Issue With Open Item Copy In External Editor

MRMJP · 12-14-2018, 08:16 AM

I reported this awhile ago and never solved it, and now with a new computer and new software versions it's still happening so I'd like to dig in again and solve it.

On my main studio computer, everything is fine. When I select part of an item and use my custom script to open an item copy in my external editor, it's fine. Here is a video:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/0wdujkbdi3..._GOOD.mov?dl=0

However, even though I have imported my entire REAPER config to my secondary Mac, I get a weird issue. The item copy opens in the external editor but after that happens, the REAPER window takes focus again even though it still has iZotope RX listed at the top of the screen. Then I have to use CMD + TAB again to focus iZotope RX. This might not seem like a big deal but when you are trying to do a lot of edits quickly, it gets in the way.

Here is a video of the issue:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/cufvwrq12m...X_BAD.mov?dl=0

I even tried changing my external editor to WaveLab from RX and it still happens so I'm thinking this is more of a REAPER issue.

This has been ongoing over several OS and REAPER versions and also on two separate secondary computers which is really odd.

Does anybody have a clue why this is happening and an idea of how to solve it?

One clue is that the VERY first time I do this on my secondary machine and the external editor has to actually launch for the first time, there is no issue. But after the first attempt and the external editor is already open, it always has this issue.

xpander · 12-14-2018, 03:31 PM

No experience about Macs at all, but I noticed there's one icon on the top bar which seems to change the state on the BAD behavior video every time you opened the external editor? It's the V shaped icon, 4th on the BAD video, 2nd on the GOOD (where it doesn't change the state). Just wondering what that one indicates?

MRMJP · 12-14-2018, 04:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by xpander

No experience about Macs at all, but I noticed there's one icon on the top bar which seems to change the state on the BAD behavior video every time you opened the external editor? It's the V shaped icon, 4th on the BAD video, 2nd on the GOOD (where it doesn't change the state). Just wondering what that one indicates?

Ah. Good eye. That's just the Dropbox sync app because when I work on my secondary machine, the session are in Dropbox which is how I transfer them from my main rig.

Anyway, I thought about this so I tried put the session on my desktop so that Dropbox wan't involved and it's the same.

I guess the only other difference in this area is that at my studio, the sessions are on an external drive and in the BAD video, the sessions are on internal drive.

That would be a weird quirk but at this point, I need to try every possible option to avoid this annoyance.

MRMJP · 12-16-2018, 08:00 AM

I've been trying so many things to fix this issue but nothing seems to prevent it from happening.

All I can say is that since I tried using a different external editor than RX and still got the issue, the issue is definitely related to REAPER and/or some external setting or app that is influencing it.

MRMJP · 12-19-2018, 08:52 PM

Offering a $50 PayPal donation to whoever comes up with the correct resolution to this issue.

MRMJP · 12-20-2018, 01:52 PM

OK, I believe I have narrowed down the issue. I do not have this issue on my iMac Pro and former iMac because they are/were super fast computers.

My MacBook Pro and apparently new MacMini while fairly fast are not fast enough it seems.

If I select a REALLY small section to open a copy in RX, then I do not have the problem because the computer can make the copy fast and doesn't steal focus.

If I try to do normal or long size selection, that triggers the issue.

I'm not sure if this is the direct issue but there certainly seems to be something to it.

Now I wonder if it's fixable.

MRMJP · 12-20-2018, 03:28 PM

I also just tried putting the the session on an external SSD like I do at my main studio just to rule that out and it makes no difference if it's the OS SSD or an external SSD.

Justin · 12-20-2018, 04:33 PM

Is it only an issue when using "open copy" or does it also do it if you open the original media?

MRMJP · 12-20-2018, 04:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Justin

Is it only an issue when using "open copy" or does it also do it if you open the original media?

I will test this in a moment. I only ever open a copy for my normal workflow.

MRMJP · 12-20-2018, 04:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Justin

Is it only an issue when using "open copy" or does it also do it if you open the original media?

I just tried it with opening the original media and it seems OK. Maybe it's something in the copying process or speed that is somehow different than on my iMac Pro and former iMac.

My MacBook Pro and new Mac Mini 6-core are fairly powerful though so it's not like it's doing the copy THAT slowly.

Justin · 12-20-2018, 04:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MRMJP

I just tried it with opening the original media and it seems OK. Maybe it's something in the copying process or speed that is somehow different than on my iMac Pro and former iMac.

