Sean Meighan
Welcome => Events/Gatherings => Topic started by: sean on January 21, 2016, 12:23:08 AM
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xLights 2 day Seminar Las Vegas.
April 16,17th. Palace Station Hotel. 9am-5pm daily
Two choices:
1) Attend in person , $200 for two days.
2) Attend via streaming video, $40 for two days and includes dvd produced and edited a few weeks after the seminar.
I need the estimate of those attending to make the down payment for the venue.
payments will open by Jan 25th
If you come to the in person session the only thing you will need is a laptop. We will go over every aspect of sequencing a song. For example, we will go over three ways to mark up timing on a song. After the lecture on marking up the song each student will be given the same song (Hallelujah Chorus, 90 seconds long) and you will actually mark up the song and get feedback.
Additional things to being, but not mandatory:
1) Bring any mp3 song you want to get sequenced, it will be used in the final project.
2) If you want to bring a vixen, lor,hls,lsp sequence we will have a session on importing in existing sequences into xLights.
We will cover every effect (34 of them), we will go over setting up hardware. We will talk about videos in xlights and videos using projectors connected to the raspberry pi hardware running FPP.
The goal is to make you proficient using xLights. By the end of the second day, you will be able to sequence any song.
Finally, PLEASE do NOT buy airline tickets until i make the deposit. This poll will let me know if there is enough people to warrant the class. Most airline tickets are non-refundable.
UPDATE: Everyone who attends in person will be given the dvd of the two day event.
UPDATE: MY wife Lilia will be teaching a 1 hour class on how she creates sequences, color schemes, timing.
UPDATE: My wife has agreed to give one of her sequences free to everyone who attends in person. I would take the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy as she spent 25 hours on that.
UPDATE: Dave Pitts will be at the seminar on Sunday, April 17th. He will have his newest boards with him.
Update Jan 21: I hope to get deposit be end of day today. Do NOT book plane fares until I get contract signed with Palace Station. It will be by today or tomorrow.
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I will be there in person so one
Kent
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This is exactly what I need!!! 8)
Can't wait to attend.
-et
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Sean
I had a little bit of trouble getting to vote in the poll. Thought it was my iPad but the redirect from my email brought me into the poll area without sending me through log in. Found out that you can't vote in the poll unless you are logged into the forum. You might let others know, in case they have trouble voting.
Looking forward to this training.
Anne
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i really want people to register for this forum since it is the main method we send out information from the developers to xlights users. The purpose of the poll is too if there is enough interest that i go ahed and put down the deposit for the venue.
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I can't imagine you having a class in Las Vegas without Ron Howard. ;)
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While I may not be able to attend the Webinar (depends on time differences) I would pay the $40 to get a copy if you are prepared to main to NZ.
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Sean
I had a little bit of trouble getting to vote in the poll. Thought it was my iPad but the redirect from my email brought me into the poll area without sending me through log in. Found out that you can't vote in the poll unless you are logged into the forum. You might let others know, in case they have trouble voting.
Looking forward to this training.
Anne
It doesn't cost anything to join this forum and it does have a lot of info.
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I'm in for the video. I'd be ok with download vs DVD. You could save a lot of time and money that way.
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How and when do we need to pay for the class?
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Sorry Sean, I can't make it due knee replacement surgery on the 11th of April...Ladders have taken their toll!
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i am setting up my store, payments due by feb 16th.
I will get store setup this weekend.
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So tempted to go (Vegas and lights who would have thought!) but I think I will have to settle for the streaming option this year. Now to put a lock on the office door so the family doesn't bother me that weekend.
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I see 16 singles and 2 doubles - that makes the minimum 20! YES!! (And I see Sean setting up a store to pay.) What happens in Vegas will definitely NOT stay in Vegas this time. Ready to learn and bring it back home with us. Thank you Sean and team!!
