Posted
A new version is out. I will post the list of fixes and small improvements tomorrow. In short:
Audio Engine 4.1.0
1. Run a plugin scan to completion, even if there are 2,500+ plugins. Please delete your ScannedPlugins64.xml and BrokenPlugins.txt to trigger a full scan at startup (and that'll hopefully be the only scan you will have to wait for for some time).
2. Grant folder access permissions to loaded plug-ins (new button in Audio/MIDI Setup, macOS only).
Synfire
1. Fixed installation errors (Windows)
2. Faster load times of interactive help
3. Embedded library pull-down menu populated with libraries it can find (I find that a bit clumsy, please check for yourself).
4. Fold & Shift range constraints fixed
If you observe any new glitches or regressions, post here please.
Fr., 29.04.2022 - 23:58 Permalink
Faster load times of interactive help
Can't notice much difference at all. Anyway, the slowest thing is clicking on the chords in the progression tab. There is more than 1 second lag in that specific case, which does not happen with Embedded Help off.
And Shift lag not yet touched.
Embedded library pull-down menu populated with libraries it can find (I find that a bit clumsy, please check for yourself).
Looks fine to me. If you mean too many items, you could exclude the example libraries or, better, make menu subfolders.
Fold & Shift range constraints fixed
Still some issues.
With Shift, things looks fine.
With Fold, the behavior of the "Octave" option seems to be reversed.
With Clip, I'm able to get a note out of range in the bass. To reproduce, have two bass notes not connected as a segment, one on top of each other, in the out of range bass (e.g. for the piano outside of the 88 keys after you've also applied the full bass range for that Synfire sound, i.e. to the last A note).
Fr., 29.04.2022 - 23:49 Permalink
The initial full scan takes very a long time and comes to a halt every now and them so you must continously supervise the progress or it will stop. Instead of stopping occasionally, maybe it can continue through the whole scan and present a list of all problematic plugins when the scan is finished?
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 09:33 Permalink
If I remember correctly, V1 would remember/retain the size of the Arrange window. Or is there some setting for this? Now I have to resize the window every time I start Synfire. (MacOS 12.3.1)
Is there a way to make the excellent tool tips show longer (much longer)? In some cases I just have time to read maybe 5% of the text before it disappears.
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 00:42 Permalink
If I remember correctly, V1 would remember/retain the size of the Arrange window. Or is there some setting for this? Now I have to resize the window every time I start Synfire.
Can't reproduce this. Each of my .congnac arrangement files can retain the size of the window and its position on the screen. I'm on Windows btw.
Is there a way to make the excellent tool tips show longer (much longer)? In some cases I just have time to read maybe 5% of the text before it disappears.
No. I noticed this too, I did report it in my bugs thread.
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 04:54 Permalink
Andre,
With the old Synfire Pro version I had created my own catalog of scales. When I try to open that in the latest version, the software crashes. Please find attached the dump. Any other information you need, please let me know. I have renamed the .dump as .dump.txt to enable upload
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 10:44 Permalink
When the release gets stable, minor fixes can be deployed as patches, which much increases turnaround. The first patch will be published soon.
