The reason
Simply because it was technically no longer possible to add major new functions in V9. Re-coding from scratch was necessary. Some examples of new functions impossible to add in V9:
- pan / tilt limitations
- color boards
- follow spots boards
- BPM / Beat in Generator scenes
- add / remove fixture in a Generator project
- multi-projects in Boards
- relative scenes in Boards
...
Our mind
We think that, nowadays, "100% tactile" and "adaptive screen size" features are crucial for a lighting software.
100% tactile
Our development tools offer all necessary 100% tactile controls (button, slider, edit box, combo box, ...). We do not have to create them and update them in the future. Our development tools will take care of that.
Adaptive screen size
Our development tools manage automatically the size & position of all controls as best as possible according to the screen size (similar to screen responsive web sites). We do not have to take care of the screen size.
Multi-platform
We were also aiming for a multi-platform software, with the same UI for all platforms (Windows, MacOS, Linux, Android, iOS). This is quite easy with our new development tools: open the project on the target platform and press "Build". Same UI for all platforms means same tutorials, same manual and same technical support for all.
Open source
VII has been developed with brand new development tools. These development tools are "Open Source", This is very important for the software lifespan. And they are at top technology for our "tactile", "screen size" and "multi-platforms" requirements.
The agenda
The most difficult part of the software is done: the foundations.
VII is very young and it presently misses a lot of features. We will work on that.
Following your feedback, we will work on a BETA version, and then a production version.
In the meantime, we are also working on the next important parts (sound to beat analyze, Pixels, ...).
The future
VII has a solid programming foundation tailored to the current needs of the lighting industry, and our development tools are at the forefront of multi-platform technology. We have everything to rapidly upgrade VII, retaining its high user-friendliness.