This article contains a complete list of the columns (i.e., fields) that can by synced between Finale 3D and Finale Inventory. Many of the columns have slightly different names between the two applications. Table 1 below shows the corresponding names for all columns and explains what type of information can be stored in each.
If you have a Finale Inventory or Shared Company Effects List account connected to Finale 3D, you can add, edit, and delete items directly in the Effects window in Finale 3D. Be careful, because if you select all (Ctrl+A), then delete, and then do “File > Sync with network” you’ll wipe everything out. There is a confirmation dialog with a summary of changes when you synch, to guard against accidents.
Table 1 – Complete list of columns for Finale 3D and corresponding names for Finale Inventory
| Finale 3D English name | Finale 3D internal name | Finale Inventory name | Explanation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Part Number | partNumber | Product ID | The unique identifier for the effect, like DOM10001 or LD3CK253. |
| Description | description | Description | The name as it appears in in the printed catalog, like “Galactic Gladiator” or “30mm Red Peony 75m” or “Bomba Roja Con Aro Azul” or “Синяя в красную хризантему”. |
| Type | partType | Choreography Tab | The physical type of the effect, which determines whether it is a single shot or mortar-based effect or something else (See Why is ‘Type’ so important? What depends on it?). Note that the values are different between Finale Inventory and Finale 3D. When importing effects, use the values recognized by the system you are importing into. The values in Finale 3D are: shell, comet, mine, cake, candle, other_effect, single_shot, ground, rocket, flame, not_an_effect, rack, macro, sfx, and light. The corresponding values in Finale Inventory are: Shells, Comets, Mines, Cakes, Candles, Other, Single Shot, Ground, Rocket, Flame, Not An Effect, Rack, Sfx, Macro, or Light. Finale Inventory also has a special value: Non-Choreographed. Effects with this value are not shown in Finale 3D. |
| Category | category | Category | A field in Finale Inventory that is restricted to the user’s pre-defined, enumerated category names, or blank. For compatibility with Finale 3D, the “Use legacy categories” option must be enabled in Finale Inventory. This setting is found on the “Product” tab of the “Applications settings” page in Finale Inventory. This field can only be updated from Finale Inventory, any value entered in this field in the Finale 3D Effects window will be cleared when you Sync with network. |
| Size | size | Caliber | The caliber of the effect, in inches or millimeters, e.g., 3” or 75mm; or blank. This field determines the size of the visual simulation. |
| Prefire | internalDelay | Prefire Time | The lift time, for shells, or the lift time of the first effect of a cake if it is a shell. The Prefire time should incorporate the fuse delay. Prefires < 0.5s will delay the simulation and will not affect the lift time of aerial shells. Prefires >= 0.5s will not delay the simulation and will determine the lift time of aerial shells. If the column or field is not present in the imported file, Finale 3D will calculate a good default value based on the size and description. The terms LFT and DLY can be incorporated into the VDL description of an item to override the lift time or delay before first launch implied by the prefire. |
| Duration | duration | Duration | The lifetime of the stars, for aerial shells, or the duration of the continuous effect for gerbs or flares, or the duration from first launch to last break for cakes. |
| DMX Fixture Definition | dmxFixtureDefinition | DMX Fixture Definition | Reserved for future features. |
| E-Matches Default | ematches | E-Matches | Reserved for future features. |
| Physical Specifications | physicalSpecifications | Physical Specifications | A field containing optional physical specifications of a rack or effect, such as: {[rackRowLengthConsumption 50]} which specifies that an effect consumes 50mm of a single-shot rack row that has a “Max. usable row length” constraint, overriding the default which is that an effect consumes an amount equal to its effect size. |
| Height Meters | height | Effect Height | The height in meters of the trajectory apex of an aerial shell, or of the spark plume for fountains and gerbs. This field determines the height of the visual simulation. In Finale 3D, this field is always meters. In Finale Inventory, you can set the Distance Unit Of Measure to feet if you want, which applies to all distances including height and safety distance. Finale 3D will convert between feet and meters automatically, if necessary, when it connects to Finale Inventory, but we recommend you use meters, for simplicity. |
| VDL | vdl | VDL Description | The description of the effect in standard pyrotechnics terminology (Visual Description Language). This field defines the visual simulation of the effect, along with a few other specifications like Size, Height Meters, and Duration. |
| Manufacturer Part Number | manufacturerPartNumber | Mfg Product Id | The manufacturer or supplier part number. |
| Manufacturer | manufacturer | Manufacturer | This is the name of the manufacturer or supplier. |
| Price | stdPrice | Item Price | The price of the item. Finale 3D will display the price of a show based on these values. For chains, you can decide whether the price means the price of the full chain or whether it means the price per device (i.e., per shell). From within the Finale 3D application, the user can select “File > User settings > Chain price, cost, NEQ, and weight are for entire chain” to make the prices and price summaries display correctly for either meaning. |
| Notes | partNotes | Notes | A user-defined field for the user’s convenience. |
| EX Number | exNumber | EX Number | A field that is useful to include for US users. This field can contain single EX numbers or a comma separated list, like 2008040132, 2004110899. This field can only be updated from Finale Inventory, any value entered in this field in the Finale 3D Effects window will be cleared when you Sync with network. |
