annemcmills Posted May 16, 2017 Share Posted May 16, 2017 I'm trying to run Vision on my Mac using Nomad on the same machine. According to Vectorworks this is not recommended because it can be slow, but it is not impossible. However, I'm unclear how to connect the two so that the Nomad controls Vision. (Btw, I don't have a Nomad dongle... just using the free download.) Has anyone does this and can give me some step-by-step help? Thanks! Quote Link to comment
Vectorworks, Inc Employee klinzey Posted May 16, 2017 Vectorworks, Inc Employee Share Posted May 16, 2017 First try following the steps in the knowledge base article below. Quote Link to comment
Vectorworks, Inc Employee Edward Joseph Posted May 26, 2017 Vectorworks, Inc Employee Share Posted May 26, 2017 Hey guys, I spoke to anne on the phone and forgot to answer this post for those who may have had the same question. The ETC Nomad software does not output anything without the Nomad dongle. That article arose from earlier iterations of the "ETC Offline" software which pre-dates the Nomad. Currently, the Nomad will not broadcast any form of DMX to anything without a dongle or a wing. This is not implicitly stated anywhere on ETC's site that I've found. Quote Link to comment
RickR Posted May 26, 2017 Share Posted May 26, 2017 (edited) 3 hours ago, Edward Joseph said: Hey guys, I spoke to anne on the phone and forgot to answer this post for those who may have had the same question. The ETC Nomad software does not output anything without the Nomad dongle. That article arose from earlier iterations of the "ETC Offline" software which pre-dates the Nomad. Currently, the Nomad will not broadcast any form of DMX to anything without a dongle or a wing. This is not implicitly stated anywhere on ETC's site that I've found. Fortunately this is not the case. (I just downloaded a new version to be certain.) I suspect you have confused full show capable output with 'off-line w/vis' mode selected. But many things have changed since that article was written. Any Eos console including Nomad can output several network protocols. Offline w/vis mode is not suitable for performances or client videos due to the copy protection ETC has in place. Every few minutes the output flashes for a few seconds!! This looks horrible but it brief enough to ignore for pre-programming and learning Eos. In fact one can easily use their pre-built vis files, provided free along side of the videos that use the very same files. If you are having trouble, I suggest making sure your computer is on a network. sACN is the default output, but ArtNet is availble. Either one sent out your network port for your switch to send back to Vision. Edited May 26, 2017 by RickR Formatting and deleted reference to Anne. I was thinking Anne Valentino the ETC product manager for Eos. Call her if you want the real scoop! Quote Link to comment
Vectorworks, Inc Employee Edward Joseph Posted May 26, 2017 Vectorworks, Inc Employee Share Posted May 26, 2017 Thanks for the clarification rick, but that appears to be windows. The user had asked about the Mac version. To my knowledge that still doesn't output artnet or sACN. I should have clarified that the Nomad does broadcast on windows. I'll double-check mac though, maybe I just got a few bad versions in a row while I was testing. Quote Link to comment
RickR Posted May 27, 2017 Share Posted May 27, 2017 I recommend contacting ETC directly. Basic tech support folks are legendary for helpfulness, availability and broad knowledge! https://www.etcconnect.com/Support/Contact-Us.aspx As a Viz vendor you should be able to get some inside help if needed. Quote Link to comment
annemcmills Posted June 6, 2017 Author Share Posted June 6, 2017 Thanks for this information. Any update on the Mac version, Ed? I have now tried both without a Dongle, with a Dongle, and even a gadget for good measure. lol. I've tried setting it to Artnet and sACN, but to no avail. I would love to know if it works without a Dongle because I would like to teach it to my students. If it flashes, I can deal with that. I just want to teach basic previs, but I'm still stuck. Any advice would be lovely. Thank you, Anne Quote Link to comment
RickR Posted June 8, 2017 Share Posted June 8, 2017 Try calling ETC tech support. Fantastically Friendly Folks that really know their stuff! They will know what can and can't be done. Quote Link to comment