My MacBook Pro and new Mac Mini 6-core are fairly powerful though so it's not like it's doing the copy THAT slowly.

Yeah I don't think it's about the copy, it's about a race condition with the focus being restored to the REAPER main window window (from the REAPER copying window) vs the launching and UI of the other application.

MRMJP · 12-20-2018, 04:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Justin

Yeah I don't think it's about the copy, it's about a race condition with the focus being restored to the REAPER main window window (from the REAPER copying window) vs the launching and UI of the other application.

That makes sense. Do you think anything can be done to resolve it?

Justin · 12-20-2018, 04:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MRMJP

That makes sense. Do you think anything can be done to resolve it?

I'll try some things. It's hard when you can't duplicate it (does Audacity have that problem for you?)...

MRMJP · 12-20-2018, 04:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Justin

I'll try some things. It's hard when you can't duplicate it (does Audacity have that problem for you?)...

Do you mean having Audacity set as REAPER's external editor?

I don't have Audacity but I did temporarily switch the external editor to be WaveLab and the same thing happened which led me to believe the fix is likely in REAPER if at all possible.

My iMac must process things fast enough to avoid this issue but the smaller computers are just slow enough to induce the issue.

I know this seems small but when you have to do a ton of edits and want to work quickly it can be a hassle.

Thank you for looking at it. This one of my favorite REAPER features.

Philbo King · 12-20-2018, 04:50 PM

I simply close the external editor after using it. It's a couple extra seconds, but it would probably add up of you do it constantly.

MRMJP · 12-20-2018, 04:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Philbo King

I simply close the external editor after using it. It's a couple extra seconds, but it would probably add up of you do it constantly.

Yeah, do this constantly so opening and closing the editor is too slow. It's not just a once in awhile thing that I do, it's something I do a lot throughout the course of a song depending on how many things I hear that need to be fixed in RX. Some songs have dozens of edits alone, let alone an entire album.

I can go so fast on my main machine because this problem doesn't occur, but when working from home on the Mac Mini (formerly MacBook Pro), this has always been a big slowdown and minor hassle.

Justin · 12-20-2018, 04:55 PM

Ah so if it's launching a new instance of RX or whatever it's fine, it's just the activating of the existing instance when this occurs?

Since I can't duplicate I might try some things and then have you test them in the next build...

MRMJP · 12-20-2018, 04:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Justin

Ah so if it's launching a new instance of RX or whatever it's fine, it's just the activating of the existing instance when this occurs?

Since I can't duplicate I might try some things and then have you test them in the next build...

Yes. On the problem machines, the very first time I do it triggering RX to launch for the first time, it's actually OK. But once RX is already open, that's where the problem comes in on my Mini/MacBook Pro when I try to open additional item copies as you see in the video.

When RX is already open, doing this switches the GUI to RX for a split second but then as you see in the video, the REAPER window comes back but it still has the RX menu at the top.

Seems like a timing conflict between the processing. Maybe if REAPER doesn't switch to the external editor GUI until the copy is made and the progress window closes the problem will go away.

Thank you for looking at it. This one of my favorite REAPER features.

Justin · 12-20-2018, 05:46 PM

ok try today’s build...

MRMJP · 12-20-2018, 05:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Justin

ok try today’s build...

Will do. Thanks!

MRMJP · 12-20-2018, 05:59 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Justin

ok try today’s build...

Yes! Initial testing looks good. I'll keep trying it in real-world cases and also tomorrow on my main system (which never had the problem" and let you know if anything weird comes up.

Thank you so much, over time this will be a huge time saver and headache reducer.

MRMJP · 12-20-2018, 08:55 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Justin

ok try today’s build...

Also, let me know if you'd like me to PayPal you that $50 prize for finding the solution

Justin · 12-21-2018, 10:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by MRMJP

Also, let me know if you'd like me to PayPal you that $50 prize for finding the solution

Hah! You can send it to the SPCA or Doctors without Borders

airon · 12-23-2018, 05:28 AM

Will test this when I get back to my rig. I've had the same problem for a long time on Win7x64. thank

MRMJP · 12-23-2018, 01:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Justin

Hah! You can send it to the SPCA or Doctors without Borders

Done and done.

