Lua: Advanced glue (glue items separately, preserve names, colors, muted notes etc..)

[Breeder]

Don't you hate when gluing destroys some item information? Yes, me too ...and I haven't been able to find the script that does it all while taking care of all corner-cases, so I bashed my own!

The script can do this (in any combination):

• Glue items separately
• Preserve muted events in MIDI items
• Preserve item/take color
• Preserve take name
• Preserve item snap offset
• Preserve item notes/image

And of course, it includes the standard glue options like ignoring time selection or including fades.

Download it here
I you want to have all options available through the dialog (so you can pick different options when gluing), make sure to also download this script made by spk77. To see it in action, check post #16 of this thread.

After downloading, simply unzip the archive, move scripts to desired folder and import them all in REAPER (except GlueTools.lua...that one isn't used as script in REAPER but is imported by other scripts to make stuff work, so no need to import it). In case you're using spk77's GUI script, also make sure it's in the same folder as GlueTools.lua (this is really important, you need to download both my scripts and spk77's GUI script to make GUI script work) and import it with the rest of the scripts.

I've included standard glue functions that preserve everything (both normal and glue items separately versions)
To create your own custom versions of these scripts, simply edit one of the included scripts (i.e. Item - Glue items (preserve stuff).lua) according to your preferences. All you have to do is change variables under Glue settings to true or false in a way that suits your needs:

-- Glue settings -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
processItemsSeparately  = false
ignoreTimeSel           = false
includeFades            = false

preserveMutedMidiEvents = true
preserveColor           = true
preserveNames           = true
preserveSnapOffset      = true
preserveItemNotes       = true

A lot of effort has been invested in this. If you seriously use it, please consider supporting the developer. Thanks!

I don't mind if someone puts this set in ReaPack, but please include my donation link, forum nickname and link to this thread in the description if you do so.
__________________
REAPER ReWorked: An elegant and self-sufficient all-around REAPER configuration
Other stuff

[X-Raym]

I haven't been able to found the script that does it all while taking care of all corner-cases, so I bashed my own!

Don't you !
I was close :P
EEL : Glue selected items independently

• Glue -> working
• Color -> working
• Name conservation -> working
• Undo point -> working

It only missed the note preservation because the functions was buggy (bug reported by spk77), I was waiting for a bug fixed, but it was already written in the script :P

----
Anyway, thank you for sharing your script that is without any doubt way more advanced than I had propose (you have fade preservation, time selection, working midi items, and items notes), and all this conditional thing are very handy to build what we really need

I wonder if we could add a content preservation (the glue will be used only to render FX, while preserving all other infos - length, fades...).

Thank you for sharing !!
I'm pretty sure I have a lot to learn about code optimization in your script :P


---

EDIT:
I thought it was one script only but there is a lot of script in your pack !!! Thanks
I just understood the modular philosophy of this pack. It is awesome

[Breeder]

Originally Posted by X-Raym

I'm pretty sure I have a lot to learn about code optimization in your script :P

I don't think so
It's really quite crude - just to get the work done. I'm really no expert in Lua. I'm a bit embarrassed about all those indentation too (end end end end end, haha)...but maybe that's normal in Lua?

Originally Posted by X-Raym

Don't you !
I was close :P
EEL : Glue selected items independently

Haha, sorry

Last time I checked the forum I couldn't find one that fitted me (I think I actually saw these things in separate scripts and none of them obeyed the "play all takes" option for muted MIDI events...maybe not really that important but I hate when you use some script/extension and suddenly something isn't working 100%...in that case I usually leave everything I've been working on and fix it...and I hate to do that cause it kills the creativity - that's why I always try to cover all aspects).

In my defense, I even tried to make name/color/notes preservation work when NOT gluing items separately (closest original item to new item takes the priority here...except item notes...these get written from all the items so you don't lose them)

[X-Raym]

In my defense, I even tried to make name/color/notes preservation work when NOT gluing items separately

Haha
Well, I tried it too for names, but I was stuck, spk77 did it for me EEL : Glue selected items preserving names

I think now we have one glue scripts pack to rule them all.
(except Non Destructive glue, which is another concept).
----

You code is a pleasure to look at

Will have to test all that now !

EDIT: What about Take Envelopes Preservation ?

[Breeder]

Originally Posted by X-Raym

EDIT: What about Take Envelopes Preservation ?

That shouldn't be hard for native envelopes I guess...I'll give it a look tomorrow.

