The Design Xpress Application; Custom Modifications; Adding And Modifying Software; Common Mistakes - AMX NXD-CA12 Installer's Manual

Introduction

The Design XPress Application

The first step in defining the system is to run the Design XPress application. This Windows® based
wizard should probably be run in the office well in advance of going on-site. With this wizard you
define the locations of all equipment, the number of user interface devices, lighting scenes, audio
source equipment, etc. The Design XPress for NetLinx Studio Programmer's Guide gives a good
overview of this application.
One note, however, related to the lighting addresses: Lighting addresses consist of a keypad address
and button. The keypad address is the address of the keypad for the lighting system being used, and
must be represented in the format for that lighting system.

Custom Modifications

There are limitations when creating a system using Design XPress. Design XPress systems can be
customized by adding programming to the "custom.axi" file included in the project, or by
modifying the user interfaces created.
For more information on adding custom modifications we recommend that you attend the AMX
programming classes. The course descriptions and schedules for these classes are available on the
AMX web site at www.amx.com.

Adding and Modifying Software

Each time the Design XPress application is run, it will generate the necessary software files. If
changes are made to any existing software file to modify behavior for job-specific items, the next
time Design XPress is run the changes will be overwritten.
One of the files created in the project by Design XPress is . This file is provided
CUSTOM.AXI
because all custom software changes made in this file will never be overwritten by the Design
XPress application. So, for example, if a home theater is added to a Design XPress-created system,
and those changes are made in , any changes made down the road via the Design
CUSTOM.AXI
XPress application will not affect the home theater code when the files are regenerated.
Sooner or later someone will make a change that gets overwritten so it is worth repeating to avoid
the resulting frustration: If you make changes to any file other than you are taking it
CUSTOM.AXI
upon yourself to not use the application for any further updates. Using the application will
overwrite your changes.
In a sense this is one of the nice features of Design XPress. Because all of the software is made
available, an installer who is a strong NetLinx programmer could use the Design XPress
application as a starting point. The resulting files could get most of the job complete. Not a bad
start! The installer could then go in and modify the software to be job specific and complete the job,
never intending to use the application again. Conversely, there will be installers who will use the
application to do almost all of the work relying on the file for any small changes that
CUSTOM.AXI
may be required.

Common Mistakes

The most common mistake made is modifying the software and then using the application to make
changes.
All software changes outside of the special file will be overwritten.
CUSTOM.AXI
6 Design XPress Installer's Guide