1.7.06

Whorld 1.7.06 adds global parameters which affect all rings at once. This version also adds two new Bézier curve parameters, and fixes some important bugs.

1. In previous versions, changing a geometry parameter (e.g. Star Factor) only affected new rings. This behavior was essential for creating interesting patches, but it wasn't good for live control, because it introduced a long delay between changing a parameter and seeing any significant change in the output. Most of the geometry parameters now have a global version which affects all existing rings at once. The global parameters are accessed in the Parameters dialog (View/Parameters) by selecting Edit/Global Params.
2. In previous versions, Bézier curves were always symmetrical. This version adds two new geometry parameters, called Even Shear and Odd Shear, which allow you to create asymmetrical Bézier curves. The two curve points at each vertex are normally equidistant from the vertex; Shear varies the ratio of these two distances. Even Shear affects even vertices, while Odd Shear affects odd ones. Note that Even Shear does nothing if Even Curve is zero, and Odd Shear does nothing if Odd Curve is zero.
3. In previous versions, the Movie Export's codec setting was not saved, which meant the codec had to be reselected (and possibly reconfigured) for every export. Fixed.
4. The default MIDI setup has been changed to make it more user-friendly.
5. In previous versions, the Range column in the MIDI setup dialog consisted of only one value. The Range column now consists of two values: low and high.
6. In dual-monitor exclusive mode, the cursor was still visible along the edges of the secondary monitor. The cursor is now completely hidden.
7. In previous versions, moving the origin via MIDI hid the cursor, which was a serious problem in dual-monitor mode. Fixed.
8. In previous versions, Bézier curves could be unstable due to round-off error, particularly when Star Factor was negative and Pinwheel was non-zero. Fixed.
9. Panic (Window/Panic or Esc) now clears the screen.
10. In previous versions, if Ring Spacing was large, clearing the screen could cause the output to remain blank for an extended period. Clearing the screen now creates a new ring immediately.
11. The actual frame rate is now shown in the status bar.
12. In previous versions, if items were being dragged within the Playlist dialog, pressing Esc would close the dialog instead of canceling the drag. Fixed.
13. In previous versions, left- or right-clicking on a dialog's caption bar would temporarily freeze the output. Fixed for all modeless dialogs, but not for modal ones.
14. In previous versions, if Whorld was unmirrored and in Exclusive mode, the back buffer would always be located in video memory, even if "Back buffer location" in Options/Display was set to "Use System Memory". This made it difficult to avoid performance problems with the X-Ray effect, because X-Ray reads from the back buffer and reading from video memory is extremely slow. Whorld now respects the "Use System Memory" setting in all cases.
15. In previous versions, if a modeless dialog had focus, most of the keyboard shortcuts didn't work. This was particularly a problem in dual-monitor mode. Keyboard shortcuts that use alphanumeric or function keys now work regardless of whether a modeless dialog has focus. Shortcuts that use other keys, such as Tab, Arrows, Backspace, etc. still require the main window to have focus.