jcogdell

This has already been fixed, I think since update 2 2024, but it was definetly working last time I checked it.

@Iainy1961 Have you tried the DMX patch interface? It works in a similar fashion to console patch interfaces, the key thing is to make sure all your fixtures have the channel ID's assigned so you can easily identify them. Patching this way will automatically make sure that the addresses fall inside the universe ranges, with any fixtures that end up out of the universe range automatically moving tot he next universe. It also displays how full the universes are visually and fixtures can be moved around graphically in the patch just like a console

@PNWPaul Its possible that your resource manager cache has gotten corrupted, navigate to your user folder, should be somthing along the lines of C:>Users>yourname>Appdata>Roaming>Nemetschek And look for a folder named Vectorworks RM cache either delete it or rename it and restart Vectorworks. This forces Vectorworks to re index the library and create a new cache. If this doesn't fix the issue please contact your local tech support

To expand on @Scott C. Parker solution you could also set the hanging bar up as a T-corner, this would add a third magnet into the symbol and remove the need to edit the other library files to work correctly witht he hanging bar

Hi @Thomas K. Its fixed in update 4, so available fairly soon

@Charlie Winter I know this isn't necessarilly helpful for the current show you're working on but have you tried asking the MA team if they can add some tools/features to the MA3 patch interface to help with this? In my experience they listen to their users and are always on the look out for way to improve their software.

@Cristiano Alves I just tested your file and using the align and distribute tool is working as I would expect, snapping the fixtures to the truss. The workflow I used was rotate into a 3D view where I could easily select the fixtures for the first truss line group select the fixtures activate the align and distribute tool from the lighting toolset using align mode I then zoomed into the end of the hanging position and snapped the start of my line to the end of the truss chord that the fixtures need to be aligned with, zoomed backout and then zoomed in on the other end of the chord and snapped the end of the line to that end of the truss chord.

What are you class and layer options set to?

I think you may have used the Align and Distribute menu command, which will only align object in the x/y plane. The Align and Distribute tool from the Lighting tool set will align and distribute object like lighting devices to a user drawn line in 3D, If this is not working can you post the file so I can take a look to see if there's abug?

Hi Carl It sounds like you added the electrical components before you created a symbol. You have to create the symbol and then add the electrical components to it by editing either the 2D or 3D component, otherwise it will not register that it is a distributor object. The video series that @Scott C. Parker linked goes through the process in detail and should get you up to speed. If you have any questions or trouble reach out and I'll do my best to help

Do you mean alinging the fixtures rotation with the angle truss? Then yes you would have to manually set the rotation value based on the hanging angle of the truss. The quickest way to do this is to group select all the fixtures and enter the truss lines hanging angle into the Y rotation parameter of the fixtures. this should align them all in one go

This won't work with autoconnect or Braceworks. The issue is that the 60° bar is set up as a standard 2 way corner, not as a 3 way T-corner. You could in theory create a new symbol defintion to do this but I'm not sure whetehr it would deliver valid braceworks results.

Hi Peter It sounds like your license details haven't updated correctly. You best bet is to contact Design Express, they will be able to sort the issue out

Another option is the create hoist report command from the Rigging/Braceworks section of the Spotlight menu This is a specialised command that will generate a list like above with a number of sort options, including hoist id's, y- position, straight path and the specialised antways. Antways calculates the most efficient path for the onsite riggers to use when hanging the hoists and will order list accordingly.

Other than the document settings the only restriction should be the hardware you are running Vectorworks on, but I would expect this to cause performance issues and not restrict the number of lights being actively rendered.

We are currently testing the fix for the document units not converting correctly. It should be in the next update as long as no issues are found with the fix

Do you have automatic classing enabled for trusses? You can check this in the Spotlight document settings go to File > Document Setting >Spotlight preferences and look in the loads and rigging section.

Have you tried using the Align and Distribute tool from the lighting tool set? It should maintain the spacing correctly using Align mode, the only thing to watch is you may need to change your point of view slightly to be able to draw the reference line along the correct truss chord.

you can DM me the file if that works, it will be kept confidential and only used to check the issue

Are you using a template file, lighting device auto classing or possibly working with someone using a different language localisation? Any of these could affect the classing. Otherwise without seeing the file I can't really say what is happening, if you can post the file I can have a look.

Another option is to set up the automatic classing for Lights so each fixture type is assigned to its own class, you can then use the select similar tool set to class to select all the fixtures of the same type.

It may be a graphics caching related issue. Try turning off the VGM cache in the document settings and/or the vector caching in the Vectorworks preferences, then change view and re-enable. This force Vectorowkrs to recreate the cache and may fix the issue.

@Ross Harris Thanks for clearly explaining, Iwas having trouble working out how to explain the differences since I'm not a hardware expert

I'm not 100% sure, I'll see if I can find out and let you know

Ahh this is standard behavior, The issue is that if you drag and drop a symbol from the resource manager into your design you are only inserting it as a dumb symbol, instead double click on the symbol in the resource manager and it will activate the relavent insertion tool. I got a demo of the L-Acoustics plugin a couple of weeks back and its looking really good. We're actively working with several other audio companies as well to add more options for working with audio planning software.