Got the Stream Deck XL when it was on sale a few weeks ago, but finally had time to get around to setting it up. (Older 3x5 SD going to my wife’s office.) Without access to the API, I just hacked in shortcuts to things that didn’t have a way to assign keycommands, but things seem to be working pretty well!
Some commands are more complicated than they appear. Creating a rehearsal mark and a double barline simultaneously is pretty simple, but Select All / Filter / Breaks / Copy / Navigate to next Layout / Paste, like the bottom left button, is a bit more involved. The 1st and 2nd x only commands not only suppress playback of the music, but also create the text on the top staff of the selection, which can then easily be Alt clicked down. The thing that looks like a blank bar is my own “blank notation” command, a Slash region with the small slashes, where the small slashes have been redefined to be nothing. I already have System Breaks set to work in Write mode, and numpad+1 starts a 3:2 triplet so I obviously didn’t need those programmed. Anyway, I’m going to give this setup a try for a while and see which get used and which don’t.
They just start tuplet input. Typically during input my right hand doesn’t leave the numpad, so numpad 2 is set to stop tuplet input. (Numpad 1 is 3:2 triplet)
I DID have a sort of hack someone had posted that allowed the auto-creation of “touch 4th” harmonics (instead of the auto harmonics creating 8ve harmonics.)
But an update, I don’t know if it was a Dorico update, or a SD update, rendered it non-functional.
So I am stuck having to open the bottom panel again to insert harmonics when I write for strings in an orchestral context.
(very frustrating that guitar writing takes precedence)
Almost anything that is in the bottom panel can be hacked into your user keycommands file. Before you click the bottom panel settings go to Script / Start Recording Macro. Make your bottom panel selections, then go to Script / End Recording Macro. Give the resulting file a name and save it. Open the file in a text editor and you should be able to view the commands for the actions you just did in the bottom panel. Those commands can then be added to your user keycommands file following the syntax of the existing commands. (Make a backup first.)
Has anyone successfully connected their Stream Deck to Dorico via WebSocket? (ws://127.0.0.1:4560) I can connect fine when using Postman, but I’m not sure how to complete the handshake with the Stream Deck, when I can’t figure out how to see the sessionToken that Dorico sends back to it. I can send the connect message fine, and can click and accept it in Dorico, I just can’t see the sessionToken that Dorico then sends back, so obviously can’t accept it. That info doesn’t seem to be in the application.log file either.
If anyone has successfully done this, I’d love to know how!
@FredGUnn , just to be sure I’m following: are you saying that a recorded macro can be added to Stream Deck? I would love, love, love to be able to do this for switching global/local editing!
That wasn’t what I was asking in the question above, but yes, you can! In Dorico, you need to assign a keycommand to Run Script. Make sure when you use it that it is opening the folder that contains your macros. In the Stream Deck software, assign a Multi Action to one of the buttons. Drag a Hotkey to the Multi Action and give it the keycommand you previously assigned to Run Script. Then drag a Text action to the Multi Action after the Hotkey. In the Text box, type the name of your macro, then click the checkbox next to “Press Enter after message.” It works fine!
I have simply just hacked in a bunch of keycommands for various Properties panel actions, among other things, but have just been using them as Multi Actions in the SD.
I was attempting to have my SD communicate with Dorico directly with commands through a WebSocket connection, but so far have failed as I’m not sure how to complete the “handshake” using the SD software. In other software like Postman I can communicate with Dorico fine, so there’s just a issue with receiving the sessionToken in SD that I have to figure out.
This looks real neat! I need those 4:3, 5:4, 6:4, and would even put in 7 and 9s. I just ordered my SD XL and it hasn’t come in yet, so please excuse the total newbie question. Did you program all this by yourself? How did you put the photos on? I saw in this forum thread that there’s notation express bundles you can buy with it pre-programmed, but from the looks of it, what they programmed is too much for me. I like yours a lot! How did you do it?
The Notation Express SD profile is very useful for some. If you think it would be for you certainly go ahead and buy it! Personally, I’d rather use my SD for macros and custom features rather than as a replacement for shortcuts, so I don’t really use the Notation Express profile anymore.
Stream Decks aren’t very complicated to program. I think I watched one video on it and was off and running. Most of the time you’ll be using Multi Action commands with Hotkeys, and sometimes Delays and Text. Here’s an example of a simple SD macro using Hotkeys and Text that will flip any double accidentals:
You can have the SD automatically add text to your icons, but I wanted a more clean interface, so tried to design them in a way that it could be used without text. Some key commands, like a 4:3 tuplet, aren’t natively supported in Dorico, so I hacked them into my keycommands file, but you could always use a Hotkey command of ; and then 4:3 as Text. Overall it’s really pretty simple to program!
That is (unsurprisingly) one of the most cogent Stream Deck workflow summations I’ve encountered, and one which will cause me to rethink and tweak my setup. Thanks, @FredGUnn!
I deeply appreciate how the Scoring Express profile helped get me into Dorico (from 32 years of Finale use), but admit it’s made me a bit lazy about learning/programming keyboard shortcuts. As a result, whenever I want to work on my laptop (to which I haven’t been connecting the SD) I lose productivity on even the basic kinds of things for not having shortcuts to by-default menu-only items.