Vectorworks, Inc Employee Edward Joseph Posted June 8, 2017 Vectorworks, Inc Employee Share Posted June 8, 2017 To anyone viewing this topic, the latest version of Nomad works on both mac and pc on the same machine. I'm going to run some further tests to determine whether broadcasting to a different computer is possible. It appears as though I got a broken version back when I initially tested. For ETC users: Keep in mind that Vision uses a two-part addressing system that uses Universe and Channel. You can map whichever fields you want to be sent to Vision's Universe and channel in Vectorworks via File>Document Settings>Spotlight Preferences>Edit Vision Data Mapping. It is however, important to keep in mind that Vision's "Channel" refers to the 2nd part of the address, not the name of the fixture. Hopefully that clears up a bit of confusion, and thanks @RickRfor the input! Looks like I have some more tests to run. Quote Link to comment
GHanthronJR Posted August 19, 2017 Share Posted August 19, 2017 You can output on ArtNet and sACN in "offline mode" but at random times every Address will go to full for a 0.5 count and back to what your doing, this is to discourage someone from trying to use a 3rd party DMX output device and use Nomad for free as a control desk, this is not an issue if all your doing is pre-viz. Be warned Eos 2.6 does NOT work with ANY pre-viz right now (I Had to call ETC today, Eos just sends random values after the first "flash") Also make sure if you use your non-dongle copy of Nomad as a mirror screen that your not in Offline w/viz because as we discovered the other day it will "flash" your real rig if your on a active lighting network while working in pre-viz. 1 Quote Link to comment
annemcmills Posted August 19, 2017 Author Share Posted August 19, 2017 uh oh. Do you mean that "Eos ETCnomad MAC Software v2.6.0" will not work with Vision? I teach this in the fall so I need it to work. If so, is there an older version available that I can give to the students to make it work? Quote Link to comment
RickR Posted August 23, 2017 Share Posted August 23, 2017 There are all the older versions on ETC's website. I think I saw that 2.6.1 is due out almost any day. I'd expect this is a major issue. The windows version is fine. 1 Quote Link to comment
Vectorworks, Inc Employee Edward Joseph Posted August 24, 2017 Vectorworks, Inc Employee Share Posted August 24, 2017 This is big news, here's hoping 2.6.1 fixes the issue, but this isn't really a new thing. The ETC offline editors are notorious for not actually broadcasting things. Which is why the initial mac tests we ran had us thinking the mac version didn't broadcast. Because well...it didn't. Quote Link to comment
RickR Posted September 6, 2017 Share Posted September 6, 2017 2.6.1 is out https://community.etcconnect.com/control_consoles/f/eos-family/23695/eos-2-6-1-software-is-released-and-available-for-download I recommend that VW/Vision staff, as a visualizer provider make direct contact with ETC. Anne Valentino would be an ideal person to contact. Quote Link to comment
annemcmills Posted September 9, 2017 Author Share Posted September 9, 2017 Thank you! 2.6.1 of Nomad seems to control Vision just fine. There were a few hiccups, but it seems to be okay. Quote Link to comment
Vectorworks, Inc Employee Edward Joseph Posted September 13, 2017 Vectorworks, Inc Employee Share Posted September 13, 2017 Hiccups I expect, especially out of offline editors, but it's great to hear that 2.6.1 is working. With the Design Summit and 2018 release, testing time has been limited. For those who haven't been notified, here are the installers: http://release.vectorworks.net/nnapub/all/2018/SP0/391023/Vision2018-391023-installer1-win.exe http://release.vectorworks.net/nnapub/all/2018/SP0/391023/Vision2018-391023-installer1-osx.dmg Check out the new environmental features, animated haze, buttery smoothness, and improved rendering quality! Quote Link to comment
RickR Posted September 14, 2017 Share Posted September 14, 2017 For those that get lost over at ETC https://www.etcconnect.com/Products/Consoles/Eos-Family/ETCnomad-ETCnomad-Puck/Software.aspx Mac and PC versions are different downloads, but the PC one does computers & consoles Quote Link to comment
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