Saving & opening projects

LTCast saves your show as a .ltcast file. This file records everything about the session — the setlist, markers, cues, triggers, presets, and device assignments — so you can pick up exactly where you left off.

The .ltcast file format

A .ltcast file stores references to your audio files by path. The audio files themselves are not embedded in the project file. This keeps the project file small and lets you edit audio files in other software without re-importing them into LTCast.

Audio files must remain accessible at the same path for LTCast to load them. If you move audio files after saving, LTCast will report missing files on next open. Use Collect Project to bundle everything together before moving.

Saving a project

Save As — File menu → Save As…; choose a location and file name; creates a new .ltcast file (the dialog opens in Documents/LTCast/Presets, but you can save anywhere)
Save in place — Cmd+S on macOS / Ctrl+S on Windows (or File → Save); saves to the current file without prompting. A show that has never been saved asks for a file name first

An asterisk marks unsaved changes: the Save button in the title bar reads Save * and turns amber, and the File menu header shows the show's name followed by *. The title-bar Save button works once the show has a name.

LTCast also protects your work in the background. A show that has a file and unsaved changes is saved to that file automatically every 5 minutes (you see an Auto-saved message), and Auto Backup keeps separate timestamped copies. A show that has never been saved has no file to write to, but as soon as it has songs it is still backed up automatically (into a backup folder called Unsaved show), and LTCast asks you about it when you close the window. A blank show with no songs is neither backed up nor asked about.

When you close the window or quit with unsaved changes, LTCast asks Save / Don't Save / Cancel. For a show that has never been saved, Save opens the Save As box; if you cancel that box, LTCast asks again, and Cancel keeps the window open.

Save the .ltcast file in the same folder as your audio files. This makes it easy to keep them together and use Collect Project when you need to move or archive the show.

Opening a project

File menu — File → Open Project; browse to a .ltcast file and confirm
Double-click — double-click a .ltcast file in your file manager; LTCast opens it directly
Open Recent — File → Open Recent; shows the most recently opened files; click one to load it immediately

If the current show has unsaved changes, LTCast asks Save / Don't Save / Cancel before opening another one. The same question comes before every way of replacing the open show: File → Open Project and Open Recent, importing a shared project, Ctrl+O / Cmd+O, the Mac menu bar, and double-clicking a .ltcast file. Once you have answered, LTCast also takes an automatic snapshot of the show it is about to replace, named Before opening a show (see Version snapshots), so you can still go back to it. Opening a show clears undo history.

Starting a new show

Select File → New to clear the current setlist and reset settings to defaults. If the current show has unsaved changes, LTCast asks the same Save / Don't Save / Cancel question first, and takes an automatic snapshot of the old show named Before a new show. The new session has no file name until you use Save As.

While Chase is following an external clock, opening, importing or starting another show is refused: the show replaces the setlist Chase is following. Turn Chase off first.

Missing audio files

If LTCast cannot find an audio file at the stored path when opening a project, that song's row is dimmed, with an orange warning icon and an orange italic name, and an orange N missing banner appears under the setlist tabs. Click the row to pick the file's new location, or use Reconnect Folder on the banner to relink many songs at once. All other songs in the setlist remain playable. See Relink missing files.

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