I think this was mentioned once before, figured I’d move it to the front of the line.   3DCONNEXTION Spacemouse support would be really nice. I already use it (Spacemouse PRO) for CAD work and it’s a huge time save moving around in space and, in the case of the PRO, definable shortcut buttons for hot-keys and macros. Unfortunately I’m not a software dev but would be willing to be a test mule if this was considered.   Homepage: https://3dconnexion.com/us/ Software Developer Program: https://3dconnexion.com/us/software-developer-program/ Developers Forum (Windows): https://forum.3dconnexion.com/viewforum.php?f=19

Hi PyroBunny,   After more review and discussion, it turns out this is a complex behavior to adjust. It’s on our list of things to improve when we can but I don’t currently have an ETA for you.   To explain what’s happening a little better, when you group effects that have a duration value of 0, the visual indicator in the timeline gets shortened to 0 seconds even though the visual simulation actually lasts longer —  grouped effects show the duration value only, whereas ungrouped effects show the full visual simulation duration.   This doesn’t actually change the simulations or their true durations, but I understand it can be confusing to see the timeline indicator represent durations differently depending on whether effects are grouped or not.

Any ETA for when this bug will be fixed?

  DrewFinale wrote: Hi The Novice Pyro, this feature already exists! It’s called Nudge and uses the exact keyboard shortcuts you mentioned, Ctrl + Shift + Arrow Keys. What’s more, the nudge increment is adjustable by going to Show > Show settings > Set timeline nudge delta. The default nudge increment is your timeline snap-to resolution, but it can be adjusted to 1ms, 10ms, 50ms, 100ms, 1/2 second, or 1 second. DrewFinale  OMG! Man, I have a LOT to learn still. I looked everywhere for a possible shortcut and somehow didn’t realize that was there. SO HAPPY! lol. Thanks, Drew!!!!

  The Novice Pyro wrote: I’d really like to propose a keyboard shortcut that will move an effect back/forward in increments of a tenth of a second. Perhaps CTRL+SHIFT+< to move back .10 increments and CTRL+SHIFT+> to move forward .10 increments? SHIFT+Q opens the shift times dialog but it’s still tedious. I typically use .10 for PFT on all single shots and slices. However, more often than not, I want to adjust this on the fly depending on the sight picture I’m after or whether I want to focus on the sound of the lift versus the visual. Having a quick shortcut will save me countless hours if I don’t have to SHIFT+Q and manually enter the values. THANKS!!   Hi The Novice Pyro, this feature already exists! It’s called Nudge and uses the exact keyboard shortcuts you mentioned, Ctrl + Shift + Arrow Keys. What’s more, the nudge increment is adjustable by going to Show > Show settings > Set timeline nudge delta. The default nudge increment is your timeline snap-to resolution, but it can be adjusted to 1ms, 10ms, 50ms, 100ms, 1/2 second, or 1 second.

I’d really like to propose a keyboard shortcut that will move an effect back/forward in increments of a tenth of a second. Perhaps CTRL+SHIFT+< to move back .10 increments and CTRL+SHIFT+> to move forward .10 increments? SHIFT+Q opens the shift times dialog but it’s still tedious.   I typically use .10 for PFT on all single shots and slices. However, more often than not, I want to adjust this on the fly depending on the sight picture I’m after or whether I want to focus on the sound of the lift versus the visual. Having a quick shortcut will save me countless hours if I don’t have to SHIFT+Q and manually enter the values.   THANKS!!

Got it, thanks.

Great question. I really don’t like having to give this answer but the truth at this moment is that it’s hit or miss.   Having supplier catalogs contain accurate information and high-quality simulations is extremely important to us. When it comes American consumer and Pro 1.4G fireworks, not all of the catalogs meet a high standard. Improving the quality of existing catalogs and bringing new catalogs online is one of our highest priorities. Examples of catalogs we’ve overhauled recently include Raccoon and Wizard Pro 1.4G. At this moment, we’re working on adding Raccoon consumer items and doing an overhaul on the Dominator and Spirit of 76 catalogs.

Thank you for the detailed response, and it makes perfect sense.   I do have another question….   How accurate are the timings of effects from the manufacturers catalogs in Finale? prefire, lift time, duration etc…   Thanks  

Hi PyroExec, welcome to the Finale 3D community! Thanks for posting and for including the screenshot, that gives us a lot of useful information and makes it much easier to understand what you’re seeing on your end.   To understand the difference you’re seeing, the first thing to know is that the timeline duration bars take into account not only the primary effect duration, but also the nominal duration of any sparks emitted by the primary effect. To illustrate this is practical terms, suppose you created the following two shell effects:   Effect 1) 3″ 2.00s Red Peony Effect 2) 3″ 2.00s Charcoal Chrysanthemum   As you can see in the VDL above, both of these shells have a duration of exactly 2 seconds. This means that the time from burst to when the stars burn out will be 2 seconds for both shells.  However, as you can see in the screenshot below, the shells have duration bars on the timeline that are very different. This is because while the Red Peony stars immediately disappear after 2 seconds, the trails of charcoal sparks left behind by the Charcoal Chrysanthemum stars continue to be visible and hang in the sky (even after the stars reached the end of their life). This is an example of how two effects with the same star duration can appear in the sky for different amounts of time. The effect window lists the primary duration, while the 3D simulation and duration bars indicate the full visible duration for an effect.       You are probably thinking, okay, so what does this have to do with my silver ground strobe? The answer has to do with how Finale 3D handles “Silver”. The Chinese frequently use “Silver” and “White” interchangeably when describing effects. However, in order to avoid ambiguity, Finale 3D has a distinct definition for each color. The key difference is that “Silver” gives an effect a trail of silver sparks, where as “White” does not. You’re not seeing this when your strobes are on the ground, but your “Silver Strobe” is actually giving off a tiny silver trail, like a tiny fountain of silver sparks. In the screenshot below, you can see I’ve elevated the positions in the air which makes the silver sparks easy to see. It’s the duration of these silver sparks that are making the duration bar longer, just like they do in the example with the red peony versus the charcoal chrysanthemum. To fix the issue, right click on your silver strobe, select Edit this item (VDL), and change your VDL to use the term “White” instead of “Silver”.