Messages

1

Nutcracker Effects / WOW thanks! Single Line FastLED FX

« on: February 20, 2022, 06:21:26 PM »

Thank you to the developers for adding all the Single Line FX effects from FastLED!!

I personally used FastLED for years before using xLights.  It's great to have these effects available again!  You will be getting a donation.

 

2

Nutcracker Models / Re: Possible to copy model from one show to another?

« on: June 29, 2021, 06:21:35 PM »

Before importing the .xmodel file should I move it to the new show directory?

3

Nutcracker Models / Possible to copy model from one show to another?

« on: June 28, 2021, 07:45:27 PM »

I have 2 show folders and one has different models from the other.  Is it possible to copy the model from one show or sequence into another sequence that is in a different show folder?  If so how do you do it?

4

Bugs in xLights/Nutcracker / As pixel rendering style no longer rendering for Twinkle effect.

« on: February 11, 2021, 05:00:57 PM »

If I place a twinkle effect on a model and select "As Pixel" it will no longer display in the preview, the output is black, nothing.  Before I was able to place a twinkle effect on a model with the "As Pixel" option and the whole model would twinkle as one pixel.  Now there is no output.  This is on v2021.04 64 bit.

Thanks

5

Do You Need Help? Post it here / align effect times to nearest timing marks?

« on: December 21, 2020, 04:22:10 PM »

Is it possible to select a group of effects that have been moved, and have the start and end times self-align to the nearest timing marks?  If not what is the easiest way to copy groups of effects from one position in the sequence to another without having to re-align all the times to nearest timing marks by hand, if the timing marks interval varies, which in my case it does.

6

Do You Need Help? Post it here / where did my models go?

« on: November 22, 2020, 08:44:05 PM »

I have a story to tell and a question to ask.

I have been using xLights for only a few years.  I have used it mainly for making short animation-only displays for most holidays of the year.  This has necessitated a large number of models that I use only for one sequence.  A leprechaun for St. Patrick's Day for instance.  I am using a set of up to 20 EspPixelsticks to display the show along with 2 remote RPi0's running Pi Hat Pixels Strings.  How I managed it was I would assign each model for a particular holiday to a particular controller, and assign universe numbers accordingly for each model.  This worked fine for several years.  Not really using channel numbers but using universe numbers to define everything.  I would reuse the controllers simply by assigning different models to them and sometimes changing universe numbers.  I didn't know, and still don't know how models actually work within xLights.  What I found was that I had a large number of unused models in the preview.  I would unselect the "Active" option in the model properties for unused models and they would no longer display in the preview.  Unused models were not assigned to controllers or the controllers were deactivated for the unused models.  I had a neon-flex heart for Valentines Day for instance that was a custom model only used around that time of year. 

For Halloween this year I started having problems, and things weren't playing right on several models on the actual display and there were model overlaps of channels that I didn't know how to fix.  I ended up deleting all of the unused models to make it work.

Now for Christmas, I want to use the models that I had made for Christmas last year, but deleted at Halloween.  I don't understand how models are saved.  I tried opening the Christmas xml file from last year and it says the models are not there and asks to reassign them to existing models, which are the few that I used for Halloween.

So I also tried to open a file from the Backup folder, and still had the same problem, no Christmas models.

It seems when you open xLights, the models are already there before you open a sequence, where are the models saved?

Can I get the models back that I deleted?

I made a 2nd show folder, as I learned I should have been making individual show folders for each holiday show that had different models.

I would like to know is there somewhere that explains what all the xLight files and file types are?  Specifically:

.fseq
.xml
.xsq
.xbkp

I'd really like to get my Christmas models back for this year as there were multiple custom models I spent weeks making.

7

Bugs in xLights/Nutcracker / acceleration not symmetric?

« on: November 20, 2020, 10:58:03 AM »

Hello,

I've found that when using acceleration or a ramp for a period of time it's not equivalent to deceleration for the same period of time for many effects.

For instance, the pinwheel effect for 5 seconds, using a ramp on speed from 10 to 30.  Then directly after this, add another pinwheel effect for 5 seconds but speed goes from 30 to 10.  When played, the spinner accelerates to a peak speed then slows down, but it gets to zero speed, then reverses for a short period of time, indicating that it was decelerating more than it was accelerating in the first effect.  I've noticed this happens if you use ramps or other options in the value curves, as well as using acceleration or deceleration within effect options.  How do you get symmetric acceleration and decelerations?

8

Show Assets / Halloween display 2020

« on: November 05, 2020, 02:24:51 PM »

Here's a link to my simple Halloween display this year:

https://drive.google.com/file/d/16MDxRnVxXTmgL43waL9G8tNn2BKhpCw3/view?usp=sharing

This is later in the night and some of the prop batteries had died.  It is more of a 'haunted walk'.  I have been using xLights to do simple animations (<1min) for almost all the major holidays as I have left the lights up all year, which isn't too noticeable as they are mostly strip.  I have been on a fairly limited budget due to being unemployed but hopefully that will clear up soon.

