POLL: How do you want shuffle mode to operate?

[bob]

As you may know, in the Musical Section of a show, you can set it up to play your sequences in the order that you list them, or else in a random manner ("shuffle mode"). There are several different ways that one could randomly choose songs to play from a list, and different people like different ways, but we currently support only one way.

So, in an upcoming release, we are going to give you the option to shuffle in any of four different ways, via two different base options which can be toggled independently of each other. Which of the four ways would you prefer to be the default?

The two different base options are:

(A) Back-to-back or not: Whether or not the same sequence can be played twice in a row (this option doesn't apply if you only have one sequence in the show - it will definitely be played back-to-back).

( With replacement or without: Whether sequences can be played multiple times before all other sequences have been played.

The phrase "with replacement" or "without replacement" can be thought of in terms of a deck of cards: After you draw a card from the deck, do you "replace" that card into the deck before you draw another, thus always drawing from 52 cards, or do you leave it out of the deck, so that you draw from 51 cards the next time, then 50, then 49, et cetera, only going back to the full 52 cards after you have worked all the way down to a single card, and then drawn that single card.

Those two independent options work out to four total overall options:

(1) Without replacement, no back-to-back: No sequence will be played a second time until all sequences have been played once, and the last sequence in one run through the sequences will not be played as the first sequence in the next run through the sequences.

(2) Without replacement, with back-to-back: No sequence will be played a second time until all sequences have been played once. A sequence might play twice in a row, if it happens to be the last sequence in one run through the sequences and the first sequence in the next run through the sequences.

(3) With replacement, no back-to-back: A sequence can be played multiple times before some other particular sequence has been played even once, but no sequence will play twice in a row.

(4) With replacement, with back-to-back: Any sequence can be played at any time, even several times in a row without any other sequence playing in between.

The way LOR currently operates is "(4) With replacement, with back-to-back". Your existing show files will continue to work this way, as they always have, but you will be able to change them (if you want) to any of the other ways.

New shows can also be set to any of these four ways, but the default doesn't have to be the same as the way old shows operated, so we would like to know which way you prefer.

[jimswinder]

If I understand this, this will shuffle sequences (songs)...any chance of also shuffling different shows and also shuffling the songs within those shows?

[PaulXmas]

I like my songs to play in order.
Just my 2 cents.

[bob]

If I understand this, this will shuffle sequences (songs)...any chance of also shuffling different shows and also shuffling the songs within those shows?

Yes, this is for shuffling sequences. Shuffling shows is not part of what this is about, although I'll mark it down on our wish list.

I like my songs to play in order.

You will still be able to do that. This question is only in regards to shuffle mode.

[Randy]

Thanks, Bob.

Not to make it too complicated, but I'd like to have some control over how the shuffle mode operates with respect to song files versus announcement files.

For example, due to shuffling, I would not want to have 2 or 3 announcement files end up being played back to back during the show. It doesn't bother me as much if 2 or 3 songs play back to back.

I have one announcement that is paired up with the song that follows it, so I would like those two to always be paired up. I suppose I could create one file and eliminate that situation, but right now they are two different files.

Aside from that example above, would be it be possible to shuffle songs and announcements separately? I would normally want two or three songs to play and then sequence in an announcement. The shuffle portion could randomize the songs and the announcements separately, but I'd still like to be able to specify the order....

Does that make sense?

Thanks, Randy

[bob]

Yes, it makes sense, but it's not going to be part of these changes. Again, I will mark it down on our wish list.

As a long term thing (no given timeframe), we're thinking about a serious overhaul of the Schedule and Show Editors, and additional flexibility like that is definitely the kind of thing that we want to think about. But this question is only in regards to the four shuffle options I listed above.

[Randy]

Thanks, Bob...

To keep it to your original question, I voted for #1 above...

[Ponddude]

bob wrote:

(this option doesn't apply if you only have one sequence in the show - it will definitely be played back-to-back)

Funniest thing you have said Bob!

But I voted for #1.

[Brian Mitchell]

Option 1 would be my choice also. If by some chance I wanted a sequence to be played more often, I could put it in the list more than once.

Randy,

The best way to have the paired songs play together in a random setting would be to use Audacity and marry the announcement and song together into one file then create a new sequence. It would be easy to do just by cutting and pasting the single sequences into the new longer one.

[Randy]

Thanks, Brian...

I've been on the fence about whether I wanted to actually take that step and marry the files together. They were created separately, so I've just kept them separate. Once I put them together, I'm kinda stuck with that, although I have been playing them back to back anyways in the show...

I've been using Sony Sound Forge Audio Studio for my audio editing; one of these days I'll have to try Audacity and see how it compares.

Thanks, Randy

[Max-Paul]

I think the results are going to be very heavy on choice #1. I too put my 2 cents worth on this choice.

[HowardShank]

Why not all the above? The sort algorithm to repeat or not repeat during shuffle may not be difficult to develop.

[radioguy1007]

Howard:

You may want to reread Bob's original post. He will be giving us all 4, he is just asking for the default mode.

[eldoradoboy]

I vote for number 1.. however:

like another posted announcements are part of my mix and so unless I can put a play rule in for announcements I'll always have to make my playlist manually..

I dont want it to be one song, 2 announcements, and then 10 songs with nothing....

-Christopher

[PipefitterDan]

I personally don't use the shuffle mode because my show starts with an announcement and an introduction. However I would like to shuffle the songs after that. What I would like to see is the ability to "lock" the positions of certain sequences in a show and shuffle the remainder. So I could lock my Don't Block Driveways and my Intro sequences so they always play first and second then the rest of the sequences, all songs, would each play once in random order and then my "locked" Interlude sequence would play and the whole show would start over.

Another nice feature would be to have the show pick a certain number of sequences at random to play in a show. So it would play my Don't Block Driveways and my Intro sequences first and second then pick three random sequences from a list or folder and then play my Interlude, and then start over. This is what I would ultimately like to see available.

Dan

[Linda]

(1) Without replacement, no back-to-back:

[bob]

I personally don't use the shuffle mode because my show starts with an announcement and an introduction. However I would like to shuffle the songs after that.

Assuming that you are using either a Standard or Advanced license, you can accomplish this by putting the announcement and introduction sequences into the show's "Startup" section instead of it's "Musical" section.

[bob]

Linda (and anyone else) - please vote by selecting your choice's entry in the poll at the top of the page, and then clicking "Vote", rather than by saying your vote. It's OK to say your vote, but it's only going to count if you select your choice's entry and then click "Vote" (otherwise, we run the risk of counting a person's vote twice). Thanks.

[eldoradoboy]

putting announcements in the startup and shutdown only works for those announcements.. but it doesnt work for announcements such as "dont block driveways" or "be sure to check our website" , etc... those type of announcements could all play at once and trhen all the music.. not mixed in like we want them..

what i do for the christmas music portion during the daytime (not LOR software) is my announcements are in a separate category.. so then I can tell the system to pick a song.. do this 4 times (randomly) then pick an announcement (randomly).. then play 4 songs, then announcement, etc..

somethng like categories would be great where instead of selecting a sequence for the show sequences could be put into categories.. so it would be shuffle.technosongs(random,enforcerules) or something like that....

a show would be built on either putting a specific sequence in or by choosing a category to pick from using any of the 4 rule options given to us
-Christopher

[bob]

Results are pretty overwhelming - "without replacement, no back-to-back" is the clear winner.

I was holding out hope for there being someone on the planet besides myself who likes "with replacement, with back-to-back", but I guess it's not going to happen!

Thanks, everybody!