I just installed the latest ZebraHZ update. When I create an instrument track in Cubase 6.5 and click the "edit instrument" button, I get a window frame, but see no GUI at all... it's just a blank/empty window.
Any idea what is up?
Windows 7
Cubase 6.5, 32-bit
Thanks...
latest Zebra HZ vs Cubase 6.5 -- GUI invisible?
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- KVRist
- Topic Starter
- 91 posts since 14 Oct, 2013
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- KVRist
- Topic Starter
- 91 posts since 14 Oct, 2013
I should add that when I play midi on that track, I do get sound which I believe is from ZebraHZ, but I have no way of editing, interacting, seeing the patch browser, etc.
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tasmaniandevil tasmaniandevil https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=62450
- KVRAF
- 1734 posts since 22 Mar, 2005 from a planet called u-he
One guess: You might have installed the ZebraHZ.data folder to a protected location, like somewhere in C:\Program Files (x86).
Best thing to try would be to completely deinstall ZebraHZ, making sure there are no more ZebraHZ.data folders or shortcuts to the data folder on your drive. Then install the data folder to a save location, like the user documents area.
Best thing to try would be to completely deinstall ZebraHZ, making sure there are no more ZebraHZ.data folders or shortcuts to the data folder on your drive. Then install the data folder to a save location, like the user documents area.
That QA guy from planet u-he.
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- KVRist
- Topic Starter
- 91 posts since 14 Oct, 2013
Well, the latest: I went back to a pre-HZ-2.8-install restore point, then went and removed tons of "zebraHZ" stuff from a lot of places (stuff I assume from prior years of installs/updates).
Starting with this clean slate (I do have a working Zebra2.8 installed), I re-ran the HZ installer.
In the section where you specify the location for the resource files, I selected "manual" (since the default was putting it over in the User/admin area, where no other stuff is), then "Browse" to point to the location where the working Zebra2 data directory is. In the browse dialog, I browse over to Users->Public->Public Documents->u-he, hit "make new folder", create a "ZebraHZ.data" (right next to Zebra2.data), select it, and then go back to the installer.
At this point, the installer does *not* change the path to what I selected... it continues to hang on to Users\admin\Documents\u-he\ZebraHZ.data. No! I want it in Public, just like Zebra2.
So I try typing in the path by hand. I change the text "admin" to "Public", change "Documents" to "Public Documents". So now it looks good. I go through with the install.
But now, really strangely, I get a *brand new* "Public Documents" folder, right next to the one that was there before.
Weird.
I tried it twice, thinking I typo-ed it. But oddly, the shortcut over in the 32-bit VSTplugins folder works fine when I go through it, the files are there. So now, by hand, I moved the ZebraHZ.data folder from the new, weird Public Documents folder, over to the original intended folder next to Zebra2.data. Remove the VSTplugins folder shortcut. Try to create a new shortcut pointing to the new location for the data folder. Ugh. No. Not allowed (I am running with an admin account so... shrug..). It does let me create a shortcut on the desktop. And then I can move that shortcut into the VSTplugins folder.
So now things seem to be working. That was a frustrating bit of fussing though. And I'm not super confident that everything is right and that I will sail through future updates cleanly. And incidentally, the many restore-point revertions, the repeated wholesale removal of ZebraHZ files and folders, etc... is a good illustration of why I posted my other recent thread regarding keeping user-created content *out* of manufacturer's system folders (like the data folder kind-of is) even when those folders are in User areas. Too much friction to have to remember "there is something I have to be careful of here" before cleaning, removing, starting over, etc.
Starting with this clean slate (I do have a working Zebra2.8 installed), I re-ran the HZ installer.
In the section where you specify the location for the resource files, I selected "manual" (since the default was putting it over in the User/admin area, where no other stuff is), then "Browse" to point to the location where the working Zebra2 data directory is. In the browse dialog, I browse over to Users->Public->Public Documents->u-he, hit "make new folder", create a "ZebraHZ.data" (right next to Zebra2.data), select it, and then go back to the installer.
At this point, the installer does *not* change the path to what I selected... it continues to hang on to Users\admin\Documents\u-he\ZebraHZ.data. No! I want it in Public, just like Zebra2.
So I try typing in the path by hand. I change the text "admin" to "Public", change "Documents" to "Public Documents". So now it looks good. I go through with the install.
But now, really strangely, I get a *brand new* "Public Documents" folder, right next to the one that was there before.
Weird.
I tried it twice, thinking I typo-ed it. But oddly, the shortcut over in the 32-bit VSTplugins folder works fine when I go through it, the files are there. So now, by hand, I moved the ZebraHZ.data folder from the new, weird Public Documents folder, over to the original intended folder next to Zebra2.data. Remove the VSTplugins folder shortcut. Try to create a new shortcut pointing to the new location for the data folder. Ugh. No. Not allowed (I am running with an admin account so... shrug..). It does let me create a shortcut on the desktop. And then I can move that shortcut into the VSTplugins folder.