P.S. I totally missed the two people option and made my wife log on and click the poll too :-)
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Just waiting on contract to be sent to me. I will then buy two southwest tickets (arrive fri, leave monday). When i purchase those you will know it is going to happen
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Sean - would your wife consider providing the sequence you suggested to the virtual attendees who would be willing to pay slightly more? As a newbie seeing how folks have actually sequenced, used layered effects, etc. is a huge help. Reading/watching videos is one thing but to see how it was actually done is so much better. I would be willing to pay something like $10 extra if that seemed fair? Thanks for organizing - I think this is going to be great!
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Just waiting on contract to be sent to me. I will then buy two southwest tickets (arrive fri, leave monday). When i purchase those you will know it is going to happen
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;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D
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I will be there for both days.
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Sean - update to my previous post...you may have to extend my apologies to your wife. I was eating dinner and thinking about my post - I went back and reread where you said she spent 25 hours on the sequence - my thought of $10 would equate to .40/hour; I certainly did not mean to offer up an insult!!!
I have no idea how much something like that is worth - my point would still be I would be willing to pay an additional amount to have access to a real sequence that she created. Please accept my apology. :)
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I just saw the announcment for this Seminar over at diyc Forum and just for this I registered here ;D
Would love to Login via webstream 8)
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Sean.
I voted to do the streaming event, if I am able to attend in person, would that be ok as well.
Let me know.
Thanks in advance.
James Van Horn
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Sean,
Will this hotel have special rates for the people attending the seminar? Las Vegas rates on the weekends are much more than weekdays. Is this being investigated?
Thanks
--Greg--
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Sean,
Will this hotel have special rates for the people attending the seminar? Las Vegas rates on the weekends are much more than weekdays. Is this being investigated?
Thanks
--Greg--
Greg,
I checked rates for one night check in on 16th out 17th is $89. Of course many will check in the day before depending on travel distance. Since I live in Southern California this will be a quick trip. Then again I might check in the night before to play it safe.
Ron
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Greg, i have not pursued getting a block of rooms. Discounts start at 10 rooms. I would have the liability if someone didnt show up. Maybe in the future.
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Just signing up for the Streaming Option with DVD
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Sean,
Will this hotel have special rates for the people attending the seminar? Las Vegas rates on the weekends are much more than weekdays. Is this being investigated?
Thanks
--Greg--
Greg its always like that, more people go there for the weekend. I live close to Reno, a room that costs $200.00 on Friday and Saturday, turns into a $30.00 room from Sunday to Thrusday.
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....I will then buy two southwest tickets (arrive fri, leave monday). When i purchase those you will know it is going to happen....
Once Southwest has your money, United can have mine....holding until we hear Southwest has your money.
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i have the signed contract and I just booked my non-refundable airfare. Seminar is a go!
I am arriving Fri late morning and leaving 3pm on Monday.
Note classes are 9-5pm on both Sat and Sun. Everyone who attends will get the edited dvd that will cover the 16 hours of instruction. People who dial in to the webinar will receive the DVD as part of their $40 fee (postage free to continental USA). This could help those who might need to leave Sunday afternoon.
Giving a two day seminar with two populations of people is a challenge.
1) We have people who are learning to use xlights for the first time. Models, Effects, Timing, E1.31, LOR, Renard setup will be their focus.
2) We have people who have been using xlights for many years. They are most interested in the advanced subjects.
Here is the first pass at the syllabus
There will be 16 1 hour sessions. Each session will include a lecture and sometimes hands on workshops. For example: We will explain the three ways to mark up a song, 1) Manually, 2) Audacity Plugin's, 3) Lilia's method. Everyone in the class will be given the same mp3 file, we will walk and watch as you actually mark up your songs.
Sat: Learn to use xLights and create a complete sequence.
o Installation. 5 minutes.
o SETUP. Discussion of all of the various ways to connect to xlights.
o TEST. How to perform testing of your lights. How to save pre allocated channel ranges for reuse
o LAYOUT. How to create Models. How to load a picture of your house. Laying out your display.
How to check for over lapping channels.
