Page 1 of 1

Wire: Desperately needs sub-patching (reuse of groups of nodes in another context with inlets and outlets)

Posted: Tue Feb 08, 2022 04:24
by webel
[EDIT: 2023-10-12 now with feature voting poll]


I have already reported this via Resolume support email.

AFAIK as of Wire 7.8.0 there is no sub-patching. If there is indeed a way of achieving this, please advise.

I appreciate that Wire is new, but this is the single biggest short-coming in current Wire. It means that patches quickly grow out of control, groups of nodes that perform a well defined task can't be reused in another patch unless you copy and paste, and one can't organise patches well using probably the most important idiom of patch-based programming (if you don't count processing nodes with inlets/outlets themselves). There are no serious patch-based programming environments that don't have sub-patching.

One needs to be able to draw a box around any group of nodes in a Wire patch, and have a reusable named new sub-patch Node created, with identified inlets and outlets, with instances of it useable in other patches.

If you are a fan of Wire and wish to help prioritise this feature request, please add your support here.

Re: Wire: Desperately needs sub-patching (reuse of groups of nodes in another context with inlets and outlets)

Posted: Thu Jan 12, 2023 10:20
by bart
Thank you for all your valuable feedback webel! Super helpful. Subpatching is definitely coming, we cdo nog yet know when yet because it’s a huge feature but it’s very high on our list.

Re: Wire: Desperately needs sub-patching (reuse of groups of nodes in another context with inlets and outlets)

Posted: Fri Mar 10, 2023 06:42
by webel
If you have indeed now already implemented sub-patching, and I've somehow missed it, please advise, and I'll delete this post and replace it with a review of that new support.


Wire is immature, in particular due to the lack of sub-patching support.

I appreciate that the Wire developers are working hard. I’ve read the latest release blog, I appreciate the need for new features and the changes you’ve made, but the developers need to, please, stop treating sub-patching as “just a feature” and prioritise it about all other things.

Sub-patching support is not a “feature” any more than the engine or crankshaft of a car are “just features”. It’s a fundamental aspect of the primary software architecture, and without it, Wire users can’t encapsulate reusable solutions and have to invest massive amounts of their own time, and it’s far less enjoyable to work with than other patch based environments. Sub-patching is the primary artistic mechanism.

Implement sub-patching, with priority, and I’ll be able to do wonderful things with Wire that help promote it. Its strength is integration with Arena/Avenue. Its glaring weakness is the prevailing lack of sub-patching.

I appreciate that it is ultimately your company/business, you know your customers, and it's your decision what to prioritise. But please keep in mind, there is a selection effect; potential customers who learn that Wire does not have sub-patching will simply go elsewhere. So you aren't likely to hear advocacy from them, because they are not your customers. Because you still don't have sub-patching.

This music video makes heavy use of Wire and Wire in combination with Resolume Avenue (as well as many other tools). Implement sub-patching, and I'll be able to do a lot more, far more enjoyably, with far more artistic flow, and far less tediously, to help promote Wire. I am grateful for what one can already do with it (which helped make this video):

https://vimeo.com/playlogo/gongos

Re: Wire: Desperately needs sub-patching (reuse of groups of nodes in another context with inlets and outlets)

Posted: Fri Mar 17, 2023 04:26
by webel