In the future, would you consider adopting an interface similar to these for mAirList?
http://www.rivendellaudio.org/images/rdairplay1.png
http://www.rivendellaudio.org/images/rdairplay2.png
http://www.google.com/radioautomation/images/home_screen.jpg
I like the upcoming audio files listed at the left in a stack and the use of the right side for the cartwall and extended playlist/log, which can be switched using buttons or tabs. However, that’s only my preference. What do you think?
Designs similar to those are fairly easily possible already in mAirList. No doubt there will be a Charlie Davy along in a minute to open his spiv’s coatful of already-done layouts to prove it! 
mAirList is one of those products which, in return for a little ‘skinning’ work on YOUR part, is almost infinitely customisable. Many of the features were added at the request or suggestion of other users who ‘needed that,’ and as a result, mAirList can be quite the chameleon when it comes to its GUI and, indeed, functionality.
To my mind, that puts mAirList head and shoulders above ANY system which imposes a relatively ‘fixed,’ ‘take it or leave it’ GUI; add that to mAirList’s terrific feature set and easy interface to fader starts, ‘go’ buttons, or custom keyboards, and it’s a hugely compelling piece of software. Admittedly not everything is hugely well documented, but please do ask if some feature isn’t obviously ‘possible,’ because it very probably is!
BFN
CAD
You can indeed quite easily mimic the layout of those examples - but the “take” button on the upcoming Playlist items is a nice feature should you decide to play something out of sequence. These features are generally geared for playout apps that work better with a touchscreen. I suppose the closest mAirList could get to that is the Playlist highlight bar could override the “automation next” command and fire whatever happens to be highlighted.
Does anyone have any layout files that I could use to create a similar interface? Yesterday, I was playing with the layout.ini file and still need to keep editing it to get the right look. Thanks for the help that you have provided already. This automation software is great!
Have you discovered the Layout Designer? There’s a batch file inside your mAirList folder which runs mAirList in a special mode. You get a special window then where you can move all screen elements around with a few mouse clicks.
Hi Keystone, welcome to the forums.
As Cad and Charlie have said the layout is pretty configurable.
I did have layouts in the style of Simian, Autoplus and Myriad. If I cannot find them an hour or so (when spare) to make some new ones (I know - that’s slow) ;).
In the meantime have a go with the layout designer.
Kind Regards tony
edit spelling mistakes
I was working with the layout.ini file and made this for my display set at 1152x864 resolution with mAirList maximized. The code is below and a screenshot is attached.
[Playlist0]
Left=5
Top=48
Width=710
Height=551
[Player0_0]
Left=5
Top=600
Width=569
Height=180
[Player0_1]
Left=579
Top=600
Width=569
Height=180
[CartWall]
Left=720
Top=47
Width=427
Height=550
[Browser]
Left=0
Top=0
Width=0
Height=0
[Toolbar]
Left=0
Top=0
Width=710
Height=48
However, I couldn’t figure out how to use the layout designer. If I knew how to use it properly, the process would have been simpler. Any help?
Now, I’m playing with the Intelligent Voice Processor script. mAirList is great!
Double-click the Layout Designer file in the mAirList folder and you’ll see a little window showing all your screen objects - you can then highlight one, left-click your mouse into the Top/Left/Height/Width boxes and either type a size or use your scrollwheel to adjust the object in realtime…
Doug: I hope you find IVP useful, and do let me know if you have any questions about it; I’ll be pleased to help.
BFN
CAD
I’m still looking for a mAirlist layout based on Dalet. I have been playing with the layout designer, but it seems we don’t really get on. So I wondered whether someone has already made one and would be willing to post it here, or whether somebody feels like making one.
Personally I would be looking at a split screen setup with two players for one playlist and the browser on the first screen and 4 more players, each with their own playlist, on the second screen. The four players on the second screen, complete with their little playlist windows, should fill up the top half of the screen. In Dalet itself you’d find a seque editor under those players, but as mAirlist doesn’t have a seque editor, this could be replaced by a cartwall. And obivously all in the style/colours of Dalet.
Would something like that be possible and does anybody feel like making it?
Thanks! 
Rojan,
See how you get on with this - it’s just 20mins’ work but it’s mostly done… You’ll want to fine-tune some of the options and the Playlist colours are not quite right… I did this over remote-desktop so the positions may not be 100% accurate
Dalet.zip (4.98 KB)
REALLY nice job on that, Charlie (or uber-layout-meister if I may make so bold? and if my German spelling is correct! :D).
One point of interest, though: unless the Link column isn’t being displayed in the #2 screenshot, I do recommend using Link on all but the final item in an ad. break (and maybe even some items after, if your station’s ad. break production policy is, say, voicelink-sting-ads-jingle-music).
This has two advantages:
Even in ASSIST, once the presenter hits GO on the first item, it’s like a temporary AUTO and they can relax, go to toilet, get up and stretch legs, etc.