Hot to make custom models.
o SEQUENCER. How to create new sequences. How to create timing marks. How to add models into your Display Elements list.
o How to add effects. How to change Effects. How to choose color palettes.
o How to copy/paste. How to move a block of effects. Model Preview vs House Preview.
o SCHEDULE. Create playlist, create calendar, schedule multiple playlists.
o How to create effects in xLights and bring them back into LOR, Vixen, HLS, LSP
Sun. This will cover more advanced subjects
o How to share sequences between users. We will give out a sequence by Lilia and have you convert it to your home before you try to open it. We will give you the scripts that do this transformation.
o How to import Superstar *.sup files.
o Two ways to import in LOR lms files. Bring it in as a data layer, do import sequence to map lor effects into xlight effects.
o Papagayo. You no longer need the Papagayo tab in xlights, all of Papagayo functionality can be created directly in the SEQUENCER tab. We will go through and create singing faces (both the hardware and the software).
o FPP. We will go through the process of setting up some FPP's, we will set up master/slaves and run lights.
o Multi projector setup and Whole house projection. We will do an overview of how to creeate whole house effects.
o P10 panels. We hope to have a P10 panel at seminar and will go through process of setting it up using the BBB running FPP.
o Playing movies and pictures in xlights, some suggestions.
So for those who have indicated interest in the Seminar April 16,17th 2016 at the Palace Station, Las Vegas. Check the above syllabus and see if it meets your expectations.
Are there other subjects you would like to see covered?
Store should open for purchasing either the seminar or the webinar middle of this week.
thanks
sean
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Sean - the course sounds great. I am a new user so day 1 will be great for me. A topic that would be great to cover (and may already be included in the model/sequence/effect section) would be how folks create a different (second) model to apply effects that typically would not work correctly. For example, creating a second model for a snowflake that is a straight line and then applying effects to that. As I am learning the software, the example I mention is hard for my mind to grasp - probably just need to hear someone else work through it. I have watched some videos but I am not grasping the underlying principle...thinking there may be a "secret" I am missing that will shed light on everything. Really looking forward to this! Thanks.
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Thats sounds great Sean. I know the basic's and I know there is more to know. Really looking forward to it.
i have the signed contract and I just booked my non-refundable airfare. Seminar is a go!
I am arriving Fri late morning and leaving 3pm on Monday.
Note classes are 9-5pm on both Sat and Sun. Everyone who attends will get the edited dvd that will cover the 16 hours of instruction. People who dial in to the webinar will receive the DVD as part of their $40 fee (postage free to continental USA). This could help those who might need to leave Sunday afternoon.
Giving a two day seminar with two populations of people is a challenge.
1) We have people who are learning to use xlights for the first time. Models, Effects, Timing, E1.31, LOR, Renard setup will be their focus.
2) We have people who have been using xlights for many years. They are most interested in the advanced subjects.
Here is the first pass at the syllabus
There will be 16 1 hour sessions. Each session will include a lecture and sometimes hands on workshops. For example: We will explain the three ways to mark up a song, 1) Manually, 2) Audacity Plugin's, 3) Lilia's method. Everyone in the class will be given the same mp3 file, we will walk and watch as you actually mark up your songs.
Sat: Learn to use xLights and create a complete sequence.
o Installation. 5 minutes.
o SETUP. Discussion of all of the various ways to connect to xlights.
o TEST. How to perform testing of your lights. How to save pre allocated channel ranges for reuse
o LAYOUT. How to create Models. How to load a picture of your house. Laying out your display.
How to check for over lapping channels.
Hot to make custom models.
o SEQUENCER. How to create new sequences. How to create timing marks. How to add models into your Display Elements list.
o How to add effects. How to change Effects. How to choose color palettes.
o How to copy/paste. How to move a block of effects. Model Preview vs House Preview.
o SCHEDULE. Create playlist, create calendar, schedule multiple playlists.
o How to create effects in xLights and bring them back into LOR, Vixen, HLS, LSP
Sun. This will cover more advanced subjects
o How to share sequences between users. We will give out a sequence by Lilia and have you convert it to your home before you try to open it. We will give you the scripts that do this transformation.
o How to import Superstar *.sup files.
o Two ways to import in LOR lms files. Bring it in as a data layer, do import sequence to map lor effects into xlight effects.
o Papagayo. You no longer need the Papagayo tab in xlights, all of Papagayo functionality can be created directly in the SEQUENCER tab. We will go through and create singing faces (both the hardware and the software).
o FPP. We will go through the process of setting up some FPP's, we will set up master/slaves and run lights.
o Multi projector setup and Whole house projection. We will do an overview of how to creeate whole house effects.
o P10 panels. We hope to have a P10 panel at seminar and will go through process of setting it up using the BBB running FPP.
o Playing movies and pictures in xlights, some suggestions.