12-14-2018, 08:16 AM	#1
MRMJP Human being with feelings Join Date: May 2016 Posts: 2,065	Issue With Open Item Copy In External Editor I reported this awhile ago and never solved it, and now with a new computer and new software versions it's still happening so I'd like to dig in again and solve it. On my main studio computer, everything is fine. When I select part of an item and use my custom script to open an item copy in my external editor, it's fine. Here is a video: https://www.dropbox.com/s/0wdujkbdi3..._GOOD.mov?dl=0 However, even though I have imported my entire REAPER config to my secondary Mac, I get a weird issue. The item copy opens in the external editor but after that happens, the REAPER window takes focus again even though it still has iZotope RX listed at the top of the screen. Then I have to use CMD + TAB again to focus iZotope RX. This might not seem like a big deal but when you are trying to do a lot of edits quickly, it gets in the way. Here is a video of the issue: https://www.dropbox.com/s/cufvwrq12m...X_BAD.mov?dl=0 I even tried changing my external editor to WaveLab from RX and it still happens so I'm thinking this is more of a REAPER issue. This has been ongoing over several OS and REAPER versions and also on two separate secondary computers which is really odd. Does anybody have a clue why this is happening and an idea of how to solve it? One clue is that the VERY first time I do this on my secondary machine and the external editor has to actually launch for the first time, there is no issue. But after the first attempt and the external editor is already open, it always has this issue. __________________ REAPER, just script it bro. Last edited by MRMJP; 12-14-2018 at 11:48 AM.

12-16-2018, 08:00 AM	#4
MRMJP Human being with feelings Join Date: May 2016 Posts: 2,065	I've been trying so many things to fix this issue but nothing seems to prevent it from happening. All I can say is that since I tried using a different external editor than RX and still got the issue, the issue is definitely related to REAPER and/or some external setting or app that is influencing it. __________________ REAPER, just script it bro.

12-19-2018, 08:52 PM	#5
MRMJP Human being with feelings Join Date: May 2016 Posts: 2,065	Offering a $50 PayPal donation to whoever comes up with the correct resolution to this issue. __________________ REAPER, just script it bro.

12-20-2018, 01:52 PM	#6
MRMJP Human being with feelings Join Date: May 2016 Posts: 2,065	OK, I believe I have narrowed down the issue. I do not have this issue on my iMac Pro and former iMac because they are/were super fast computers. My MacBook Pro and apparently new MacMini while fairly fast are not fast enough it seems. If I select a REALLY small section to open a copy in RX, then I do not have the problem because the computer can make the copy fast and doesn't steal focus. If I try to do normal or long size selection, that triggers the issue. I'm not sure if this is the direct issue but there certainly seems to be something to it. Now I wonder if it's fixable. __________________ REAPER, just script it bro.

12-20-2018, 03:28 PM	#7
MRMJP Human being with feelings Join Date: May 2016 Posts: 2,065	I also just tried putting the the session on an external SSD like I do at my main studio just to rule that out and it makes no difference if it's the OS SSD or an external SSD. __________________ REAPER, just script it bro.

12-14-2018, 03:31 PM	#2
xpander Human being with feelings Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Terra incognita Posts: 7,739	No experience about Macs at all, but I noticed there's one icon on the top bar which seems to change the state on the BAD behavior video every time you opened the external editor? It's the V shaped icon, 4th on the BAD video, 2nd on the GOOD (where it doesn't change the state). Just wondering what that one indicates?

12-20-2018, 04:33 PM	#8
Justin Administrator Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: NYC Posts: 16,117	Is it only an issue when using "open copy" or does it also do it if you open the original media?

12-20-2018, 04:50 PM	#15
Philbo King Human being with feelings Join Date: May 2017 Posts: 3,256	I simply close the external editor after using it. It's a couple extra seconds, but it would probably add up of you do it constantly. __________________ Tangent Studio - Philbo King www.soundclick.com/philboking - Audio streams

12-20-2018, 04:55 PM	#17
Justin Administrator Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: NYC Posts: 16,117	Ah so if it's launching a new instance of RX or whatever it's fine, it's just the activating of the existing instance when this occurs? Since I can't duplicate I might try some things and then have you test them in the next build...

12-20-2018, 05:46 PM	#19
Justin Administrator Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: NYC Posts: 16,117	ok try today’s build...

12-23-2018, 05:28 AM	#24
airon Human being with feelings Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: Berlin Posts: 11,861	Will test this when I get back to my rig. I've had the same problem for a long time on Win7x64. thank __________________ Using Latch Preview (Video) - Faderport 16 setup for CSI 1.1 , CSI 3.10 Website "My ego comes pre-shrunk" - Randy Thom

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