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Xtream Beams 2014
By
Manual
Xtream Beams 2014 - Manual
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Content
Preamble.......................................................................................................................3
System Requirements...................................................................................................4
Output Hardware...........................................................................................................4
Installation......................................................................................................................4
Components of the Software.........................................................................................7
Basics of Laser Shows..................................................................................................7
Building a Laser Show.................................................................................................10
The Hardwaremanager................................................................................................10
Settings............................................................................................................................. 10
Multicolor-Setup................................................................................................................12
Colormapping.................................................................................................................... 18
Safety – Zones..................................................................................................................18
PicEdit – Startscreen...................................................................................................19
PicEdit – Main Menu....................................................................................................21
Drawing Tools..............................................................................................................27
Select ............................................................................................................................... 27
Select Group .................................................................................................................... 27
Line tool ............................................................................................................................ 27
BSpline ............................................................................................................................. 28
Freehand .......................................................................................................................... 28
Rectangle ......................................................................................................................... 28
Ellipse ............................................................................................................................... 29
Text .................................................................................................................................. 29
Point ................................................................................................................................. 30
Delete Point ...................................................................................................................... 31
Clone Point ...................................................................................................................... 31
Move Point ....................................................................................................................... 31
Move ................................................................................................................................ 31
Scale ................................................................................................................................ 31
Rotate ............................................................................................................................... 32
Recolor Point ................................................................................................................... 32
Copy ................................................................................................................................. 32
Zoom ................................................................................................................................ 32
Active Point ...................................................................................................................... 32
Front, Top, Left, Side ........................................................................................................32
3D .................................................................................................................................... 32
Transform ......................................................................................................................... 33
X/Y/Z................................................................................................................................. 33
The Open-GL Preview ......................................................................................................33
The Animator ..............................................................................................................35
Example – Building a CAT-File...................................................................................35
RealTime – The Showprogram...................................................................................39
Playing the first Laser Show........................................................................................41
The RealTime Surface.................................................................................................43
Control Bar........................................................................................................................ 43
The Viewbar ...................................................................................................................46
The Controlbar.................................................................................................................. 46
Working with the TimeLine..........................................................................................47
Output Settings............................................................................................................49
Worlds .............................................................................................................................. 49
Scanningparameter .......................................................................................................... 50
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Color
.......................................................................................................................................... 54
Settings ............................................................................................................................ 55
Static Effects .................................................................................................................... 57
Audiosettings ....................................................................................................................58
The Info – Field................................................................................................................. 60
Programming a Laser Show........................................................................................60
Scanlimit............................................................................................................................ 68
Camera Path of the Animation (Trickfilm)..........................................................................71
Sparkle.............................................................................................................................. 72
Script................................................................................................................................. 73
Picture............................................................................................................................... 74
Animation.......................................................................................................................... 75
Adding Effects................................................................................................................... 77
The Animator..................................................................................................................... 78
The Curve – Animator.......................................................................................................81
The Effects...................................................................................................................83
Lissajous........................................................................................................................... 83
Bitmap............................................................................................................................... 84
Beam................................................................................................................................. 85
Runtext.............................................................................................................................. 85
GeoNet.............................................................................................................................. 86
Comment........................................................................................................................... 87
Loop.................................................................................................................................. 87
Clock................................................................................................................................. 88
Tips for Show Programming with RealTime................................................................90
The Standard-Animator.....................................................................................................90
Creating and Using SFX....................................................................................................92
FastProg ........................................................................................................................... 95
Copy & Paste in the TimeLine...........................................................................................96
Animation of a figure to the beat........................................................................................97
Switching the Scanners / TimeLines for Programming......................................................98
Preview for Multi Scanner Shows......................................................................................98
RealTime – the name reflects the aim…..........................................................................103
Working with Surfaces.....................................................................................................104
Tips for the Drawing Program PicEdit.......................................................................106
Convert objects in dotted objects.....................................................................................106
Import of PLT Files, e.g. from CorelDraw........................................................................107
Preamble
The Laser Show Software Xtream Beams was created from the "old" Laser Design Studio.
www.laserverkoop.nl refine this software independently since 2014 and continue to have it
customized to their hardware in order to achieve optimum output quality and ease of use.
The aim has been and still is building a professional solution for creating and playing laser
shows and thereby provide features for all eventualities.
Whether mapping of projectors, automatic setting and recognition of projection zones and
optimal adjustment of scanner parameters or color correction and geometric settings may be
concerned.
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System Requirements
Xtream Beams requires a PC running Windows operating system version XP / SP 3 or later.
We recommend a system with >1.8 GHz and a minimum of 2 GB RAM and 3 GB of free
hard disk space for shows and audio files. The software is usually tested on Windows 7 and 8
as 32 bit and 64 bit systems.
For the connection of output cards, at least one USB-port or LAN-port should be available. As
laser shows usually include audio files, a sound card should also be available.
When using existing systems, it is recommended to disable all background services (antivirus,
messenger, ...) while the laser show is played.
Output Hardware
To run laser shows on laser systems, external devices, so-called D/A converters
(digital/analog converters), or DAC in short, are used. These devices can be connected via
USB and network. The following DACs are supported in Xtream Beams:
-
Easylase I (after update to the latest firmware)
Easylase II
EasyLase LC (Xtream Beams)
Netlase
Phoenix USB and corresponding network hardware
All devices are automatically detected by the software, provided that any necessary drivers
have been installed.
Installation
Please obtain the latest version of Xtream Beams from:
http://laserverkoop.nl/laserverkoop/downloadpagina/
Extract this file and run the setup.
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Confirm the start of the installation by clicking "Next"
Confirm by choosing "I accept the agreement" and then click "Next"
You will see the obligatory disclaimer with version info and tips.
Continue by clicking "Next".
Xtream Beams will be installed in two directories. This is necessary, because the required
write permissions are not always guaranteed in Windows Vista and later versions of
Windows. In step 1, the installation path for the program itself is defined. The default
program folder of windows is suggested. Installation on a second partition is also possible.
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After selecting the installation path, click "Next" to continue to the next step.
Here the location for the variable data is set. Variable data will be show files, parameter files,
audio files and folders for import/export. The path to this directory is saved in the system
registry. Different subroutines of Xtream Beams are setting their working folders according to
this registry entry. Therefore this folder cannot be moved easily after installation. Otherwise
during the start of the software, the necessary folders and settings would not be found and
errors would appear.
Continue again by clicking "Next" …
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A summary of the components to be installed is shown. After the last confirmation with
"Next" the installation will start.
Components of the Software
The program suite „Xtream Beams“ consists of the following programs:
PicEdit
The drawing program to create individual images and combine them in a catalog.
RealTime
The animator in which the audio file, catalog images and animation effects will be composed
to create a laser show.
Live
To create Live shows with a laserist or L.J. Live on the music. This program supports midi
like APC40 from Akai.
Basics of Laser Shows
Put simply, laser shows are laser beams generated with gas-, diode- and DPSS- lasers which
are deflected by two scanners ("galvos") in X and Y direction. The positions of the galvos and
the condition of the lasers (on, off, brightness) is fed into the laser projector as analog values,
via an analog interface ("ILDA-port"). Source of these values is the D/A converter connected
to the PC, which in turn receives its information from the software.
All the figures and outlines one wants to display, have to be created and animated in this
software.
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Internally a kind of hierarchy is used. Certain settings, like a rotation can be used and changed
globally without changing the actual saved image, e.g. a square.
The square consists "only" of five points in the drawing program.
Wait a moment! A square has only four points ?
Yes, but drawing it with the laser, we start at the top left, go to the upper right, then to the
bottom right, next to the bottom left and back to the starting point at the top left -> There you
go, five points!
Each point has several characteristics:
- the X-value
- the Y-value
- the number of the selected color
- the RGB-values of the selected color
- a „Part-number“
X and Y are the geometric coordinates. The color number is an index of the chosen color in
the selected color table (PAL-file) set in the drawing program.
The RGB-values are brightness information for red, green and blue.
The part-number is a denominator of a part of the image. E.g. If you draw a car and assign the
part number 1 to the body and the part number 2 to the rear wheel, you have then the
possibility to “address” the rear wheel in the animator separately and let it spin freely from the
rest of the car.
Why is there a color index AND RGB-values?
"Back then" gas lasers were very common. They were able to emit several color lines (dark
blue, blue, cyan, green, red, ...) depending on the system.
Therefore the software can address up to 6 color channels for selecting colors from gas lasers
or solid-state lasers with more than 3 colors.
After diode and DPSS laser have become widely available, the Windows - like RGB (Red,
Green, Blue) color system became standard. As of now, again there are lasers with more than
3 colors available. An example for these are laser systems equipped with different OPSL
lasers.
Xtream Beams has several predefined PAL-files. Usually, however it is assumed that you
have a RGB-system. Additional colors can be mapped, if your system is able to provide more
laser lines.
The individual images created with the above-stated characteristics are combined in a catalog,
the so-called CAT-file.
This catalog is the basis of the laser show.
In the animation software “RealTime”, the images will then be put in order on a TimeLine
and animation effects such as rotation, movement and fading of brightness are applied.
The "carrier" of the individual images is the so-called "animation (Trickfilm)".
In it you determine:
- which image respectively what images are output.
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whether the color index or the RGB values have to be used for the color selection.
what color table should be referred to, if RGB is not used.
the World in which the projection is to be put out.
which scanner parameters are to be used.
Two new terms ... "World" and "Scanner Parameters"
Worlds are the projection zones, whose values can be specified or which are predefined with
default values.
Already predefined are:
- Audience (complete projection area)
- Beam (standing beams, for mirrors in the upper part of the venue)
- Screen (scaled down projection area on a screen, for example, for graphic shows and
scrolling text)
- Raster (scaled down projection area for a screen especially for so-called raster frames.
Pictures are here displayed rasterized line by line as a "full face" image, think T.V.)