I have been doing a Minecraft theme for about 3 years now.  This year I put background sound effects in the sequence file that played over my stereo during the animations, and had a remote button press to trigger a scary monster sound effect (not working in video) and sequence where all the lights go crazy.  It was fun for the kids.  There were leds on the ground to simulate redstone dust.  There were 3 mob heads on stakes (Enderman, Skeleton, Zombie box-masks) that I fitted with Esp8266s running Arduino sketches that ran led eye matrices and mp3 sound players with speakers, and changed mode upon activation of PIR sensors.  The Ghast had a similar setup.  The glowing lexan Creeper head had ITO plastic behind the face that detected touch and changed mode when touched.  There was also a static Glowstone and Sword, and a Jack O'Lantern that was remotely controlled by EspPixelStick (not running in the video - battery died).  I tried to make the front of the house look like a giant face using square eyes, and a squared off mouth made of EL Tape.  Next year I'll probably do an animated mouth using xLights, but El Tape looks cool.  I try to add a few more props each year but never seem to have the resources to do it all.  I have a full size mobile robotic Creeper but couldn't get it working in time.  I'd like to put the Ghast on a zip line and eventually add larger props such as a Portal, the Ender Dragon or Iron Golem and other robotic characters.  Right now I'm about 50/50 with Arduino and XLights programming, but XLights keeps becoming more capable for this type of display so I hope to use more of it's features.  Hope I can give some ideas to anyone interested in this kind of display.

9

Bugs in xLights/Nutcracker / Re: liquid effect not playing

« on: October 20, 2020, 09:51:20 PM »

1.  The effects I am trying to play are not while the whole house group is being used, they are after it is done.
2.  There are several models in rows below the whole house group that play "on top" of the whole house group effects, only the effects on those rows are seen. 
3.  There is one row, the first one after the whole house group, that won't play any effects placed on it.  All the rows below it play their effects.  See the attached screenshot of the sequence that has the blue cursor on the row where this occurs.  No effect I place on this row will play on the physical display from FPP, however, it plays on the preview in XLights.    The other rows below this row play their effects but nothing on this row.

10

Bugs in xLights/Nutcracker / Re: liquid effect not playing

« on: October 18, 2020, 06:02:08 PM »

I found out that this model will not play any effects that are put on it.  This model is included in the Whole House group, and any effects placed on the group DO show on this model.  But no effects placed directly on the model will play.  Effects placed on other models that are in the Whole House group do play correctly, just this one model will not play effects placed directly on it.  I tried removing it from the display elements in the sequencer and saving and then putting it back on.  What setting would result in a model behaving in this manner?

Thanks!

11

Bugs in xLights/Nutcracker / liquid effect not playing

« on: October 18, 2020, 05:11:27 PM »

I have 3 vertical led strips I am using with the liquid effect so it looks like flowing blood for Halloween.  On 2 of the strips it works perfectly.  The 3rd strip nothing plays on it at all for this one effect.  I am using fpp to play the sequence.  I have worked on this for hours.  I tried copying the effect from the other 2 models where it works perfectly and it still doesn't show.  In Xlights it shows fine in the previews.  I render and save the sequence and upload via Fpp Connect.  I restart the FPPD like I normally do and play the sequence.  All the other effects play on the strip except this one effect.  Can you help me with this please?

Thanks.

12

General Software / Re: Effects added to a group ?

« on: July 04, 2020, 02:54:14 PM »

Problem solved!  I figured it out I saw that the models were also added separately on the very bottom of the display elements list and I had to place the 2nd group copy below these.  I'll post a vid when it gets dark, thanks!

13

General Software / Re: Effects added to a group ?

« on: July 03, 2020, 11:22:34 PM »

Thanks for the reply.  I made a 2nd group with the same models and placed it below the 1st group.  Now I notice when I add an effect to a model in one group, it shows up on the same model in the other group also.  But I am able to place an effect on either group and it is only on one group.  However, the group effect is still overwritten by the other model effects.

Basically I have an American flag made from a custom model, the flag is a group with a stripes model that has submodels for the red stripes and white stripes, and a separate model in the flag group for the stars.  On top of the flag I want to use a Text effect like USA and the fireworks effect also, but I want them on top of the flag not covered by it.  Do you know what I should do?  Here's a vid of the flag as-is: 

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1eK10eCAqUIzyOE21cCA2UXtiHLzS5q7I/view?usp=sharing

and a screenshot of Xlights:

I tried switching the order of the flag groups in the display elements list but no luck.

14

General Software / Effects added to a group ?

« on: July 01, 2020, 06:34:58 PM »

I have a group with 2 models.  One of the models has sub-models, and the other model has a layer.  The sub-models and layers have effects on them.  I'd like to apply effects to the group that would write on top of all the effects contained in models within the group.  Is there a way to do this?  Right now the effect that applied to the group is not visible, only the underlying model effects.

Thanks

15

Do You Need Help? Post it here / Re: Color palette problem

« on: February 15, 2020, 05:53:59 AM »

Problem is fixed.  XLights crashed, when I restarted and re-uploaded, now the sequence plays right from FPP.