Since the release of sequenceXtra a lot of users of sequenceXtra has contributed to our user forum. When we moved the user forum to a new platform we decided to collect and moderate the old user forum and start this FAQ with the old posts as a base. This is what we came up with. Hope You find it helpful.

Don't forget to share or search for information in the new forum as well. Follow the link in the menu above.

Why does Director crash every time i quit?

In versions of sequenceXtra prior to 1.8 You had to delete all instances of Your song (i e set the song instance variable to 0) and issue sxCloseSequencer() before quitting Director, a projector or an .swf.
In version 1.8 or later this is done automatically by sequenceXtra and Director in combination.

Why do I get a "handler not defined" error when using sequenceXtra?

Most of the commands to sequenceXtra requires a song to work on. You create a song with the new command, like this:

mySong = new(Xtra "sequenceXtra", 16)

It's a good idea to make mySong a global variable so You can reference it from anywhere in your movie. After You have created a song You can play it with the following syntax:

mySong.sxPlay()

Use the same method with all other commands that refer to a song
mySong.sxStop()

mySong.sxSetTrackInstrument()

etc.

Will sequenceXtra work in Authorware?

The current version (1.8) of sequenceXtra does NOT work in Authorware. We have had a few users asking for this and we are looking in to the possibility to make in work in future versions.

Can I use an external synthesizer with sequenceXtra?

SequenceXtra can output to any MIDI device known to the computers operating system. This could be a software synth or an external MIDI keyboard. Regardless of platform You will have to have the appropriate drivers installed.

Mac users:
On the Macintosh, the only way to install MIDI drivers in the OS is to install OMS from Opcode. This is free software and widely used in the Macintosh MIDI community. OMS can be downloaded from www.sourceforce.nu.

To use an external device You use the sxSetOutput(integer) to select the desired device. To see a list of devices known to sequenceXtra, use sxGetOutputList().

Does sequenceXtra support System Exclusive Messages?

The current version (1.8) of sequenceXtra supports System Exclusive messages in the sxSendMIDI() function. SysEx inside a Standard MIDI File (SMF) will be ignored. This will change in version 2.0, which will support SysEx included in an SMF.

Can I use incoming MIDI data to control animations?

There are (at least) two ways of doing this:

1.
Use the sxSendInputWaiting(true) to activate a function that will send a notification to the movieScript handler sxMIDIInWaiting as soon as an event is present in the input buffer.

In the sxMIDIInWaiting handler, use the sxGetMIDIIn() to retrieve the incoming message and use the result to control the animation (or any other function You want to control)

2.
Put the sxGetMIDIIn() in an exitFrame handler and use the result to control the animation (or any other function You want to control)

The same method can be used to monitor outgoing MIDI events, when a Song is played. Of course You will have to use sxSendOutputWaiting(), sxMIDIOutWaiting and sxGetMIDIOut Out() instead of the functions mentioned above.

Can I have one of my playing Tracks control animation?

This can be done by checking the MIDI channel of the events that are playing.
The second object in an event indicates eventType + MIDIChannel.
146 means "note event on channel 3".

Example:
on exitFrame me
   theEvent = sxGetMIDIOut()
   if theEvent <> 0 then
      if theEvent[2] = 146 then
         --doYourAnimation
      end if
   end if
end exitFrame 

Why is there no sound on Macintosh?

On the Mac sequenceXtra uses QuickTime Music as playback device. If You have OMS (Open Music System installed sequenceXtra will use that instead (this can be overridden by issuing the sxOpenSequencer(#nooms) command).

When OMS is installed it disables QuickTime Music by default. So, if You have OMS but haven't installed any external synthesizer, sequenceXtra will have no device to play thru.
Solution: Go to the OMS Setup application. Double-click the QuickTime symbol and click the "ON" radio button. Save the setup an Quit the application.

If You don't have OMS installed, but still can't hear anything from sequenceXtra, be sure to check the QuickTime Music system extension activated.

How do I set the key signature of my Song?

In the current version of sequenceXtra there is now way of setting the key signature. We didn't include this since sequenceXtra doesn't display music in any "key related" form.

Will sequenceXtra work under Mac OS X?

SequenceXtra for Mac OS X will be released early 2002. FYI it will be fully compatible with Director MX, which will be out by then.

Can i sync sequenceXtra to/from MIDI clock?

The current version of sequenceXtra will not send or receive any timing information. I e no synchronizing to other timing sources is possible. We are planning to add this functionality in future versions of sequenceXtra.

Why is there a delay when I play my MIDI keyboard?

Some software synthesizers and sound cards have a noticeable delay between receiving a note event and plying a sound. This is a problem in the soft/hardware and is not at all related to sequenceXtra. In some cases there is a setting in the control panel for the sound card or soft synth where You can adjust this delay. The setting is mostly called "Latency". Try adjusting it as low as possible.