Converting effect inventories from Finale Business to Finale 3D requires 3 or 4 steps (depending how your effects are stored).  The first couple steps can be done in one sitting.  The third step is usually something you do incrementally over time. The fourth step is simply connect your inventory (if applicable). Regardless of how your effects are stored in Finale Business the best way to convert them Finale 3D is using the "Noah's Ark Strategy" as detailed below. Figure 1 – Video overview of "Noah's Ark Strategy for migrating effects from Finale Business to Finale 3D   Create a "Noah's Ark" file in Finale Business.  This step involves creating a show (HBS file) in Finale Business with one of each of your effects. Instructions for this step are exactly the same regardless of whether your effects are stored in "My Fireworks" or in a Master Inventory / Finale Inventory. Finale Business doesn't have an export function for "My Fireworks", so some manual work is required to transfer the effects to Finale 3D.  A Master Inventory / Finale Inventory account can be connected to Finale 3D, but a "Noah's Ark" file is still required to retain custom simulations created in Finale Business. Creating a "Noah's Ark" file is the only way to retain custom simulations created in Finale Business. Figure 2 – Video tutorial: create "Noah's Ark" file   Import "Noah's Ark" file in Finale 3D.  After creating your "Noah's Ark" HBS file in Finale Business, the next step is to import the file into Finale 3D. If your effects were created using VDL in Finale Business, the VDL will be imported into Finale 3D. If you created custom simulations using the colorful graphics editing panels at the top of the Finale Business screen, the import process will reverse engineer your effects and automatically generate the best possible VDL representation for each effect. Figure 3 – Video tutorial: import "Noah's Ark" file into Finale 3D   Improve the quality of the simulations.  Having imported your "Noah's Ark" file into Finale 3D, the next step is to tune the simulations. Finale 3D uses an entirely new, upgraded rendering engine. The import process does the best possible job transferring VDL and reverse engineering custom simulations, however, some adjustments to imported effects are usually necessary. Tuning of effects can be accomplished by updating the various fields in the Finale 3D effects window, and especially by editing the effect VDL. Precision fine tuning of effects is also possible using the Finale 3D effect editor (not yet available, anticipated May 2020). Figure 4 – Video tutorial: tune simulations   Connecting Master Inventory / Finale Inventory and merge "Noah's Ark".  If your effects are in a Master Inventory / Finale Inventory, you will need establish the connection to Finale 3D by going to "finale3d.com > My Account > Connect To Finale Inventory" page, as described in Account setup. Once the connection is successful, the inventory will then appear in your effects window in Finale 3D and still appear in your Finale Business inventory view. Please note that there are some tricky backwards compatibility issues for making effect simulations look good in both Finale Business and Finale 3D. We do not recommend making changes to your Master Inventory / Finale Inventory until you are 100% ready to make the transition to Finale 3D. For more information, please see Inventory compatibility with Finale Business (and how to fix cakes). After connecting your inventory to Finale 3D, the final action is to merge your "Noah's Ark" and inventory by doing "Effects > Paste clipboard into effects window, add or update". Figure 5 – Video tutorial: connect to Finale Inventory   Get the effects to show up in 3D If your effects are in "My Fireworks" in Finale Business, then you'll need to copy them out of Finale Business in an HBS file and import them into Finale 3D. Once imported into Finale 3D, these effects will no longer have any connection to the "My Fireworks" of Finale Business, so you can improve the simulations in Finale 3D without worrying about backward compatibility. To copy the effects out of "My Fireworks", you need to create a show in Finale Business with one each of each of your effects, one after another. Then save the show as an HBS file and import it into Finale 3D with "File > Import > Import Effects from HBS file...". Once your effects show up in Finale 3D as rows in the effects window, you will probably need to edit some of the simulations or the effect parameters to make them look good. The editing process depends on how the simulations were created in Finale Business originally, as described in Table 1. For most effects, the process begins with right-clicking on the effect row in the effects window in Finale 3D, and selecting "Edit this effect simulation or rack..." from the context menu. That command brings up a dialog that incorporates the original VDL description and any other parameters that affect the simulation, such as the prefire, duration, height, and number of shells if it is chain. The dialog displays the combined information in the "Input description" field, which you can edit. As you edit the description, you can see the interpretation of what you are typing, and resulting specifications of the simulation below, in the green read-only boxes. Table 1 – Editing process to adapt Finale Business effect simulations to Finale 3D Simulation in Finale Business What to expect in Finale 3D How to fix it in Finale 3D Imported or created with the control-G "Create simulation" dialog. Simulation should look pretty good. No editing required. Optionally you can add adjectives like "Big" or "Dense" to the VDL as described in VDL effect adjustment terms. Created on the timeline using "Combine into cake..." (cakes only) . Simulation will be reverse engineered upon import and should contain the correct number of shots, timing and firing pattern. If the cake simulation has the correct number of effects and timing but the effects themselves look bad, insert the cake into a test show in Finale 3D and do "Effects > Break apart cake" to break it apart into its constituents arranged on the timeline.  Then right click on the constituents to edit them, and/or change the timing by rearranging them on the timeline.  When they look right do "Effects > Create cake from selected items..." to re-create the cake.   Alternatively, if you just want to create a quick placeholder simulations, follow the instructions in Creating or importing a simple “placeholder” cake simulation. Customized using the colorful graphics editing panels. Simulation will be reverse engineered upon import and should look decent subject to several factors. Some editing may be required. Right click and do "Edit this effect simulation or rack..." from the context menu. You can add adjectives like "Big" or "Dense" to the VDL as described in VDL effect adjustment terms. Precise fine tuning of the effect simulation will be possible when the Finale 3D effect editor is released (not yet available, anticipated May 2020).   Improve the quality of the simulations To fine tune effect parameters in Finale 3D you can use the Finale 3D effect editor (not yet available, anticipated May 2020), and you can create cake simulations from individual effects using the Effects > Create cake from selected items..." function. You can also create complex effects including multi-effect cakes by typing in the VDL directly, but the syntax of VDL for cakes is a little complicated. You can do some degree of customization by adding adjectives like "Big" and "Dense" to the VDL, as described in VDL effect adjustment terms. You can also edit the prefire, duration, height, and chain number of shells (devices) directly in the columns of the effect table. These parameters will apply to the simulation directly. For example, if you change the duration of a comet from 1 second to 10 seconds without changing its height, the comet will shoot up into the air to an apex at its original height but then it will come crashing back down to the ground. Changing the prefire of a shell to anything >= 0.5 affects the lift delay for the shell to break without affecting the height of the apex of the full trajectory, so a prefire of 0.5 seconds would cause a shell to break on the way up, looking like a flower pot. Changing the prefire of a shell to anything < 0.5 introduces a delay before the simulation begins, and results in the default lift delay based on the caliber of shell. Changing the duration of a shell affects the lifetime of the stars; whereas changing the duration of a cake affects the timing of the shots within the cake. The full explanations are shown in Table 2. Table 2 – Editing specifications fields directly in the effect table Field (column) For shells For comets and mines For cakes and candles Prefire If prefire >= 0.5, it represents the time to break, and adjusts whether the break is before or after the apex. Does not affect exit velocity and thus does not affect the apex of the trajectory. If prefire < 0.5, it introduces a delay before the simulation to represent the time between firing system ignition and the effect actually getting started. If prefire >= 0.5, it does not affect simulation but does affect the scripting delay between ignition and effect time on the timeline. If prefire < 0.5, it introduces a delay before the simulation to represent the time between firing system ignition and the effect actually getting started. Affects the lift time of shells in the cake as described in detail in Cake and candle duration (and prefire) Duration Lifetime of stars, adjusts whether stars expire quickly or linger all the way to the ground. Lifetime of stars, adjusts whether stars expire quickly or linger all the way to the ground. Affects the timing of the cake shots (first launch to last break) as described in detail in Cake and candle duration (and prefire) Height Height of the apex of the trajectory in meters. Height of the apex of the trajectory in meters. To make "Ultra-fast" or "Laser" comets, set the height high and the duration small. Affects the height of all effects in the cake. Devices Affects number of shells in the chain, if the item is a chain. No effect. No effect.  