Please consider submitting crash reports
Here's a list of the most important fixes so far
- Many crashes that were submitted via reports
- Windows HiDPI: Use flat backgrounds where scaling is incomatible with gradients
- Notation export crash with GM instruments
- Tootip preferences not persistent
- Zooming with the keyboard. There is still a puzzling issue that makes zooming with the scrollbar buttons behave different than with keyboard
- Stop playback before loading KIM Factories
- Add View >> Library Sounds to the View menu of a library app
- Ensure progress is always shown when KIM Factories are loaded
- MIDI Through did not follow instrument selection
- Dangling notes when switching MIDI Through
- A useful Preview progression should be in place from the start
- Help: Crash when opening a web URL
- Help: Cache pages in help browser to improve responsiveness
- Help: Add a horizontal scrollbar
- Migration from v1: Fixed E0042 errors on installation
- Migration from v1: Delete ScannedPlugins64.xml to force a one-time rescan
- Migration from v1: Installer shows wrong installed version oni macOS
- Graphics: Resizing glitches in vector views
- Graphics: Make pull-down menus in Palette behave consistent with others
- Saving parameter templates was wrongly disabled
- Audio Engine: Grant folder access permissions as per user selection
- Sketch: Add ability to include/exclude parameters with matrix console
- Library: Emmbedded library menu includes libraries found in known paths
- Vertical playing ranges keyboards misaligned
- Interpretation's Fold ands Shift modes broken
- Instant crash on macOS 10.11 when touching the main menu bar
- Windows: Icon fonts not registered correctly ("ghost buttons")
- Audio Engine: Allow extremely long scans to complete to avoid uncecessary re-scans
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 11:57 Permalink
The new scan should run for at least 30 minutes before it times out. If that isn't long enough, let me know. For a user reported to have 2,500 plugins it takes about 15 minutes. The crashing or problematic plugins should be added to BrokenPlugins64.txt and scan should continue after a crash. If not, it's a bug.
You can re-run a scan from Audio/MIDI setup manually, if something at the startup went wrong. Although the 20 minute timeout also applies there.
As for the other issues, they will be taken care with the first patch.
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 20:48 Permalink
bacherak, you should be able to directly send crash reports via the software, using (unintuitively) the Online Updates window.
Windows HiDPI: Use flat backgrounds where scaling is incomatible with gradients
Doesn't work. 125% here. Same result as in my old pictures.
Help: Cache pages in help browser to improve responsiveness
Oh ok, so that's the workaround. In that case yes, I notice the difference. Still not the best solution but oh well.
More importantly, the 1 second lag when clicking chords in the progression when Embedded Help is active is still not fixed.
Help: Add a horizontal scrollbar
It wasn't even needed actually, the bug is only when in the Factory tab (I've only recently found out): and it is still present, so adding a scrollbar doesn't solve the issue of the fact that this bug is still happening, the user still have to move the scrollbar everytime; if the bug is fixed, the scrollbar isn't even needed.
Windows: Icon fonts not registered correctly ("ghost buttons")
If you mean this (https://users.cognitone.com/files/forum/3689/progression_click.png)
then no, it's not fixed. Now those icons are blank even before clicking them.
Everything in detail in the usual thread (https://users.cognitone.com/topic/my-list-bug-reports) which I try to always keep up to date.
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 16:59 Permalink
Now those icons are blank even before clicking them.
They are supposed to be hidden. The bug was that they showed up at all. On that page these functions are on the side bar. What I was referring to were the toolbar icons.
The lag caused by the help browser is unfortunate, but I suppose that when you are in "help me" mode, it isn't critical. You can't do both reading help and making music at the same time anyway. There is no easy fix to speed this up further (add a background thread or something), but I'll keep it on the list.
The other issues will be fixed with the next patch.
Regarding Shift and Fold, neither mode enforces the assigned range unless you enable Strict. And even then it is sometimes impossible to enforce it, as it would instroduce repeated notes where the original doesn't have them (sounds very different). So basically an assigned range is a serving suggestion, not a mandate. Only the total pitch range is.
Here's the arrangement I used for testing.
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 19:17 Permalink
The first patch is out (remember: no need to download, install or restart Synfire)
- Improved menu for picking an embedded library
- Right-click Insert Template ... did not always work for the Quantize outlet
- Tooltip timeout increased to one minute
- Loading Catalog documents crashed
- Crashes when associating an audio plugin with a device description
- Gradients on Windows HiDIP (let's hope it finally works for all scalings)
- Improved menu for device descriptions in arrangement (Save As Global Device)
- Bug with mapping Relative symbol type
- Output in phrase editor did not update when editing Figure in track sheet
Enjoy
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 20:36 Permalink
Synfire Fonts Installation works fine with 2.0.2 . Deinstalled Fonts from Windows Fonts, installed version 2.0.2 and voila! GUI looks pretty nice :-)))
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 20:55 Permalink
The bug was that they showed up at all. On that page these functions are on the side bar.
Oh ok, I see.
