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Pixel String Order Reversal


Jay Czerwinski

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I'm making progress switching from S4 to S5 and getting my Preview set up first.   I have several old style CCPs lining a bunch of tombstones and the order is important.  The strand starts at controller 1, strand 1, pixel 50 and goes to the controller (pixel 1) where it starts at pixel 1 on strand 2 and goes to pixel 50.  From there it starts again at pixel 50 strand 1 of the next controller and this pattern continues.    This way I can have a dot run the distance over all of the strands in order and it worked great in s4.

Now I have mapped all these pixels out and have them perfectly representing my physical props how they are wired.  But the import is reversing my motion from pixel 1 to 50 on every strand instead of 50-1 then 1-50, and so on.  When I run my sequence from S4, several of the strands run backwards.    And, sometimes I don't use all 50 pixels,   I might just use 30 and the motion should only be on 50-20. But instead, the animation runs from 1 to 30, lighting up 20 pixels I don't even use and letting me see just 10 at the wrong end.  

Is there a way to do a quick command to reverse the order, or do I have to redraw the entire strand again with the blue dot at the other end?

Thank you for any suggestions.

Jay

p.s.  tried to upload a pic, but it says I'm only allowed 0Mb.

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The pixel shown in blue in Preview Design should be the first channel listed in the channel grid in Prop Definition. If it shows up on the wrong end of the string, then you should be able to change the "Starting Location" field in Prop Definition in order to fix it.

http://www1.lightorama.com/help/prop_definition.htm

It may also be helpful to turn on pixel numbers in order to make sure your pixel strings are running in the correct direction. See the "Options Menu" section on this page:

http://www1.lightorama.com/help/design_tab.htm

With this option enabled, the pixel numbers shown need to match up with the way channels/circuits run on the string. Normally, pixel 1 would be closest to the controller. But if you have the pixels reversed in the controller settings, then pixel 1 will be the furthest from the controller.

Matt

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Thanks for the input.   Actually, changing the "Starting Location" I think only orients the string when it first appears, but does not make pixel 50 the start point.   I can't recall if I sent a Hardware command to the unit to reverse the pixels, but I do know that in my S4 sequence I have pixel 50 at the top of the list of channels down to 1.     Wonder if that got reversed  in the import?

I agree with you on turning on the pixel numbers and boy was it a pain getting the pixels exactly representing where they are in the physical display, because sometimes I bunched up the extra wire to bring the pixels closer together.   Doing this with the strand was crazy difficult - I had to add extra nodes in the invisible strand between pixels and stretch a knot to bring the spacing closer together.  I would have been better off if there was a way just to set each pixel down individually and unconnected to a strand.    

Now you can see why I did not want to have to redraw the string to put the blue point at the other end.  It was a lot of push/pull to get things just right.

Edited by Jay Czerwinski
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16 minutes ago, Jay Czerwinski said:

Thanks for the input.   Actually, changing the "Starting Location" I think only orients the string when it first appears, but does not make pixel 50 the start point.   I can't recall if I sent a Hardware command to the unit to reverse the pixels, but I do know that in my S4 sequence I have pixel 50 at the top of the list of channels down to 1.     Wonder if that got reversed  in the import?

I agree with you on turning on the pixel numbers and boy was it a pain getting the pixels exactly representing where they are in the physical display, because sometimes I bunched up the extra wire to bring the pixels closer together.   Doing this with the strand was crazy difficult - I had to add extra nodes in the invisible strand between pixels and stretch a knot to bring the spacing closer together.  I would have been better off if there was a way just to set each pixel down individually and unconnected to a strand.    

Now you can see why I did not want to have to redraw the string to put the blue point at the other end.  It was a lot of push/pull to get things just right.

Are you just trying to get these to mirror each other? I ask because you say you are going from 1-50 and then 50-1

JR

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49 minutes ago, dibblejr said:

Are you just trying to get these to mirror each other? I ask because you say you are going from 1-50 and then 50-1

JR

I can't post a pic, but here is a video -- look at 0:45 and 1:12 to see how I want motion.   But a couple of tombstones are playing backwards after importing in to S5.

 

 

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If it was me I would just build it in custom props and put the pixels where you need them in the grid. I do realize what a task it is , I built some props with 400+ nodes. One thing to consider my friend and I discovered. Once you build it in the custom props is shrink it or it slows the computer processor down a ton. I went from 3-5 mins between making any changes in a sequence to just under 30 seconds.

I was gonna suggest if you were mirroring one side to the other to just change the controller port assignment when you set the props up. 

Best of luck, looks like a cool layout.

JR

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Thanks @dibblejr   -  I hooked up the physical props to my computer on S5 and they did behave like the preview shows me.   This means I do have to rework my prop in the software.    I am thinking that you are suggesting something I was going to ask next.   Right now I am using the CCP option when making the prop, and it is a real pain dealing with the spacing when I go tighter and when I do not use the whole length of the strand.  If I could just place each pixel by hand, I wouldn't ind doing this for the first time investment for prop accuracy.   Is this was you are suggesting when you say "custom props".    If it's that grid technique, then that could be a real hassle.  just making sure that's what you meant.   Thanks again.  Jay

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1 minute ago, Jay Czerwinski said:

Thanks @dibblejr   -  I hooked up the physical props to my computer on S5 and they did behave like the preview shows me.   This means I do have to rework my prop in the software.    I am thinking that you are suggesting something I was going to ask next.   Right now I am using the CCP option when making the prop, and it is a real pain dealing with the spacing when I go tighter and when I do not use the whole length of the strand.  If I could just place each pixel by hand, I wouldn't ind doing this for the first time investment for prop accuracy.   Is this was you are suggesting when you say "custom props".    If it's that grid technique, then that could be a real hassle.  just making sure that's what you meant.   Thanks again.  Jay

Yes and yes to the custom grid design. It may be a hassle in the beginning but its well worth it. Unless you make a mistake and have to redo it.

I just leave my props connected to the controller as mentioned above and in the preview just flip it over LOL. Easier than reinventing everything.

JR

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Well, luckily I found the problem, and I feel silly for it. Turns out I had the two props out of order.    I moved to a new house and last year I put up my display with only a couple of weeks of owning it.  I took pictures and captured the two props out of order.   In the chaos of a new home and wondering how my neighbors would accept me, I never saw motion out of order.   (plus I did not get the whole show up.)

This year, preparing in advance and getting out all of the props, I referenced the house before, and it became clear what my problem is.   Switching their order puts the start connectors in the right place.   I would have made the same mistake this year if it weren't for S5 and me using the visualizer for the first time.

Thanks again for your help and I will use the grid method as I connect my other pixel props next!     

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