[SML] ASCII file reader

[Ford Sellers]

Hi Dan, Try this….
I think *** (and that is a dangerous thing) that this will work.
You should be able to import the ASCII txt file into Excel, and then reposition the columns, and then copy and paste back into a txt file.

Here’s how…
Save your ascii file as a text document (for lack of a better file name I’ll say “ascii.xtx”)
Open Excel,
[File], [open], under file type, choose text file, select ascii.txt.
It will open an “Import Wizard”.
On the various tabs of the wizard, you can select how it determines what info goes into which columns.  There is a preview pane, so you can see how it will be displayed as you select different options… it’s pretty easy to figure out.

Once it looks like you want, click OK, and you’ve got it in Excel.  Then simply move your columns into whatever order you desire.

Then… [Save as] file type “Unicode Text”.  This should leave everything in the right order, but in a txt file to reimport into ascii.

-HTH,
Ford Sellers
Senior Product Development Manager
Chauvet Professional Lighting & Iluminarc
5200 NW 108th ave
Sunrise, FL 33351
Phone: 800-762-1084
Fax: 800-544-4898


From: Stagecraft [mailto:stagecraft-bounces at theatrical.net] On Behalf Of Dan Sheehan via Stagecraft
Sent: Wednesday, August 05, 2015 1:15 PM
To: Stagecraft Mailing List
Cc: Dan Sheehan
Subject: Re: [SML] ASCII file reader

Thanks all for suggestions.

Probably would not have worked anyway.

Here's the situation and interesting, but not useful, results
 (somewhat lengthy description):

One of several community theatre groups I assist recently
started using a venue which has a 72-dimmer Unison system
controlled by a NSI [Leviton] 7532, which can run as 64 channels wide.
(Dimmer sys orig install was 48 wide, later added 3rd Unison box & 2nd FOH pipe]

By patching many houselight dimmers into a few channels the
64-wide 7532 can handle the 72 dimmers OK.

The group had an ETC  Smartfade 2496 gathering dust.

Thought that would be a better tool than the NSI 7532,
mainly because it could be used with SmartSoft in a laptop
for runtime display of levels etc,
control via computer instead of console buttons,
hence less reliance on wheel for tasks like patching (ugh!),
file save and load capability, offline emulation, etc.
and everything you can do with an offline SW pkg.

ETC Tec Support got me through getting SmartSoft SW and Smartfade HW
to talk to each other.  Never would have got there without that help.

Maybe it's just an olde pharte syndrome, but I find the
hover-the-mouse-and- *wait*,  to see one patch connection at a time,
and the drag-and-drop to create patch links, klutzy.

I like the way it works (and displays) on the Express.

And I like... in fact, insist on...  a patch list ( p/o magic sheet) on paper
during the run of the tech & show.
Surprised that the offine SW does not provide printable reports.

Since "ETC" (!) SmartSoft, and ETC Express EOL, both import
and export USITT ASCII, I thought maybe....
since one strong purpose of USITT ASCII is to enable
data sharing between different consoles...
but not quite.

EOL refuses to read ASC file written by SmartSoft,
because manufacturer (and console) do not match.
(USITT ASCII includes both).

Tricked around that by replacing the Express patch info
in the EOL file with the patch info from the SmartSoft file.

Resulting imported patch was wrong.

EOL patch info is Ch:Dim;    SmartSoft patch info is Dim:Ch.

They can't both be right , can they ?  :)

EOS OLE says it reads the SmartSoft .ASC file successfully
(I think... read status flashes by pretty quickly),
but the resulting patch is blank.

Importing patch from Express EOL .ASC into EOS OLE works correctly.

===
Have not been successful trying to find the USITT ASCII spec on USITT website.
Any suggestions ?

--
...Dan Sheehan
Fixer of things that break
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