beatfix studios

Jeff Mission and Chris Korda performing live with the visual software tools WiiWhorld and Fractice. Fractice is used to create the background layer, while WiiWhorld is being controlled in the foreground – the two layers were lumakeyed together with an Edirol V4 video mixer.

Here are a few notes on how to run multiple instances of Whorld on the same screen, also known as “two-player mode” – I can’t give the exact step-by-step, but this should be a good starting point for people who want to experiment on their own:

The technique is built around FFRend, Chris Korda’s free, open-source software for rendering FreeFrame effects, and the UltraWhorld plugin. Start on the FFRend download page:

Download the “FFRend application” and “Chris Korda’s FreeFrame Plugins” from this page.

Now we need to get UltraWhorld from the Whorld site:
Download the UltraWhorld FreeFrame plugin.

Unpack and install FFRend.

Unpack ultrawhorld-1.1.00-bin.zip into a folder called “WhorldFF”, and place this folder inside your “My Documents” directory. This will enable UltraWhorld to automatically find your patches.

Unpack ckffplugs-1.0.07-bin.zip. Move all of the .dll files into the WhorldFF directory. We will be using “BoolMix.dll”.

Run FFRend. On the left side of the screen, you will see four empty slots for plugins. Right-click the top one, select “load”, and find the “UltraWhorld.dll” plugin. Load “UltraWhorld.dll” into the top slot.

Load a second instance of “UltraWhorld.dll” into the second slot.

Load “BoolMix.dll” into the third slot. In the dropdown next to “BoolMix A” select the first instance of UltraWhorld. You should now see the two UltraWhorld objects in the preview window.

You can change parameters for any loaded plugin by clicking on it, then adjusting the sliders to the right. Try playing with the “patch” sliders in UltraWhorld, and the blend modes in BoolMix.

Every loaded plugin in FFRend is MIDI controllable, using the MIDI section on the bottom of the screen. For multi-player WiiWhorld, you need to map the desired parameters for each instance of UltraWhorld to MIDI data coming from GlovePIE. This involves pairing multiple Wiimotes to your computer, then addressing them in GlovePIE as Wiimote1, Wiimote2, etc. I recommend using separate MIDI channels for each instance of UltraWhorld, to reduce confusion.

Unlike regular Whorld, the MIDI settings for UltraWhorld are not pre-filled, so you have to do some configuration. Also, don’t forget to configure FFRend to receive MIDI on the same port that GlovePIE is sending to. Once that’s all done, you should be off and running.

Now, wasn’t that simple?

All images created by Chris Korda using the geometric visualizer Whorld.

[View with PicLens]

Hardware Requirements

• A computer that runs Windows and has a Bluetooth adapter
• A Nintendo Wiimote controller with Nunchuk

Software Requirements

• MIDI Yoke (download / web site)
• Whorld 1.7.06 (download / web site)
• GlovePIE 0.29 (download / web site)
• The WiiWhorld script (”WiiWhorld.PIE”) (download)

Setting Up

• Install MIDI Yoke.  Set “MIDI Yoke NT: 1″ as your default MIDI playback device in Windows.  (instructions here)
• Unpack the .zip files for the Whorld software, GlovePIE, and the WiiWhorld script.
• Install Whorld.  Run Whorld.  From the menu bar in Whorld, select View -> Options -> MIDI.  From the pulldown list, select “MIDI Yoke NT: 1″.
• Open the GlovePIE folder.  Run GlovePIE.exe (no installation required).  From the menu bar in GlovePIE, open “WiiWhorld.PIE” (File -> Open -> )  Do not click the “Run” button yet.

Pairing the Wiimote

The exact process will vary, depending on your Bluetooth stack.  Here are the key points you need to know:

• The Wiimote must be in discoverable mode throughout the pairing process.  Press and hold the “1″ and “2″ buttons on the Wiimote simultaneously, and continue to hold them until the pairing process is complete.
• If you are pairing your Wiimote for the first time, you may need to add it as a new Bluetooth device.
• The Wiimote is recognized by Bluetooth as a HID (human interface device).
• The Wiimote does not require a passkey.  If you are prompted to enter a passkey, decline or skip it.

If you would like more detailed instructions:
Bluesoleil Bluetooth stack
Built-in Windows Bluetooth stack

And Away We Go!

Once you have successfully paired your Wiimote:

• Go back into GlovePIE.  Click the “Run” button.  You should see numbers moving in the debug box (immediately to the right of the “Run” button).  If you don’t see anything, then your Wiimote is not properly paired, and you need to go through the pairing process again.
• Connect the Nunchuk to the Wiimote, if you haven’t already.
• Go into Whorld.  Shake your Wii.  If everything is working, you should be able to tell right away.
• To put Whorld in fullscreen mode, press F11 on your keyboard.  Have fun!

Notes:

For convenience, I like to associate the .PIE file extension to automatically open with GlovePIE, and then create a desktop shortcut to the WiiWhorld.PIE script.  Do whatever works best for you.

Occasionally the Nunchuk will lose its connection with the Wiimote, and stop responding.  This can usually be fixed by simply unplugging the Nunchuk from the Wiimote, and then plugging it back in.

Party-goers create live video patterns with the WiiWhorld visual synth. The project, created by Chris Korda and Jeff Mission, combines the Nintendo Wiimote controller and the open-source geometric visualizer Whorld. Camera by Lydia Eccles. Music: “Rollah” by Rainbow Bright. Edited by Jeff Mission.

Late last year, while searching about for repair parts for an old Rutt-Etra V-synth, a team of visual archaeologists led by John “Oscillocam_TV” Koczera made a startling find. Deep in the bowels of Harvard University, within a basement office space, inside a rusty desk drawer, hidden beneath a pile of Heathkit catalogs, a time capsule from the 70’s was discovered. Scrawled across the exterior was a single word: “Groovy”. The capsule was cracked open to reveal 3 items – a lava lamp, a stick of incense, and a battered BetaMax cassette labeled “WiiWhorld Explained”.

After a painstaking digital restoration process, the contents of this cassette are being revealed to the public for the first time…