Widget Designer

The Christie® Pandoras Box Widget Designer is an advanced control surface creation framework, that lets you create dedicated user interfaces and interaction logic. The great number of features are all based around the idea, that even non-programming specialists should be given the tools to create truly immersive interactive experiences for their customers.

You can add Widgets to your interface, e.g. buttons and faders. The Widget Designer interface is based on HTML-5 and features the possibility to style and manipulate complete pages or single widgets due to internally used CSS3 styles. Those can be imported and applied to the local user interface. Web designers can easily style customized control panels for a variety of different users and applications.

In addition, visual node based programming is available to create customized show-control scenarios. With the embedded node programming environment users can route and set up almost any possible control scenario. Easily interact with sensors and data sources to route input data to any other output protocol such as Art-Net, Midi/MSC, TCP/UDP, DMX or RS-232/-422 devices. Node programming can be an alternative or an addition to scripting.

One of the most powerful concepts in WD is the script language. Anywhere in WD where commands can be entered a Script Assistant helps you to find and use the desired command. Currently over 1500 commands are available to control specific features of Pandoras Box, Widget Designer or other 3rd party products and protocols.

Regarding the Pandoras Box integration, Widget Designer can be directly used as a sequence device as part of the Pandoras Box GUI. One also has the option of reading out a great variety of Pandoras Box values.

The Widget Designer comes in three versions :

Widget Designer Free Edition (formerly known as STD)
This edition is provided as a freeware license and can be downloaded on the official Christie website. It allows you to create custom user interfaces and to work with commands.
Using the build-in Web Server you may publish one page to be accessed by one user.
You may open a project that was originally programmed with a licensed Widget Designer. All project elements, that are also available in of the Free edition will be displayed and will run in the dedicated way. If licensed features were used (e.g. the AirScan) you will get a message that these elements are not available in the Free version. Other features, like nodes or variables for example still exist even though they are not part of the Free package, but are restricted in their use. In short, the Free version can run but not change the settings of those features. Only a licensed Widget Designer provides full editing access.

Widget Designer (formerly with the addition PRO)
The licensed Widget Designer offers various advanced features and tools to give you the most flexible and easy way of programming user interfaces and interactive show elements. This version allows to program visually with so called nodes. By simply connecting those visual control components you may create a dedicated interaction logic. The Script Language is fully supported including variables, functions and macros.
Using the build-in Web Server you may publish one page to be accessed by several users at the same time whereas the sessions are all synchronized. This version also offers to choose a dedicated network adapter for various protocols.

Unlimited Web Clients Option (formerly known as the ULT edition)
This option extends the Web Server feature of a licensed Widget Designer.
Using the build-in Web Server you may publish an unlimited number of pages to be accessed by several users at the same time. In addition you may decide whether the users see a synchronized interface of an individual one. This is perfect for installations where several remote controls are needed with a centralized control station, or other large multi-user projects that focus on the integrated Web Server

Per default, those three version are started in a mode where you have full access to all features that come with your version. But you have also the choice to start a project in the so called Viewer Mode
In this mode the project cannot be change anymore, it can only be used as intended and hence is perfect for end customers in museum-like scenarios. More information...

Please see the following topics for working with the Widget Designer:
Installation and Launching