Different settings for the scanners are required for each of these applications. It is not possible
to get the maximum quality out of a given system with only one set of parameters.
Beam shows are usually shown with the full scan angle the system is capable of. While doing
this you have to reduce the scanning speed of the system. Common speeds for beam shows
are 20-25Kpps (kilo points per second).
Standing beams are just points for the system hence the scanner parameters have almost no
effect.
Graphic shows are projected on a screen with a smaller angle. Here it is "allowed", that the
scanners are driven faster. Common speeds for graphic shows are 30-40Kpps.
The raster scanning represents the "royal class". The requirements for the scanners in this
class are the most demanding. Also the scanning angle is usually the smallest, a value of only
4-6 degrees is standard.
Since you can parameterize every animation separately regarding color, scanner parameters
and output destination (World), it is possible to tune your system to get the maximum speed
and quality. During a show, it is possible to scan a beam show wide and slow, a marquee then
has a fast, low angle output on a screen and stationary beams are positioned safe on their
targets.
You then have a laser show consisting of animations which have the World "Audience"
assigned, while other animations are linked to the World "Screen". If you then create new
shows using these settings, it gets pretty easy further down the road.
After setting up the laser system in an new venue, you only have to tune the parameters of the
World "Screen" in terms of size and mounting height to the screen present and you can be
sure, that in all your Laser Shows, when a animation is mapped to the World "Screen", the
projection will be spot on this screen. The same goes for Beam Shows with the World
"Audience" assigned. Width and height of the World are adjusted so that only the public area
is used and you don’t "catch" the pub team ... ;-)
As of now the global settings are explained roughly. The understanding of these issues is
important to be able to create your own safe laser shows.
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Building a Laser Show
You need several files for a working Laser Show.
The complete laser show has to be stored in the folder \Xtream
Beams\Shows\“name_of_the_show”\.
That's the place where Xtream Beams is expecting the files after you click the "Open Show" button. It’s a good idea to create other subfolders here such as:
- 1 Scanner Lasershows
- 2 Scanner Lasershows
- Graphicshows
- My own Shows
- Live Surfaces
- ….
A Show consists of the following files:
-
a *.cat-file, this is the catalog which has been created with PicEdit
a *.rtd-file, this file generated by Real Time contains the TimeLine, the animations
and informations on global settings (Worlds, scanner parameters, ...)
the audio file as WAV, MP3 or Ogg
The Hardwaremanager
There will be no laser output without a connected output board (DAC, digital analog
converter).
A click on the icon:
opens the Control Center in which the output parameters can be set for the different output
boards.
Supported cards are automatically detected and displayed here.
Settings
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To the left, the output of up to 20 boards can be mapped to each of the 8 tracks of the
TimeLine. Of course, even a 1-scanner show can be played on 20 cards simultaneously and
even then you can set up different parameters for each card separately.
In the main tab "Settings", the color values of the image, size and position for the active board
are set. Please adjust the parameters "Size X/Y" and "Offset X/Y" to the desired values.
Over to the right is the control for the overall brightness called "Intensity". The check boxes
allow for rapid inversion and swapping of the X/Y axis. By clicking the DMX-in checkbox
you can enable this feature for the active board. If DMX is not needed, it should be turned off
to reduce the overall system load.
The modulation curve for each color channel can be influenced. Beforehand the minimum and
maximum modulation voltage of each laser color has to be set using a suitable test image.
This image should contain the primary and secondary colors to get color matching (= white
balance) done properly. Primary colors can be red, green, blue and secondary colors would be
the mixed colors of two of them, e.g. cyan, magenta, yellow. A useful picture for this named
"Colortest.pic" can be found in the "PIC"-folder.
Since the ratio of modulation voltage to power output of a laser is not linear, this curve can be
adjusted for each laser. Select the desired color by clicking on "Gamma(color)" and move the
corresponding slider. Diode lasers are fairly linear, DPSS lasers usually show their maximum
performance only in the upper third of the modulation range.
Possible waveforms for these settings could look like this:
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Especially when using several different projectors with different lasers, these settings should
be given the utmost care. The result really shows!
Multicolor-Setup
In the tab "Multicolor Setup" you have the possibility to address the emitted laser lines in a
multi-color system correctly.
Many professional laserprojectors use more than 3 lasersources today.
So beside the common 3 lasers for red, green and blue, they use yellow and/or cyan lasers, for
example OPSL-lasers to expand color gamut.
But how to control such a projector by the show software?
In the past, most software used color palettes. This means that each color output channel
corresponds to a specific color in a table. The operator or show programmer had to create long
tables (palettes) for the specific laser projector. But handling of such palettes was difficult.
When the show should be displayed by the use of another projector, another palette had to be
created to match the colors.
Today, most modern software uses primary RGB-colors like every computer screen uses
when drawing a picture. This worked fine as long as most laserprojectors had not more than 3
color sources. Each color from the computer screen is directly output to the corresponding
laser channel.
But this does not work when using more than 3 colors in a laserprojector.
Our software Xtream Beams now uses a new technology, called IMC (Intelligent Multicolor
System).
The goal of this development was to allow the operator the use of up to 6 laser colors of his
choice. The user interface is simple: Just set up the color or wavelength of your lasersource
with a slider. That's it!
A wavelength display next to each slider and a spectrum bar on top helps to identify the
selected color for each laser built in the projector.
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The colors set up here are the basic laser colors of the laserprojector. These are also called
'color channels' because each laser is controlled by a separate signal line ('ILDA-connector').
So if you use just 1 channel, and for example set this channel to red, the complete lasershow
is output in red, if a red laser is built into the projector.
When using 2 lasers, red and green, all red parts of a show are displayed in red, the green
parts are displayed in green and the mixture is displayed in yellowish shades.
This all sounds easy. But what to do with show parts created in blue?
In the past, all blue parts of a show were just missing when using a red/green laserprojector.
So the blue parts had to be mapped to red or green manually using the colormapping matrix or
by changing the colour palette.
Using our new technology, the blue parts are automatically mapped to both lasers red and
green, resulting in mixed colors between red and green. So all showparts are displayed
completely.
With the new IMC-technology, the operator doesn't need to care about choosing the right
color palette. IMC makes shure that all showparts are displayed by the projector, no matter
what laser source it uses.
To give the user the choice between showing all parts of the show or showing just the parts
with the dedicated projector colors, IMC can be bypassed. When deactivated, the software
uses the internal RGB-colors routed directly to the output channels, like it was done in the
past.
An example: A projector uses 5 colors, red, green, blue, yellow and cyan.
Once all 5 lasers were set up in IMC, all colors of the show are routed to the right colour
channel. So a yellow part of the show is not displayed as a mixture of the red and the green
laser, it is displayed just by the yellow laser. The same happens with cyan.
All color shades between are mixed automatically.
IMC calculates the colors in very high resolution and gives a theoretical possible number of
more than 250 Millions of different color values.
My show colors don't look the same like they did with an RGB-projector.
When I diplay yellow with my yellow laser, some red is mixed to the color.
Is something wrong?
No! It is very important to understand that IMC uses the available laser colors of a projector
to reproduce the original RGB colors the show was created with. So if a show frame or picure
was drawn in yellow, IMC recalculates the colors from the given wavelengths to reproduce
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the yellow color. When a 580nm yellow laser was set up, IMC adds some red to match the
primary yellow.
The primary colors (Red, Green, Blue, Yellow, Cyan) used to draw a picture in the software
are represented by the following wavelengths in IMC:
Red = 650nm
Yellow= 600nm
Green = 550nm
Cyan = 500nm
Blue = 450nm
If you set up these wavelengths with the laser wavelength sliders, the primary colors are
output to the corresponding color channels without any recalculation. No matter what the 'real'
wavelenght or color of your laser is.
So a yellow drawing (RGB drawing value R100%, G100% and B0%) will be displayed by
controlling the color output channel for the yellow laser only. The color channel for a green
laser is used to display a green drawing, when the wavelength is set to 550nm etc.. Otherwise
some other colors are mixed to each output.
If your projector uses colors which do not match the primary RGB-colors, IMC will mix
other colors to reproduce the primary colors as near as possible.
As a result, some colors can look a bit different from what you remember from using just an
RGB-projector and a software without IMC.
But once you select the primary colors from the table above, the basic colors of the lasers will
not be changed. So blue will be displayed as 410nm violet and red will be displayed as 635
orange, if the projector has these lasers built in and the wavelengths for primary colors were
selected.
The colors in this case are not 'real' RGB colors because 410nm is not blue.
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Because IMC allows the input of wavelengths without any restriction, the user can
manipulate the colors for his specific need in a very easy way.
You can setup your system in 2 different ways:
1.
When setting up the real wavelengths of the lasers as preset for IMC, the primary
colors (RGB, Yellow, Cyan) can be look slightly different as they look without IMC.
But the resulting colors will match the RGB-colors of the drawing as good as possible.
2.
not
When setting up the primary wavelengths (see table above) as preset, the system will
correct the color of the lasers built in the projector to show the primary colors.
So in case of the yellow 580nm Laser, yellow will be displayed as greenish yellow
or in case of a true 410nm laser which was set up as 450nm, blue will be violet.
Because all calculations in IMC are done in realtime, it is possible to change the given laser
colors while a show is running. This makes it easy to adjust multiple projectors on stage, so
the colors match as close as possible.
Restrictions
Depending on the laser colors in the projector, not all colors can be displayed correctly.
Think about a projector with just a red and a green laser. Naturally this projector never can
display blue!
Note:
Magenta is not a color of the spectrum. Magenta always is the mix between red and blue.
There is no wavelength in the spectrum representing magenta, so you cannot set up a magenta
colored laser in IMC.
How to do a white balance using more than 3 colors
Normally, white can be created by just mix primary red, green and blue.