Creating and exporting a script for your firing system is basically a four-step process: DESIGN. Create the show by inserting effects. See Getting Started Basic Instructions. ADDRESS. Assign firing system addresses for all the effects ("Addressing > Address show"). EXPORT. Export the script ("File > Export > Export firing system script file(s)"). DOWNLOAD. Transfer the script file to your firing system controller. Depending on your firing system, the script may be downloaded using a USB flash drive (example: Cobra, Pyrosure, StarFire), or downloaded using the firing system's software (example: FireOne, Galaxis, Explo), or by downloaded directly from Finale 3D (Pyrodigital, Pyromate). At a finer level of detail, the first three steps often expand into this list of steps: Set the show duration and other show information from the "Show" menu. Layout your shoot site by adding firing positions ("Positions > Add...") and dragging them on the grass. Add your music ("Music > Add song or soundtrack"). Press the yellow play button or the spacebar on your keyboard to place the music, and tap "i" to insert empty cues. Insert effects by selecting a position, then selecting a time or empty cue on the timeline, then clicking the thumbnail icon for the item in the effects window. Assign firing system addresses for all the effects ("Addressing > Address show"). Export the script ("File > Export > Export firing system script file(s)"). Print a "Wiring Script" report for the crew to set up the show ("File > Reports > Basic reports > Wiring Script"). Even this deeper level of detail doesn't include all the functions the software can perform for you, such as making videos, printing labels, or creating rack layout diagrams, but these basic steps are the steps that are common for almost all scripted shows, so they are good starting point.

Finale 3D's rendering engine runs almost entirely on a computer's video card, also called a graphics card or graphics processing unit (GPU), so if you are considering buying a new computer to run Finale 3D, the most important specification for your new computer is its GPU. By and large, Finale 3D will run on almost any Windows computer sold in 2018 or later, and will run on many computers as old as 2016 or older if they have good GPUs.  In the Mac world, Finale 3D works on any Mac from 2016 or later running Windows over Bootcamp or Parallels. All versions of Finale 3D have the same system requirements. Regardless of whether you are running the Lite, Hobbyist or Pro version of Finale 3D, the system requirements are exactly the same. Overview of recommended system requirements: Get a computer with at least 8GB of RAM, a solid-state drive (SSD), and the best GPU you can afford. If you can't remember those details, you can just buy a "gaming computer" or a "multi-media computer", because computers advertised as such will generally have the right specifications. Avoid buying a computer whose graphics capabilities are described as "Intel integrated graphics" or "Intel HD graphics" or really anything that says "Intel" or "integrated" (from a graphics perspective). The reason is because those words mean is that the computer does not actually have a dedicated GPU. Expect to pay about USD $1100 to USD $1300 for a brand-new computer with our recommended configuration.  However, you can get an acceptable new computer with a decent GPU for as low as USD $800 if you are willing to compromise on other specifications. You can save even more by purchasing a used, refurbished, or manufacturer re-certified computer; these are readily available from a wide variety of online retailers.   Table 1 – Minimum specifications and recommended specifications Specifications Operating System (OS) Graphic Card (GPU) RAM CPU Graphics driver Minimum Windows 10 64bit Intel HD Graphics 4400 8GB Any 2018 up-to-date Recommended Windows 10 64bit, Windows 11 Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 (or better) 16GB Any 2018 up-to-date   How to compare video cards The Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060 graphics card was released in 2016, but we continue to recommend it because it is a fast GPU for a reasonable price. Obviously, you can spend more for a faster GPU, which will make Finale 3D run smoother on complex shows, but the GTX 1060 is good middle ground. However, because of its age, you are not likely to find new computers that include the GTX 1060. Fortunately, you can easily compare graphics cards on the market today by simply following these steps. Go to videocardbenchmark.net Use the search box to find the GPU you are considering. For example, suppose you found a laptop that advertises the "GeForce GTX 1650" GPU. Simply enter "GeForce GTX 1650" or "GTX 1650" (without the quotes) and click Find Videocard. Note that there are often multiple versions of a given card. In the case of the GTX 1650, you will see "GTX 1650", "GTX 1650 (Mobile)", "GTX 1650 Ti", amongst others. If the computer you're considering is a laptop, assume you will get the "Mobile" version of the GPU unless the specifications specifically say otherwise. Note the "G3D Mark", which is the number in the first column of the table, this is the GPU's benchmark. In our example using the GTX 1650, the G3D Mark is about 7000. Compare the G3D Mark value to our recommended card (the GTX 1060). For reference, the mobile version of the GTX 1060 has a G3D Mark of about 8000. Looking back at step 3, we can see the G3D Mark for the GTX 1650 is about 7000. This isn't quite as good as our recommended card, but Finale 3D will still perform well. For best performance, select a GPU with a G3D Mark of at least 6000. Video 1 – How to select a computer to run Finale 3D  

Finale 3D supports a variety of Pyromate controllers, including 32 pin and 45 pin digital controllers, 45 pin analog controllers, and SmartShow 32 pin systems.  To create and download a script for the Pyromate firing system, please follow these three steps: Address the show ("Addressing > Address show"). Export the script ("File > Export > Export firing scripts"). Download the show to your controller ("File > Download > Download firing system script to Pyromate") Step 2 creates the script file, which is a text file with a "PMM" extension.  While it is possible to open this file in a text editor, the file is not meant for humans to read or write.  It contains only the data that the controller requires for shooting the show.  Thus, most Pyromate users will not need to concern themselves with the file format described in this section, except for some notes on module addresses for the 45 pin modules, mentioned in Table 2. Finale 3D also supports the Pyromate SmartShow-based firing systems.  If you use SmartShow, then you will only do step (1) and (2).  