(maxmsp) encapsulation

Download the encapsulation and ccAssignNew patchers. Keep the ccAssignNew patcher in the same folder as encapsulation, or if you want to use it over and over in your own projects, store ccAssignNew in Max/Cycling ’74/max-externals.

Encapsulation

Encapsulation is the process of creating patchers within patchers. It can help to organize your overall patcher layout and function, and create shortcuts that you can reuse in multiple patchers.

The patcher object

Inserting a patcher (p) object creates a new patcher window. The new patcher window functions like any other patcher window, but it is part of the parent patcher. In a locked patcher, double-click the p contlassign object. The window that opens is very similar to the ccLearn patcher from the previous post. The difference is that contlassign has new objects: an inlet and two outlet objects.

Inlet objects within a patcher create object inlets. You use these to pass messages from the parent patcher to the subpatcher. Be sure to open the inlet inspector and add a helpful comment. Comments show up as popup help when you mouse over an inlet. The inlet of contlassign is to send a bang to turn on the toggle and open the gate to set the CC number to the currently changing CC.

Outlets send messages from the subpatcher to the parent patcher. Be sure to comment them as well. The two outlets send the set CC value (the position or value of the controller) and the CC number.

Patcher objects are useful if you think you might want to edit the subpatcher from within the parent patcher. But the contents of the patcher object are only usable within the single parent patcher that the object is in.

Subpatchers as objects

You can save any patcher and then use it as an object within another patcher. Look at the bottom part of encapsulation. ccAssignNew.maxpat has the exact same contents as contlassign, and functions in the exact same way. But since ccAssignNew.maxpat is a saved patcher, it can be used repeatedly in a patcher without having to type anything each time it is inserted.

The only small difference is that the inlets and outlets are not numbered. Their relative position is still important, and corresponds to their placement on the object.

Object subpatchers have to be stored in either the same folder as the parent patcher (the parent patchers has to be saved for this to work), or in a folder that Max searches. If I plan on using an object in many patchers, I store the object patcher in Max/Cycling ’74/max-externals with the other Max objects.