Embedded Help
The problem is the fact that it took me a while to realize that the cause was the Embedded Help, and this will happen to anyone approaching V2 for the first time: the user will think that the entire software just always lags like that. And it's not like you can put a messagebox that warns that everything will slow down, lol. So yeah, it's kind of an issue. It's a pity because otherwise it's probably the most useful new feature due to the complexity of the program.
Shift and Fold
Ok, so you mean that the Octave option's swapped behavior is not really a bug, it just what happened in my case because how the note are translated of course depends on a lot of variables.
The bass note when there are two vertical symbol is an actual bug though; if needed I can send a file to reproduce.
Improved menu for picking an embedded library
Looks perfect.
Gradients on Windows HiDIP (let's hope it finally works for all scalings)
Looks finally fine on my system, I even tried custom percentages.
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 22:05 Permalink
this will happen to anyone approaching V2 for the first time
Good point. Help browser slows down response time too much. I'll make it asynchronous, loading its work off to a low priority background thread.
Actually Synfire isn't more complex than Cubase, Pro Tools or Logic X. It's the tree structure of arrangements that most users are not familiar with. We will put more effort into showing how powerful it is.
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 22:12 Permalink
Would be good. I think the parameters are stored inside the library, it's just not exposed on the interface actually.
Got caught out as I was adding a modulation parameter to the library, but it was clashing with an unseen parameter, which turned out to be custom parameter set to CC1 I had set in that library phrase ages ago!
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 22:17 Permalink
Ok, so you mean that the Octave option's swapped behavior is not really a bug
The Octaves option is special in that it auto-magically breaks melodic lines into smaller parts: They wrap around at the limits. No sophisticated wrapping algorithm needed. That's why it looks a bit different from the continuously transposed segments.
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 22:23 Permalink
Under Edit/Preferences/Files, I would like to change the path to the Examples folder, but am unable to do so.
How can I change the path? Thanks.
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 22:31 Permalink
You can't. If you're a bit tech-savvy and you use Windows you can fire up PowerShell and do:
New-Item -ItemType SymbolicLink -Path "...\Public\Documents\Synfire\Examples" -Value "...\Wherever\You\Want\Examples"
But yes, I too think that all the paths in the "Preferences" window should be customizable.
Sa., 30.04.2022 - 22:54 Permalink
I've decided to acquiesce to reality and move my Libraries folder onto the C: drive where Synfire can find it.
But customizable pathways in the Preferences would be music to my ears.
So., 01.05.2022 - 11:46 Permalink
There is no point in customizing the examples folder. Examples get replaced with every update and you even get a warning when you modify them. They are automatically included in all file menus, so why bother?
If you want to keep the examples, copy them to your projects folder. I recommend you do so with the Factory libraries. They provide great starting points for factories that you may want to keep.
Your own libraries should go into ~Documents/Synfire/Libraries where they belong. And that can be on any volume or drive.
So., 01.05.2022 - 13:17 Permalink
For examples folders you are right, especially for updates.
But for libraries, it could be a customizable path. Not a problem for me though because I'm fine with the junction workaround.
So., 01.05.2022 - 13:25 Permalink
Yes you are replying to the dude who posted the trick... I was just giving the suggestion that those paths could be editable via Synfire.
So., 01.05.2022 - 13:53 Permalink
You can save your files anywhere you want. They need not be in a special location to work.
For some of them to be included with pull-down menus, they are expected in one of the sub-folders Devices, Tunings, Colorings, Layouts, Racks, Libraries, Sketches, Plug-In Presets, Parameters under either your <ProjectsFolder> or under the Config folder in there. There is another Config folder as part of the installation that cointains system presets and defaults.
Files in Config are considered defaults (templates, preferences, settings) that are rarely edited. Files under your <ProjectsFolder> are considered documents being edited often. If you want to replace/modify/extend a system provided file, just save a file with the same name in your own folders. That's the point: A non-destructive file hierarchy that is safe against accidental modification.
So., 01.05.2022 - 14:16 Permalink
A non-destructive file hierarchy that is safe against accidental modification.
Fair enough.