Feature request - Batch rename channels

[Tim Fischer]

I'd like to see a feature to batch (re)name selected groups of channels. As channel counts explode with RGB and pixels, it is no longer practical to go through one by one and name every single channel manually.

Also, LOR will generate names when adding a new controller (e.g. i added an entire universe of DMX channels last night - and they were named something like "DMX 1.1", which is fine for a default name. BUT if I later decide to change the universe of these channels, the names remain the same.

It would be great if I could select, for example, all the pixels on one slice of a mega-tree, and batch-name them "Mega Tree Slice 1". Then LOR takes the group and names them "Mega Tree Slice 1.1", "Mega Tree Slice 1.2", etc.

-Tim

[LOR Staff]

Make sure you send that to wishlist@lightorama.com as well. Dan keeps a list of all of them.

[Tim Fischer]

done!

[WilliamS]

This is already in Visualizer, wouldnt it be easier to have an export from VIS to SE? Would it keep the channel names along with channel orientation? I know this was brought up in the past when VIS went live with S3

[Tim Fischer]

GoofyGuy wrote:

This is already in Visualizer, wouldnt it be easier to have an export from VIS to SE? Would it keep the channel names along with channel orientation? I know this was brought up in the past when VIS went live with S3

I don't (yet) use visualizer. Not sure how much I will in the future, since my layout is pretty ingrained in the old animation view.

I wish the two "products" were a lot more seamless...

[WilliamS]

Tim Fischer wrote:

GoofyGuy wrote:

This is already in Visualizer, wouldnt it be easier to have an export from VIS to SE? Would it keep the channel names along with channel orientation? I know this was brought up in the past when VIS went live with S3

I don't (yet) use visualizer.  Not sure how much I will in the future, since my layout is pretty ingrained in the old animation view.

I wish the two "products" were a lot more seamless...

Neato. I leave the VIS open during the show season as when I get home I can see from the inside what the outside of my house is doing as well. Also Dual monitors, 1 gets the VIS to playback when sequencing when the main gets the Sequencer.

[Guest wbottomley]

Tim Fischer wrote:

I'd like to see a feature to batch (re)name selected groups of channels.  As channel counts explode with RGB and pixels, it is no longer practical to go through one by one and name every single channel manually. 

Also, LOR will generate names when adding a new controller (e.g. i added an entire universe of DMX channels last night - and they were named something like "DMX 1.1", which is fine for a default name.  BUT if I later decide to change the universe of these channels, the names remain the same.

It would be great if I could select, for example, all the pixels on one slice of a mega-tree, and batch-name them "Mega Tree Slice 1".  Then LOR takes the group and names them "Mega Tree Slice 1.1", "Mega Tree Slice 1.2", etc.

-Tim

Bravo! Very nicely thought out.

[ItsMeBobO]

Tim Fischer wrote:

I'd like to see a feature to batch (re)name selected groups of channels.  As channel counts explode with RGB and pixels, it is no longer practical to go through one by one and name every single channel manually. 

Also, LOR will generate names when adding a new controller (e.g. i added an entire universe of DMX channels last night - and they were named something like "DMX 1.1", which is fine for a default name.  BUT if I later decide to change the universe of these channels, the names remain the same.

It would be great if I could select, for example, all the pixels on one slice of a mega-tree, and batch-name them "Mega Tree Slice 1".  Then LOR takes the group and names them "Mega Tree Slice 1.1", "Mega Tree Slice 1.2", etc.

-Tim

Changing one by one is a feature documented in the help file.

Change Controller

Note: The Change Controller dialog will not change the names of your channels, even if the names are based upon the existing channel settings.  For example, if you change LOR unit 03 to LOR unit 07, and the channels for LOR unit 03 had been named "Unit 03.1", "Unit 03.2", and so on, they will keep those same names, even though their actual unit IDs change from 03 to 07.

[khawes]

I just went thorough this - I had names like "left eves" and wanted "left eves 1.1" so used a text editor and some macros & search/replace to make the changes directly in the xml:

Make a backup of your sequence_name.xml and then use a text editor to do a search & replace.

If your editing messed up the file, copy your backup over the newly broken one and try again.

[Tim Fischer]

khawes wrote:

I just went thorough this - I had names like "left eves" and wanted "left eves 1.1" so used a text editor and some macros & search/replace to make the changes directly in the xml:

Make a backup of your sequence_name.xml and then use a text editor to do a search & replace.

If your editing messed up the file, copy your backup over the newly broken one and try again.

I've tried that in the past too. The problem is, what I really want is it to auto-increment so that the next channel would be "left eves 1.2" and so on.

I'm sure you could write some sort of fancy grep-type regex search and replace with the proper editor, but that's beyond I really want to deal with (and I'm a software geek by day lol)

[khawes]

Tim Fischer wrote:

khawes wrote:

I just went thorough this - I had names like "left eves" and wanted "left eves 1.1" so used a text editor and some macros & search/replace to make the changes directly in the xml:

Make a backup of your sequence_name.xml and then use a text editor to do a search & replace.

If your editing messed up the file, copy your backup over the newly broken one and try again.

I've tried that in the past too.  The problem is, what I really want is it to auto-increment so that the next channel would be "left eves 1.2" and so on.

I'm sure you could write some sort of fancy grep-type regex search and replace with the proper editor, but that's beyond I really want to deal with (and I'm a software geek by day lol)

I used a very old version of Visual SlickEdit, and to accomplish the "auto increment", or more to the point including device & channel numbers.

Turns out on each line that has the name you need changed is the unit and channel information. I searched for the old value in my case "left eve" or even unit="4" and then recorded a macro that moved the cursor to the unit number copied it, moved back to the name, pasted and then repeated for the channel number. Finally I searched for the next occurring and saved the macro. Then I just played it back. It took 2 or 3 tires to record the macro correctly, but it saved time in the long run.

[jimswinder]

Seems like a simple request...

My Nikon Camera software would do something like that...

You could select multiple pics and then be able to create a filename for them (IE Pic 1) and it would then have some choices for sub text (name, date, starting number) and automatically name them so you ended up with Pic 1.1. Pic 1.2, Pic 1.3, etc...