Originally Posted by X-Raym

Haha
Well, I tried it too for names, but I was stuck, spk77 did it for me EEL : Glue selected items preserving names

Ah, I see...mine works a bit differently - I don't condense all the names into one item but instead simply name the new item after first closest item. I like simplicity here to be honest cause in my case if items are to be glued together they should usually share the name anyway (but I can see how spk77's way can be useful to some people...in sound design for example)

I'll see if I can throw the option for that too.

[FnA]

Thank you.

I thought about trying to do something this, but seemed like so much work (and might not even work :P). I was also going to try to tackle this issue with overlapping notes:http://forum.cockos.com/showthread.php?t=159532 Note off of note 1 cuts note 2 short. What do you think about that? Figured I'd have to put them in a list, sort it, trim notes that were too long("correcting them"), then put them in a new item. I was going to delete muted notes that land under unmuted notes, but after running your script, it seems like muted/nonmuted can exist together outside MIDI editor. But two mutes that land on top of each other suffer the same fate as two nonmutes. I see you are doing something like (Python)list already for mutes. (Lua noob)

Well, if not then these will be great on their own as is.

[daxliniere]

Could this script prompt the user with a dialogbox with checkboxes for each option?

[Garrick]

Awesome I look forward to giving this a go
Cheers

[X-Raym]

@Breeder
this is so modular it gives a lot of ideas

What about preservation of snap offset ? I mean, we (I ?) glue mainly to render FX or to merge two MIDI items, why would I want to loose my snap offset after that ? (especially useful for tools like Script (Lua): Shuffle Items)
If several elements are selected on a same track, snap offset could set to the first one, of course. :P

You just created a monster, haha !

ps: condense all the names is not a priority, it is not even a feature request. I don't really use that as much, so let's go for simplicity.

[Breeder]

Originally Posted by FnA

Thank you.

I thought about trying to do something this, but seemed like so much work (and might not even work :P). I was also going to try to tackle this issue with overlapping notes:http://forum.cockos.com/showthread.php?t=159532 Note off of note 1 cuts note 2 short. What do you think about that? Figured I'd have to put them in a list, sort it, trim notes that were too long("correcting them"), then put them in a new item. I was going to delete muted notes that land under unmuted notes, but after running your script, it seems like muted/nonmuted can exist together outside MIDI editor. But two mutes that land on top of each other suffer the same fate as two nonmutes. I see you are doing something like (Python)list already for mutes. (Lua noob)

Well, if not then these will be great on their own as is.

Hmm, I'm using native API to insert muted events back to items, so it seems this bug propagates around a lot? I really think this is job for Cockos instead of us creating tiring workarounds :/
Is there a bug report for this so we can vote it up and get devs' attention?

Originally Posted by daxliniere

Could this script prompt the user with a dialogbox with checkboxes for each option?

Well, it's all there - somebody just has to write the GUI. I really don't have the time nor need for that. If somebody else want to do it, great.

Originally Posted by X-Raym

What about preservation of snap offset ?

Done - redownload the files from the first post

Originally Posted by X-Raym

You just created a monster, haha !

Yes, I see...and I just wanted to make things a bit easier for myself
I'm not really sure I will be taking too many requests for this one. Snap offset was important (thanks for pointing it out), envelopes seem handy to have so I'll look into it - but everything else is just an overkill for me (in the end we will end up with glue that does absolutely nothing, haha)

[X-Raym]

in the end we will end up with glue that does absolutely nothing, haha

THAT is what I call a "non destructive workflow" ! :P

Thanks for the snaps, it will be very handy

[FnA]

Originally Posted by Breeder

Hmm, I'm using native API to insert muted events back to items, so it seems this bug propagates around a lot? I really think this is job for Cockos instead of us creating tiring workarounds :/
Is there a bug report for this so we can vote it up and get devs' attention?

I agree it would be good if Cockos would fix it. I started that thread (link above) in Bug Reports. No tracker issue yet. Could use some input there. The part that happens during undo is, IMO, totally a bug. I think I can partially grasp why it's happening, but it's still bad behavior. When you close the MIDI editor the notes get "corrected" in accordance with the action "Correct overlapping notes." I didn't mention it there because I don't have repro steps laid out, but using the filter can cause it too. Not every use of undo will cause it.

The part with glue might have an argument that it's like playback. "What you play is what you get." I think it's, by far, more musically useful (and causes less work to be lost) to "correct" the overlapping notes. Similar in some ways to "Items always replace earlier items" (*Audio. Might be unclear if you think how MIDI items behave here) or SWS action "Clean selected items." Also Fingers' Allocate/FreeMIDItake. Well, I think it's just plain obvious really, that note 1 should not trim note 2.