| CE Number | ceNumber | CE Number | A field that is useful to include for European users. This field can only be updated from Finale Inventory, any value entered in this field in the Finale 3D Effects window will be cleared when you Sync with network. |
| UN Number | unNumber | Hazardous Material | A field that is useful to include for all users. This number must be in the format: UNXXXX, where XXXX is a four digit number like 0336 or 0337. Example: UN0337. This field can contain single EX numbers or a comma separated list, like 2008040132, 2004110899. This field can only be updated from Finale Inventory, any value entered in this field in the Finale 3D Effects window will be cleared when you Sync with network. |
| Delay Default | fuseDelay | Fuse Delay | DEPRECATED. An extra delay between the firing system ignition and the first launch that is copied by value (hence the the name “Delay Default“) into the Delay field of a script row when it is inserted in the script. As of February 28, 2020, use of this field is deprecated. Fuse delay should be incorporated into the Prefire time. Prefires < 0.5s will delay the simulation and will not affect the lift time of aerial shells. Prefires >= 0.5s will not delay the simulation and will determine the lift time of aerial shells. |
| Devices | numDevices | Chain Number Of Devices | The number of devices in the chain, or 1 if the item is not a chain. |
| Subtype | subtype | Effect Sub Type | A user-defined category, such as 500g Cakes, or Special Shells. |
| DMX Patch | dmxPatch | DMX Patch | A program that defines the DMX signals corresponding to the effect. |
| Hazard Default | lockoutDefault | Hazard Default | A default value for the hazard class or caliber group that show operators may use to selectively prevent effects from firing based on real time conditions. |
| Custom Part Field | customPartField | Custom Part Field | Anything. |
| Color | color | Effect Color | A single color, which the user can use as a search term. It may contain spaces but not commas. If the effect has multiple colors, this field should contain the most prominent single color that the user is likely to search for. |
| Tubes | numTubes | Rack Tubes | For racks, the number of tubes in the rack. Leave blank for anything other than racks. |
| Rack Type Default | rackType | Rack Type Default | A field that the user an employ to set matching conditions between racks and effects. Suppliers should leave this field blank. |
| Storage Location | stdLocation | Std bin ID | The “standard” location or bin at which an item is stored. Do not confuse this field with Finale Inventory‘s concept of “sublocations” or “locations”. Sublocations in Finale Inventory are not communicated to Finale 3D. Locations in Finale Inventory are communicated to Finale 3D, and can be used as filters in “File > Finale Inventory > Selected locations”. |
| Cost | stdCost | Std accounting cost | The “standard” cost of an item (not the calculated cost in Finale Inventory). For chains, you can decide whether the cost means the cost of the full chain or whether it means the cost per device (i.e., per shell). From within the Finale 3D application, the user can select “File > User settings > Chain price, cost, NEQ, and weight are for entire chain” to make the costs and cost summaries display correctly for either meaning. |
| Safety Distance Meters | safetyDistance | Safety distance | The safety distance for the effect. In Finale 3D, this field is always meters. In Finale Inventory, you can set the Distance Unit Of Measure to feet if you want, which applies to all distances including height and safety distance. Finale 3D will convert between feet and meters automatically, if necessary, when it connects to Finale Inventory, but we recommend you use meters, for simplicity. |
| Weight | weight | Weight per unit | The weight of one device (shell, cake, etc.). If you are synching to Finale Inventory, whatever units you use in Finale Inventory apply (grams, kilograms, etc.). The “Basic Product List” report and other similar reports in Finale 3D will show the total weight for all items in the show. For chains, you can decide whether the weight means the weight of the full chain or whether it means the price per device (i.e., per shell). From within the Finale 3D application, the user can select “File > User settings > Chain price, cost, NEQ, and weight are for entire chain” to make the weights and weight summaries display correctly for either meaning. |
| NEQ | neq | NEQ per unit | The net explosive quantity of one device (shell, cake, etc.). The “Basic Product List” report and other similar reports in Finale 3D will show the total NEQ for all items in the show. For chains, you can decide whether the NEQ means the NEQ of the full chain or whether it means the NEQ per device (i.e., per shell). From within the Finale 3D application, the user can select “File > User settings > Chain price, cost, NEQ, and weight are for entire chain” to make the NEQ and NEQ summaries display correctly for either meaning. |
Feet versus meters
If you import to a Finale Inventory account by synching from Finale 3D, Finale 3D converts the distance unit of measure from meters in Finale 3D to whatever unit of measure is chosen in your Finale Inventory account, so no special attention is required on your part. However, if you import directly into Finale Inventory by pasting into the import products page, Finale Inventory defaults to feet as the unit of measure for distances (e.g., effect height, width), regardless of the company’s default system of measure chosen in the application settings page.
To avoid conversion problems when importing into Finale Inventory directly, please include an extra column called “Distance Unit” with cell values of “Meter” or “Feet” in your imported table to ensure the quantities you are importing are given the correct interpretation. Without this column, the most common error is that imported heights are about 1/3rd what they ought to be, because quantities intended to mean meters are interpreted as feet.