When your projector has more than 3 colors, a white balance must be done using all available
colors because a picure drawn in white will cause all available color channels being switched
on.
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Once set up the available laser colors in IMC, the colors are displayed in the 'Settings'-tab of
the hardware control center. While outputting a testframe by the software, you can adjust the
response curve of each color channel to get the right white balance.
It is recommended to use a testframe like the one shown below. All primary colors are
displayed as well as their shades from total brightness to dark.
RGB Testframe
The values 'MIN' and 'MAX' are to set up the minimum and maximum power levels of the
laser (after clicking the corresponding channel button 1-6). The voltage display below the
sliders shows the voltage of the channel signal. For example, if a laser has a treshold voltage
of 0,5V ( = always OFF below a signal level of 0,5V), the level can be shifted up to 0,5V.
If one laser is too powerful to get a good color balance, its maximum level can be reduced
using the 'MAX' slider.
The sliders right to the channel buttons will 'bend' the response curve of each laser to
compensate unlinearity.
The colormapping matrix
Depending on the kind of output-hardware (DAC) connected, you can use the matrix to route
or map the values of the color channels (or parts of them) to the 'physical' color channels of
your hardware.
On top, all available color channels generated by the software are displayed and marked with
their physical color. On the left, the physical output channels (ILDA-signals) are listed.
Note: The channel 'Intensity' is not an internal color, used by the software. It is created by this
matrix. Normally, intensity represents all available channels. The default values is that 100%
of each channel is mapped to the intensity output.
Colormapping default values
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When using an interface card with less than 6 channels + intensity, you can map the specific
colors the card should use. As an example, the EasyLase USB II card shares the same output
signal for color number 6 and intensity. If you want to use color 6, you have to map channel
number 6 (here:violet) to intensity output. All other channels have to be removed from
intensity.
Note that there is no intensity signal available at the EasyLase USB II after using it as a 6color device, because the total number of channels at the EasyLase USB II is 5+1.
Important: Once you have done all settings for your projector, save the settings!
You can choose a unique filename to identify your projector.
There are 2 options for saving and loading the settings:
Colorsettings are just the color settings for a specific projector.
For example, when the show must be controlled from Xtream Beams running on a different
PC, you can load the colorsettings created on another PC instead of doing the whole setup
procedure again.
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Projectorsettings contain ALL projector settings used by the current show setup. This includes
the color settings, the geometrical settings (size, offset..) and the safety zones of each
projector as well as the track number, the projector is assigned to.
Once the name of the settings file matches the name ('friendly name') of the projector or
output hardware, the settings will be automatically loaded at startup of Xtream Beams.
When shutting down Xtream Beams, the projectorsettings of all connected projectors are
saved automatically under the name of the card and will be loaded again when restarting
Xtream Beams (or reconnecting the hardware).
When a special setup should be used again at later time (for example a special stage setup),
save the projectorsettings file under another name. So it will not be overwritten by Xtream
Beams.
Colormapping
In this pane one can determine which color is sent to which output pin of the ILDAConnector. You can also map the output of one color to a plurality of terminals, or the output
of all the colors to only one pin. To compensate for speed differences in the modulation the
color shift for every color can also be adjusted.
Safety – Zones
The security zones can be defined in the last tab.
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Security zones are defined areas where the laser power is dimmed. Select one of the five
zones and adjust the sliders around the workspace to define this zone. Then set the fader
"Intenstiy" to the desired value.
Make sure to protect not only the audience through these safety zones, but also your
equipment!
The panels in DLP and LCD video projectors can be damaged due to high laser power
focused through their lenses. Permanently dark or bright pixels can be the result!
Better safe than sorry.
PicEdit – Startscreen
After the program is started, we see this screen.
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Structure:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
Color selection via PAL - color index number
Color selection via RGB values. After clicking the button a color dialog is opened.
View of the workspace. Default setting is the view from the front.
Toolbar. It contains functions to select the drawing tool,
point manipulation, changing the view
Status bar. It contains informations about the current cursor position,
number of image points, etc.
Main menu. File operations, screen change, menus of functions
Control bar. Direct access to the functions of the main menu by clicking the icons.
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PicEdit – Main Menu
Menu item: „File“:
The basic tools needed to open and save the drawn images as *.pic-files. Several *.pic-files
can be summarized in a *.cat-file.
Menu item „Edit“:
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The menu implies the Windows - common functions Undo / Redo / Cut / Copy / Paste known
from many windows programs. To the right you will find the keyboard shortcuts for the menu
items, if available.
These and many other functions affect only selected points. To select all points and objects,
press "a" (menu item "Make all points active"). By pressing the key "i" all points are switched
to inactive again. The color of the vertices in the workspace show the status of the points.
The menu item “Overlay” let you switch drawing layers, similar to other known drawing
programs. You have the possibility to select the active drawing layer from the available layers
0 through 7. Figures residing on other layers than the active one are not editable. This could
be helpful in complex drawings with a common background, that should not be changed.
If you want to work with layers, you have to start with layer 1 and then use further layers in
an ascending manner. The resulting image is then summarized into layer 0 with the menu item
"Merge".
With the menu item "Scripts" figures can be created using external scripts. The possibilities of
the script control depend on the operating system. To use this function the Windows Scripting
Host has to be installed.
The menu item "Active Points" allows selective addressing and changing of point attributes.
The following dialog will open:
In the first field a point can be directly addressed by using the up/down rocker. Further down
you can set values for color index number, part number, number of repetitions of the point, its
coordinates, blanking, targeted deletion or copying and specified RGB parameters.
In the next pane "Scanner", an output channel can be selected. PicEdit can address 4 output
boards directly.
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"Scanning parameters" opens the following dialog:
Here you can set the parameters for the scanners used by PicEdit for its output. During the
Laser Show these values are set in the World and the Scanner Parameters.
In the fields PreBlanking on/off and PostBlanking on/off in the upper left, you can set the
number of point repetitions before and after the laser has been turned on and off. Try to fix it
here, if you see "rat tails" or unclosed lines in the scanned image. Maxdist on/off determines
the length of interpolation while the laser is powered on or powered off.
Point rate sets a value for the output speed in Kpps (kilo points per second). A value of "25"
will set the output to 25,000 points per second.
"ToStartPoint" creates blanked points at the beginning of the image. For recent scanning
systems, the value of "0" can be maintained.
Then there are the flags:
„SoftColor“
Color switching within a figure is done with a soft transition.
„SoftBlank“
The beginning and the ending of a line will be faded soft in and out.
„RGB“
RGB values are used for the color output rather than the index of the
PAL table
„HiddenSurface“ Non-visible parts are not displayed, when drawing with normal vectors.
„DepthCue“
Objects residing further back on the Z-axis are drawn darker. After the
program starts, the Z axis resides exactly at 0.5, which corresponds to the
middle.
With “Size” and “Position” the picture size and position can be changed. The buttons "X" and
"Y" invert each axis.
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Next is the menu item "Bitmap"
Here, a BMP file can be placed behind the drawing area, for example to trace a logo.
With the last menu item "Merge" the drawing layers 1 through 7 are united into layer 0 to
summarize the result of a multilayer image into one plane and to save the image as *.pic or
into a *.cat-file.
Next we have the menu „View“:
Here you can activate and deactivate individual parts of the overall view. In "Size" the
representation size of the workspace is set.
"Animator" will display the pictures catalog, so frames can be put in a *.cat-file or retrieved
them from there.
"Laser", you guessed it, turns the laser on and off.
"Preview Window" opens the OpenGL preview.
In "Split" the cross-cursor in the center of the 4 individual views will become active. You can
then change their size.
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Menu „Tool“:
The menu for selecting tools.
You can select tools for drawing, functions to move points or entire objects and you can
switch views as well. The same features are also available on the toolbar.
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Menu „Options“:
"Snap to grid", drawing functions will snap to the background grid.
"Show crosshair" shows a crosshair on the drawing area
"Grid" opens a dialogue for the background grid
"Show points" shows the vertices of the drawing more clearly.
"Auto optimize" should remain on. When a figure is drawn, dependent on the angle change
referring to the next item, vertices are automatically provided with a "repeat value". This
value can also be set in the function "Active Point".
"Active point color" sets the color of the selected points.
"View color" defines the background color of the drawing area.
"Crosshair cursor" shows a cross hair on the mouse position.
Menu „Transform“:
Items in this menu are only active when points in the workspace are selected or activated!
"Center" positions the highlighted figure in the center.
"Maximize" stretches the selected figure to the maximum output size.
"Wrap onto" wraps the active points to a virtual sphere or tube.
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"Bspline" generates a b-spline from the active points.
"Interpolate" inserts several individual steps between the vertices of the selected object.
"Normal vector" enables the vector flag. More on that later in the topic "Drawing in 3D"
"Rotarybody" rotates the object around a selectable axis. Angles, steps and axis can be set in
the dialog.
"Screw" distorts the character about the Z-axis
"Flip" and "Flop" flip the image horizontally and vertically.
"Rainbow" affect the marked points with an ascending color index number. Point 1 gets color
index number 1, point 2 color index number 2 and so on.
"Reverse order" will change the drawing order of the marked points
"ToPoints" converts a drawn object in its vertices. Only the 4 corners of a square remain, a
circle becomes a "point circle"
Drawing Tools
Some of the drawing tools can be modified by pressing a key at the same time and can be
parameterized by double-clicking them.
Select
After clicking “Select” you can drag a selection box around objects by holding the left mouse
button. The selected points will be marked blue. If you drag the selection box while holding
the right mouse button, the points will become inactive.
Alternatively, with the key "a", all points are marked and with the key "i" all active points will
be deselected.
Select Group
By clicking a point with the left mouse button, the complete object to which this point belongs
will be marked. Clicking with the right mouse button deselects the object.
Line tool
Used to draw simple connection lines. The first click sets the starting point.
All other clicks with the left mouse button will set a point for the next line segment. By
clicking with the right mouse button a blanked line is drawn.
