New Raspberry PI OS Available – “Bookworm”

Raspberry PI official launched the new Bookworm version of the Raspberry PI OS 2023-10-11 and I immediate had to test if Z-LiveRec was working as usual in this new version. Raspberry have done a couple of changes in the audio support for ALSA and also to VNC Server. (It is replaced by another vendor) So I was suspicious if things had stopped to work – But I can happily announce that the new OS seems to work as expected! There are some issues to get 3.5″ touchscreens to run in this new OS (Generic problem – not solved yet by raspberry.org) but the official 7″ touchscreen from Raspberry and also from the vendor Waveshare worked perfect after been running a rpi-update to get the latest kernel #5622.

For the Waveshare 3.5” touchscreen using SPI – I raised a support case with them and they promptly replied that they are working on a new driver for their screens and Bookworms – so stay tuned here!

One bug which have been annoying me for a long time in Bullseye(With a lot of error seeking) is that graphics objects (like buttons, text and graphics) have stopped to update when running the app – which was creating big problems. But these problems was suddenly totally gone in bookworms – and I am guessing the newer version of the graphics library TKInter, used by Z-LiveRec, have been updated and also fixed these experienced problems.

So I made a short recording with Z-LiveRec from my A&H CQ20B mixer in 96KHz, 16 Channels in 24bits…and there was absolutely no problems here! Works like a charm! 🙂 The only function which currently is not working is the included VNC server implementation in Z-LiveRec. (So I am going to fix this in V2.28)

Another nice experimental feature in the upcoming version of Z-LiveRec V2.28 are support for OSC calls – so you will now be able to control Z-LiveRec remotely from softwares like Bitfocus Companion etc. And it is real nice to be able to start recording over the network by using a stream deck.

A first OSC implementation in Z-LiveRec.

Z-LiveRec 2.27 launched!

News and changes in version 2.27

I must first confess that not all new functionality works directly as expected. In the 2.26 version we introduced our first implementation to be able to use Z-LiveRec virtually from any VNC Client (like an iPhone, iPad or Android device) connected to the hosting Raspberry PI with a multitrack mixer attached over USB. But our first attempt was not 100% – But in 2.27 we have improved the implementation a lot – to make the remote experience perfect – just a checkbox and the functionality is up and running. In this new version you will also find many other improvements and fixes.

Have a look – and please check the new version out!

  • Fixed a problem with the filename dialog, so that pressing “Cancel” will abort the recording process.
  • Changed the filename dialog when running remotely in VNC – so the focus maintained and can be editable.
  • Addressed a problem when toggling between hardisk/storage devices when in touch mode.
  • Added a function so that a VNC session terminates when the VNC client is stopped.
  • Added a function so that a VNC session restarts after termination of a VNC Client/Session
  • Added so that the VNC Session uses the actual user at the VNC Host and be created in the user’s home directory.
  • Added a function to determine if Z-LiveRec is running in “Host” or in “Remote” mode. Visible in the GUI frontpage – “Host” or “Remote”. (The actual IP address can be seen in the license page)
  • Added a shutdown dialog to give options to reboot or only shutdown the system.
  • Investigated and found the issue why Bullseye have disappearing taskbars when attaching multichannel ALSA Sound Cards. See separate post at Z-LiveRec.com – Not implemented in Z-LiveRec – this is an OS patch.
  • Fixed a problem seen in PI OS Bulleye – Where Z-LiveRec did not store/read the saved hardisk path.
  • Updated the GUI on the license page/dialog.
  • Added a process to handle terminations of a Z-LiveRec window – like pressing windows “X” when not running in touch mode
  • Checked so that the autostart process uses the right credentials when created on the system.
  • Both 32-bit and 64-bit versions are available for both the trial and full version.

Check the Z-LiveRec V2.27 Manual for more information and details.

A free update is available for registered users (Login to “My Account” and download the latest edition or use the e-mail download link from the original order acknowledgement) and free demo/trial version is also available for everybody else to try the app!

Please note: Using the auto update function in Z-LiveRec (for registered users for the 32 bit version.) – You will find a zip file in the PI/Home directory – and you can just extract the zip file yourself – and the V2.27 version will show up.

The update process will try to unzip Z-LiveRec and overwrite the old version of the app – and a chmod r+x command can be required to get the V2.27 version to run again. See the manual for more information.

Best regards Anders / Z-LiveRec.com

Z-LiveRec 2.21 launched!

Z-LiveRec 2.21 is just launched and have been updated for both the trial/demo and the full version.

Changes

  • Z-LiveRec V2.21 launched 2021-10-14
  • Fixed a bug with Buffer-Overruns that was not reported in the log file – Z-LiveRec.log
  • More information added to the log file handling, Z-LiveRec version, date of recording etc.
  • License key handling – showing green/red license button before/after registration.
  • Auto start option stored in license settings GUI – this checkbox adds the Z-LiveRec.exe to run after the OS been booted. Please note: This requires Z-LiveRec.exe needs to be present on the internal storage for the OS.
  • GUI checkboxes and dropdowns added under the license button/dialog for the full version of Z-LiveRec where it is possible to:
    • Enable windows borderless mode – make the app to stay in focus – good when running on 3.5″ screens.
    • Add the log function and verbose level in the GUI.
    • Switch on/off the auto start function – reboot of the OS required.
    • Handle buffer settings for the recording process.
    • All these parameters are stored and can be edited in the Z-LiveRec.cfg file. (if using the Trial/Demo version – auto start will not be supported)
  • Fixed an error with rights issue the auto update function for previous versions of Z-LiveRec – when looking for newer versions – it will now enable cloud updates for future upcoming releases. Existing users of older versions (2.19 & 2.20) must manually download the latest version through www.z-liverec.com through their account or unpacking the downloaded z-liverec.zip file which can be found in the same directory as the current exe. But after 2.21 release, the auto update function will be present for future releases.
  • Existing and registered users of the full version can download the latest version for free!
  • Unregistered users of the full version will allow up recordings up to 500 MB storage (was 350 MB) – Unlimited for registered users – Files in W64/CAF format have successfully been recorded to 50GB+
  • The Trial/demo version is always free and will allow up to 200MB of recordings.

The new settings GUI found under the “License” for the full version of Z-LiveRec.