Isadora 2.2 New Features

In Isadora v2.2 you'll find several new features and experience improved reliability. Highlights of this new release include:

  • Faster video processing performance when using actors that have been updated to run natively on the GPU.
  • Fade Times can now be specified for each scene. This new feature works in coordination with the Go Trigger feature to make cueing of scenes easier and cleaner.
  • A new Tip of the Day message is shown each time you start up Isadora, offering tips, tricks and best practices for both novice and experienced users.
  • An updated manual for Isadora 2
  • New Tutorials on the Isadora Community, featuring working with Javascript, the Kinect motion sensor, and more
  • Greatly improved performance when playing back QuickTime videos for Windows users.
  • Stages are no longer linked to the main Isadora window on Windows.
  • The Isadora preferences offer a new option to automatically opens the most recent file on launch.
  • Bug Fixes: a complete list can be found at the end of this document.

If you are just now coming on board with Isadora 2.2, you should take the time to read the Isadora 2.1 release notes. There are several important crucial tips that will help you get the most out of Isadora 2.2.

Go Trigger and Fade Times

Starting with v2.2, the space bar now functions as the "GO" button by default. Pressing the Space Bar on your keyboard will jump to the next scene automatically.

The new Fade Times are integrated into the Scene List view.[/caption]

The "GO" feature works together with the new "Fade Out" and "Fade In" times seen just above the Scene List. Simply enter the time (in seconds) you want for the current scene to Fade Out, and optionally, the Fade In time for the scene immediately following the current scene.

You can re-configure your Go Triggers to suit the needs of your project by selecting "Edit Go Triggers" from the Scene menu. Go Triggers can be activated by the keyboard, connected MIDI devices, or other Human Interface Devices (HID), and can be set to advance to the next scene, go back to the previous scene, send go forward and go backward messages, and to advance the cue sheet.

The new Edit Go Triggers dialog box.[/caption]

Each scene has its own Fade In and Fade Out times, so it is now possible to create scene transitions with unique cross-fades. You no longer need to manually add a Keyboard Watcher paired with a Jump Actor to create your own "GO" button for every scene.

To disable this new feature, choose "Edit Go Triggers..." from the Scenes menu, ensure the Direction menu says "Next Scene", and uncheck the "keyboard" checkbox.

NOTE: Documents saved with v2.1 or earlier do not automatically enable the Space Bar "GO" function! If you wish you use this feature with documents created in a prior version of Isadora, you simply need to enable by choosing "Edit Go Triggers..." from the scene menu.

Tip of the Day Dialog

You can disable, enable, or restore any hidden Tip of the Day messages from the View menu.

Automatically Open Most Recent File on Launch

Get your project running again quicker than ever: a new option in the Isadora Preferences allows you to configure Isadora to automatically open the most recent file on launch.

Monitor Window: Custom Breaks for Serial Input Data

The Monitor window would break incoming packets of data based simply on when they arrived, which made it difficult to see line breaks in the Monitor window display. This issue has been addressed with a new feature that allows you to specify which characters will force the start of a new line in the Monitor window output.

You can choose to break the serial input data by:

  • Line Feed (0x0A)
  • Carriage Return (0x0D)
  • CR/LF (0x0D + 0x0A)
  • Hexadecimal Value (any arbitrary value)
  • Decimal Value (any arbitrary value)

This setting now appears at the bottom of the Monitor Window.

Updated Manual and New Tutorials

The Isadora 2 Manual is now available. Get it here!

In addition, new tutorials are available through the Knowledge Base:

  • Working with Multiple Live Video Inputs
  • Working with Multiple Displays
  • Kinect and Isadora via Processing
  • Using the Capture Stage to Disk Actor
  • Using the Capture Camera to Disk Actor
  • "Ad-Hoc" Networking for PC
  • How to use Spout video Sharing on Windows
  • Javascript: Using the Javascript Actor
  • Javascript: Loading External Data
  • Working with Mutable inputs and outputs
  • Using Global Variables

USB Disconnect Problems Addressed

Isadora 2.2 addresses a critical issue facing users working with Isadora USB Edition where the software would spontaneously revert to demo mode while the USB key was securely connected.

Mac OS X 10.8: Mountain Lion Compatibility Issues Resolved

Isadora 2.2 resolves a critical issue where the 64-bit Isadora Movie Player crashes, or performs poorly under Mac OS X 10.8 (Mountain Lion.) These were were caused by issues with the early versions of AVFoundation in OS X 10.8.

Windows: Substantial Performance Gains when playing QuickTime movies

Due to a difference in the required calls needed to playback QuickTime movies on Windows, a substantial performance gain has been incorporated into the QuickTime movie playback engine when running under windows.

