v0.1.58-alpha.1

What's changed since v0.1.56-alpha.1

13 commits in this release.

Features

• Implement audio insert chain functionality in mixer
• Add unique reference tags for effect instances
• Refine Inspector UI with custom chevron icons and improved layout
• Add Shimmer Reverb effect and related functionality
• add Shelving EQ effect with independent low/high shelves
• Add Noise Gate audio effect with parameter configuration and tests
• Document two-tier preset taxonomy for grading presets and creative looks
• Implement frame hold functionality for clips (PLAN.md step 43)
• Add audio-only export functionality
• Implement image sequence handling and still frame support
• increase width of update available dialog for better visibility

Other

• Add description field to StateFormatter and validate tooltip descriptions in tests
• Add delay effects: Digital, Tape, Multi-Tap, and Stereo

Sprocket — Alpha

Sprocket is a cross-platform (Windows 11 · Linux · macOS), non-destructive video editor built on
.NET 10, FFmpeg 8, and Skia. This is an early alpha: the editing core is real and end-to-end, but
some of the feature set is still in progress and the cross-platform builds have had limited on-device
testing. Expect rough edges.

• What's new in this release is summarized in the "What's changed" section above (generated
  from the commits since the previous release).
• The full roadmap and current status live in
  PLAN.md.
• Project website: https://sprocketvideo.org

🐞 Found a bug? Tell us — it's quick

→ Click here to file an issue (a free GitHub
account is all you need). Or from the repo, go to the Issues tab → New issue.

To help us reproduce it fast, please include what you can:

• What you did — the steps leading up to it.
• What happened vs. what you expected.
• Your OS (Windows 11 / Linux / macOS) and which download you used (e.g. the Windows installer,
  the AppImage, or a portable zip).
• The version — shown in the release title above and under Help ▸ About in the app.
• A screenshot, the media file, or the .sprocket.json project if it's relevant.

Crashes, confusing UI, and "is this supposed to work?" questions are all welcome — there are no bad
reports during an alpha. If a feature seems missing, check PLAN.md first; it may simply be later in
the roadmap.

Installing it

Every download is self-contained — no .NET install or system FFmpeg is required. The alpha builds
are not code-signed yet, so each OS shows a one-time warning the first time you run them; the steps
below get you past it. Installed builds (Windows installer, Linux AppImage, macOS app) check for
updates on launch and can update themselves in place — you install once.

🪟 Windows

Download Sprocket-win-x64-Setup.exe (or win-arm64 for Windows on ARM) and run it.

• SmartScreen will warn because the alpha isn't code-signed: click More info → Run anyway.
• Sprocket installs per-user (no admin rights), appears in the Start menu, and updates itself.
• Prefer no installer? The portable Sprocket-<version>-win-x64.zip is also attached — unzip and
  run Sprocket.exe (portable builds don't self-update).

🐧 Linux

Download Sprocket-linux-x64.AppImage, then:

chmod +x Sprocket-linux-x64.AppImage
./Sprocket-linux-x64.AppImage

• The AppImage integrates a launcher icon and updates itself.
• If it won't start, your distro may need FUSE for AppImages (e.g. Ubuntu ≥ 22.04:
  sudo apt install libfuse2), or use the portable zip instead: unzip, chmod +x Sprocket, run
  ./Sprocket (the included install.sh adds a launcher icon; portable builds don't self-update).
• linux-arm64 is portable-zip only for now.

🍎 macOS

Download the Sprocket-osx-arm64-Portable.zip (Apple Silicon) or Sprocket-osx-x64-Portable.zip
(Intel), unzip it, and drag Sprocket.app into Applications.

Because the alpha isn't notarized yet, macOS blocks the first launch — usually with a dialog
claiming "Sprocket.app" is damaged and can't be opened. You should move it to the Trash.
The download is not damaged — that's just how recent macOS reports an app it can't verify.
To clear it, run this in Terminal, then launch normally:

xattr -dr com.apple.quarantine /Applications/Sprocket.app

Alternatively, after one blocked launch attempt, System Settings ▸ Privacy & Security may
offer an Open Anyway button for Sprocket (scroll down) — but if you got the "damaged" dialog
it often doesn't appear, so the Terminal command is the reliable path. The classic right-click →
Open trick no longer works on macOS 15 Sequoia and later — Apple removed that bypass for
unsigned apps.

FFmpeg 8 is bundled inside the app — no Homebrew setup is needed. In-app self-update on unsigned
macOS builds is experimental; if an update fails, just download the new zip.

⚠️ Known limitations & platform notes

• Primary testing is on Windows 11. Linux and macOS run the identical managed code, but
  windowed-GPU and on-device verification there is still in progress — treat those builds as
  experimental.
• The windowed GPU preview and audio output are display/device-bound and rest on manual verification.
• The bundled FFmpeg is a GPL build (it provides the H.264/H.265 export encoders); its
  corresponding source is linked in
  THIRD-PARTY-NOTICES.md,
  which also ships inside the app (Help ▸ Third-Party Notices).

🐧 Linux: if the app closes when you open a video

Some Linux systems have an unstable GPU video-decode driver (VAAPI) that can crash the app the first
time it decodes a clip — for example when you use File ▸ Open Sample Project or import media. If
Sprocket closes at that moment, force software decoding by setting SPROCKET_HWACCEL=off before launch:

SPROCKET_HWACCEL=off ./Sprocket-linux-x64.AppImage

If that fixes it, your system's hardware decoder was the culprit — playback simply uses the CPU instead.

Two things that help us pin it down (please include them in a bug report):

• Logs are written to ~/.local/share/Sprocket/logs/. The exact folder is also shown under
  Help ▸ About (with an Open Logs Folder button). Attach the newest log file.
• You can check decoding from a terminal without the UI (from the portable zip's folder):

./Sprocket --probe Samples/sample.mp4

This prints the media's details (resolution, codec, whether hardware decode was used) — or the full
error if it fails.