After double-clicking the tool icon the following dialog appears:
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Here, the minimum distance between 2 points can be set. To trace logos you should use a
small distance.
BSpline
Used to draw curves. The first click sets the starting point, the second the vertex. Keep the
mouse button pressed after the second click to chance the curve by dragging the mouse.
After double-clicking the tool icon, the following dialog appears:
The parameters of the tool are set here.
Freehand
Freehand drawing with a mouse or a graphics tablet. By holding the left mouse button the
path is drawn.
After double-clicking the tool icon, the following dialog appears:
Here, the minimum distance between 2 points can be set. To trace logos you should use a
small distance.
Rectangle
Drawing rectangles or squares. By clicking and holding the left mouse button a rectangle is
drawn as you drag the mouse.
By clicking and holding the right mouse button a square is drawn.
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Ellipse
Drawing circles and ellipses.
After double-clicking the tool icon, the following dialog appears:
“PrePoints” puts empty points at the beginning of the circle.
“Points” determines the total number of points. Thus, this function cannot only generate
circles but also 3, 4, 6, 8-cornered objects.
“PostPoints” repeats the last point a given time.
“PostBlankOff” puts blanked points at the end of the circle to ensure a clean finish of the
drawing.
If you hold down the left mouse button circles are drawn.
By holding the right mouse button ellipses are drawn.
When holding the Shift or the Ctrl-key while dragging, a drawing angle of 0 ... 360 degrees
and a drawing direction can be chosen. So you can draw upward or downward semicircles by
moving the mouse correspondingly.
Text
Pasting of text.
After double-clicking the tool icon, the following dialog appears:
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Basically, in the “Font” folder one can distinguish between self-generated, laser-optimized
fonts and Windows TrueType fonts.
The TTF will be drawn with their outlines. Alternatively there are so called “single line fonts”
which can be found in the internet and are mainly used for engraving.
If you use a normal TTF font the letter "T" is drawn with its external lines including curves
and everything, where the “T” in the single line font consists only of a horizontal and a
vertical line. Thus, the total number of points in the text drops drastically and given the same
scanning speed more letters can be displayed without flicker. The settings for size (SizeX,
SizeY) and kerning (Letter space) apply only to fonts from the "Font" folder.
When you dismiss the dialog with "OK", the text is inserted into the drawings area and its
individual points are automatically enabled. Size and location can then immediately modified
with the tools "Move" and "Scale".
Point
Insertion of a single point with a left mouse click. This will later be displayed as a single laser
beam.
After double-clicking the tool icon, the following dialog appears:
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“Repeats” indicates how often the point is repeated. The larger this value, the brighter the
laser beam appears during output because the residence time increases at this position.
“PostBlankOFF” puts the given number of blanked points in the same spot to ensure that the
beam is shown clean and has no "tail" due to the following movement of the scanners. The
values should be programmed a little higher even when this is not necessary for your own
rapid scanning system, to ensure that slower scanners still put out a clean and defined beam.
Delete Point
Deletes the point closest to the mouse click.
Clone Point
Duplicates the point closest to the pointer, when you click the left mouse button and inserts it
in the same place. The new point can then be moved using the "Move Point" tool.
Move Point
Moves the point closest to the pointer, when you hold the left mouse button and move the
mouse. The point does not have to be “active”!
Move
Moves all the selected points when moving the mouse and holding the left mouse button.
Scale
Scales selected objects when moving the mouse and holding the left mouse button. The object
is redrawn while you move it. When the mouse button is released PicEdit keeps the new
object and deletes the old one.
The position where you first clicked the mouse, determines the point around which the object
is reconstructed. The more you move the mouse away from this point the larger the object will
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become. If the object has to be scaled in place, the starting point has to be the center of the
object.
Rotate
Rotation of selected objects or groups of points.
A click with the left mouse button sets the center of rotation. The object rotates according to
the mouse movement. The position is accepted when the mouse button is released. Normally
the rotation is continuous, if you hold down the Shift-key during the movement, the rotation is
done in 5 degree increments.
Recolor Point
Changes the color of a point. Chose a new color and click all objects whose color is to be
changed. The new color is applied immediately. The track to the next point which is
influenced by the color change also becomes visible.
Copy
Copies a selected point group by left-clicking. Hold the mouse button down to move the
object immediately.
Zoom
After selection, the picture can be enlarged by right-clicking and shrunken by left-clicking.
Active Point
Opens the Active Point dialog for stepping through the individual points and manipulating
them.
Front, Top, Left, Side
Changes the view of the current workspace.
After changing the view, you can see in the status bar that the X/Y coordinates do not change
anymore but the X/Z and Y/Z values do.
Using the buttons X, Y and Z, the three axes can be locked. E.g. in the side view you can set a
Z-depth and then draw in the front view with X/Y at this given depth.
3D
Creates a virtual 3D view on the current workspace.
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Transform
Transforming the image view in the OpenGL window, while holding down the left mouse
button and dragging the mouse. The following modes are available and can be selected by
pressing a button:
F2
F3
F5
F8
Rotate
Move
Scale
sets the views onto origin
X/Y/Z
By clicking the mouse or pressing the keys X/Y/Z, the corresponding axis is locked.
Auto Optimize
Enable/disable the angle optimization.
The Open-GL Preview
Can be found in RealTime and in PicEdit. Opens the dialog with the laser preview.
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In the menu “Scanner” you can select which scanners are shown in the preview. “Screenshot”
copies the current image to the clipboard to process it externally.
With "OpenGL Settings" you will get the following dialog:
The representation for laser beam simulation and graphic simulation can be adjusted
separately.
“Alpha” values control the brightness. “Blend source” and “Blend destination” are Open GL
specific settings.
“Fog” simulates virtual fog.
“Size X/Y” sets the size. Negative values indicate an inverted representation.
The beam and graphic previews can be separately turned on/off by ticking the appropriate
checkboxes. When programming a graphics shown, the simulation of laser beams can be
disturbing.
The virtual source of the Open GL preview can be moved with the left mouse button. The
menu item "Reset position" puts the source back in the center.
“Show Infos” on/off will toggle the display of information regarding the points drawn as well
as the actually number of points output including interpolation. This will only be shown if an
output board is connected!
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The Animator
Clicking the animator icon opens the following dialog:
This here is the "collection" of the drawn frames that can then be saved as *.cat-file.
Under the menu item “File” you can find functions to load and save. The in/export functions
and the Edit/Transform functions are currently not active!
The menu items "Editor->Animator" and "Animator-> Editor" move the picture out of the
workspace into the selected field in the Animator and vice versa. With this function you can
copy a picture from the *.cat-file back to the drawing program for further processing. The
index number and the number of points for each image is displayed below each box of the
animator.
Via the menu "File" → "Import", ILDA-files can also be imported or parts of the Cat-files
that are selected in the input fields "From" and "To" can be exported as ILDA-files.
Exports from the Cat-file are saved without interpolation and further optimizations!
A file that will generate a proper output can only be exported from the main window with
"File" → "Save PIC as ILDA".
Example – Building a CAT-File
Here are step-by-step instructions including screenshots to create your own *.cat-file for your
first laser show.
Start PicEdit:
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Enable preview
Select the function rectangle
and the color red and draw a square.
The result should look like this:
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Now open the animator
and select box 10. After clicking „Editor->Animator“ the red
square can be found in the animator.
You can find it also in box 1 because this space is used as the PicEdit clipboard. To go on just
move the animator down a little.
In the main menu, click the "New Laser Vector Picture"
button. The question about
saving the image as *.pic-file can be denied, because it has been already copied to the
animator and is saved as *.cat-file.
Now it gets a little more difficult ... We want to diplay 2 yellow triangles.
Choose the line tool and the color yellow. When using the line tool, you will draw solid lines
with the left mouse button and blanked lines with the right mouse button. Blanked lines are
traced with the laser off.
The first yellow triangle should go in the top left quadrant. Just draw it with 3 clicks of the
mouse.
The second yellow triangle should be displayed in the bottom right quadrant. First you draw
the blanked line from the first triangle to the second by clicking the right mouse button.
Wrong clicks can be undone by pressing the "u" key.
Just 3 clicks more with the left mouse button and you have drawn the second triangle. The
result should look similar to this:
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Now click the animator window, select box 11 as target for the new image and copy it with
"Editor-> Animator".
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Save your cat-file using the "File" -> "Save as" function.
You can save the file into the already created show folder or into the subdirectory "CAT" in
Xtream Beams as a basis for future shows.
RealTime – The Showprogram
With the program RealTime from the Xtream Beams software package you can create and
modify your laser shows or just play a saved show on your laser.
The user interface right after the start:
Basically you can see these objects:
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
The TimeLine on which individual objects can be placed (such as images and
animations)
The main menu
The toolbar with the most important tools
The View-bar with the main view settings
The Control-bar for playback options (play, pause, stop, zooming)
Buttons for selecting scanners in the toolbar
The time display
The status line with information on current events.
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First it is important to make sure that the required output hardware is detected and can be
accessed.
Switch to the Control Center
Found hardware is shown here. In this example it is an EasyLase LC from the BASIC package.
At first glance, you can see the opportunity to include 20 output boards and assign them to the
8 programmable scanner channels in RealTime. Assigning a board to a channel is simply done
by clicking the up/down arrows to the right of the card name. If "0" is selected this card will
be inactive.
Different boards can be assigned to the same scanner channel (virtual projector or track). All
these projectors will then display this one channel.
The settings to the right used for color correction, image size and offset as well as the swap
and invert function are only valid for the currently selected output board (highlighted in
yellow).
In general we distinguish between physical and virtual projectors. Eight virtual projectors or
tracks can be programmed in RealTime independently and then these can be mapped to up to
20 physically existing projectors which also can be configured separately.