Windows: Stages are no longer linked to the Main Window

The stage now remains full screen if the Isadora workspace is minimized. This makes the behavior match how stage windows function on Mac, and makes it much easier to work with multiple application windows simultaneously.

GPU Enhanced Actors

These actors now offer mutable inputs and outputs, allowing full support for vid-GPU, vid-CPU, and on Mac OS X vid-CI which is compatible with Apple's Core Video and Quartz Composer plugins.

  • Add Alpha Channel
  • Alpha Mask
  • Buffer
  • Calc Brightness
  • Chroma Key
  • Contrast Adjust
  • Eyes
  • Eyes++
  • HSL Adjust (updated in v2.2)
  • Luminance Key
  • Matte
  • Matte++
  • Measure Color
  • Negative (new in v2.2!)
  • Panner
  • Reflector
  • Scaler
  • Shapes (updated in v2.2)
  • Shimmer
  • Text Draw (updated in v2.2)
  • Threshold
  • Video Delay
  • Video Invert
  • Video Fader (updated in v2.2)
  • Video Mixer (updated in v2.2)
  • Zoomer

More built-in GPU plugins will become available in Isadora 2.3. You will also want to download the separate FreeFrameGL installer described below to add additional video processing features.

Upgrade FAQ

  1. How do I upgrade?

    If you already have a Isadora v2 license, you only need to download the latest version and follow the install instructions. If you prefer to have both Isadora v2 and v2.2 installed on your system it is easily done by following these instructions.

  2. How do I purchase Isadora v2.2?

    You can purchase an Isadora v2.x license here.

  3. Should I update my running/live show to use Isadora 2.2?

    No. We recommend running your show with the version of Isadora it was developed with. There are some behaviors that may change when moving to version 2.2 so it is best to use your current version. You can however install more than one version of Isadora on your system, so it is possible to start working with 2.2 while maintaining the current version for your show.

  4. Can I open my Isadora v1 or v2.0 files with Isadora v2.2?

    Yes. Isadora 2.1 supports both the v1 actor processing mode, as well as, the improved v2 processing mode. In some cases slight logical changes will be necessary, but many files run without any adjustment. Please create copies of your files before opening them in a new version. It is important to allow yourself time to adjust your files for playback in a new version of Isadora.

  5. Why are some actors renamed as 'Classic XXXX'?

    When opening Isadora v1.x files in Isadroa v2.x a number of actors are automatically renamed to include the word "Classic"; for instance, the 1.x Projector actor becomes a "Classic Projector". These actors have replacements in Isadora v2, that are optimized for vid-GPU and the current OS playback systems. It is recommended that you use the new actor versions whenever possible; for important shows, migrating from the old to the new actor is recommended. The 'Classic' actors can be considered deprecated, and should be avoided - especially the 1.x Movie Players which have been known to crash on Mac OS X 10.10 Yosemite. In future Isadora versions, these "classic" actors will be removed.

  6. What is vid-GPU?

    Isadora v2 introduced support for vid-GPU. It is a video stream that is processed on the operating system's video card, freeing the CPU for other processing. The use of vid-GPU greatly increases Isadora's video processing capability and is the recommended format.

    All video and image media can now be played as vid-GPU via the new Movie and Picture players. Other image formats exist, and have been renamed to match the format of vid-GPU. The traditional classic video format is now seen as vid-CPU. When running the Apple version of Isadora you will also see vid-CI representing an Apple core image stream.

  7. What is a Mutable Input/Output (IO)?

    The mutable input/outputs of Isadora actors allow the dynamic switching of data types. In the case of many of the newly enhanced actors, it means that a single input or output can be connected to any of the three video types available in Isadora (vid-GPU, vid-CPU, vid-CI). For other actors the types of data that the mutable connection can switch to, include any of the available Isadora data types (eg: Text, Integer, Float etc..)

  8. What is FFGL?

    FFGL is FreeFrame 1.5 an open-source video effects format. FFGL supports hi-performance vid-GPU video processing. Many effects are available from 3rd party developers as well as those included with Isadora.

  9. What is the best video codec for HD playback?

    There are many factors in the selection of a video codec, including: Operating system, Hardware configuration, and your Artistic goals.
    Isadora is capable of playing HD content on any standard modern computer, and with the use of SSD (solid state drives) this ability is greatly increased.