So for those who have indicated interest in the Seminar April 16,17th 2016 at the Palace Station, Las Vegas. Check the above syllabus and see if it meets your expectations.
Are there other subjects you would like to see covered?
Store should open for purchasing either the seminar or the webinar middle of this week.
thanks
sean
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This looks good. Do you think that you will be able to to stay on schedule? Won't it depend on how skilled the group members are? Looking forward to it. United was happy to take my money today.
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I am writing speakers notes and i will run through sections before aoril. That will help me pace content. Questions from attendees can change speed and direction. I will try to stay on track.
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Thx Sean, just want to get as much as possible out of this.
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I appreciate that having the topics you list are important to bring new people up to speed, and I don't want to limit those topics.
Maybe there is an opportunity for the people who have been using the program for couple years to have a break-out session (or sessions) to discuss more advanced topics. I wouldn't want to sidetrack your agenda with topics beyond the core topics, but I would like to find out more than what the syllabus currently lists...
My interests:
* connecting other DMX objects into an xLights show (foggers, madrix, animitronics, lasers, etc.)
* more depth into layers, morphing, etc.
* discussion about the file formats (if we want to write add-on tools to process the data for reporting, validation, or export)
* "getting started" discussion that covers software development in xlights. I'd like a walk-through of the modules, and an example of adding new effects to the library.
* a round-table that discusses "how to take the leap from displaying effects, to creating an emotional experience"
I can generate effects and put together a show without trouble, but I've only seen a couple sequences out there that really do a sequence well... (like Brad's Mary Do You Know!). I'd like to hear how people approach and solve the problem. (My wife thinks I just paste together cool effects and repeat... and there is little connection to the music. I agree.)
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Big +++ to Steve's list especially the round table!
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We will be in a big room , can seat 80 people in a classroom setting. Currently we have 25 so we might be able to do this. Dave pitts will be there sunday. Gil thinks he can be there both days.
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If is ok I would like to ship my P10 to the seminar.
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It's a go for me and possibly my son Joey. Where and how do we pay?
Most likely, we would be driving from Denver. It's a tough one day drive from Denver.
--Greg--
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o SCHEDULE. Create playlist, create calendar, schedule multiple playlists.
o FPP. We will go through the process of setting up some FPP's, we will set up master/slaves and run lights.
thanks
sean
Sean will the scheduler be the FPP rather than NC?
I have also paid for my air fare to come in Friday and Leave Monday, I am really looking forward to this.
I also have to agree with Steve somewhat (not as adept) as I have not really put together a sequence but actually used JonB256 Dalek Waves and Ripples as a starting point for this years display and it was a sequence only but added other models in but really don't know how to do anything cool. I was happy with my show but it wouldn't compete with the Great Christmas Light Fight or anything close to it.
Kent
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If is ok I would like to ship my P10 to the seminar.
I'm planning on driving so I should be able to bring both my P10 panels so not sure you need to bother with it.
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If is ok I would like to ship my P10 to the seminar.
I'm planning on driving so I should be able to bring both my P10 panels so not sure you need to bother with it.
Thanks, that will save me $400 :-)
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For some of the extras Steve lists can't we just use extra time outside the 9-5 in an open area of the hotel somewhere like after dinner Sat (or during dinner at some place) or early Sun?
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Mark; yes we can. we could do an advanced session, say how to pull xlights code, build new effects or file effects.
I will cover layering in depth sa part of the normal 16 hour course.
I think my wife will cover creating an emotional experience in sequences with her ideas on timing, colors and form.
We can plan an extended session on sat night someplace. If no one rents the classroom, i think we can use it into sat night.