It is therefore possible that a laser show that has been programmed for a single scanning
system can be played on up to 20 real projectors, when 20 output boards are available. Again,
each projector can still be configured separately.
Important! Changes in the image size and position made here will be used as a
multiplier for the size settings of the Worlds. If a screen or a defined projection area is
used, you have to adjust the settings in the Worlds!
If your output board does not appear here, please check the driver installation and the status in
the device manager in the case of a USB card and the TCP / IP settings for a network card.
You can close the hardware manager with the "Hide" button at the top right.
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Playing the first Laser Show
If the output board is set up correctly, the first laser show can now be played.
Open the included demo show with "File" -> "Open Show" or by clicking the icon
This opens the familiar Windows file dialog:
After initial installation, only the folder "Demo" and "Live" will be there. Change into the
directory "Demo" and open the file demo.rtd
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The TimeLine will become populated with items. But also the first warnings will appear. We
will see them more often, when laser shows from other users are opened. Especially with
older shows you get the following pop-up series:
Xtream Beams can open files from the old laser design studio. Even then, Worlds and scanner
parameters were used. Settings for audience,, screen, beams, etc. that are now predefined in
Xtream Beams were set by default as "unnamed" in the old Laser Design Studio and no one
bothered to set these parameters correctly. Xtream Beams will now warn us, that a show with
unknown Worlds, scanner parameters, color buffers and static effects was loaded and asks us
to name them.
Automatically names are presented, and the corresponding files will be created and saved in
the appropriate folders. The proposed names can usually be acknowledged. Only double
nominations and illegal characters should be avoided. If all the open settings have been taken
care of, the filled TimeLine appears.
Now start the show by clicking on the red "Play" button at the bottom left.
Why are there 2 Play - Buttons?
The red one is the "Final Playback". The show will be played from start to finish.
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The black play-button is the "Edit Playback". Any set start/stop markers are detected and the
show will be played only within the limits of these markers.
Parallel the OpenGL preview can be shown by clicking on the icon
.
The laser show is played. The default parameters are used for the output.
The functions for setting the global screen size in the Control Center have already been
mentioned
.
The RealTime Surface
Control Bar
The icons of the control bar:
Starting on the left with the standard file operations with "New", "Open" and "Save".
Next is the symbol
. This opens the dialog box:
Here, the author can set permissions for his show. After entering a password, the laser show
will be locked for editing. One can then only edit the show by entering the correct password.
Under "Select Client Dongle Serial Code" a dongle number can be entered. A show stored
with it can be played only on systems with the dongle number entered here.
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The dongle number can be found in the show dialog which you can reach on the main menu
via "Info" -> "About":
Furthermore, a checkbox "ILDA output allowed by Showauthor" can be found in the lock
dialog.
Here is determined, whether parts of the show or the entire show can be exported as an ILDAfile and also whether copy/paste actions are permitted.
If this checkbox is not checked, or inactive a password has been set. Within self-programmed
shows the field is open to be changed until you protect it with a password.
Next are the toolbar icons:
These are the standard editing functions Delete, Cut, Copy and Paste. They can be used
intuitively like in other programs.
The standard keyboard shortcuts are also available:
Delete
Cut
Copy
Paste
„Del“ key
Ctrl + X
Ctrl + C
Ctrl + V
The Icons
can be understood by themselves, but they are inactive by default after
startup! Creating backups with this buttons is prohibited in files protected against export.
In your own shows, this function can be enabled in the menu "Edit" -> "Enable backups".
The following 3 icons
open the dialogs for the World - settings, the color settings
if *.pal color charts are used and the scanner parameters.
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Next to the icons
The first one opens the setting-dialog to select the image catalog (*.cat) to be used in the
show. The second is a "reload" function. You can use PicEdit and RealTime simultaneously
and change the frames in the image catalog in PicEdit and store them while you program. A
click on the "Reload" updates the saved image catalog in RealTime.
The icon
opens the dialog for „Static Effects“. Beam switches, DMX effects and TTL signals can be defined here. These can then be easily placed as an event on the TimeLine.
The icon
is our well known friend, the global Control Center of the output boards.
The icon
opens the „Hardware – Check“, an external tool. In this program you can
quickly and easily test output boards and play test images unaltered. Settings for scan speed
and image size in this tool will not affect the settings in RealTime!
The musical notes
open the audio dialogue. Essentially an audio file is selected, which is
played when the laser output is running. This show specific setting will be explained later in
more detail.
The next 2 icons
enable and disable the waveform-representation of the selected
audio file. The waveform must be generated once in the audio dialog and is then stored within
the *.rtd show file.
The following keyboard icon toggles the display of a musical keyboard. This and the physical
counterpart as a USB/MIDI keyboard are used for live operation.
The hand
opens the touch screen for live-applications.
The icon
is self explanatory. It generates a „running text“.
The monitor icon
turns off the monitor. During shows with less power or at home the
screen glow can be bothersome and therefore you can turn the screen off. Any press on the
keyboard or movement of the mouse turns the screen back on.
With FastProg
animations can be inserted via the keyboard to the TimeLine. This function
makes is easier to insert animations matching beats in the music etc.
The functions „Find“ and „Find next“
search for specific events in the TimeLine.
The icons
determine which
scanner is selected for programming and which one is laid underneath as a control.
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The Viewbar
… is dealt with quickly: quick access to views.
The first two icons switch between the TimeLine and a version of PicEdit built-in to
RealTime.
SFX opens a dialog for inserting finished animations. How these loops and SFX files will be
generated is explained later.
The next two icons turn the preview on/off and select between simple preview and OpenGL.
Usually OpenGL is supported on all current graphics cards.
The following two icons turn the laser on and off corresponding to the symbol.
Then there are 8 icons with a beam symbol and 8 with a "half-eye."
Here you can select for each of the 8 programmable scanners whether it will be displayed in
the preview as a beam show or as rear projection. Of course, you can also display both.
The Controlbar
Again a little more detailed view...
Final Play - plays the show from the beginning to the very end.
Edit Play - plays the show within set time-markers.
Loop - enable/disable the automatic repeat of the Edit-Play.
Jump to the beginning of the show
Pause
Stop
fast/slow forward/rewind
Sets the start marker for the Edit-Play
Sets the stop marker for the Edit-Play
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Sets the start/stop marker to the beginning and end of the TimeLine
Inserts a time marker, can also be done with the space-bar if output is running
Deletes all time markers
Deletes the time marker next to the cursor
Autoscroll on/off . The TimeLine position scrolls and the TimeLine bar is stationary
Resets the position of the TimeLine to the current TimeLine bar
Zoom of the TimeLine Max / Min / in / out
Working with the TimeLine
Working with the TimeLine is the most important function in creating laser shows. Even if
the operation is done almost intuitively, here's the explanation of the main features:
Double-click in the TimeLine
Opens the dialog for adding effects:
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The desired effect is inserted with a click. The basic event is an animation (Trickfilm) in
which we define what image from our pre-loaded image catalog to be used. A click on the
button "animation" (Trickfilm) inserts it in the TimeLine at the current cursor position.
When you move the mouse over the animation, the cursor will change its appearance. If the
mouse is positioned over the beginning or the end of the animation you can stretch the
animation by holding the left mouse button. If the mouse is on the animation the cursor
changes to a cross and you can move the event by holding the left mouse button and dragging.
If you want to select one or more events to move, copy or delete them, there are two options:
1: selective
Place the cursor on the event. A click with the right mouse button opens a menu, select the
function "Active". The event will change its color to blue and is marked for further action. If
you repeat this process the event becomes inactive again.
2: grouped
Position the mouse to a point above and to the left of the desired group, hold the left shift-key
and drag a selection box over the desired elements. Let go of the mouse button and the
elements are highlighted in blue and are so active.
The shortcut keys CTRL + a and CTRL + i put all the elements in the TimeLine to active /
inactive.
If your mouse has a scroll wheel you can adjust the zoom level of the TimeLine with it.
In addition by holding the Shift key pressed, you can scroll the TimeLine up/down.
Is an audio file already loaded and "Final Play" is pressed, you can put markers in the
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TimeLine by pressing the Spacebar. These will help inserting the effects at positions that
match the music. After a marker is set you can push individual events or groups, as explained
above, to the marker.
Be sure to set everything back to inactive by pressing “CTRL + i” to avoid that these effects
will be influenced in the next steps.
In this way you can put and move your events in the TimeLine for a music synchronized laser
show. Thanks to the OpenGL preview, you can create laser shows with the laser turned off or
even if you don’t have a projector with you at all.
Output Settings
Worlds
In the dialog of the World you can divide the entire scan area in defined parts. Positions of
stationary beams, a screen or other destinations could be predefined here. The area then can
be used in the event "animation" as a projection target.
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Predefined worlds can be selected in the drop-down menu at the top right.
These are:
Audience
Beam
Screen
Raster
complete projection area
standing beams, for mirrors in the upper part of the venue
projection area on a screen, for example, for graphic shows and scrolling text
projection area for raster frames, inherently smaller than screen
Via "Add", "Delete" and "Rename" you can add and edit your own worlds, e.g. a "screen top
left" or a "wall above the dance floor".
But have in mind, if somebody is loading this show on another computer, RealTime
recognizes the missing Worlds on that system and you will get the before mentioned pop-ups.
With the settings "Size" and "Move" you can set the location and size of this World.
"Clipping" curtails the range up / down / right / left.
Compensation for keystone effect and geometric distortion can be done in the grid and with
the sliders for pincushion to the left.
The created world can then be saved and re-used later in a new show by reloading it.
Scanningparameter
Here the scanner output is parameterized:
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Some default settings are predefined which can be selected in the upper right.
These are:
Default
Graphics
Raster
for beam shows
for graphics and Text
for raster scanning.
Just as you select the World to be used within the animation, so you can select the matching
scanning parameters.
