Laserlight ShowControl Knowledge base

Laserlight ShowControl Knowledge base

FAQ - Frequently asked questions

Answer: Just send a $US cheque over the amount to our contact address and we will send you your license key via email that you can copy-paste into the box in ShowControl to register the software. Please don't forget to tell us your personal order-code and email address. More information can be accessed through the menu item 'Help | Registration' in the application.

Answer: Yes, updates and bugfixes of ShowControl will always be free for the main version the customer purchased. You can directly download the latest update from this website and install it over your previous installation. If you own a license key it will remain installed so there is nothing further to be done.

Answer: That's really hard to say because it is internally controlled. Anything between four months and sero days. Please keep that in mind before planing shows involving ShowControl. It could happen that the software quits running just before your performance. We strongly recommend you to get a key as soon as you decide to purchase the software. You're on the safe side then.

Answer: ShowControl runs on any Windows 95 / 98 PC. To make best use of the more ressource-consuming functions of ShowControl (like MP3 synchronization) we recommend you to use a Pentium II or III with at least 64 to 128 MB ram installed. This is NOT necessary if you only play shows from CD or wave file. In order to be able to use all the multimedia functions of ShowControl we recommend you however to install the latest update of the windows media player that you can download from the Microsoft website for free. You should of course also have a QuadMod card installed properly.

Answer: Yes. There is only one version of ShowControl available and it supports both cards.

Answer: Go to the main menu of the program and select 'Session | Begin'. Alternatively you can double-click on the status bar of the application's main window where it reads 'offline' in red. The loading progress will be displayed by a bar.

Answer: Go to the tool window named 'show list' and click on the button showing a plus sign in the upper right corner of the window. A dialog box named 'show properties' will appear where you can specify all needed information about the show. Click on the 'OK' button and your new show will appear in the show list.

Answer: Once you defined shows in the show list simply drag and drop them to the performance script in the tool window named 'Performance'. You can change their order by dragging and dropping inside the list itself. When the performance is ready press the button showing a green double-arrow ('play performance') on the tool window named 'control panel' to start performance playback.

Answer: From the main menu select 'Windows' | 'Arrangement' | 'Save'. The settings you save will be restored when starting ShowControl.

Answer: Once you created your performance go to the main menu and select 'Frame preload' | 'Update'. All frames of the shows you assigned to your performance will now be preloaded. When you play the performance the frames will be arranged and played back from internal memory. To delete the frames in memory manually select 'Clear' from the same menu.

Answer: Yes you can. You will find the key assignments in the main menu under 'Control'.

Answer: Probably your QuadMod hardware card is not installed or setup correctly. Check the hardware setup. If LD and Showtime run properly on the installed card then ShowControl will as well.

Answer: The performance time values can only be calculated and displayed if timing information is available for each show that has been assigned to the performance. Because of the realtime access on the drag & drop performance programming mechanism of ShowControl the determination of those timing values has to be completed beforehand. For doing this every show definition must be loaded once manually using the commands 'Load' or 'Play' from the 'Show list' window. Once these values are defined for every show the 'Time Display' will fully function in the future.

Answer: In the actual version of ShowControl the 'Performance script' has it's own memory and is independant of the 'Show list'. In order to transfer changes in the 'Show list' to the 'Performance script' the concerning show definitions have to be deleted in the 'Performance script' and then copied from the 'Show list' again.

Laserlight ShowControl Knowledge base

FAQ - Frequently asked questions

*Topics:* Registration and License: How do I get a license key and pay for it? Are bug fixes and updates free for ShowControl? How long will the software run without key? System Requirements: What is the recomended PC platform to best make use of ShowControl? Does ShowControl run on both the older QM32 and the newer QM2000 board? Basic Usage: How do I load a session? How do I define shows? How do I quickly create a performance? How can I save the tool window positions so that they remain the same after restarting? Advanced Usage: How do I preload frames? Where do I save laser display parameters for instant loading or assigning to shows? Can I control performance playback with my keyboard? Trouble Shooting: Why do I get error messages when launching ShowControl? Why does the 'Time Display' only show '-' instead of the performance time values? I altered a show definition but the performance still runs with the old values. What's wrong?

Question: How do I get a license key and pay for it?
Answer: Just send a $US cheque over the amount to our contact address and we will send you your license key via email that you can copy-paste into the box in ShowControl to register the software. Please don't forget to tell us your personal order-code and email address. More information can be accessed through the menu item 'Help \| Registration' in the application.

