Sharing projects

LTCast provides two ways to package a show for handoff or archiving: a self-contained bundle file for cross-computer sharing, and a collected folder for local archiving or drive migration.

Share Project (.ltcastproject)

A .ltcastproject file is a zip bundle containing the show's .ltcast file, a short README.txt, and an Audio folder with the audio files. The recipient can open it on any computer running LTCast without needing the original audio files separately.

Create: File → Share Project (.ltcastproject); choose a save location; LTCast bundles the audio and saves the .ltcastproject file. If the audio adds up to more than 500 MB, LTCast asks you to confirm first
Import on another computer: File → Import .ltcastproject; select the bundle file; LTCast extracts it into Documents/LTCast/Projects/<bundle name> and opens the show — there is no destination chooser
After import, the project behaves like a normal .ltcast file and can be saved, edited, and re-shared normally

Only the audio of the setlist tab that is on screen, plus the song currently loaded, goes into the bundle. Songs that appear only in your other setlist tabs are missing on the receiving computer, and reference videos are never included — send those separately. A .ltcastproject bundle can also be large: for long shows with high-quality audio, file sizes can reach several gigabytes. Use a file transfer service or a USB drive for large bundles.

Collect Project (folder)

Collect Project gathers a show and a copy of its audio into one folder, so you can archive it or keep a clean copy of the files the show uses.

Create: File → Collect Project (folder); choose the parent folder; LTCast creates <Name>/ there with <Name>.ltcast and an Audio/ subfolder holding copies of the audio, then opens the folder. The new .ltcast points to those copies
As with Share Project, only the audio of the setlist tab on screen (plus the loaded song) is copied
The original files are not moved or deleted
Open the collected project by opening the .ltcast file inside the destination folder

The .ltcast file stores absolute paths. If you move or copy the collected folder to another drive or computer, the songs show as missing: open the .ltcast, click Reconnect Folder on the N missing banner and pick the Audio folder — LTCast matches the files by name. On a Mac, File → Open Project… in the menu bar also finds the audio in the project's Audio folder by name when it opens the file.

Use Collect Project before archiving a finished show. Once you have checked that the collected copy opens correctly, you can delete or reorganize the originals.

Importing a .ltcastproject bundle

When you receive a .ltcastproject file from another operator:

Select File → Import .ltcastproject and choose the bundle (the dialog also accepts a plain .ltcast file)
LTCast extracts it automatically into Documents/LTCast/Projects/<bundle name> and opens the show
Save the project (Cmd+S / Ctrl+S) to write the new local paths into the extracted file

The imported show is a normal .ltcast project from this point forward. You can add songs, edit cues, and re-share it as a new bundle.

Choosing the right format

Sending to another person on another computer — use Share Project (.ltcastproject)
Moving to a different drive on the same computer — use Collect Project (or copy the audio yourself), then use Reconnect Folder after opening the show
Archiving a completed show — use Collect Project into a dated archive folder

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