the
console take the timing on its own, you will need to assign the wait or follow time to each of the steps in the Sequence list that are a part of that move. Another option is to take
manual live control of the
fixture's pan and tilt parameters using the trackball. This can be accomplished using the
Parameter button near the trackball with the
channel selected. It will take a lot of practice to get
manual control of a
fixture down as you are running the show. I strongly recommend that you explore other options instead of having the
console try to follow an actor's movements for the several reasons described in the previous threads on this subject.
These concepts can be difficult to explain in a forum post. If you still have questions, I recommend giving us a
call at 800-688-4116 M-F 8-5 Central Time when you are in front of your
console and we can answer your programming questions.