Theatre Design & Technology - Fall 1992 - 68

Optional items:
Color monitor, 24-bit video board,
Paperwork program, Sound notes
require input hardware
System used for test:
Mac IIsi 2/40 wirh floating point
math co-processor, Mac Color Monitor, Imagewriter II
List price:
$50 ($25 for students). Shareware
version only $5 by sending a formatted disk and return postage.
Reviewed by:
Michael Brodhead
Department of Theatre
University of South Florida
Tampa, FL 33620
Description and Review:

MacLux is a simple and convenient way to
work Out your lighting design. It works in
several ways that are analogous to traditional methods of drafting a light plot. In
MacLux, lights and lines are objects which
have data associated with them. This has a
great advantage, since the designer can
rhink in terms of the function of each
lighr, entering data graphically as the
design takes shape. MacLux allows you to
create a plot over the top of an existing
ground plan, similar to using tracing
paper on top of the scene designer's drawings. You draw a plan ofyour theatre space
and hanging positions and you are ready
to add instrumentS. You place instrumentS
quickly and efficiently. Instead of using a
plastic template to draw a symbol, you
select the one you want from a palette and
drag it into place.
Unlike the paper version, the MacLux
symbol can be moved or even changed to
a different type. If you have too many
instrumentS hanging in one spot, no problem, just grab one of them and drag it to
another location. You can even change the
type of instrument if necessary. Will the
instrumentS I've hung cover the stage? No
worry, MacLux has a feature that will
allow you to get an idea of the size of
beam that a light of a given type will produce. A mouse click lets you see the beam
coverage patterns. MacLux works by taking advantage of the computer's ability to
manipulate relational data. For example,
when MacLux calculates the beam of a
light, it uses the beam spread from the key
icon representing the type of instrument.
At any point the computer can do what it
does best-manipulate and sort the data
and produce the required paper work.
You can also create light plotS in color,
display instrumentS and beam throws, calculate the beam overlap, and display the
resultant color blending. MacLux will also
display a cube placed on the stage so that
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1992 FAll

TD&T

you can see how beams fall on a three
dimensional object. When creating an
instrument schedule, the program looks at
all the lights hanging on a position and
assigns them numbers based on rules like
"count from SL to SR."
You can print the light plot in any of
four different scales and in color as well.
On smaller scales, you can see more of the
theatre on the screen at any time. The
larger scales provide more clarity for precise placement. The available scales are
1/8", 3/16", 1/4" and 1/2". Printing in
1/8" scale may only take one sheet of
paper, while the same plot in 1/2" scale
may be printed on multiple sheets of
paper which you then trim and tape
together creating a full size plot. Although
the process is fairly simple, it can be
tedious with multiple pages.
MacLux is a welcome companion for
the lighting designer. It is also an effective
teaching device. Anyone who uses
MacLux will become hooked at once. No
more erasing, redrawing, and revising.
The computer will take care of almost
everything for you. This program is most
effective when used with its companion
program, Paperwork, which is a must.
Paperwork creates instrument schedules,
lamp counts, gel cut lists and channel listS
using information from your plot.
MacLux 1.7 has jusr been released
with the following major features:
1. automatic number and display of
instrument numbers on the drawing
2. display marks for focus area, templates, barn doors, ete.
3. a new tool to focus lightS and set levels, therefore you can create, look at,
and save a cue
4. a key library, which means that you
can store characteristics of several
manufacturer's instruments and then
plug the one you want into the key of
your current plot
5. new symbols, which are mathematically defined rather than being
bitrnapped
6. a new scale command
7. better spacing and better graphics.

.....

SIMPLE SPAN/BACK SPAN
Rating:

***

Company Name and Address:
Arch Software
1642 Pullan Ave.
Cincinnati, OH 45223
Type of Software:
Beam design desk accessory

Computers it rUIlS on:
Mac Plus or higher
Operating Systems:
System 6.0 or higher
Memory Required:
1MB RAM
Peripherals needed:
2nd disk drive helpful
Copy Protection:
None
Optional items:
Printer
System used for test:
Macintosh SE
List price:
$149
Reviewed by:
Cosmo Catalano, Jt.
Williams College Dept. of Theatre
1000 Main Street
Williamstown, MA 01267
Description and Review:

Simple Span is a nifry beam design program. You are presented with a series of
windows where you enter information
such as span, loads, and deflection criteria.
You then choose the beam material-for
instance Southern Pine #2, A36 Steel, or
laminated wood-or specify your own
Modulus of Elasticity and allowable bending and shear values. The program will
calculate the Section Modulus and
Moment of Inertia for that particular
span, material, and loading. At this point
you can either go to tables in various reference manuals to choose the member or
have the program select a beam from its
fues-after you specifY itS nominal depth.
In the latter case, the program will display
the end reactions, percentage of allowable
shear and the actual deflection.
The program is very easy to use and
produces accurate results. It traps input
errors well. You can quickly try several
different choices of beam materials and
sizes under the same loading conditions.
If you question the results of a particular
choice, the displayed raw values for the
Section Modulus and Moment of Inertia
let you easily check the program's calculations.
Because the program is a Desk Accessory under the "Apple" ( ) on the menu
bar, it is easily and quickly accessible. Simple Span is only used for simply supported
beams. Back Span (which comes with Simple Span) performs the same calculations
for cantilevered beams.
You must understand the loading of a
particular beam to use this program safely.
If the load information you supply to the
program is inaccurate, a beam will be chosen that may be undersized and a potential
hazard.
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Fall 1992