Step (2) will save a CSV file instead of a PMM file, which you will open in the SmartShow software for firing the show.     Figure 1 – Pyromate Digital NightHawk firing system     Table 1 – File format and encoding File format Extension Text encoding Field delimiter End-of-line Text .PMM ASCII Tab CRLF The script contains rows for the firing events, i.e., unique combinations of module, pin, and ignition-time.  Multiple effects can be combined on a single cue.  The special characteristics of the script are shown in the following table:   Table 2 – Special characteristics Special characteristics Description Sort order of rows Rows sorted ascending by effect time, then by module number, then by pin number. What rows represent Each row represents a unique firing event, a module/pin/event-time combination.  For example, a chain of five shells will be one row, not five.  A pair of shells shot together from the same position will be one row, not two, even if the shells are different effects.  A flight of shells shot together from multiple positions with the same module-pin using scab wire is still one row. Events at different times are necessarily different rows, even if their addresses are the same.  For example, two flame projector shots at different times, triggered by the same module-pin address, will be two rows because they are at different times. Header The file contains a single header row consisting of the letter N, followed by tab, followed by the show name in a padded field of 16 characters. Time resolution The Pyromate digital systems support 1/100th second time resolution; the analog systems support 1/10th second resolution. Finale 3D rounds events to the required time resolution in the export process, and displays a warning in the summary dialog indicating the number of adjustments made. Module numbering The Pyromate SmartShow-based firing systems number modules 1-99. All other Pyromate digital systems number modules 1-99 for 32 pin modules or 100-199 for 45 pin modules. Pyromate analog systems number modules 1-12 or A-L, corresponding to the 12 connectors on the right side of the panel labelled A-L (Finale 3D supports both 1-12 and A-L formats in the script window).   Module numbers formatted as letters A-L in the script window are converted to the corresponding numbers 1-12 in the exported file. Electrical constraints The Pyromate analog systems can fire multiple pins simultaneously on the same module, but cannot fire pins on different modules simultaneously. In the analog Pyromate export function, Finale 3D automatically separates simultaneous shows on different modules by a tenth of a second, or more if there are cascading conflicts, in order to satisfy this electrical constraint. End-of-file row The file contains a single end of file row consisting of the letter S, followed by tab, followed by 0, followed by tab again, followed by 0 again. This row also includes trailing CRLF characters, even though it is the last row in the file. Module addresses of 45-pin modules Digital Pyromate controllers use module address range 1-99 for 32-pin modules, and 100-199 for 45-pin modules.  Thus if you address a show for 45-pin module types, the module addresses start at 101 and count up; whereas if you address a show for 32-pin modules types, the module addresses start at 1. If you address a show for 45-pin modules and 32-pin modules (indicating the module types by right clicking positions and editing their position properties), the addressing function will address all the modules in the same sequence of numbers, but it will add 100 to all the 45-pin module addresses.  Thus a sequence with three 32-pin modules, followed by three 45-pin modules, followed by three 32-pin modules would be 1, 2, 3, 104, 105, 106, 7, 8, 9. If you prefer a sequence like 1, 2, 3, 101, 102, 103, 4, 5, 6, or any other sequence, you can set the "Start Module" field for all the positions by editing their position properties.  Make sure that positions with 45-pin modules get addresses >= 100, and make sure if positions have multiple modules that their ranges do not overlap. After the header, each row in the script has a number of fields separated by the tab character.  The names of these fields and their descriptions are the following: Table 3 – Specifications of script fields Field name Description Row designation The letter "s" (denoting a digital script) or "S" (denoting a script for the analog system). Line number The row count, beginning with 1. Shot number The count of unique event times, beginning with 1; multiple rows with the same event time have the same shot number. Group number Finale 3D writes the number 0. Event time The time of ignition in hundredths of a second for digital systems, and tenths for analog systems. Module number For digital systems, a number from 1-99 for 32-pin modules, or 100-199 for 45-pin modules; for analog systems, a number from 1-99. Pin number A number from 1-32 for 32-pin modules, or 1-45 for 45-pin modules.   An example script is shown below.  Notice the last two rows are at the same event time but have different modules and therefore cannot be combined into a single row. N test_pyromate.pm s 1 1 0 276 101 1 s 2 2 0 286 102 1 s 3 3 0 296 103 1 s 4 4 0 306 104 1 s 5 5 0 316 105 1 s 6 6 0 326 106 1 s 7 7 0 336 107 1 s 8 8 0 346 108 1 s 9 9 0 356 108 2 s 10 9 0 356 109 1 S 0 0 Figure 1 – Example Pyromate script   Table 4 – Example files Download link Explanation test_pyromate.pmm Example exported file to be downloaded to controller (PMM) test_pyromate.fin Example show file test_smart_show.csv Example SmartShow exported file (CSV)

If there's only one type of rack that matches an effect in the show, then the "Racks > Add racks for show" function and the addressing functions will assign the effect to that kind of rack, obviously, but if there are multiple types of racks that match an effect in the show, which rack should the functions choose?  This question often arises for companies that use fan racks and straight racks in the same show, or different kinds of racks for finale chains than for the regular shells in the show.  Some companies also have racks of specific lengths to match chains of the same length.  For all these cases, you can control what kinds of racks are used for specific shells with the "Rack Type Default" and "Rack Type" fields that you can unhide in the effects window and the script window from the blue gear menus. The Rack Type is an optional matching condition.  If a rack has a non-empty Rack Type, then it will only match effects in the script that have the same Rack Type.  Thus to make a set of fanned effects in the show get assigned to fan racks, instead of regular straight racks, you can set the Rack Type Default field of the fan racks in the effect window to "fan" (or any other word of your choice), and then set the Rack Type field of the fanned rows in the script window that you want to be assigned to these racks to "fan" also.  