Chapter 4: Working with Layouts, Pages and Banks

Read about layouts here

Complete MD layouts use the file extension .mididesigner

Individual layout pages when exported use the file extension .mididesignerpage

iPad & iPhone MORE / ACTIONS / SAVE LAYOUT . This will place the file in the MIDI Designer folder on the device.

Mac On the Mac menu bar, select FILE / SAVE LAYOUT. This allows saving files in any desired directory.

Temporary layout data is stored in the backup.mididesigner and autosave.mididesigner files. Do Not rely on these in place of frequently saving your layout. If you accidentally overwrite some critical work, make copies of these files, then open the copies to see if the missing work was captured. Also see Automatic Cloud Backup IAP

When downloading layouts from the Q&A site:
- iPad & iPhone - save to the MIDI Designer folder
- Mac - save in desired user folder

1. Use the menu within the app
- iPad & iPhone MORE / CONFIG / ACTIONS / LOAD LAYOUT
- Mac FILE / OPEN…
2. Click on a .mididesigner file in the Mac Finder or iPad & iPhone Files.
3. Click on a .mididesigner file in Mail, Safari, Dropbox and many other apps.

Append Layout When opening layouts, the Append Layout prompt appears.
- Yes will combine the current layout with the selected layout.
- No will replace the current layout with the selected layout.
- Cancel returns to the existing layout.

New will remove all Page Banks (and therefore, Pages and Controls) and provide a blank slate, with an option to create default controls. On the iPad, you will have options for layout size and orientation.

- iPad & iPhone MORE / CONFIG / ACTIONS / NEW
- Mac FILE / NEW LAYOUT

Mail and Delete options are left overs from the iOS sandbox era. These still function, but you can also access the files in the MIDI Designer folder (iOS) or using the Finder (Mac).

Additional Notes on Files on Mac

The Page Properties Pane is used to adjust Page Properties, and perform actions on pages and controls.

• iPhone: Enter design mode → single tap on page name
• iPad: Enter Design Mode → double tap on page tab

Use the Page Actions Tab to add, delete move pages and other actions. Access Page Actions from the Page Properties Pane → Page Actions Tab

• Add a Page: from Page Actions Tab, use “New Before” or “New After”
• Move Page: From Page Actions Tab, use “Move Left” or “Move Right” to move the page
• Delete a Page: from Page Actions Tab, use “Delete Page” (there are two: use the top one)
• Copy and Make Similar refer are described below

• Also, you may use the Page Arranger: Page Properties Pane → Arrange
• The Page Arranger also allows for moving pages between banks, deleting and renaming pages.

There are three ways to make copies of pages.

• Copy Page — this creates a copy of the page using control copies, which are linked to the controls on the copied page.
• Page Make Similar — this creates a copy of the page with independent controls. Initially, the new page's controls have the same relationships as the controls on the copied page.
• Save a page as a file, and then load the file: Controls are completely independent. Inter-control relationships on the page are maintained, but relationships to other controls in the layout are broken.

Page Properties change the visual properties of the given page.

Access Page Properties from Page Properties Pane → Properties (first tab)

Change the name of the page displayed on the top tab.

• Highlight Color is the text color used by controls. It's also the text color the Page Tab (iPad only).
• Individual controls can specify their own highlight color
• Change the highlight color between black white and auto. When auto is selected MIDI designer will automatically change it depending on the background color of the page.

The textures and colors change the page's texture and color. Hitting random texture or random color randomly changes texture or color. the background.

• LED color slider changes the hue for the LED for all controls on a page. If set, individual Control's LED Properties will not be affected by the pages' LED Color Slider.
• Use Randomize LED Color to change the LED color randomly

Change the page background and the page-wide LED randomly.

You can save individual pages as files. This allows copying a page from one layout to another layout. Pages use the file extension .mididesignerpage

Page Properties Pane → Actions → Save Page allows you to save the current page with a name.
- iPad & iPhone - page file is placed in the MIDI Designer folder
- Mac - file save interface allows saving anywhere in file system

1. Page Properties Pane → Actions → Load Page
2. Click on a .mididesignerpage file in the Mac Finder or iPad & iPhone Files
3. Click on a .mididesignerpage file in Mail, Safari, Dropbox and many other apps.

Also see additional notes on loading page files on Mac

Mail and Delete options are left overs from the iOS sandbox era. These still function, but you can also access the files in the MIDI Designer folder (iOS) or using the Finder (Mac).

iPad: the right and left sides each have a Page Bank Indicator

iPhone: the Page Bank Indicator is on the Bottom Toolbar, to the right of the Page Name Display

• Touch the Page Bank Indicator to step through the banks sequentially.
• Alternately, you can use bank jump buttons
• you will not be able to see the page bank indicator in Performance Mode:
  • iPad: if the left side has one visible bank and the right side has one or two visible banks
  • iPhone: if there is only one visible bank

Press and hold on the banks indicator to the left of the more buttons to see the Bank Quantity Select Popover. Select any number from 1 to 8.

• Use the Page Arranger (from Page Actions, hit the “Arrange” tab).
• On iPad, you can also drag the Page Tab to move a page from one bank to another.