Distribution and usability updates

[Brady Boettcher]

Hi all,

Here is a summary of some recent updates to libmapper and its tools in regards to distribution and usability:

• Easy webmapper installation from repository
  • Download from github repository
  • Install dependencies from terminal: pip install -r requirements.txt
  • Run with: python -m webmapper
  • OR: just use the new prebuilt standalone application (get here for now, check for a release soon)
    • Webmapper Windows installer will be present in the next release!
• Prebuilt Max externals package now for MacOS and Windows
  • Get here for now, check for a release soon
  • Unzip into your Documents/Max 8/Packages directory and you should be set!
  • Try out the Ableton bridge, Mapper4Live, now that installation is easy ;)
• New TouchDesigner (visual art program) bridge: Mapper4TD
  • Setup instructions in the repo, uses the Python bindings
• Session management updates
  • Webmapper now uses a newly created Python module, mappersession, for session management, and handles map staging (waiting for missing devices/reconnecting) and other nuances.
  • Can be run headlessly from the command line, details in the repo's README.md file. Install with: pip install mappersession
    
  • Still needs development to handle multiple instances on the same network, but all basic cases are handled now
• OSC -> libmapper signal forwarding program
  • I've created a small Python program, ForwardMapper, that listens for OSC messages, creates libmapper signals, and forwards their values when updated
• SuperCollider bridge feature update
  • MapperUGen updated to allow for signals to be created using Busses, were previously required to create within a SynthDef
• New signal value monitors
  • Webmapper: hover over a signal and click the eye-shaped icon to view a plot of the signal's value in real time
    • 
  • Python signal plotter (found in libmapper-contrib here)
    • 

And that's about it for now, sorry for the length of this. Let me know about any issues that pop up when trying any of this new stuff out!

Thanks,

Brady Boettcher