The matching condition will cause the fan racks to be used for these fanned effects in the show! The example in Figure 1 shows the default rack layout for a show that includes a trident of three shells in a fan, plus four additional shells straight up. Since no Rack Type was specified, the "Addressing > Add racks for show" function just adds regular straight racks for all the shells, tilting the racks as required for angled shells.   Figure 1 - Without "Rack Type", tilted racks may be used for fanned effects   If you specify the Rack Type of "fan" for the three trident shells in the script window (leaving the Rack Type of the other shells blank), and specify the Rack Type Default of your fan rack that has tubes fanned out, then the fan rack will be used for those shells, as shown in Figure 2.  Comparing Figure 1 and Figure 2, you can see that Figure 1 shows two tilted racks on the left and right sides, whereas Figure 2 doesn't show any tilted racks.  The fan rack in Figure 2 is rotated sideways so that its fanned out tubes are aligned with the angles of the shell trajectories.   Figure 2 – The "Rack Type" field can force fan racks to be used for the fanned effects   The Rack Type field can be used for any circumstance in which you want to specify the kind of rack that is used for specific effects in the show.  The circumstances relating to fans are usually dependent on the angles of the effects, obviously, rather than the type of effects, because the angles are the reason you are choosing the fan rack in the first place.  You can also use the Rack Type field to control what racks are used for specific types of effects. You may be wondering why the Rack Type field is called "Rack Type Default" in the effects window, and just "Rack Type" in the script window.  It's a small difference, but it does have meaning.  Most of the properties shown in the effects window are intrinsic properties of effects, meaning that every instance of the effect in the show has the exact value specified in the effects window.  For intrinsic properties, if you change the property in the effects window, the change automatically applies to all of the effects in the script that reference it. Because the Rack Type can depend on the circumstance (you set the Rack Type to "fan" for fanned effects but leave it blank for non-fanned effects), the Rack Type values in the script can be different for different rows referring to the same effect in the effect window.   Thus the Rack Type values can't just be references to an intrinsic property of the effect definition, or they would all be same in the script, and you therefore wouldn't be able to change them in the script. The field in the effect window is called "Rack Type Default" because that is the initial value for the "Rack Type" of the effect when it is inserted into the script, even though you can change it in the script after it is inserted.  

The Finale 3D Hobbyist version may not include the visual layout of Pro, but it does include powerful tools to count the number of racks required.  The Hobbyist tools allow you to create your own racks so the counts correctly reflect the numbers of tubes in your racks and any special configurations you might have of single-shot racks.  Based on the counts, you can print reports listing the total racks required for the show, and the racks required per position. The process for generating rack counts is the same as the full rack layout process of the Pro version, except without doing any visual layout.  So even if you have the Pro version of Finale 3D, if all you want is rack counts you can follow the simplified process described here. All you need to do to add racks for the show is select the menu item, "Racks > Delete and re-add racks for show..." and choose the number of tubes per rack for the various sizes of effects, using what Finale 3D calls "Easy Racks."  Finale 3D will add the minimal number of racks to accommodate the show you’ve designed.  After that, you can address the show and print rack reports from the "File > Reports" menu (in contrast the visual rack layout reports, which are in "File > Diagrams").  Scripting a show with rack counts is a simple, two step process: Design show Add racks for show   Adding racks for the show Add racks for a show design using the simple menu item "Racks > Delete and re-add racks for show..."  A dialog like the one shown in Figure 1 will appear with a list of all the types and sizes of effects that the show contains.  For each type and size of effect, you can select what kind of rack applies.   Figure 1 – The "Add racks" dialog gives you choices of what racks to use for every size and type in the show.   When you click the "Add" button, the function will add however many racks are required, at the proper angles for the effects.  The dialog of Figure 1 does give you choices of what racks to use, and also options to ignore specific sizes or types of effects in the show.  For example, if you don't use cake racks you can just click the "ignore" checkbox for the cakes in the dialog (not shown in Figure 1 because this example doesn't have any cakes).  Similarly, you can ignore any particular size effects or effects that have any specific "Rack Type" property (see Using the “Rack Type” field for fan racks).  In the example, the 2.5" single-shot effects are being ignored. The collection filter at the top of the dialog filters your rack choices.  You can customize your own racks with the "Racks > Create rack..." function, or you can use some of the pre-defined racks in the "Generic Effects" collection.  You can also use "Easy Racks" which are available no matter what collection filter you choose.  If you choose Easy Racks, you can specify the number of tubes per rack for each size on the fly, right in the dialog.  Notice that the Easy Rack choice for 3" mortar racks at the top of the Figure 1 dialog has a Tubes/rack field that is editable, whereas the other racks chosen for the single-shot effects have a Tubes/rack field that is not editable, as they are not Easy Racks. The dialog shows on each row how many effects the show contains, and also how many racks are required ("Racks to add") on the basis of your choice of rack.  The number of tubes per rack obviously affects the number of racks required, but so do a number of other factors, like the angles of effects and the optional rack constraints that you can set up if you customize your own racks.  If you have a limited number of racks in your physical inventory, you may choose to use the "Limit" field to impose a limit on the number of added racks for a size or type.  The limit applies to the total number of racks of the specified size or type.  