Hi everyone,
I had the pleasure of working with @acont & team this winter on some improvements to AscoGraph’s electronic actions display.
There are two new features, both present in the new Antescofo 0.8 release.
- [View -> Set Actions Track Display Mode ]: Action groups are rendered dynamically to eliminate overlaps.
-
Old Style
This is the “classic” actiongroup display. Overlapping groups are a common occurrence, often leading to loss of clarity. Its main advantage is vertical compactness. -
First Fit
The most basic algorithm for stacking groups. Blocks are “dropped” (think of it like Tetris, except you can also fill enclosed holes) in the order they appear in the score code, which is also their temporal sequence. Its main advantages are predictability and stability, but the space is often not optimally occupied. -
Sorted First Fit
Before “dropping” the blocks, this algorithm first sorts them by area. The resulting layout is often quite close to optimal, and still quite stable. -
Tower Sorted First Fit (new default)
A more advanced algorithm that aims to eliminate gaps (e.g. between Groups TWO and THREE in the example screenshot) by consolidating “towers” - continuous stacks of actiongroup blocks. This leads to the most efficient usage of space, at the expense of predictability - often while zooming you will find blocks rearranging dynamically, which might take a little getting used to.
Each mode will prove most useful in different situations. Obviously my favourite is mode 4, but you’ll see what works for you 
- [ View -> Display Messages as Circles ] Messages all take up minimal space on a specific line in each parent group. Hover your mouse above them to display their contents.
Again, we have two options here:
-
OFF (old style) - see all screenshots above
In this mode, stacked messages take up valuable real estate, both on the vertical axis and on the horizontal (time) axis. This is problematic, especially since messages are supposed to be atomic (instantaneous) actions, which don’t actually take up any time. -
ON (new default)
Messages are now placed on a single line, preserving group hierarchy. The main advantages are time coherence and compactness. In the screenshot above, the mouse hovers over a message in Group THREE - a list appears showing all messages at that hierarchic level.
Finally, let’s see a full score comparison between the new features and the old display style.
OLD:
NEW:
I hope you’ll agree that the new version is more representative of the actual Antescofo score. If you don’t, that’s OK too - you can always return to the old display.
We want to know what you think of these new features, so please do share any feedback!
Grig
PS. a BONUS feature: if you right-click inside any actiongroup, AscoGraph’s horizontal zoom will focus on that part of the score. Try it out, it may come in handy.