GDTF mode and channel browser

The GDTF editor presents modes and channels through a hierarchical, read-only browser.

Hierarchy

The non-GUI reader in core/gdtf/gdtf_mode_channel_browser.* parses description.xml into this source-order tree:

DMXMode
└── DMXChannel
    └── LogicalChannel
        └── ChannelFunction
            ├── ChannelSet
            └── SubChannelSet

Every node receives a deterministic identity built from the mode and typed sibling indexes, so GUI expansion, selection restoration, and tests do not depend on names or memory addresses.

Raw and effective values

The core model keeps raw source text separate from calculated values. Omitted raw attributes remain empty and are displayed as Not specified by the GUI adapter. Effective DMX and physical ranges carry origin metadata such as explicit, inherited, calculated, and unavailable.

DMXValue normalization

The parser accepts plain integers, value/n, and value/ns forms with whitespace trimming, overflow checks, byte-count validation, and optional parent-channel resolution. Mirror values keep the parsed byte value. Shift values normalize into the parent resolution when a parent resolution is known.

Range calculation

Channel Function ranges preserve XML order. A function starts at its own valid DMXFrom; its end is the next valid sibling start minus one, or the parent channel maximum for the final function. Channel Set ranges use the same rule inside the parent function range. Invalid, duplicate, descending, or out-of-parent starts produce structured diagnostics while preserving the original nodes.

Attribute units

The reader resolves exact Attribute names through AttributeDefinitions/Attributes/Attribute. The browser displays the official PhysicalUnit and exposes Pretty, Feature, ActivationGroup, and MainAttribute in the details inspector. Units are never inferred from names.

Parser and GUI boundary

Core parsing has no wxWidgets dependency and does not use GUI diagnostics. The GUI uses gdtf_mode_browser_presenter.* to format columns and detail rows, and gdtf_mode_data_view_model.* to expose read-only wxDataViewModel items. No TinyXML2 nodes or archive handles are exposed to reusable panels.

Caching

FixtureEditDialog owns the active parsed document cache and reloads it when the active GDTF source changes or an apply operation produces a new source. Changing only the selected mode reuses the cached document.

Read-only status and wheel inspection

The browser does not implement editing, sliders, live DMX, simulation, or XML writing. Wheel and attribute-rich inspection is owned by the focused wheel inspector.

Quick channel summary

The Fixture editor keeps a compact read-only Mode channels summary below Physical properties for fast scanning. It is presentation-only and is populated from the same cached hierarchical mode document as the browser. The browser intentionally omits the experimental Channel function column; raw offset and break values remain in the details inspector.

The core reader expands DMX channels referenced through mode-root GeometryReference nodes by applying their Break DMXOffset shifts. This keeps matrix and pixel fixtures in their effective DMX order instead of repeatedly showing the source-local offsets for each referenced geometry.

The quick summary intentionally expands multi-byte channels into separate physical channel rows, such as 1: Pan and 2: Pan Fine. Repeated RGBW pixel channels are labeled with the geometry-reference instance number, such as Red 1, Green 1, Blue 1, and White 1. The presentation normalizes reference-like channel function labels, so paths such as Yoke_Pan.Pan.Pan display as Pan and expand to fine/ultra-fine byte rows when required.

Connected wheel inspection feedback

The DMX inspection slider is connected to the selected browser node through its owning DMXChannel. Slider movement keeps the tree selection stable, resolves the active mapping through the non-GUI DMX inspector, updates a compact label below the slider, and forwards a read-only presentation to the GDTF wheels panel in Fixture Edit.