Bugs in QLC+

TEL0000 · Mon Jan 04, 2016 9:45 pm

Hello,

i've used QLC+ last year for one show, and i'm planing to use it soon again.

While i'm preparing the show, i've noticed many bugs, and many of the bugs are still the same as one year ago.

Select function -> Filter: Deselect Szenes will move Sequences to Chasers. Deselecting Chasers will still show the Sequences. It's not possible to Deselect Sequences.
Virtual Console -> Slider properties -> Select function: All Filters are grayed out.
Typing the Milliseconds in the Time-Window doesn't work as expected. Typing 45 will create .54
Fade Out time of a Step in a Sequence will fade out the previous instead of the current Step unless it's the last Step of the Sequence, but the Show-Editor shows the fade out time on the current step. (I think it should always be the current step)
Using mp3 in shows is almost useless. Timing is not precise at all. Using wav-files helps.
Using an RGBMatrix on Dimmer channels (conventional par lights) works fine, but when i export it to a sequence the dimmer is always at 100%
When i activate the waveform preview while the show is running the waveform will have timing offset.
When i create a sequence and add more fixtures or channels to the scene, changes on the new channels to the old steps doesn't get saved. I have to recreate the whole sequence.

I'm using Version 4.10.1 on Windows 10.

plugz · Tue Jan 05, 2016 2:05 pm

Hi,

1. -Sequences moving to chasers: Not a bug. Sequences are chasers, they're displayed
-Sequences never disappearing: This is a bug. Now fixed in GIT.
2. Now fixed in GIT.

3-6: I didn't check those

TEL0000 wrote:I'm using Version 4.10.1 on Windows 10.

Why not 4.10.2 ?

TEL0000 · Tue Jan 05, 2016 2:05 pm

plugz wrote: 3-6: I didn't check those

I also added 7 and 8 now.

plugz wrote: Why not 4.10.2 ?

The big red warning on the website made me wait for a 4.10.3, even though i'm sure it wouldn't affect my project.

mcallegari · Tue Jan 05, 2016 8:50 pm

5. Using mp3 in shows is almost useless. Timing is not precise at all. Using wav-files helps.

As stated in the forum posting guidelines:

Always consider that if something doesn't work in your environment, it doesn't mean it won't work for everybody.

Not everybody needs timings precise to the milliseconds. Please understand that you're not the only one using this software, and if an option doesn't work for you, then just don't use it.

7. When i activate the waveform preview while the show is running the waveform will have timing offset.

Same as above. Plus, this is quite an incomplete report, without even a screenshot that supports your statement, or the type of audio file you're using.

TEL0000 · Tue Jan 05, 2016 8:50 pm

mcallegari wrote: Not everybody needs timings precise to the milliseconds. Please understand that you're not the only one using this software, and if an option doesn't work for you, then just don't use it.

For me it's fine since i found a solution, but i might not be the only one who might need precise timing, and it took some time for me to find the solution. I just want to help to make this software more user friendly.
Last year i have listened every song a thousand times. For example, when i just want a flash at the end of the show i had to listen to the whole song, place it roughly, listen to the whole song again, change timing, listen to the whole song again and repeat that process till it looks ok. It can get really annoying when you have a 10 minute show. I spend weeks programming the show, and only after the event i found out, that it would have worked perfectly with wave-files.
The only hint was the documentation saying "For example MP3 files resume is not particularly accurate, while Wave files resume is.". If there is no technical solution, i think it should be stated a little bit more prominent. Maybe even in the show editor itself.

mcallegari wrote:
7. When i activate the waveform preview while the show is running the waveform will have timing offset.
Same as above. Plus, this is quite an incomplete report, without even a screenshot that supports your statement, or the type of audio file you're using.

Here is the waveform as it should look like:

Here is it, when i activate the waveform-preview while the show is already running:

TEL0000 · Sun Jan 17, 2016 4:50 pm

Since there are no answers to most bugs I've mentioned, I'm not sure if bug reports are appreciated, but i've found another bug in the show editor:

9. When you click on a step in a sequence in the show editor it should select the step. But when the sequence doesn't start at beginning of the show it will not select the correct step. So for example when i have a sequence with one second hold time for each step and the sequence starts at 4s, it will select the 5th step when i click the first step.

I'm now using 4.10.2b on Windows 10.

TEL0000 · Tue Feb 09, 2016 3:01 pm

I just want to bring this up again, since nobody confirmed or commented the most bugs i've mentioned.

Should i make a new thread for every bug? Or ist there a better way to make a bug report not get lost in the forum?

janosvitok · Tue Feb 09, 2016 3:06 pm

Tobias,

I can assure you that bug reports are most welcome (especially those with qxw files and steps to reproduce!

).
The problem is that the developers do not always have time to respond to everything, sometimes even to fix something.

I personally read most of the posts, but I am really tight on time lately...

TEL0000 · Tue Feb 09, 2016 5:37 pm

Thanks for your response.
I completely understand that developers don't have much time, because this is not a commercial software.

To save the developers some time i'll try to add some more information and a workspace.

3. Typing the Milliseconds in the Time-Window doesn't work as expected. Typing 45 will create .54.
-- I think it has to to with input validation on each key press. So after pressing "4" it will validate to ".04" and set the curser before the 4. When i then press "5" it will show ".54".

4. Fade Out time of a Step in a Sequence will fade out the previous instead of the current Step unless it's the last Step of the Sequence, but the Show-Editor shows the fade out time on the current step. (I think it should always be the current step)
-- Take a look at the show "Test" in the attached workspace. It fades the step before the fade out.

6. Using an RGBMatrix on Dimmer channels (conventional par lights) works fine, but when i export it to a sequence the dimmer is always at 100%
-- Take a look at the Matrix "Dimmer Matrix" in the attached workspace, and try to export it as a sequence.

7. When i activate the waveform preview while the show is running the waveform will have timing offset.
-- Take a look at the pictures i posted before.
-- The beginning of the waveform seems to be the waveform of the audio at the time when i clicked on the preview.
-- The show keeps playing, but the audio starts at the beginning.
-- I think the simplest solution would be to disable this Option when the show is running.

8. When i create a sequence and add more fixtures or channels to the scene, changes on the new channels to the old steps doesn't get saved. I have to recreate the whole sequence.
-- Unfortunately i can't show this in a workspace because everything works fine when i save and reopen the file after i added the new fixtures or channels.

9. When you click on a step in a sequence in the show editor it should select the step. But when the sequence doesn't start at beginning of the show it will not select the correct step. So for example when i have a sequence with one second hold time for each step and the sequence starts at 4s, it will select the 5th step when i click the first step.
-- Take a look at the show "Test 3" in the attached workspace and click on the sequence. It should select the step you've clicked, but it selects a different step.
-- For example, when i click at the sequence at a show time of 4.5s: QLC looks for the cursor position (4.5s), and looks in the sequence which step is running at 4.5s (step 3). But QLC has to substact the sequence start time first to get the right step. (4.5s - 3s = 1.5s = first step)

10. I've noticed a bug while i created this workspace. Somehow on the show "Test 2" the first step has a duration of 0s, so the sequence starts with green. I don't know exactly how to reproduce it, but it has something to do with toggeling the duration between "shared" and "per step".

11. Another bug i've noticed during the creation of the test-workspace: If you delete a scene with sequences attached to it, it will delete the sequences, but the scene still exist (even though it disappeared from the functions tab). You'll see that it didn't get deleted when you open a "select function" window. And if you save and reopen the workspace, you will also see the deleted scene in the function tab again.