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Explanation:
E.g. beam shows are displayed in the World "audience" with a full scan angle and speeds of
20-25 Kpps. Graphics with maybe 20% of the maximum angle in the World "Screen" and
with higher scan speed and raster scanning is displayed even smaller and faster in the world
“Raster”.
By adjust these parameters to your own scanners you can tune each system to get the
maximum speed and rendering quality. If you load a laser show from somebody else and he
has set the World to "Screen" and the scanning parameters to "Graphic", this show will play
on your system with the optimum parameters set here.
Explanation of each point:
„Scanning“
Here the speed of the scanners and the color shift for raster scanning is set.
“Interpolation”
Adjustment of interpolation distances.
As you saw in PicEdit a square consists only of its corners. Scanning systems inherently
“don’t like” such a large "jumps". So the route is divided into smaller intervals (it is
interpolated).
And here the biggest “jump” without interpolation can be set for visible laser lines and
blanked lines.
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“Blanking”
In the settings “Blanking” the number of "prop points" before (Pre) and after (Post) corners,
and when the laser is switched (ON) or is switched off (OFF) is set.
If points are not displayed as points but short lines or figures have “rat tails” or may not be
completely drawn, you can correct these flaws here by repeating the significant points of the
figure.
Only set as many point repetitions as necessary. The overall number of points to be drawn
increases significantly. If the values are set too high, the picture begins to flicker as the frame
rate drops. When you put out more points with a constant scanner speed, less frames per
second can be drawn.
“Soft Color Settings”
As seen in PicEdit you can set certain flags in the animation event in RealTime to influence
the output. This is about the setting for "Soft Color", the soft fade of color transitions and
"Soft Blank", the soft turning on and off of the laser at the ends of the figure.
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In this field you can select a “test image”, which is then output automatically when opening
the settings of scanner parameters or worlds.
Color
In the color dialog the output values of the palette colors can be set.
If the "RGB" flag is set in the animation, the RGB color values are used. If this is not the case
the name and the index number of the color table come to bear.
E.g. the animation is set up for using the color table named "ILDA" and the point of the image
has the index number "5" = cyan.
Some color tables are predefined in Xtream Beams. Just like in the Worlds and the scanner
parameters you can "Add ...", "Delete" and "Rename ..." your own entries, or save them and
reload them later.
A distinction is made here between palette files (*.pal) which each contain 64 items and color
buffers, a combination of up to 8 palette files. All these colors can be used in a show.
Double-clicking on an item brings up a dialog to parameterize the corresponding entry.
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Unlike in RGB colors, in a palette you can address up to 6 color channels per color if the
output hardware supports this number of color channels and of course if the laser lines are
actually available in your system.
Adjustable are the color values, the name displayed and the displayed screen color.
As more than 3 color lines have been normal to gas lasers, they vanished with the DPSS /
diode lasers. But today in the professional segment multi-colored solid-state projectors with
more than 3 lines are coming back with the DPSS / OPSL laser systems.
Settings
Here the image catalog (*.cat) to be used in the show is set, that has been created in PicEdit.
If the checkbox "Load this Cat to all Scanner" is not active, the *.cat-file loaded using the
dialog or reloaded with the "reload” button is only assigned to the active scanner.
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With "LoadCatPart" you can load additional images from a different *.cat-file. The number of
images is defined in the edit box and the images are inserted beginning with the currently
active box. Make sure that the appropriate quantity of following boxes is free!
The dialog to load *.cat-files can be opened with the button
The usual file dialog is opened:
Instead of *.cat-files also ILDA-files format 5 can be imported.
This can be useful if a show is available as ILDA export from another software.
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Static Effects
Predefinition of static effects such as beam switches, motorized screens, fog machines ...
External devices, controlled via DMX or TTL can be defined here.
Some devices are already pre-defined and you can add your own. Creating and editing is
straight forward ...
Choose an effect from the drop-down menu or add a new one.
"Data Source Type" determines whether the parameter should have a constant value or if start
and end value should be different. The start and end value are set by clicking on "Edit
Animator".
If you want to set a constant value, you can set the bit pattern or the value in the field
"Constant". The channels 0 through 15 can for example be the TTL outputs of the card.
If DMX-values are needed, set the "Interface Type" to DMX.
Background:
Your device e.g. the fog machine is set to a specific effect channel, e.g. 000 which has the
right DMX-Value of your fogger, perhaps DMX Channel 12.
Then you put the effect “fog” in your show to use the fog machine at specific times.
If somebody else is using the show on a different system, only the DMX parameter for effect
channel 000 have to be set to the correct DMX-Address and the other fog machine will work.
The same can be done with gratings, beam switches etc.
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Audiosettings
This field has a wealth of features. Not only that the audio file used in the show is selected
here and RealTime will adjust the length of the TimeLine automatically after loading it, also a
bunch of other settings can be configured.
But first, let’s stay with the TimeLine. After you start the program the length of the TimeLine
by default is 10 seconds.
If you want to create an environment for playing live or just need a scrolling text, no audio
file will be used and thus there will no basis for the length of the TimeLine. You can then set
the length in "Total View Time of TimeLine" in the upper left corner in hours / minutes /
seconds and tenths of seconds.
Movement of effects on the TimeLine will be done by default on a 100ms grid. If you need a
finer or different grid, you can change this setting in the upper right box "Time Precision of
Time Cursor".
In the field "Midiman SMPTE/MTC Device" a connected MIDI keyboard can be chosen to
operate a live-environment.
"Time Code" sets the time base for the laser show. When an audio file is used, it will be
obviously the time base. For live-shows stay on "Time - Internal Clock".
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Next is "Wave music visualization on TimeLine."
Here, a waveform analysis of the audio file can be done and the result can then be displayed
on the TimeLine. There are several display forms available, the default-setting generally
provides the most reasonable results.
After clicking "Start wave file analysis" you will be prompted to enter the path to the file.
After opening the file in the appropriate dialog the analysis will start automatically and after
completion this box appears:
Confirm by clicking on "OK" and close the Audio dialog.
The waveform will be displayed in the TimeLine by clicking the icon
.
Now the effects can be aligned with the "peaks". Due to the system an offset between the
display and sound from the speakers can occur. This can be compensated for in the field
"Time Offset of Wave in ms".
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The Info – Field
Can only be opened via the menu or when “Settings” is already open via the tab "Info".
The author of the show can and should leave his data here. Please consider information on
the show and references to the source of the audio files used.
Programming a Laser Show
We have developed the fundamentals already. Here again, in short, what’s needed for a laser
show:
-
An audio file as time base
a *.cat-file, the image catalog
the *.rtd-file which RealTime generates
We now assume that a catalog has already been generated, RealTime is started and an audio
file is loaded. Wave analysis is also carried out. In the security dialog we have allowed the
ILDA output and enabled the "Enable backups" setting in the menu "Edit", so the functions
Copy, Paste, Undo and Redo are active.
Now we start with the positioning of the animations and effects. Double-click in the TimeLine
and the first page of the event list with the most commonly used effects will open:
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You will find the most frequently used effects here in a sorted order. By clicking "More" you
will get a second list where all the effects can be found by their index number. The unsorted
order on the second page is given by the order in which the effects have been programmed.
The first ordered page has a defined structure.
At the top left you will find the visible figures. This may be a animation (Trickfilm), a
Lissajous generator, a bitmap as a raster image, a stationary beam for gratings or a scrolling
text.
In the columns to the right you will find effects for brightness/color change, rotations and
effects for resizing and movements.
Furthermore, you will find effects for DMX, TTL and the predefined "Static Effects".
First add an animation (Trickfilm) with a mouse click on the button “Trickfilm” in the
TimeLine and drag its size a little longer.
Double clicking the animation (Trickfilm) will open this dialog:
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The Trickfilm – Event
The Trickfilm (animation) is a combination of several tabs.
Broadly speaking, you can scroll through a catalog of images and set start and end frame of
the animation. Mostly the start and the end frame will be the same image, but also a sequence
of multiple frames as animation can be inserted.
To the right, the column with the basic settings is shown:
REPEATS
Determines how many times the animation based on its length on the TimeLine should be
repeated.
SURFACE
In which layer the effect is seated.
Explanation: RealTime calculates up to 31 separate layers. If a figure on layer 1 is moved
over a figure on layer 2, the figure on layer 2 will be hidden.
WORLD
Which World is to be used as a projection zone?
COLOR BUFFER
Which color buffer is used. Will only be interpreted when the RGB flag is not active.
ROTATION ORDER
In which order should rotations be calculated?
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SCAN PAR
What scanner settings are used for this image?
DEPTH CUE
If the flag is set (checkbox Depthcue) figures further back on the Z-axis appear darker. The
center would be the value of 0.5. The operating range of this effect is determined here.
The FLAGS
Were / will be explained in the relevant chapters.
Picture Animator…
Influences the order in which the frames will be put out.
Option: Frame:
An animation from 5 frames will be played in sequence. The duration of each frame is equal
to the effect length is divided by 5.
Option: Animator / Curve:
The sequence of frames is defined as a curve in the Animator
Option: FramebyFrame:
The individual images are output dull and without repeating once each.
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In the tab „Animator“ (change at the top) the picture can be pre-animated.
The check box "Enable to see result" must be active, if not, changes made here will be
ignored.
The functions are:
Rotation
PreMove
Shift XY
Size XY
Pivot
World Rotatio
PostMove
Scale XYZ
Perspective
View XYZ
Intensity
Rotation in X/Y/Z
Motion prior an eventual rotation
Movement of the object in X/Y
Scaling in X, Y or X and Y a the same time
Pivot shift for rotations in X/Y/Z direction
Rotating the entire projection area
Movement calculated after an eventual rotation
Resizing the entire scene
Perspective changes, changes the depth projection
View change of the entire scene
Changes in brightness
For each effect, a start value is set to the left and an end value to the right.
A range of -2 to +2 which equals -200% to +200% will give the best results.
