posted 30 October 2010 03:29            

Capylink installed fine and is up and running.

I initially thought there was a problem, however setting the Kyma performance preference (external midi controller) to 'Motor Mix' got things working!

Great little app!

Seems to be an issue when 'Fine' is selected which I have mentioned to the developer (should this work as if pressing [Shift] whilst moving a fader?)

Of course I have my wish list already

(or is this perhaps in the full version...?)

Would be nice to have a third tab of controllers, say X/Y controllers [For the vKi full version - added incentive to purchase ]
Where perhaps the screen could be split into two areas containing two X/Y controllers. Of course, X/Y controllers also have the added advantage of controlling two parameters with just one input and if there were two X/Y controllers then four parameters could be controlled simultaneously from the iPod!

Also, a little GUI thing...

The tabs at the bottom of the screen in vKi Lite indicate what controllers are active so perhaps it is a little redundant to also have the controller type name at the top of the screen; there would then be room for a fifth fader (or more room for for X/Y controllers?) ;-)

posted 30 October 2010 10:28            

Also photonal's original comments below are about vKi lite, (free from the App Store) and not the full vKi version.

photonal wrote:
"Seems to be an issue when 'Fine' is selected which I have mentioned to the developer (should this work as if pressing [Shift] whilst moving a fader?)"

Yes and no. vKi's FINE mode works the same as when using a MotorMix to control the VCS. It supports "fine resolution" control of Kyma sound parameters but it does not work quite the same as using the SHIFT key while moving a VCS fader with a mouse. Let me explain.

Normally when you move an on-screen VCS slider the slider's "handle" exactly tracks mouse movement. if you move the mouse the full length of the slider the control will move from its minimum to the maximum. When SHIFT is depressed the mouse pointer and slider handle no longer stay in lock-step. You have to move the mouse over a much greater distance to affect the same parameter change.

The VCS achieves the fine mode differently when used with physical controllers like the MotorMix, or our vKi and vKiP products (as well as our Lemur-based vM2). When fine is engaged engaged the controller's faders immediately snap to the center position. You can move them fully up or down but the affect on the corresponding VCS sound parameter, and what the VCS slider shows, is a much reduced movement from its initial position (which, by the way, corresponds to when the control device's fader is in the center position). Essential the controller's fader now works as a relative change control instead of an absolute change control. This is how vKi operates

photonal wrote:
"Would be nice to have a third tab of controllers, say X/Y controllers [For the vKi full version - added incentive to purchase ]
Where perhaps the screen could be split into two areas containing two X/Y controllers. Of course, X/Y controllers also have the added advantage of controlling two parameters with just one input and if there were two X/Y controllers then four parameters could be controlled simultaneously from the iPod!"

Performance controls would certainly be a "handy" addition, and it is something we have considered, but for a different kind of product. The reason is that we felt very strongly that vKi should focus on doing a few things very well. It's central focus is on providing a usable one-handed Kyma VCS control surface that is appropriate for the iPhones/iPod Touch's limited work surface. Furthermore we felt it important to keep the product concise.

vKi (the full version) already has three major screens: FADERS, ROTARIES, and SNAPSHOTS (presets). Two additional screens (tabs) were planned from the beginning and will soon make their appearance in the upcoming next release. We think users will find these additions not only exciting and very useful, but also keeping well in line with the products focus - a hand-held VCS controller.

photonal wrote:
"The tabs at the bottom of the screen in vKi Lite indicate what controllers are active so perhaps it is a little redundant to also have the controller type name at the top of the screen; there would then be room for a fifth fader (or more room for for X/Y controllers?) ;-)"

This a fair observation and a good suggestion. However once you hear a bit more about why we did what we did maybe you will agree that the current UI is as it should be.

There are a number of reason why the number of sliders is fixed at four. many are ergonomic but there is also a very important operational reason. Kyma's MotorMix VCS implementation relies on that device's "bank" scheme to map all of the VCS vertical slider parameters to device faders. Banking is either "by one" or "by eight". For a product like vKi we believe "by eight" works best. Providing this bank change feature in a clear, usable fashion heavily favors having the device faders be either a multiple, or submultiple, of eight. Hence four faders.

We also do not feel the title bar at the top of the screen is necessarily redundant. It is not uncommon for the thumb to obscure a portion of the lower screen while manipulating a slider or in its natural resting position. The title bar thus serves as a clear reminder of the mode. We also use slider color as a further hint to help distinguish between the very similar FADER and ROTARY screens. Finally the use of title bars gives the overall UI a consistent look regardless of mode. This is something we, and Apple, highly value.

Doug