If your show already has some racks and you are adding more racks after making a change, the limit takes into account both the existing racks and the racks to be added. The "Leftover effects" row at the bottom of the dialog indicates if any effects do not fit in rack choices on account of their angles.  Since the "Add racks" function automatically adds racks at the proper angles, leftover effects are rare and usually regarded as an error.   The field can become non-zero if you select a rack that has pre-configured angles or a rack that is defined as non-rotatable.  Ignored rows in the dialog do not contribute to leftovers. Racks that you customize yourself can be made to be compatible with all effect sizes or with size ranges.  If you select a fits-any-size rack for one of the rows in the Figure 1 dialog,  other rows may become disabled on account of the fact that the racks added by your selected fits-any-size choice for one size will also accommodate the effects of another size.  That's why the 1.5" and 2" rack rows in Figure 1 are green.  The 2.5" row is green because it is ignored.   What if more racks are required? In some rare circumstances when you address the show with "Addressing > Address show..." the addressing function may report that you haven't added enough racks.  The summary dialog will indicate "racking errors" for the effects that are missing racks.  If you get this message, it is usually because you've changed the show design and just need to repeat the function to add racks, but if that doesn't work you can just do the function, "Racks > Add racks for selected events" immediately after addressing the show (the addressing function leaves the relevant effects selected when it reports racking errors).    These circumstances can arise when you address the show with complex addressing constraints, because you add racks prior to addressing the show and thus the functions that add racks can't take into account any addressing constraints you may decide to use.   Table 1 – Example files Download link Explanation rack_layout_diagrams_example Example rack layout diagram (Pro only) basic_rack_list_example Example rack list report (Hobbyist or Pro)

Finale 3D supports using multiple firing system controllers in the same show.  Each firing system is called a "Universe".  After setting up the show for multiple firing systems, you can design a single, complete show.  When you export the firing system script(s), the software will automatically export multiple script files, one for each firing system or controller. A show can have multiple firing systems of the same type, or it can have multiple firing systems of completely different types. The steps for each scenario are different, so be sure to read the section relevant to the situation for you show.   Multiple firing system controllers of the same type To divide a show to use multiple firing system controllers of the same type, you simply need to specify a "Universe" value for each position in the show. To do this, hold Shift key, then click on all the launch positions in the design window for the first firing system, say, firing system A.  Then right click on any of the selected positions and choose "Edit position properties".  In the Position Properties dialog, specify the firing system and module type, as shown in the figure below. The Universe value can be a number, or letter, or word.   The Universe is just an identifier to associate each position with a specific firing system controller.  When you address your show, each universe will automatically be handled independently.   Figure 2 – Specifying the universe in the “Edit properties” dialog.   Repeat the process for all the positions assigned to the second firing system, say firing system B.  If your show has more firing systems, continue in this manner until you've assigned a universe value to all the positions.  Having specified the firing systems, go to, "Addressing > Address show" to assign firing system addresses to the events in the show. To export your script file(s), go to "File> Export > Export firing system script(s)". The export function will automatically generate a separate script file for each firing system (i.e., universe).   Different types of firing systems in the same show To use different types of firing systems in the same show, you simply need to specify the "Firing System" and "Module or Slat Type" for each position in the show. To do this, hold Shift key, then click on all the launch positions in the design window for the first firing system, say, firing system A.  Then right click on any of the selected positions and choose "Edit position properties".  In the Position Properties dialog, specify the firing system and module type, as shown in the figure below. The Universe value can be a number, or letter, or word.  The Universe is just an identifier to associate each position with a specific firing system controller.  When you address your show, each universe will automatically be handled independently.   Figure 1 – Specifying the firing system and module type in the “Edit properties” dialog.   Repeat the process for all the positions assigned to the second firing system, say firing system B.  If your show has more firing systems, continue in this manner until you've assigned a universe value to all the positions.  Having specified the firing systems, go to, "Addressing > Address show" to assign firing system addresses to the events in the show.  The firing system that you select in Address Show dialog defines the firing system for positions that do not have a firing system assigned to them. In other words, the firing system that you select when you edit the properties for a position overrides the firing system that you select in the Address Show dialog. You may notice after assigning the addresses that the "Rail" and "Pin" columns of the script window may show module, slat and pin numbers in different formats for the rows of one firing system or the other.  For example, FireTek firing systems specify the module and slat in their Rail address using two numbers (e.g., 01-01), whereas FireOne firing systems specify only a module, with a single number (e.g., 01).   As the "Address show" function assigns firing system addresses for all the events in the show, it also assigns the firing system and module type.  If you unhide the "Module or Slat Type" column in the script window, from the blue gear menu in its upper right ("Hide or unhide column" in the context menu), then you'll see after addressing the show that the rows in the script have a specific firing system module type defined. To export your script file(s), go to "File> Export > Export firing system script(s)". The export function will automatically generate a separate script file for each firing system (i.e., universe).