So now things seem to be working. That was a frustrating bit of fussing though. And I'm not super confident that everything is right and that I will sail through future updates cleanly. And incidentally, the many restore-point revertions, the repeated wholesale removal of ZebraHZ files and folders, etc... is a good illustration of why I posted my other recent thread regarding keeping user-created content *out* of manufacturer's system folders (like the data folder kind-of is) even when those folders are in User areas. Too much friction to have to remember "there is something I have to be careful of here" before cleaning, removing, starting over, etc.
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tasmaniandevil tasmaniandevil https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=62450
- KVRAF
- 1734 posts since 22 Mar, 2005 from a planet called u-he
About the installer not changing to the path you chose:
This happened because you navigated inside a ZebraHZ.data folder you created manually.
There is no need to create this folder, this is done by the installer.
In your case, the installer noticed that you are already inside a ZebraHZ.data folder, thus it refused to create another ZebraHZ.data folder inside that one.
But I agree, the installer not giving any hints about why it was not accepting that chosen path is a flaw, and can confuse users.
This is a known issue, and improving it is already on our to-do list.
About the plugin creating a second "Public Documents" folder next to the existing one:
Normally, having two folders with the same name is impossible, but in this case it works, because the folder shows it's name as "Public Documents", but it's actually just called "Documents". No idea what Microsoft thought when deciding on this.
So when you manually typed in the location and used "User Documents", the plugin happily created that folder, because there was no existing folder with the same name.
Had you simply navigated to C:\Users\Public\Documents\u-he, instead of typing the path manually, everything would have worked just fine.
About not being allowed to create a shortcut:
Those are Windows security measures, if a folder is protected by the system, you might not have permission to create files without further verification of your user rights, even if you are an admin user.
And this happening indicates that the plugin might eventually have a hard time working correctly in this location. If installed in such a protected folder, the plugin will maybe launch, but it could be that it won't be able to save presets, or store preferences.
Sorry about all your trouble, I hope I could at least explain why stuff happened the way it did.
This happened because you navigated inside a ZebraHZ.data folder you created manually.
There is no need to create this folder, this is done by the installer.
In your case, the installer noticed that you are already inside a ZebraHZ.data folder, thus it refused to create another ZebraHZ.data folder inside that one.
But I agree, the installer not giving any hints about why it was not accepting that chosen path is a flaw, and can confuse users.
This is a known issue, and improving it is already on our to-do list.
About the plugin creating a second "Public Documents" folder next to the existing one:
Normally, having two folders with the same name is impossible, but in this case it works, because the folder shows it's name as "Public Documents", but it's actually just called "Documents". No idea what Microsoft thought when deciding on this.
So when you manually typed in the location and used "User Documents", the plugin happily created that folder, because there was no existing folder with the same name.
Had you simply navigated to C:\Users\Public\Documents\u-he, instead of typing the path manually, everything would have worked just fine.
About not being allowed to create a shortcut:
Those are Windows security measures, if a folder is protected by the system, you might not have permission to create files without further verification of your user rights, even if you are an admin user.
And this happening indicates that the plugin might eventually have a hard time working correctly in this location. If installed in such a protected folder, the plugin will maybe launch, but it could be that it won't be able to save presets, or store preferences.
Sorry about all your trouble, I hope I could at least explain why stuff happened the way it did.
That QA guy from planet u-he.
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- KVRist
- Topic Starter
- 91 posts since 14 Oct, 2013
Thanks, much appreciated. About it maybe not working in the future, that's my concern too. I'm just using the location that Zebra2 used, so... ?? About navigating to the right place, that is what I initially did... I used the "browse" button in the installer and just navigated to the correct folder in that gui. However, once selected, the path showing in the installer did not change. That's the only reason I went ahead and tried typing it in manually. Wish I had know about that "name obfuscation" issue with "Public" though. Is there a reason that the installer browser did not transmit the right (well, *any*) path back to the installer itself?
Oh, and regarding permissions, the installer browser did actually let me make a new "ZebraHZ.data" folder. It just wouldn't then let me select it.
Oh, and regarding permissions, the installer browser did actually let me make a new "ZebraHZ.data" folder. It just wouldn't then let me select it.
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tasmaniandevil tasmaniandevil https://www.kvraudio.com/forum/memberlist.php?mode=viewprofile&u=62450
- KVRAF
- 1734 posts since 22 Mar, 2005 from a planet called u-he
It's indeed a bit weird that you got permission problems in the public documents section. Just as the user documents location, the public location should be fine, and not cause any issues.
You can simply try if everything works, by saving a preset, or by changing a setting in the preferences of the plugin, then quitting your host, restarting, loading the plugin, and checking if the changed setting is still correct.
If this stuff works, then everything is ok.
Of course we never know when Microsoft changes its security measures, and implements different permissions.
That's why we currently recommend installing the data folders to the user documents location, because it seems to be the safest option.
You said you created the ZebraHZ.data folder, and navigated into that folder.
So your chosen path was C:Users\Public\Documents\u-he\ZebraHZ.data.
But that won't work. It should have been C:Users\Public\Documents\u-he.
Then it would have worked. That's what I was trying to explain in my last post.
The installer will use the path the Windows system gives it, we can't change how Windows works (unfortunately).
That QA guy from planet u-he.