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For some of the extras Steve lists can't we just use extra time outside the 9-5 in an open area of the hotel somewhere like after dinner Sat (or during dinner at some place) or early Sun?
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What you mean do that instead of walk the strip till 2am? Actually I invited my wife to come with me. Me alone in Vegas could have been a problem...lol.
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Sean if we could do that Saturday Night that would really be great. This sounds like it will be a great experience and those that are not there will really miss learning how to really use Xlights, I'm really looking forward to being there.
Gil I also have my wife coming with me but she does not get involved other than being a cheering section along with my great grand children but they are not coming. I usually always have my wife with me if I'm away from home. I think it will be great to meet everyone.
Kent
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Well I actually want my wife to learn to sequence. She was interested this past season but it was so close to crunch time it was hard to try to teach and sequence what I needed at the same time. I also realized you need a good structure to teaching someone new. As I got into teaching her I realized its a lot of stuff to learn for someone completely brand new.
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Gil I totally agree. The decision to do something with Pixels was made last year in time to take advantage of some presales. I had no idea how anything worked, fortunately I found xlights and the forum and started my learning curve. I also had no idea how long it would take to build a display and was very excited to have JonB256 share his Dalek Trees and Ripples sequence. Now after a display that worked and a year of building I am glad to be able to actually learn. I would like to have my wife's help and who knows the association of this event may change that. I do have a grandson that is not afraid of heights and he has been a really big help on the ladder and future wise my roof. We were able to totally take down and put away the display this last Saturday and I am glad we did as it snowed about 5" that night.
I had a funnel cake concession stand that I transferred to him this last summer and in the process there were some events that went into the night. I had extra lights and matrix material so I made a banner that was 10' across. At one event they were supposed to take down the stands at 10:00 PM but as I went onto the internet to see how they were doing I was surprised to see them selling until 10:40 PM. I asked him about it and he said the banner created enough attention that people from other areas started coming to see what was going on. He sold an extra $250 of product in that 40 minutes and started playing with xlights himself to learn more....lol
You never know
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Well I actually want my wife to learn to sequence. She was interested this past season but it was so close to crunch time it was hard to try to teach and sequence what I needed at the same time. I also realized you need a good structure to teaching someone new. As I got into teaching her I realized its a lot of stuff to learn for someone completely brand new.
I highly recommend this method to get spouses started. Crystal started with xLights sequencing last year and she just told me today that she wants to take the soldering class at this year's Christmas Expo. WOW! I was floored - and elated at the same time. She is picking up even more lighting skills as time goes on. Couldn't ask for more.
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Got my room and flight booked, wife is coming but she will be learning from me later, I hope I can teach her as she did real well this year with a little tutoring from me. She is much more creative than I am.
I agree with the additional Saturday evening extended session. for more learning, or even networking, having dinner together, etc. I think the wife would join us for dinner / meet / greet, etc. if it is ok with the group.
Sean, will there be power strips available for the laptops during the session in the classroom. I am getting a new battery for my laptop shipped in so I might be ok but I don't know if it will last all day, any thoughts about the logistics of recharging the laptops might be an issue for some.
Looking forward to meeting all and learning more, the Christmas Expo last year was just a beginning to start learning for me. Thanks to all.
Jess Holland
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Sean, just making sure I'm not missing it. Has the link for the store been shared already or is there a store on this site I'm unaware of? Just want to make sure I don't miss out. Thanks!
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link not posted yet.i am on a big project at work this week. i already made deposit so everything is going forward. by weekend or next week ill open it up. i am testing transactions now.
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For some of the extras Steve lists can't we just use extra time outside the 9-5 in an open area of the hotel somewhere like after dinner Sat (or during dinner at some place) or early Sun?
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What you mean do that instead of walk the strip till 2am? Actually I invited my wife to come with me. Me alone in Vegas could have been a problem...lol.
Last time there we played a game to see who could collect the most "Business" cards. We started at MGM and walked to Bellagio and back to the Excalibur.
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Has the store been opened yet? I want to sign up for the streaming access!! Don't want to miss out!
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It will open tomorrow
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How will we know where to go to get to it?
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The store is open http://www.nutcracker123.com/store
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