maxi-crash??? !!!

[2bears]

Hey all,

So I’ve been using ms pinky for over a year now . . . and recently have run into a few problems that I can’t seem to figure out.

Maxi-patch crash! Right in the middle of my last two gigs my patch has crashed . . . but when I get my system set-up back at my pad, everything runs fine – so I can’t trouble shoot. But I do want to fix this before my next gig.

Here’s my system info:

Mac book pro
2.33 GHz core 2 duo
Osx 10.4.8
Motu 828
Apex phono pre amps
Ms pinky Gen 4 -- all software updated to latest.
(I run video and audio)


I did source out that one of my needles may be shot – this has caused some glitches in the past – but could it cause the whole maxi-patch to crash????

Any input would be much appreciated.
[/b]

[dlpinkstah]

Yikes!! Sorry to hear about these crashes.

Can you do this for me: Go into YourUserName/Library/Logs/CrashReporter/ and find the Maxi-Patch crash log and send it to me so I can hopefully find out where in the code it's crashing.

Also-- it would be a very good idea for you to update your OSX system software to the latest 10.4.10.

[2bears]

Ok.
Instead of just dfrag and general system maintenance as you suggested . . . I entirely re-loaded my OS, formatted the drive . . . etc.
I was up practicing for a show tomorrow night . . . and again! Another unexpected crash! Can’t figure it out?
Suggestions?

[dlpinkstah]

Hi 2bears,

Sorry to hear about that. Two things:

1) Please send me the crash log again (as before).
2) What exactly were you doing when the crash occurred? Is the crash repeatable every time you do that thing (or sequence of things...)?

[2bears]

Hey,.

Just played a gig last night in Toronto – and everything was fine.
The crash logs no longer exist, or I can’t locate them, sorry.

I can say that usually the crash happens when, after doing a longer scratch sequence, I try and load a new audio/video file. . . . am I overloading my cpu or something?

Computer info:
Mac book pro
Osx 10.4.8
2.33 Ghz
87 gig free space

There has been a lot of messages posted about this, but can you tell me once and for all what the best possible file/ compression/ size etc. for video/ audio?

Current files are:
Quicktime / 320 x 240 / photo jpeg / 15 fps. (between 50-111 MB)
.aif / 16 bit (between 25 50 MB)

is it possible my files are too big? Or is not the issue?
Is there a limit to record manipulation (ie scratching / back spinning etc)?

Also, from what I remember of the crash logs, (not that I can understand them completely) but java keeps being mentioned. Is there an issue with the java script for waveform display and my OS or the software etc. ?

And, I’ve been deleting the ‘preferences’ folder regularly, is this what makes my system more stable? What’s the deal with this anyway, why do the prefs. make a diffrence?

Thanks for your continued support –

[dlpinkstah]

Just played a gig last night in Toronto – and everything was fine.
The crash logs no longer exist, or I can’t locate them, sorry.

That's good to hear!! When the crash happens again, please do send me the log so we can see if it's happening in Ms Pinky's own code, or somebody elses.

I can say that usually the crash happens when, after doing a longer scratch sequence, I try and load a new audio/video file. . . . am I overloading my cpu or something?

Are you loading your files from an external drive, or the internal one on your MacBook? If from an external, how many external drives do you have connected and are they USB or FireWire?

Another question: Are you running the Maxi-Patch as a standalone program? Or are you running the actual patches inside Max/MSP itself?
I seem to remember you mentioning that you do your own Max/MSP programming. Is that the case? If so, have you modified the patches in any way?

Computer info:
Mac book pro
Osx 10.4.8
2.33 Ghz
87 gig free space

That's probably all OK. But I would definitely upgrade to 10.4.10 ASAP. And how much RAM do you have installed? I would suggest 2 Gigs minimum, more is better.

There has been a lot of messages posted about this, but can you tell me once and for all what the best possible file/ compression/ size etc. for video/ audio?
Current files are:
Quicktime / 320 x 240 / photo jpeg / 15 fps. (between 50-111 MB)
.aif / 16 bit (between 25 50 MB)
is it possible my files are too big? Or is not the issue?
Is there a limit to record manipulation (ie scratching / back spinning etc)?

The program should have no trouble at all with files in those formats.
And your scratching the files is also not likely the cause of the problem.

Also, from what I remember of the crash logs, (not that I can understand them completely) but java keeps being mentioned. Is there an issue with the java script for waveform display and my OS or the software etc. ?

There could be a bug in the javascript code, which unfortunately is totally outside the realm of what I can fix. The good news is that there is going to be a major new release of Max/MSP in early 2008 that will definitely impact everything we're doing. So it's likely that this problem will go away with the new release. Let's hope....

And, I’ve been deleting the ‘preferences’ folder regularly, is this what makes my system more stable? What’s the deal with this anyway, why do the prefs. make a diffrence?

A bug in Max/MSP makes the preferences get corrupted sometimes, especially if the program terminates in a crash. Again -- this is something that will probably be fixed in the upcoming major new release of Max/MSP.

Here are a couple of issues I would suggest you look at:

1) Make sure all your drives (internal, external, etc) all have 10% or more free space, and are defragmented. It sounds like your internal drive is very clean at this point, so perhaps your external drive(s) (if you have them) has some issues. Also -- since you're using the MOTU 828 (which is a FireWire device) I wonder if there are some potential FireWire bus conflicts with your other external devices??

2) Make sure you have at least 2 Gigs of RAM, preferably more, and upgrade to 10.4.10 ASAP.

3) Is the physical connection to the MOTU 828 a little unstable? Sometimes those FireWire connections can get buggy, especially if you've had it a long time and often setup and dismantle your gear. Try jiggling it just a bit while the program is running and see if that causes a crash.