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In the tab „Morphing“ there is the possibility to morph the transition from multiple images
from one to the next.
Since only start and end frames are available, a so-called temporary frame for the intermediate
result has to be chosen. Use an empty box in the Cat file for this.
Because such temporary frames will be needed in other effects and are not uncommon, it is
recommended to leave the first 10 boxes in the catalog empty for this purpose.
If no temporary frame is selected and the entry remains at "0", a hard switch between the
frames will be done.
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This graphic animation can be an example:
A figure made from primitives.
First arm down, then arm at 3 clock and finally arm up.
The arm has been moved with the Rotate - tool in PicEdit. Turning point was the shoulder.
Please create these figures and put them into an animation (Trickfilm).
Start frame should be 10, end frame 12, choose a temporary frame for morphing and click
AutoAnimation.
The arm will rise slowly and smoothly!
It is important for all the figures in the morph to have an equal number of points. Otherwise
the result is not usable for reasons of the calculation.
Scanlimit
A typical application for the effect of "ScanLimit" would be the slow drawing of a figure
from the first to the last point.
For the intermediate calculation result again a temporary frame is needed.
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Important: If there are several effects which use a temporary frame, make sure that they
don’t use the same box otherwise they would overwrite each other!
The drawing progress is set with a Begin and an End curve. First open the End curve:
Pick the tool to move points
lower left corner.
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The line is now flat from "1" to "1". Click OK to close ...
Close the animation and press play, you will see that the figure will be drawn in complete and
then slowly disappears from the end toward the beginning. Which looks like it’s being erased.
If you need it just the other way around, open the Begin Curve:
Now again click on the move tool for points
.
Move the start point from the top left to the bottom left and the endpoint from the bottom
right to the top right. You should see this:
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Confirm with OK, close the animation and click "Play". The figure will now be drawn slowly
from the beginning to the end.
Camera Path of the Animation (Trickfilm)
One of the most exotic and elsewhere hard to find effects.
E.g. you can “move” the center point of a figure along the path of another figure.
An example:
You have an animation (Trickfilm) in row 1 of the TimeLine with the text "Once upon a
time…"
Apply the scan limit effect to this frame, so it will be drawn "like it is written slowly with a
pen"... This is exactly the procedure explained in the topic before this!
But where is the pen? Draw a frame with a hand holding a pencil or a pen ...
Put an animation in row 2, whose content is the hand with the pen and move it with “Camera
Path” along the "Picture Path" of the first image, the text...
The result will be a hand with a pen that writes the text. And the whole thing with only 2
animated frames!
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Sparkle
The Sparkle - effect again is a bit easier, but literally „shines“ in beam shows!!
Again we need a selected image in the first tab and a temporary frame for the intermediate
result. No temporary frame => no sparkle effect.
In this effect, so-called hot-spots are put on the figure that will flash randomly. The number of
hot-spots and their brightness can be adjusted here. Try it!
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Script
A time line within the animation ... to be filled with events such as the normal TimeLine.
Alternatively, the “Loop” visible on the TimeLine can be used, whose results can be stored
and reused also.
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Picture
If not available in the picture catalog, a *.pic-file as an image source can be loaded. *.pic-files
are snapshots from PicEdit not summarized in a *.cat-file, but stored separately.
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Animation
Loading a sequence of images as animation from another animation (Trickfilm).
Go back to the tab "Picture" and click on "Select ..." You should see something like this:
A different *.cat-file can be loaded via the "File" menu and with the functions "From" and
"To" in the bottom right corner, the start and end frame can be set. Then save the result with
“Save as” in the menu “Animation” into a *.ani-file. Close and go back ...
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Next click “Load” and open the newly saved image sequence:
If you don’t delete the content with "Clear", then this images sequence is played instead of the
start and end frame on the tab "Picture (Display Picture ...)".
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Adding Effects
Often "only" the image is put on the TimeLine with the function “Animation” (Trickfilm) and
the effects are placed directly below the animation.
Many of the effects come as "normal" and as "curve-effect". They differ only in the
possibilities of the animation. To set the parameters, use the Standard - Animator:
and the Curve-Animator:
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In the Standard - Animator there is "only" a course from a start value to an end value. The
course can be linear, a square, a sine, a triangle, a random function, have a certain number of
steps, etc.
But for some people even that is not satisfying! The waveform has to be selectable!
This option will only be available in the Curve-Animator.
Let’s have a look at both Animator dialogs.
The Animator
Here is an example of the "fade in" effect we placed on the TimeLine and opened with
double-clicking it.
The start and end values always have a logical relation.
In this case, the brightness increases linear from "0" = 0% to "1" = 100%. Basically that
should be sufficient for a fading effect.
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But, let’s open the drop-down box "Type of animation", select the type "Square Waveform"
and set the value of "Repeats" to "10"
You will get a strobe-effect.
Let’s create another example ...
As a basis, use the effect “Shift X", which moves the object along the X-axis.
A start and end value = 0 makes no sense ...
A movement from -1 to +1 will push the figure into the frame from the right and out of the
frame to the left.
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Another Example:
The type of animation is "random", "Discrete Steps" was set to 20.
The figure will jump wildly from left to right. Values from -1 to +1 are used and 0 is seen as
center.
Put this effect in the TimeLine, count the bass beats during the animation and enter that value
in "Discrete Steps". An impressive and also musically synchronized movement is the result!
But wait, there’s more … ;-)
Try to set the “Type Of Animation" to "Expression".
Now the expression-string seen in the expression field becomes the basis resp. multiplier for
this animation.
By opening this drop-down box the possibilities are shown.
The motion can depend on these values:
- mathematical functions
- position of the mouse in X or Y direction
- a selectable DMX channel
- the level of the audio wave
- the "frequency" of bass, mids or highs
The sum of these possibilities should be a good basis for impressive animations.
Even though the other waveforms and settings such as the phase are not yet discussed: try it!
Changes in the animation will immediately become visible, so experimenting is really easy!
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The Curve – Animator
In here the waveform of the animation can be freely adjusted by manipulating its nodes and
connection lines.
Again, with "Type of Animation" the curve can be governed by external sources, but the key
feature is the ability to create custom waveforms.
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To accomplish this you can find the appropriate tools above:
From left to right:
- Delete a point of the curve with a mouse click
- Insert a point on the curve with a mouse click
- Move the baseline of the curve
- Delete a point on the curve with a mouse click
- Move a point on the curve by holding the left mouse button
E.g. by adding and moving points the following animation can be done:
Here too, start and end value, step size resp. grid resolution can be defined freely.
Try to animate a ball, which is accelerating during his fall, impinges and bounces a few times
while the height of the jumps is dwindling ... should not pose a big problem!
Now we know ways to parameterize effects in the TimeLine.
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Here are explanations of the main effects:
The Effects
As already mentioned the effect list is distributed on two pages.
Page one includes the most common ones, and with the button "More" you’ll get the complete
list. The effects are self explanatory through their names. Not all of them will use the standard
animator.
Lissajous
Lissajous or abstracts can be found in almost any laser show software.
To get the effect, modulated signals are applied to the individual output channels.
The frequency and amplitude of these signals are determined here. Again a temporary frame
is needed to get a result.
To the left are the individual output channels and the possibility to modify their signals in
terms of frequency, phase, amplitude and offset.
A lot of mathematics or a bit of "trial and error". ;-)
Take advantage of the included demo show. Use the given effects as a base and change the
parameters!
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Bitmap
Used for scanning raster frames and then some. For the optimum representation the highest
demands are placed on scanners and lasers. Scan speeds around 50-60 Kpps at 4-6 degrees
scanning angle, quick and analog modulated lasers are key!
For a test, select the settings as shown above:
Select Type: “Bitmap”, click the checkbox "Show Bitmap".
Open a bitmap with a maximum size of 60x60 pixels.
If needed, reduce the size with an image-editing program.
Deny the question for grayscale conversion when loading the bitmap, unless you do not have
an RGB laser.
While opening the image its size in pixels will be shown. Put these values in the fields for
“Width Resolution” and “Height Resolution” in the top right by using the up/down controls.
Set “ScanParameters” to "Raster"
Use the “World” “Screen” or shrink “Audience”. The smaller the image and the scan angle,
the cleaner the final result!
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Beam
Used to display individual beams.
The output location is defined by the “World”. "Beam" indeed is already predefined before.
If more room mirrors or gratings are used, simply create new “Worlds” with matching names
in the “World Settings” and adjust image position and offset. In “Color” only color index
numbers are allowed.
Runtext
Used to display running text.
ScanParameter, World, ColorBuffer and Size / Letters, Surface, and Shifting have to be
adapted.
The event will generate temporary frames by itself, the start value is set by default to 2000.
In terms of TTF fonts remember the point-reduced single line fonts from the CNC realm!
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GeoNet
Correction of geometric distortion of the displayed image with functions or sketch.
“Displayed with GeoNet" has to be enabled in the source animation (Trickfilm), to get the
effect working.
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Would the output image be a smiley with a horizontal line as a mouth, the distortion as seen in
the image above to the right would have brought him to smile.
Comment
Insert remarks into the TimeLine. The remarks can be stretched and moved like normal
effects.
Loop
A very universal way to create animations, that can also be stored as a separate file including
the frames used and reloaded later.
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The screen shows an already-filled event:
An animation with a wave has been added and the required rotation for the animation has
been put in the second row.
Hint: While playing, pause it with “EditPlay”, trigger the "Screenshot small" in the OpenGL
window and insert the bitmap here.
Everything can now be saved as a file for later reuse.
Clock
Representation of an analog or a digital clock. The displayed time is taken from the computers
system time.
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Again temporary frames are used.
In this example, the "Destination picture" of the digital clock is set to "0". Thus, the analog
clock is displayed.
Would the frames of the analog clock (120-123) not refer to the necessary frames for the
clock-face and hands, but to "0", the digital clock would appear.