This section contains notes on some of the terms that are translated to other languages to help the translators making the translation files. Table 1 – Explanations Phrase to be translated Explanation ||Fancy angle colors The word "Fancy" generically means the feature or setting does something special that is too hard to describe more precisely in a small number of words. Fancy is not a standard industry term. This particular example refers to a setting for the print format of labels. The "Fancy" option changes the colors of the text depending on whether the angle is left or right. ||Paste special "Paste special" refers to copy/paste operations. Normally when user presses control-v the paste operation pastes whatever is in the copy buffer, but there are some "special paste" operations like "Paste at original times" or "Paste events only" that do something different from normal paste. The word "special" is similar to "fancy" in that it simply means the function is doing something different from normal. ||Filter syntaxnred : search for the substring "red" in any fieldn-red : search for NOT redn... This long phrase is a help dialog that explains the syntax of search phrases that the user can type into the search box to filter the effects table. For example, the line, red : search for the substring "red" in any field means if you type the word "red" in the filter box, that will filter the results to effects that contain the word "red" in their description. The next line, -red : search for NOT red shows how to filter for results that DO NOT contain the word red (the minus sign reverses the filter) ||Straight Up "Straight up" is a column in the script window that has a true/false value (true is displayed as a checkmark; false is blank). The value of "Straight up" depends on the angle of the effect. If the effect is aiming straight up into the sky, then the value of the "Straight up" field is true. This field is used for addressing priority. Sometimes people want to sort straight-up effects before or after angled effects, for example. ||Pan The Pan column is the angle of the effect around the up-axis. The Pan, Tilt, and Spin column together are the three Euler angles that define angle of the trajectory. Pan is the angle around the up-axis. Tilt is the angle forward/back. Spin is the angle around the trajectory axis itself.  Since Pan, Tilt, and Spin refer to different angles, it is important that they translate to different terms.  If the terms do not exist in a language, leave them in English. ||Sequential across rows This is a term that relates to pre-wired racks.  It means the pin numbers are sequential going across the rack rows, i.e., pin number 1 is the first pin of the first row, pin number 2 is the first pin of the second row, etc. ||Sequential across rows, half and half Like the last term except it takes two sets of pins to cover all the tubes in the rack.  The first set is like the last term, and the second set picks up in the middle of the rack rows and continues.  Each set of pins would be connected to a different firing module or slat. ||Sequential by rows Analogous to the last terms, except the pin numbers progress along each row before advancing to the next row, i.e., pin 1 is the first pin of the first row, pin 2 is the second pin of the first row, etc. ||Sequential by rows, half and half Analogous to the previous terms. ||Sequential for each row Each row starts with pin 1 and goes to pin N (if the row has N tubes). ||Aiming in to up This is an option in the "make into fan" dialog, that operates on a list of selected effects that are sometimes arranged in a line/front of positions. In this option, the first effect is angled toward the center of the front of positions, and the last effect aims straight up. ||Aiming out to up This is another option like the last, in which the first shot angles outward, away from the center of the line of positions. ||Aiming up to in Another option in the "make into fan" dialog, first selected effect aiming up and last selected effect aiming to center. ||Aiming up to out Another option in the "make into fan" dialog. ||Angle convention Some people use the convention that an angle of 0 = up. Others use the convention that 90 = up. During import, the "Angle convention" is an option for the user to choose. ||Angles First When addressing a show, some companies like to assign addresses to the angled effects before the straight up effects, so this is one of the sort options in the addressing dialog, like "Size" or "Effect Time". ||Angles Last Another sort option in the "Addressing > Address show" dialog. ||Side This means "side view". It is the label on one of the yellow camera buttons on the right side of the 3D window. Try clicking on this button, and the point of view will change to view the scene from the side. ||EmitCurve The word "EmitCurve" is a technical term for the effect editor. It describes the rate of emitting spark particles. The reason the term is "EmitCurve" instead of "EmitRate" is that the rate is not constant. It is a function that may start off fast and taper off at the end, for example. The "curve" is the function that determines the emit rate and how it changes.   Translators have asked about the context in which the word "Fancy" is used, because it is a strange use of the word. The Figure 1, below, shows the dialog for customizing labels. The "Fancy" options are some of the formatting options that use different colors depending on the values displayed. Figure 1 – "Create or edit labels template" dialog from blue gear menu of script window.  

Half of the world's fireworks display companies count chains of shells as one unit per chain; and the other half count chains of N shells as N units. The distinction comes into play when importing and exporting shows, and when updating show product quantities to or from sales orders in Finale Inventory. Device quantities shown in the Finale 3D tables Finale 3D makes the meaning of displayed quantities explicit by using the term "Devices" in the user interface, which is unambiguous. A device is distinct physical item, like a shell, that cannot be easily divided into components. Shells, cakes, cylinder shells and even peanut shells are considered single devices. Chains are not. So, in the effect table or script table in Finale 3D, the Devices column always represents the number of shells for chains. Aside from the count distinction, designers often want to represent a chain as a single row in the script, as opposed to one row per shell. Finale 3D supports this with the option "Show one row per chain" in the gear menu of the script window. With that option turned on, each chain is represented as a single row; the Devices column shows the total number of shells in the chain; and the "Angles" column shows a representation of all the angles of the shells, such as \|// for a fanned out chain of 5. The printed reports also include an option to consolidate chain rows into single rows, analogous to the "Show one row per chain" option on the script table itself. Figure 1 – Option to show chains as single rows in the script   The menu option, "Show > Show settings > Draw chains on timeline as multiple rows" is a related setting in Finale 3D that controls whether chains are drawn as single horizontal lines on the timeline with multiple break indications, or multiple horizontal lines, one for each shell.  The default for this setting is OFF, since designers usually want to see chains on the timeline as a single line, to keep the timeline simpler. Other chain related information shown in the Finale 3D tables No matter whether anyone counts chains as one-unit or N-units, we can all agree on the meaning of the term device, and therefore we can all agree that the information shown in the Devices column in the tables in Finale 3D is correct and unambiguous. However, the "Price" column and the "Used" column in the effects table show information for chains that does depend on the one-unit versus N-units distinction. If you consider a chain to be one-unit, then your price of the chain part in the effects table would be the price of the whole chain. If you consider a chain to be N-units, then the price would represent the price per shell. Finale 3D has no way of knowing what you mean, so it provides the option, "File > User settings > Chain price is for entire chain" for you to declare your meaning. Based on this setting, Finale 3D will re-calculate the displayed price per device in the script table and in the simulation window. If the chain price is for the entire chain, and you insert a chain of 5 shells into the show, then the price per shell is just 1/5th the chain price from the effect table, so that 5 times the price per device correctly equals the price for the entire chain. For Finale 3D to make this calculation, the Devices column in the effects table contains the number of shells per chain. This field corresponds to the "Chain number of devices" field in Finale Inventory, as discussed below (if you are using Finale Inventory). Figure 2 – Chain price and used count settings   The Used column in the effects table shows the number of units used in the show. Is a chain a single unit, or is a chain of N shells N units? The setting "File > User settings > Chains count as one unit in the 'Used' column" enables you to declare the meaning of units. If you set chains to count as one unit, and you insert two chains of 5 shells each into the show, then the Used column will show the number 2, not 10. The quantity shown in the Used column is particularly important, because you may choose to filter the effect window to show only the effects that have remaining stock after subtracting Used from "Available", or subtracting Used from "On Hand" (filter options are available from the "Select layout template" option in the gear menu of the effect window). For these numerical comparisons to make sense, the units of the Used column must match the units of the Available or On Hand column, which comes back to your decision of how you represent quantities of chains in your inventory management.  