garageCube

[Lumenarius]

How do I prevent multiple instances of the same file in the same version of MadMapper from being open at the same time in Windows 10 or Windows 11?

For instance, on a recent project there was one MadMapper file open and then the client accidentally double clicked the file again.

This loaded x2 instances of the same file of the same version of MadMapper.

This screwed up the projector assignations as each copy of the same file that was open tried to fight for which ones it would reference.

This also messed up the edits we made to the files for if you go back into the system tray and open MadMapper there are two versions and edits were made in both. When saved there was a conflict and the edits were lost.

Having 2 open at once is very confusing and it would be helpful to only have 1 possible to be opened at once.

A good analogy would be how Resolume operates where if you double click another composition it will ask you to save the current version before closing and opening the new one.

Having it be impossible to have open x2 MadMapper files at once would go a long ways to making it more simple and reliable to operate.

Conversely, maybe there is some power user move here where having x2 versions of the same file open at once is helpful but I do not see it? If this were the case having a checkbox in the settings, disabled by default, to allow this feature would be a good solution.

Please let me know if screenshots would be helpful to detail what the issue is.

[mad-matt]

Hi!
This is something we did in MadMapper 6.0 beta version. We just have to finalize transmitted the file open event to the existing process before final release.
Thanks for your feedback!

[Lumenarius]

Hi Mad-Matt, this would be so helpful as it happened again today and was a bit of friction.

Solving this for 6.0 would be a god send.

Here is a screenshot to better illustrate the issue.

[Lumenarius]

Just wanting to see if there is any creative work around for this? Or, when 6.0 will be available? It fixes this right?

Maybe someway to prompt the user if they are sure they want to open multiple copies?

What is happening is that the client will open MadMapper and then they will accidentally open it again and then it loads two copies which messes up the show.

I have of course detailed this issue to them more than once though the real solution is we simply need to make this feature dummy proof.

Anything that can be done to prevent this will greatly increase the reliability of a MadMapper projection show.

Thank you!

[Lumenarius]

For what it is worth this behavior is not present in MacOS versions of MadMapper.

When you double click a saved MadMapper file on the Desktop it just opens the same file that is already open. It does not open a new instance of MadMapper. This is as desired and expected.

I am sure there is a bunch of code to sift through though hopefully this will be a good way to show the difference and provide a clue.

Unfortunately there is really no alternative for our permanent installations as the projector software and other system tools are Windows only.

Thanks!

[mad-matt]

Don't worry, one of our developer is finalizing that. It will indeed behave as on macOS. If one wants multiple instances for some reason, he can duplicate the binary.
It will be in MadMapper 6.0. Final release Q2 2025.

[Lumenarius]

Thanks Mad-Matt you guys rock!

I know this is a total nuance edge case but it means a lot to get it fixed as it prevents unwanted behavior and make everything more reliable.