Logic Pro X: Different palette for arrangement/piano roll possible?

Hi. New here; be gentle.

Loving KM, obviously. I have a small palette starting to build for common procedures in Logic Pro, triggered by a secondary mouse-button click programmed to a keystroke.

I'm wondering if it's possible to have a separate palette for each editing space in the main window. For example, I'd like midi transform macros to appear when my mouse is hovering over the piano-roll and audio region editing macros to appear when my mouse is in the arrangement space:

I can get separate palettes to appear for different windows, but I'm specifically wondering about the editing spaces within this main window, as that's where I spend most of my time.

I'If this isn't possible, then perhaps there's a decent alternative way of working. For example, opening the palette could show me a few options like "MIDI TRANSFORM", "REGION EDITING", "AUTOMATION" etc, and each would be a submenu, from which you could pick the corresponding macros. Are submenus in palettes a thing?

I've gone pretty deep with another macro which automates changing my monitor and headphone routing whenever I click low-latency mode in Logic, so I'm up for getting stuck in, but this is a bit beyond my current aptitude.

As a bonus question, is there a way to get the palette to disappear if you click away from it?

Any help greatly appreciated!

I had the same problem with different softwares.
Several ways to do this. Easiest is to test the absolute mouse position before showing the palette. If you only need this and can't set it up by yourself feel free to ask.
But the previous solution only works if you have only one workspace/windows arrangement. My solution was to test if the mouse is lower or higher than a "found image".
For exemple in your case you could take a snapshot image of the "step sequencer" zone in your piano roll region (or whatever zone is unique to this region) and then do a test.
it would go like this:

do things based on a mouse position.kmmacros (33 KB)

Gosh, even the KM forum is more efficient than most and gives you attachments in the notification email! :heart:

Ok so I've gone through the macro you kindly (and quickly!) created for me. It's not working at the moment, doubtless due to my lack of understanding. Perhaps you can tell from these images where I've gone wrong?

hum every time I think I understand the way keyboard maestro process variables in text/calculation/variable fields, I hit a block...

Anyway here is a new version...

do things based on a mouse position.kmmacros (33 KB)

Sorry, still not working. Really appreciate you taking the time for this. I'm sure it must be me not understanding how palettes work or something.

I have no hotkey trigger set in the group palette settings, as I didn't want it to conflict with the trigger you set in your macro. I have the trigger in your macro set to a keystroke that is mapped to the middle button of my MX Master mouse.

Clicking it before would bring up a palette, but with this split macro, nothing. Sorry if this is infuriating for you in any way!

Sorry if this is infuriating for you in any way!

Not at all :slight_smile:

Let's do a bit of troubleshooting:

first we have to make sure that the case thing works on your system... just add these actions in the proper places and tell me it it works.

then we can talk about the palettes :slight_smile:

ok I had time so I made a bit of research to get palettes and sub palettes working.
I wanted to do this and your post gave me the right nudge.

First there is the macro that gives you an upper and lower palette.
and below there is a download link to example groups giving you the palettes (and even a sub palette).

Get different palettes depending on mouse position.kmmacros (31 KB)

Example Palettes and sub Palettes groups :
z_palettes and sub palettes example groups.kmmacros (7.0 KB)

You beauty!!! You nailed it! https://gph.is/g/4DBqDY9

Screenshot 2020-10-31 at 18.45.48

I added a little "If Else" thing so that if the piano roll is hidden it still shows the arrange window palette.

So happy with this now! It's going to change the way I work! All those key commands I can't remember only a click away! I really appreciate your time! :pray:t3:

It's great as it is, but in the spirit of refining it, I was wondering if it might be possible to dismiss the palette by clicking away from it rather than clicking the 'x' or hitting escape.

I'm happy with the palettes displaying as they do, but it might be that other people would like to use this and pack the palettes full of all sorts of macros for different uses, so another thing that would be awesome would be the option to have subfolders within the palette. Is that possible?

As I said, this is all cherry-on-the-cake stuff, so happy to leave it as-is. Thanks so much for baking such a lovely cake!!! :blush:

Glad it worked ! :grinning:

now for the cherries...

Don't know if it's possible, sorry.

In the groups I previously posted there is a lower sub palette...i.e. a macro of the "lower palette" is calling a new sub-palette. Is it not what you were looking for ?

I ran into a small problem: When the piano roll is actually in focus, a blue line goes around it and the "Piano Roll" box turns blue, which has slightly scuppered the macro, as that isn't the image it relies upon. I've found a clumsy workaround, which is to do another "If then Else" and duplicate your entire macro in both outcomes, but I've noticed the window is a bit slower to pop up and I'm sure there must be a better way...

Screenshot 2020-11-01 at 02.32.31

re clicking away: no problem. if i'm not mistaken, the default behaviour for a palette when it's triggered in the normal way is for it to disappear when you hit the trigger a second time. i wonder if there's a way to get that same behaviour here?

re the sub-menu thing: as i said, i'm happy with it for my needs, but i'm thinking if anyone had hundreds of macros, submenus might be handy. I found this and will have a play around... Pallets & Sub-Pallets make KM so easy

Thanks again for your help! You're very kind. :slight_smile:

The best way is to have any screen part that is unique, never changing and not too far from the separation of your zones.

But if it is not possible I have used the same solution (two different images because of a change of state) and if you find it slows down too much you can go to the "in" parameter of the search image action and define an smaller area than all screens...it goes faster.

have a nice day :slight_smile:

Ah of course! I've now set the image to the "Smart Tempo" box. Thankyou!

Not sure where the X is or why you’d rather not click it.

IF it’s the close palette x in the upper left corner when the palette’s title is showing and you find it’s a bother to target and click so small a spot then you can make a palette with just an action to close the palette in question and increase the size of the palette to its max at 64 points.

or make a few and sprinkle around or near where you go after you dismiss it or put the close that palette in the palette you’d go to next.

Thanks for the suggestion, but I figured it out! Wasn't all that complex. "Split" is the entire main macro for splitting the palettes between areas of the window. :slight_smile:

Screenshot 2020-11-01 at 16.48.17

@noisneil
Would you mind to share your interesting macro so I can use it as a starting point for an own one?

Of course! :slight_smile:

Logic Palette Split.kmmacros (42.9 KB)

Thanks so much, noisneil, & have a nice day!