There is a bug report on muted events getting wiped out. http://forum.cockos.com/project.php?issueid=498. Schwa and some users give opinions there. I'd rather keep them during glue and use something else to wipe them out if desired. Never got a discussion thread. Maybe is more of an FR. Individual item "glue" is something I found to be practically a necessity, given the behaviors of items, especially altered ones. Glue to itself only, I mean.

I don't know what we can expect for ReaScript functions.

[nofish]

Thank you Breeder.

I especially like this:

Originally Posted by Breeder

[*]Preserve muted events in MIDI items

Loosing muted notes with native glue is a longstanding gripe for me, so these scripts come in very useful.

[Breeder]

Please redownload, updated using new "no undo point trick" explained here:
http://forum.cockos.com/showpost.php...3&postcount=67

This is only relevant if you're using these scripts in macros or cycle actions.

[X-Raym]

Nice trick !

Will test it later

[spk77]

Originally Posted by Breeder

Well, it's all there - somebody just has to write the GUI. I really don't have the time nor need for that. If somebody else want to do it, great.

Somebody wrote the GUI :


Put this file to the same folder with Breeder's "GlueTools.lua" -script:
https://stash.reaper.fm/24168/GUI%20f...lue%20tool.lua

I thought that this could be a good script for testing my "checkbox class".

(Note: There are unnecessary stuff in that file I posted. Also, the "checkbox class" in that code is a "stripped-down version")

[X-Raym]

@spk77
Damn, that's a good day for ReaScript
Nice use of checkboxes !

Thank you for sharing !

[Breeder]

Originally Posted by spk77

Somebody wrote the GUI

And who else than you, haha
Great work on those checkboxes, you're really turning into Lua wizard

Thank you very much for this! I'll put your link in the first post!

[spk77]

Originally Posted by X-Raym

@spk77
Damn, that's a good day for ReaScript
Nice use of checkboxes !

Thank you for sharing !

Thanks! I'll post the full checkbox code when I get it "ready"

Originally Posted by Breeder

And who else than you, haha
Great work on those checkboxes, you're really turning into Lua wizard

Thank you very much for this! I'll put your link in the first post!

Thanks!
I'm constantly finding better ways to implement GUI elements (at least I think so ). It can be annoying at times: (as an amateur) I have to rewrite a lot of code when I discover better ways to do things.
Sometimes it feels like I'll never get anything ready.

For example, the button code in that script I posted is sooo 2014 .

[nofish]

When trying to run the 'preserve all' script on a certain MIDI item I get this error:



Track template with the MIDI item in question is attached, would be happy if you could take a look Breeder (or anyone of the scripting gurus).

Thanks.

Win 8.1 upd1 x64, R5 pre36 x32, SWS 2.6.4 Build #0

edit:
Noticed, my SWS wasn't up to date.
Just updated to recent 2.7.1 Build #0 but I get the same error.

[hopi]

ummmm perhaps it's just me... but having prob's with this stuff

Love the idea...

got all the dl's and have them placed as requested....

using newest pre of reaper and almost newest pre of sws... [can't seem to dl a new sws that will install right now... it gives installer errors]

so when I run the script[s] there is some function it can't seem to find or use... ya think this is due to the sws and reaper pre versions or is it just me?

OK here is one error msg when I try to run the scripts:

...er 64 Portable\Scripts\Lua - Advanced Glue\GlueTools.lua:103: 'reaper.BR_IsTakeMidi' is unknown

[Breeder]

Originally Posted by nofish

When trying to run the 'preserve all' script on a certain MIDI item I get this error:



Track template with the MIDI item in question is attached, would be happy if you could take a look Breeder (or anyone of the scripting gurus).

Fixed it - redownload from the first post!

Originally Posted by hopi

using newest pre of reaper and almost newest pre of sws... [can't seem to dl a new sws that will install right now... it gives installer errors]

You do need latest SWS pre to make this work. I don't have any problems downloading :/

[hopi]

hmmmm.... my info:

most recent reaper pre ver. and same for sws... both 64 bit on win7

so what am I doing wrong???
This is what I see running any of the lua's and\or the spk77 GUI for them:


http://***************/a/img673/6598/FYY0Lw.png

[Breeder]

Originally Posted by hopi

most recent reaper pre ver. and same for sws... both 64 bit on win7

so what am I doing wrong???