The big ‘chains’ (but Cad being Cad, I use a Big Down Arrow instead: so whatever!) in the Playlists have this nice effect psychologically: presenters get used to Linked items being kind of ‘no touchee,’ if you get my drift? Which is a Good Thing, esp. if your presenters are at all grumpy about playing ads.!
BFN
CAD
That is amazing, Charlie. To even gotten to half of that would’ve taken me days and even then I couldn’t guarantee it would look anywhere near as good as that. Thank you so much.
You are right, it does need a few tweaks. Playlist colours aren’t quite there - but even I can fix that, and that’s saying something ;D - and at the moment I haven’t been able to test the second screen, as I haven’t got the second monitor setup yet, so I have no idea how that one works. I’m assuming just as well as the rest of this fab layout.
I do have a small problem. I don’t have the icon’s you’re using so the program defaults to it’s standard playlist icons. With the exception of the link icon. When I link two items together in the main playlist, nothing appears to say that they are linked. (See attached screenshot: all the items on the playlist are linked and as you can see, there is no indication they are) Do you know how I can fix that?
And another - extremely minor - thing is that even on fullscreen it runs off my screen a little bit at the bottom (zie attached screenshot). I’m sure that’s an easy thing to fix, but I don’t know how.
But like I said, it is brilliant and to think you’ve thrown that together in 20 mins is astonishing. Kudos to you, mate!
Rojan,
No problem - the fact that most of it is done will certainly help you in seeing how things are done with regards layout+skin settings. If the positions/sizes are a little “off”, just double-click the layout designer file in your mAirList folder and adjust the objects as per my earlier message…
Icons/Images: Go here: http://www.charliedavy.co.uk/downloads/index.php?dir=mAirList and download my 2 Icon Sets and the Images.zip file. Images need to be placed into \mAirList\images and the icons can go wherever you like but I suggest \mAirList\icons At the start of the mAirList.ini file I posted, you’ll find the section called [DefaultDirectories], if you set the icon folder to the same one you placed my icon files in - you will always have the right folder ready to select an icon to save you navigating to it every time you define one
I have done so and I’ve noticed that the rubbish bin icon, normally displayed when a track has finished playing, has now been replaced by a green tick. So it seems to have done something. But there is still nothing marking a linked item on the playlist. I’ve been through the configurator and the .ini files itself but I honestly can’t find where to assign icons to specific tasks. If you’ve got any other ideas, please let me know. (While I keep searching of course). Thanks!
Check the [Playlist] column in skini.ini and check the column sizes:
ColWidths=45,0,*,70,70,0,0,0
ColumnOrder=1,8,2,3,4,5,6,7
;Order: Icon,Time,Title,Duration,Ramp,End,Link,Artist
As you can see, Link is the 2nd to-last 0 and obviously needs to be something like 50. If you do a text-search in Notepad for the name/item that is causing a problem - you can generally find it
[quote=“Charlie, post:16, topic:5561”]Check the [Playlist] column in skini.ini and check the column sizes:
ColWidths=45,0,*,70,70,0,0,0
ColumnOrder=1,8,2,3,4,5,6,7
;Order: Icon,Time,Title,Duration,Ramp,End,Link,Artist
As you can see, Link is the 2nd to-last 0 and obviously needs to be something like 50. If you do a text-search in Notepad for the name/item that is causing a problem - you can generally find it ;)[/quote]
I have to admit I would not have found that by myself. Strangely enough I did do a text search in the mairlist.ini for link, but for some vague reason I didn’t do that in skin.ini. Never mind. I’ve changed that second to last 0 to 50, but it makes no difference in the GUI. Still no link icon. 
OK, this is where it gets confusing - try editing the Link 0 bit in the [Playlist1] section - I set that one up so the main Playlist could have it’s own set of parameters whilst the [Playlist] section refers to the other 4 (smaller fonts, for example). The [Playlist] section can be used for all playlists but if you want to make a certain Playlist look different, you create a specific section like I’ve done.
Notice that in the LayoutDesigner (and in Scripting), the first Playlist is always called Playlist0
[quote=“Charlie, post:18, topic:5561”]OK, this is where it gets confusing - try editing the Link 0 bit in the [Playlist1] section - I set that one up so the main Playlist could have it’s own set of parameters whilst the [Playlist] section refers to the other 4 (smaller fonts, for example). The [Playlist] section can be used for all playlists but if you want to make a certain Playlist look different, you create a specific section like I’ve done.
Notice that in the LayoutDesigner (and in Scripting), the first Playlist is always called Playlist0 ;)[/quote]
Yep, that did it! Thanks, Charlie! ;D
Hi, Charlie love the Dalet layout. We use something very similar apart from the colours and the ad players/playlists.
Kind regards tony