So for this reason, please make sure the "File > User settings > Chains count as one unit in the 'Used' column" setting is correct. The "Quota" column in the effects table is a field for you represent the quantity of each part that you have allocated to be used in the show. You can import quota values from a packing list CSV ("File > Import > Import quotas..."), or you can update the quota values directly from a sales order in Finale Inventory ("Effects > Finale Inventory > Update quotas from sales order..."). Of course you can also just manually enter the quotas. No matter how the quotas come in, though, their meaning with respect to chains is whatever your definition is, one-unit or N-units. As with the Available and On Hand columns, you may filter the effect table on the basis of a comparison of Used and Quota, so it is important that the Used column matches your meaning. Also, the user interface colors the Used and Quota cells as red or white or green depending on whether you've used too many in the show, just right, or still some to go. Updating sales order item quantities in Finale Inventory based on quantities in the show design The menu item "Effects > Finale Inventory > Update sales order from used quantities..." updates a sales order in Finale Inventory based on the quantities in the show design. This operation is another integration point in which the distinction between chains counting as one-unit or N-units matters. In your inventory management account on Finale Inventory, chains will count as one-unit or N-units according to your own definition. In Finale 3D, the show design has an unambiguous count of devices, but how is the conversion to be made from device count to chain count? Finale Inventory has two fields that enable you to declare your meaning of chain count. By specifying these two fields, you give Finale Inventory enough information to convert devices to chain count according to your meaning. The first field is in the Finale Inventory configuration page on the Finale 3D website ("finale3d.com > My Account > Finale Inventory Settings"), as shown in Figure 3. Figure 3 – In your Finale Inventory, do chains count as one-unit or N-units?   If chains count as N-units, then the conversion from devices to units is easy, because devices = units. However, if chains count as one-unit, then the chain count for any particular chain part is the number of devices divided by the number of shells per chain of that part number. To make that calculation, Finale Inventory or Finale 3D needs to know the number of shells per chain for each chain part in your inventory. In your Finale Inventory account, in the "Application settings > Product" section from the home page, you can enable the "Chain number of devices" field as one of the product properties.  This field corresponds to (and synchronizes with) the Devices column in the effects table in Finale 3D. Figure 4 – Turning on the "Chain number of devices" field in Finale Inventory   Having enabled the "Chain number of devices" field in Finale Inventory, you can import or manually enter the number of shells per chain in the product properties of the chains in Finale Inventory. With that, you've given Finale Inventory and Finale 3D the necessary information to make the conversion of the chain quantities in your designed shows into your inventory account, no matter what your definition is for chain counts, one-unit or N-units.

Slats, virtual slats, and splitter boxes all refer to the same type of firing system hardware -- a box or rail with electrical terminals on it. They only differ with respect to the representation of addresses in the exported firing system script files, which varies from firing system to firing system. Thus depending on what firing system that you use, you will probably use only one of the three terms -- slats, virtual slats, or splitter boxes -- whichever term makes sense for your firing system. The basic idea of slats, virtual slats, and splitter boxes is to partition the modules' electrical terminals (pins) onto multiple boxes or rails that can be located at different physical launch positions, rack clusters, or racks. A single cable or wireless connection connects the controller to the module; multiple cables extend from the module to its boxes or rails of terminals located at different physical locations; e-matches extend from the terminals to the effects being ignited. Thus by way of using the boxes or rails of terminals, a single module can serve multiple physical locations without requiring e-matches or scab wiring to bridge between them. Some firing systems, such as Pyrosure or FireTek, incorporate the idea of using boxes or rails of terminals integrally in the design of the firing system itself, and represent the group of terminals in the script file explicitly as a two-part rail address, such as "1-B" for module 1, slat B. We call these groups of terminals "Slats". Other firing systems support external hardware that partitions the terminals into rails or boxes arbitrarily but do not explicitly represent the partitioning in the script file format itself. We call these groups of terminals "Virtual Slats" (see Virtual Slats). Addresses of virtual slats are represented with two-part rail addresses in Finale 3D, just like non-virtual slats, but the two-part rail addresses and their pin addresses are converted back into the corresponding sub-range of pins of the parent module in the exported firing system script file. For example, you can partition the 32 pins of a FireOne module with module number 1 into four 8-pin groups that would be represented in Finale 3D as 1-A, 1-B, 1-C, and 1-D, each with pins numbered 1-8. In the Finale 3D script table you would see two-part rail addresses and pin addresses in the range 1-8, but in the exported FIR script file those addresses get converted to one-part module numbers, and pins in the range 1-32 (pins 1-8 of group 1-C would be translated to pins 25-32 of module 1 in the FIR script file). The third term, "Splitter Box", simply refers to slats that partition the terminals into pre-defined sub-ranges of pin addresses that are not explicitly represented in the script file format itself.  Explo and Galaxis splitter boxes are examples of this third category of hardware.  As you can see from these definitions, there's not much difference between virtual slats and splitter boxes.  The different terms simply reflect the fact that you can create any kind of partitioning you want for a firing system using virtual slats, whereas splitter boxes refer to pre-defined hardware listed as options in Finale 3D's user interface that you can choose from. Figure 1 – Splitter boxes like this Galaxis device may display the absolute pin numbers that the box is configured for.   While slat-based addresses in Finale 3D are always displayed as three part addresses (Module-Slat-Pin) with the pin relative to the slat, it may be the case that your physical slat or splitter box hardware displays absolute pin numbers relative to the module instead of relative to the slat, like the Galaxis splitter box shown in Figure 1.  If that's the case, you may want to create custom labels in Finale 3D using the "Pin Absolute" field or the "Module/Pin Address" field, as described in Labels basic instructions. Given these definitions, you can understand why Finale 3D uses the term "Rail Address" in the script table and in other places in the user interface instead of "Module Number".  The rail address specifies both the module and slat (two-part addresses) if the firing uses slats or if you are using virtual slats, whereas module number just specifies the module.   If your firing system doesn't have slats and you aren't using virtual slats, then rail address and module number are the same thing.   