You're obviously not using latest SWS pre!

Check Extensions->About SWS and if you're not seeing 2.7.1 Build #0 go here to find the download link.

[nofish]

Originally Posted by Breeder

Fixed it - redownload from the first post!

Working fine now.
Thank you for the quick fix.

[hopi]

thank you Breeder.... yep obviously that was exactly the problem... sorry for the user confusion!

[TheWhistler]

Thank you very much breeder & spk77.
In Reaper 5 my beloved python script to prevent the glued in the item name, doesn´ seem to work anymore.
I searched the forum and came across your script - wow that´s just it.
Thank you - you are genious

BTW I don´t know why this annoying behavior isn´t banned from reaper.

[G-Sun]

Originally Posted by Breeder

• Glue items separately
• Preserve muted events in MIDI items
• Preserve item/take color
• Preserve take name
• Preserve item snap offset
• Preserve item notes/image

Originally Posted by spk77

Somebody wrote the GUI

Thank you very much!

[matthewjumpsoffbuildings]

so does this allow you to unglue the glued items and get back the source items?

if not, if theres any way i can help get some of the ideas from my non-destructive glue script into your script, id love to help. im sure that you would write much better code than me, but the basic ideas of my nondestructive glue script are that the source items states are serialised and stored in the projectExt XML nodes in the RPP file, and i also store a 2-way list of dependencies if any glued items include other glued items inside them, so when unglueing, editing and then regluing, not just the currently edited glued item, but all other glued items that include instances of it, are all updated.

ive stopped updating it for a while now cause i was hoping for a better way to update the wav sources of takes in a project (a la the "propogate take" action), but id be super keen to try and combine the two ideas to make the ultimate glueing/grouping script. my code is probably a mess btw, but the LUA scripts are here https://bitbucket.org/matthewjumpsof...lua/?at=master

[timbralzoom]

Thank you so much... to both of you !
This is highly useful.

[airon]

Thanks guys, this is awesome. I was going to write my own but this is miles better.

edit: aaand unfortunately it doesn't work on empty items. I might have to customize this a bit .

[Subz]

Wow!!

Thanks!!

[endorka]

Having the meaningful names I'd given midi items getting modified when gluing was becoming really old, and this was the answer. Thank you!

Jennifer

[lexaproductions]

Thanks a lot for this. Made my life easier today.

[vanhaze]

Digging up this thread about this awesome tool !

I want to make a variation of this which does this:

a) It doesn't show a GUI.
b) ALL settings must be set to TRUE.

I tried this doing myself but i am a total script noob and i was unsuccesful making it happen.

Can plz anyone give a helping hand ?
Thanks !

[X-Raym]

@vanhaze
The non GUI workflow is explained in first post.


You have to download breeder Stash version of the script, and edit a file to set your own preference.


There is variables with name = false, just set true instead of false :P

[vanhaze]

Big thanks X-Raym !
As often: i was too impatient searching for a solution (pardon me for that).

I downloaded the stash version from the link given in first post:
https://stash.reaper.fm/v/24096/Lua%...ced%20Glue.zip

I unzipped the downloaded file and then saw in the unzipped folder a script version which is called:
Item - Glue items separately, ignoring time selection, including leading fade-in and trailing fade-out (preserve stuff).lua
This script has no GUI, just as i wanted.

This is exactly the script i was looking for, hooray !

[Breeder]

Fixed a special corner case so please redownload from the first post

The only file changed is GlueTools.lua so if you already have this installed and have changed things, just update GlueTools.lua and leave everything else untouched.


What is fixed? It seems there's a problem when changing playrate and the option Preserve pitch in audio items when changing master playrate is turned on. If that's the case, rendered media will not sound anything like the original. After updating, this shouldn't happen anymore.

While this may be cosidered a REAPER bug, the fix is easy enough - problematic option gets turned off during the glue and restores it to the original state after gluing the items.

[mpl]

Small bump for this script.

I`ve just slightly modded it, so it stores XY position and checks now. (not what I`m usually doing, just saw a single request in ReaTeam repo)

[vdubreeze]

This is probably the script I use the most of all since it arrived. At least every day for years. Not being able to glue a string of items separately was one reason Reaper couldn't climb up the list of much used DAWs for me. The gluing options is one of those things that makes so much more of a difference than the scripts that push the limits of one's imagination that aren't particularly useful except as an example of the power of the scripting.

All hail Breeder!

Public note to self!!! Must donate to Breeder!!

edit: Done!