    For more information, please read the Isadora 2.0.5 release notes where this topic is covered in detail.

v2.2 Fixed Bugs

  • Fixed an issue where overlapping patch cords don't distinguish from each other when using 'ctrl+shift' to select them.
  • Fixed an issue with the Text Draw actor would cause Isadora to crash when connecting a User Input (color) output to the Font color input
  • Fixed an issue where the video output of the Shapes Actor inverted on a vid-CPU stream
  • Fixed a PC-only issue where the 3D particle actor would instantly crash Isadora when mousing over the 'add obj' input property
  • Fixed an issue where adding a Video Mixer actor to scene editor crashes Isadora
  • Fixed an issue where the image output disappears above ZOOM of 100% when using the 'Classic Movie Player Direct' actor.
  • Fixed an issue where the video stream would lose alpha channels when using
  • Fixed an issue with the Chopper and Chop PIxels inverting for GPU video
  • Resolved a CRITICAL issue where because of the Hide Classic Actors feature in 2.1, users running 2.1 on a 1.x licence don't see ANY movie players/ projectors/
  • Fixed an issue where adding a vid-gpu 'Video Fader' actor causes Isadora to crash
  • Fixed an issue which prevented AU Editing Views from opening under Mac OS X 10.10 (Yosemite)
  • Added text to clarify that some Keyboard Combinations do not work as Go Triggers on Mac OS X
  • Resolved a critical issue which caused users running IsadoraCore USB to revert to demo mode even with the USB Key connected
  • Resolved issues where Global Keystone doesn't work as expected
  • Resolved crashes on PC caused by 3D Particles, 3D Model Particles, and 3D Player actors
  • TCP in Watcher - Text, fixed problems where a rollover of defined output caused crash
  • Added information to clarify how to activate the Stage live edit functionality
  • Fixed problems with TCP IP watchers crashing after a few cycles of the request/receive process
  • Fixed a PC-only issue which caused Isadora to crash on a lost serial connection or shutdown
  • QuickTime Photo-JPEG performance has been improved greatly on Windows
  • Force Stage Preview windows now should remain in front of everything
  • Fixed an issue where the "ctrl+g" keyboard shortcut doesn't behave correctly after ctrl shift 'f' twice
  • Resolved a video output issue with the FFGLPanSpinZoom which left video trails when zoomed out and panned
  • Resolved an issue where Global Values outputs have min/ max values switched, which blocked output to User Output actors.
  • Serial In Watcher's Incoming data unpacks incorrectly. This issue has been fixed with a new feature which allows you to choose to break the serial input packets by the desired format.
  • Resolved inconsistency with the order of the Jump Actor Trigger Input with the new Go Triggers feature.
  • Resolved an issue where FFGLvideoMixer continually adds over a couple seconds to pure white.
  • Resolved an issue where the Information Window has garbled text and/ or strange font variations
  • Corrected the Movie Player to respect the "Scale to Default Size" preference settings
  • Resolved a critical issue where IzzyMoviePlayer64 crashes or performs poorly under Mac OS 10.8 (Mountain Lion)
  • Resolved an issue with the Media Bins where if large number of media are deleted, the view doesn't move after deleting.
  • Resolved an issue with Quick Time channel which crashes the Movie Player
  • Fixed an issue preventing the Movie Player 2.0 from playing Apple Pro Res 4444 when Scale to Default Resolution preference is enabled
  • Fixed inconsistencies using the CPU-based video mixer to match other processing modes in all frame scale modes
  • Fixed an issue preventing the Classic CI Movie Player from playing Apple Pro Res 4444 when Scale to Default Resolution preference is enabled
  • Fixed an issue where transparent video linked into the HSL Adjust would lose alpha channel transparency
  • Resolved a PC-only issue where embedding a Movie Player in User Actor and updating caused Isadora to crash
  • Resolved an issue with the Video Mixer where playing a video file with transparency shows second lower video through alpha channels when the mix was set to 0.
  • Corrected the display on the GPU to CPU Converter Actor where the output thumbnail read RGB type, instead of RGBA.
  • Resolved an issue with the 3D Particle Generator's Color Shift property where the color snaps instead of fades to end color
  • Resolved a PC-only inconsistencies with the Text Draw actor bounds width, height and padding compared with Text Draw on OSX
  • Fixed an issue with stage inputs not updating to "NA" appropriately when Shared OpenGL Resources setting is changed
  • The Set Captured Media Folder can be properly set to the root of a drive on Windows
  • Fixed an issue with the MultiMix actor when using CPU video didn't handle ARGB inputs correctly
  • GPU to CPU converter, output thumbnail shows RGB for video with alpha
  • Fixed an issue on Windows when using 3D trackball where alt+control+click has no effect
  • Fixed a problem which caused the CPU-based Shapes actor output to become incorrectly mirrored vertically
  • Corrected an issue where the Scene List Scrolls to First Item Upon Deleting Scenes Later in the List. The scene would scroll to the first Scene in the list, scrolling away from the area where you just deleted items. This has been fixed so the scene list properly scrolls to the insertion point.