Table 1 – Definitions Term Definition Slat A distribution box or rail for a module's electrical terminals, which is explicitly represented in the firing system's script file in a two-part rail address Virtual slat A user-defined distribution box or rail for a module's electrical terminals, which is not explicitly represented in the firing system's script file Splitter box A pre-defined distribution box or rail for a module's electrical terminals, which is not explicitly represented in the firing system's script file Rail address A two-part or one-part address like "1-B" or "1" that specifies both the module and slat (a two-part address) if slats or virtual slats are required, or just the module number otherwise (one-part address) Module number The one-part address identifying a specific module Pin Absolute An optional field in custom labels that converts pins relative to the slat into pins relative to the module Module/Pin Address An address consisting of module and absolute pin numbers (converting the pin from slat-based to module-based if necessary)   The most common need for slats, virtual slats, and splitter boxes is to partition a module's pins into boxes or rails that can be located at different launch positions, but you might also want to locate the slats at different rack clusters or at different racks themselves within a launch position.  The addressing system of Finale 3D supports all these use cases  with the same mechanism: addressing constraints. Slats at different launch positions Suppose you have one Explo module with 70 pins that are distributed to three different launch positions using three splitter boxes with twenty pins each (10 pins being left over, unused). It would be important when addressing the show to apply the constraint that each splitter box is restricted to serving a single launch position, for otherwise you might have e-match wires running from position to position. But it would be too restrictive to constrain each module to serving a single launch position, because that would defeat the whole idea of using splitter boxes to distribute the module’s pins among multiple positions. In this scenario, you would use the addressing constraints section of the "Addressing > Address show..." dialog to specify that slats are restricted to a single position, but modules are not restricted to a single position.  You would address the show with the firing system = "Explo", and module type = "Explo 3 x 20K" to indicate you want to use the Explo 20-pin splitter boxes.  Based on these parameters, the addressing function will assign as many splitter boxes as necessary to your three launch positions and will ensure that no e-matches are required to bridge from one position to another. In practice, large shows that use splitter boxes typically don't use splitter boxes everywhere.  They use splitter boxes for certain positions that are close together and use non-splitter modules for the other positions.  To address a show like this, you need to create two separate sets of addressing constraints for the two kinds of positions -- those that use splitter boxes, and those that do not.  The Finale 3D menu item "Create addressing blueprint..." presents a dialog very similar to the "Address show..." dialog, enabling you to create sets of addressing constraints called "Addressing Blueprints."  Create two blueprints, one with slats restricted to a single position and modules unrestricted (for the positions using splitter boxes); the other with modules restricted to a single position and slats unrestricted (for the positions not using splitter boxes).  Right-click on the positions and edit their position properties to assign the appropriate addressing blueprint to them, and set their module type to "Explo 3 x 20K" for the splitters or "Explo 70K" for the non-splitter modules.  Do the menu item "Addressing > Address show using blueprints assigned to position..." to address the show.   Table 2 – Blueprint for slats at different positions connected to the same module Modules constrained to same (no constraint) Slats constrained to same Position   One more consideration remains.  A large show may have multiple groups of positions that are in proximity with each other, but the groups themselves may be far apart.  If you use splitter boxes for all these positions, the slat constraints and choice of module type will correctly indicate splitter boxes and ensure no e-matches bridge between positions, but there's no guarantee the splitter boxes associated with the same module are anywhere near each other.   To keep the splitter boxes associated with any individual module within the same group of nearby positions, you need to indicate what the groups are by right clicking on them and assigning a group name to the "Section" field in the edit position properties dialog.  Each group of nearby positions should have the same section name, which can simply be a number or letter or any text string, whatever you want to call it. If you look closely at the "Address show..." dialog or the "Create addressing blueprint..." dialog, you will see that the module constraints line says, "Each module is restricted to a single section and..." (emphasis added).  Modules are automatically restricted to single sections, so you don't need to change your addressing blueprints at all.  Assigning your positions to different sections to indicate their groups will ensure that splitter boxes will only refer to modules used within their group of positions.   Table 3 – Blueprint restricting modules to serve a single position each Modules constrained to same Position Slats constrained to same (no constraint)   Slats at different rack clusters in the same launch position Slats can also be used to distribute pins to different rack clusters or racks within the same position.  If you are planning to use Finale 3D for rack layout, which is optional, please see Rack layout basic instructions to familiarize yourself with the rack layout capabilities. Suppose again that you have one Explo module with 70 pins that are distributed using three splitter boxes with twenty pins each (10 pins being left over, unused), but imagine that each splitter box was to attach to a group of racks (called a "Rack Cluster").  When addressing the show you would need to apply the constraint that each slat is restricted to serving a single rack cluster, but each module is only restricted to serving a single position.  The settings are shown in Table 4.  As in the previous scenario, you would also set the module type in the "Addressing show..." dialog or the edit position properties dialog to "Explo 3 x 20K" to indicate you want to address the positions using splitter boxes.   Table 4 – Blueprint restricting slats to serve a single rack cluster each Modules constrained to same Position Slats constrained to same Rack cluster   Slats at different racks in the same launch position Distribute pins to different racks is the same as the rack cluster scenario, except the slat constraint is just "Rack" instead of "Rack Cluster" as  shown in Table 5.   Table 5 – Blueprint restricting slats to serve a single rack each Modules constrained to same Position Slats constrained to same Rack   Associating slats one-to-one with racks or rack clusters By constraining slats to the same rack, you are ruling out the possibility that a slat can have e-matches extending to multiple racks, which might not be near each other.  However you aren't ruling out the possibility that multiple slats can have e-matches to the same rack.  Imagine you had a single-shot rack with spaces for 24 tubes and you were using Explo 20-pin splitter boxes.  If you address the show with the constraints of Table 5, you might end up filling all 24 spaces with effects and using two slats (splitter boxes) to do it, the first slat covering the first 20 effects and the second slat covering the remaining 4 effects.  Since you are constraining slats to a single rack, the second slat's remaining 16 pins will be unusable for any other racks and thus for any other effects.  They will lie unused. Depending on the availability of firing system hardware and racks, you may view it as wasteful to leave 16 pins of a 20-pin splitter box unused.  You might prefer to leave 4 tube spaces in the single-shot rack unused, if that meant that your 20-pin splitter box would be fully utilized on a single-shot rack of its own.  You could implement this trade off by adding the constraint that each rack is constrained to a single slat.  The combination of the rack constraint and the slat constraint forces the slats and racks to associate one-to-one -- each rack would have one associated slat, which would serve only that rack.  The constraints are summarized in Table 6. Associating slats one-to-one with racks or rack clusters can facilitate integrating firing system slats into pre-built assemblies of racks or rack clusters.  If you know that racks or rack clusters will be associated with a single slat no matter what, then you can integrate the slat hardware physically with the rack assemblies in advance, before designing or addressing the show, and re-use the assemblies over and over again without needing to adapt them to the addressing requirements of any particular show.   Table 6 – Blueprint associating slats and racks one-to-one Modules constrained to same Position Slats constrained to same Rack Racks constrained to same Slat