In short, the clock pointing to the correct frames is displayed.
You can find the frames for the clock in the demo file. One of the laser-optimized fonts from
the "Font" folder has to be used for the digital clock.
The allocation of the “ScannerParameter”, “World” and “ColorBuffer” is mandatory ...
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Tips for Show Programming with RealTime
The Standard-Animator..
Again, a few words regarding the standard animator, controlling the most common effects.
The control range is almost always from “-2” to “+2”.
Example:
A rotation using the function "Rotate Z" from “0” to “1”, would result in a rotation from the
initial position “0” to the final position “1” (= 360 degrees).
A rotation from “0” to “2” would be 720 degrees and from “0” to “0.5” would only be 180
degrees.
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But also negative values are possible.
In this example a “Shift-X” from “-2” to “2“ is used.
A value of “0” represents the center of the image,
“-1” and “1” are the right and left edge of the picture.
At values greater than “1” or less than ”-1”, the image would leave the display area, which
indeed may be desired.
With the values “-2” and “2”, the figure will move into the image from the left and then leave
it to the right completely.
If “Discrete steps" is set to 10, the figure will not move slowly across the image, but will jump
"step by step" through it. By further manipulating the “Phase” and/or “Repeats” almost
infinite combinations are possible.
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Creating and Using SFX
Open the SFX-window in RealTime from the left toolbar.
SFX are animations or still images saved as *.sfx-file, that easily can be reused.
The dialog automatically scans the folder "SFX" and its sub-directories and lists found items.
Select the desired animation or frame with a mouse click and insert it into the TimeLine at the
desired location by double-clicking there.
How a SFX-file is created?
Start with an empty TimeLine and open a *.cat-file.
Double-click in the TimeLine to open the effect window. Choose the "Loop" effect and place
it in the TimeLine.
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Double-clicking on the Loop effect opens this dialog:
The Loop - Effect is basically "a time line within the TimeLine."
The fields "Event 00" and below will now be filled with content.
Important: Do not use *.cat-files as image source, because the *.cat-files will differ from
show to show.
First, draw a picture in PicEdit and save it as a *.pic-file.
Insert an animation (Trickfilm) in the Loop-Event and open it (double-click). Switch to the
tab "Picture" and load the drawn file.
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This image is now permanently connected to the Loop-Event and will also be saved with it.
In other slots of the time line of the Loop-Event other animations such as fading, shifting, etc.
can be added.
Also, a preview can be integrated.
To do this simply press "Screenshot small" in the Open GL preview and paste it in the Loop
using "Copy Bitmap from Clipboard".
Save the Loop-Event in the SFX-folder or a suitable sub-folder of it using the menu "File" →
"Save As". So it can always be re-used in other shows.
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FastProg
The icon "FastProg" in the toolbar of RealTime opens the following window:
The handling is quite simple.
Assign pictures from a *.cat-file to the keys "1" to "9" by entering the index number of the
picture in the field next to the key name.
You can also preset animations for them. The parameters correspond to those of the standard
animator.
Possible settings from left to right:
− SizeXY
− Intensity
− Shift X
− Shift Y
− Rotations
How to use it:
After the settings have been made, press “Play” in RealTime. The TimeLine starts and the
audio file is played. Now, just insert the effects where you want them by pressing the keys 1-9
at times.
Effects selected by pressing the "1" will be placed in the first TimeLine. If a value is entered
in "Track Offset" it will be calculated and another TimeLine is used. You can also set the
length of the effect by pressing and holding the key. The automatic key repeat in the Windows
settings has to be turned off for this.
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Copy & Paste in the TimeLine
Often an effect should be applied repeatedly.
E.g. one might to display a zooming circle with every beat of the bass.
First, place the circle and the SizeXY-Event and set the start value for SizeXY to “0” and the
end value to “1”.
Next, highlight the two effects. To do this, hold down the Shift key and drag a selection box
with the left mouse button around the two effects. The effects are now selected and
highlighted in blue:
Now position the TimeLine cursor in front of the two effects and copy this position with Ctrl
+ C.
Start the TimeLine and the audio file with "Play" and press CTRL + V to paste at the desired
locations. That's all!
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Animation of a figure to the beat.
If an animation of a figure has to be synchronized to the beat over a long time, the following
procedure is a possibility.
Let's assume the basis is an opening and closing circle.
First, put an animation (Trickfilm) of the desired length on the TimeLine. In this example
from second 5 up to second 15.
Set the start value of the SizeXY-Effect to “0” and the end value to ”1”.
In "Type of Animations" select „Sine-Waveform“.
Now press "Play and count the bass beats during the time the effect is running. After
accomplishing this press “Stop”, open the Effect and enter the number of beats into the
"Repeats" field.
The effect will change immediately. In this case to 18 animations in 10 seconds.
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Switching the Scanners / TimeLines for Programming
Shows for up to 8 scanners can be programmed in Xtream Beams.
For each scanner its own CAT-file has to be loaded!
You will find buttons for switching between the scanners above the TimeLine.
E = EditScanner, in this example everything edited refers to scanner 1.
O = OverlayScanner. This one is shown parallel to the selected EditScanner but is not
editable. It is for guidance only.
Edit / Overlay Scanners can be selected by clicking the referring button.
The [EO] button toggles between the current EditScanner and the current OverlayScanner.
Preview for Multi Scanner Shows
Use case:
There are 3 projectors. You are in the process of programming a show for 2 projectors.
TimeLine Example:
The animation for scanner 2 (Overlay 2) is highlighted in yellow. Orange is the currently
editable scanner (Edit1).
The scanner track 1 should be routed to the output board 1 and the scanner track 2 should be
assigned to the output boards 2 and 3, where board 3 should be mirrored at the X- axis.
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Mapping and inverting can be done in the hardware manager (Control Center):
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In this example the first projector is indicated as the active one.
It is mapped to the output board 1.
Projector 2 is mapped to the output boards 2 and 3.
And the inverting can be done in the lower right corner.
In the OpenGL Preview click once “Update Routing“ in the menu „View“. This will apply the
mapping settings to the preview display.
Now start the show.
By holding down the right mouse button, the projectors can be moved in the OpenGL
window.
It is recommended that in the settings (OpenGL preview , menu "Edit OpenGL setting. ..") the
“Size XY” should be set to 0.5.
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The following picture shows the result in the OpenGL preview:
A spatial representation of multiple laser projectors.
You can add more scanners if needed.
E.g. you have 5 Projectors available and want to see the 2-projector show on all of them.
Just assign the output of projector 1 to the outputs boards 4 and 5.
In this example, “Swap X/Y” has been also enabled for them.
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Refresh the settings of the OpenGL – Preview with „Update Routing“ as shown above and
move the new projectors to their positions.
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RealTime – the name reflects the aim…
RealTime = in real time. And that’s how it can be edited.
Again and again you find yourself at one point in the programmed show, for example, the
beginning of the chorus and want to change something.
In many other programs, the show has to be paused, something is changed, set the cursor
before the event, then press play again. Not in RealTime.
The desired part is simply selected with markers.
Place the cursor at the beginning of the part to be edited, press the right mouse button and
select "Set Begin". Then place the cursor at the end of the part, e.g. 5 seconds later, again
press the right mouse button and select "Set End".
We have now two markers in the TimeLine, the start marker in dark blue and the end marker
in cyan.
When you now press “EditPlay”, only the part between these two markers is played, if desired
also as a loop.
At the end of the marked area the cursor will move back to the beginning.
In RealTime, you can now move events, open the effects, adjust the parameters and add new
effects, all while the output is playing.
Everything in real time.
All changes are immediately visible in the Open GL preview and on the laser projectors.
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Working with Surfaces
Surfaces are projection surfaces and are easily explained using a small example.
Start RealTime, load a CAT-file and put an animation (Trickfilm) on the TimeLine.
In this example, animation 1 is a circle.
In the tab "Animator" set his size down to 50%.
The value of "Show on Surface" is set to 2.
Next animation (Trickfilm):
A full size dotted line.
"Show on Surface" remains 1.
What will happen?
The output is divided into several layers and layer 2 covers layer 1.
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Press "Play" and have a look at the OpenGL preview:
The circle covers the dotted line.
If you would reduce the size of the circle for example with an effect from 100% to 0%, slowly
more of the dotted line would be revealed.
It gets more interesting with the next step.
Open the animation (Trickfilm) containing the line and click "Invert". The layer calculation is
now inverted and the result resembles the view through a telescope. Only the part of the line
inside the circle will be visible:
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Tips for the Drawing Program PicEdit
Convert objects in dotted objects
Each object can be converted in a dotted object.
To achieve this, the distance between two vectors is simply blanked with the function "To
Points" from the menu "Transform".
Example:
Draw a square, press "a" or drag a box with the mouse to select the object (vertices will now
be blue).
Then select the function "To Points”. As you will see in the preview, only the vertices are
visible.
If you need more than just the main points of the square, it has to be interpolated before.
Draw a new square and select it with "a".
Then use the function "Interpolate" from then menu.
You will see the following dialog:
Here the interpolation distance can be set.
We leave it at the default value and click OK.
The interpolated points have been added to the vertices.
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Again use To Points" from the menu "Transform" and the output will look like this:
Import of PLT Files, e.g. from CorelDraw
PicEdit can import HPGL files with eight Pen colors.
Example:
Export various figures and text from Corel Draw:
Select File → Save as → use drop down menu for file formats and choose PLT.
Now start PicEdit and in the menu "File" click "Open PLT".
Select the saved plt-file in the following dialog.
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The file is read and converted to "Import.pic", which is stored in the program directory and
automatically opened.
The import function performs no sizing. Simply adjust with the functions "Center" and
"Maximize":
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"i" switches everything to inactive.
Of course the optimization functions are active, when you import and depending on the angle,
repetition points will be set.
A perfect laser output will be the result.
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