Question: Are bug fixes and updates free for ShowControl?
Answer: Yes, updates and bugfixes of ShowControl will always be free for the main version the customer purchased. You can directly download the latest update from this website and install it over your previous installation. If you own a license key it will remain installed so there is nothing further to be done.

Question: How long will the software run without key?
Answer: That's really hard to say because it is internally controlled. Anything between four months and sero days. Please keep that in mind before planing shows involving ShowControl. It could happen that the software quits running just before your performance. We strongly recommend you to get a key as soon as you decide to purchase the software. You're on the safe side then.

Question: What is the recomended PC platform to best make use of ShowControl?
Answer: ShowControl runs on any Windows 95 / 98 PC. To make best use of the more ressource-consuming functions of ShowControl (like MP3 synchronization) we recommend you to use a Pentium II or III with at least 64 to 128 MB ram installed. This is NOT necessary if you only play shows from CD or wave file. In order to be able to use all the multimedia functions of ShowControl we recommend you however to install the latest update of the windows media player that you can download from the Microsoft website for free. You should of course also have a QuadMod card installed properly.

Question: Does ShowControl run on both the older QM32 and the newer QM2000 board?
Answer: Yes. There is only one version of ShowControl available and it supports both cards.

Question: How do I load a session?
Answer: Go to the main menu of the program and select 'Session \| Begin'. Alternatively you can double-click on the status bar of the application's main window where it reads 'offline' in red. The loading progress will be displayed by a bar.

Question: How do I define shows?
Answer: Go to the tool window named 'show list' and click on the button showing a plus sign in the upper right corner of the window. A dialog box named 'show properties' will appear where you can specify all needed information about the show. Click on the 'OK' button and your new show will appear in the show list.

Question: How do I quickly create a performance?
Answer: Once you defined shows in the show list simply drag and drop them to the performance script in the tool window named 'Performance'. You can change their order by dragging and dropping inside the list itself. When the performance is ready press the button showing a green double-arrow ('play performance') on the tool window named 'control panel' to start performance playback.

Question: How can I save the tool window positions so that they remain the same after restarting?
Answer: From the main menu select 'Windows' \| 'Arrangement' \| 'Save'. The settings you save will be restored when starting ShowControl.

Question: How do I preload frames?
Answer: Once you created your performance go to the main menu and select 'Frame preload' \| 'Update'. All frames of the shows you assigned to your performance will now be preloaded. When you play the performance the frames will be arranged and played back from internal memory. To delete the frames in memory manually select 'Clear' from the same menu.

Question: Where do I save laser display parameters for instant loading or assigning to shows?
Answer: At the bottom of the tool window named 'Display Parameters' there's a dropdown box listing your current display profiles. To save a new profile type in a new name and press the 'save as' button just next to the box on the right. To restore a profile simply select it in the list. To assign one to a specific show got to the 'show properties' dialog and under the 'Settings' tab assign the corresponding profile to the show. Tip: You can create two different profiles for beamshow / graphicshow and assign the corresponding display profile to each show. When playing the shows the correct display profile will then be applied automatically.

Question: Can I control performance playback with my keyboard?
Answer: Yes you can. You will find the key assignments in the main menu under 'Control'.

Question: Why do I get error messages when launching ShowControl?
Answer: Probably your QuadMod hardware card is not installed or setup correctly. Check the hardware setup. If LD and Showtime run properly on the installed card then ShowControl will as well.

Question: Why does the 'Time Display' only show '-' instead of the performance time values?
Answer: The performance time values can only be calculated and displayed if timing information is available for each show that has been assigned to the performance. Because of the realtime access on the drag & drop performance programming mechanism of ShowControl the determination of those timing values has to be completed beforehand. For doing this every show definition must be loaded once manually using the commands 'Load' or 'Play' from the 'Show list' window. Once these values are defined for every show the 'Time Display' will fully function in the future.

Question: I altered a show definition but the performance still runs with the old values. What's wrong?
Answer: In the actual version of ShowControl the 'Performance script' has it's own memory and is independant of the 'Show list'. In order to transfer changes in the 'Show list' to the 'Performance script' the concerning show definitions have to be deleted in the 'Performance script' and then copied from the 'Show list' again.



Copyright 2000 Laserlight Showdesign. All rights reserved. No copying without permission. Subject to change without notice. Errors excepted.