Dave Wilson’s sqmp3 Online — User Manual

This guide describes what the site does today, in plain language. It is meant for callers and helpers using the player at a dance—not for programmers.

1. What the site is / who it’s for

sqmp3 Online is Dave Wilson’s web player for square dance music. You can:

Play patter and singing calls from the server
Keep favorite lists, change speed and pitch, loop patter, tap BPM
Show lyrics (cuesheets), CALLERLAB lists/definitions, and a “Flash” call drill
Build and read choreography (dances / sequences)
Keep a Play Log of what you played (useful for GEMA-style reporting)
(Dave & Bill) Upload and manage songs with a dual-pane Server screen

Anyone can open the site and play the guest library (songs placed where everyone may hear them). Full access to Dave’s main music library, Admin tools, and editing shared favorites is limited to Dave Wilson and Bill Haynes. Only Dave can approve new accounts.

2. Signing in, register, pending / guest, passwords, email reset

Sign In

At the top of the page:

Click Sign In
Enter your username (usually your full name, e.g. Dave Wilson)
Enter your password

When signed in, the header shows Signed in as: …. Use Sign Out when finished.

Register (new account)

Click Register
Choose a username (your name; letters, numbers, spaces, and a few punctuation marks; not the reserved name guest)
Enter an email (used only for password reset)
Choose a password (at least 10 characters) and confirm it

After registering you may sign in right away, but with guest music access until Dave approves you. The site will say something like: guest access — awaiting approval.

Pending vs approved

Status	What you get
Not signed in	Guest song library + shared guest favorites (view/play). Many edit features need sign-in.
Signed in, pending approval	Same guest-level music. Header notes guest access / awaiting approval. No Admin menu. Personal Server uploads stay locked until approval.
Signed in, approved (regular user)	Guest library plus your own personal upload folder (`uploads/<name>/mp3s/`) in the song list. Server, Import Favorites, and SD on the main nav. Still no Admin / full `/data` library.
Dave Wilson or Bill Haynes (approved)	Full main library, Admin menu, Server (plus guest library writes / other callers’ folders), favorites editing (including shared guest lists), downloads, collab uploads.

Change password

While signed in, click Change password. Enter the current password, then a new one (again at least 10 characters) twice.

Forgot password (email reset)

Click Forgot password
Enter your username
If that account has an email on file, a 6-digit code is sent (codes expire after about 10 minutes; don’t request a new one every few seconds)
Enter the code, then set a new password

If you don’t get email, check spam, confirm the address used at registration, or ask Dave.

Sign-in tips

Too many failed logins from one place can temporarily lock that connection (about 15 minutes).
Usernames are matched as full names (e.g. Dave Wilson is not the same as Dave Wilson test).

3. Main navigation overview

Under the green title bar:

Item	What it does
Player	Favorites, song list, speed/pitch/BPM, audio controls
Lyrics	Lyric file list + cuesheet viewer (Now Playing bar stays visible)
Choreo	Dance / sequence builder and reader (embedded page)
Lists/Definitions	CALLERLAB lists and definitions as PDFs
SD	Approved users — Bill Ackerman’s Sd. Type calls; the square draws as checkers (couples 1–4). Sd’s text is still underneath.
Manual	This user guide
Loop	Switches the top-left pane between Favorite Patter and looping tools
Play Log	Tonight’s played songs + past nights
Import Favorites	Approved users — import your favorites folder or individual `.zip` / `.fvt` / `.ptr` files
Server	Approved users — upload / browse your music & lyrics (Dave & Bill also get guest library, main `/data` download, and other callers’ folders)
Color	Change the site’s green brand / background accent color
History	Yellow “played tonight” highlights on Patter/Singer lists
BPM Override	Force every song toward a chosen tempo via Speed
Admin	Only for Dave & Bill (see section 12)

Now Playing (song name, Play, Show Flash, Download when allowed) stays on Player and Lyrics. It is hidden on Choreo, Lists, and SD.

Keyboard:

← / → — flip between Player → Lyrics → Choreo → Lists → SD (SD is skipped if you are not an approved signed-in user). Arrow keys type normally inside text boxes.
Space — stop / start music (works on most pages; type normally inside real text boxes)
Ctrl / ⌘ + Space — activate from Singer (plain Space prefers Patter when arming play)

A small hint on the right of the nav says ← → pages.

4. Player & Now Playing

Layout (Player page)

Top row

Favorite Patter (or Loop tools when Loop is on) — list of patter favorite files
Favorite Singers — list of singer favorite files
Transport — browser audio control, Speed, Pitch, BPM display

Bottom row

Patter Files — songs in the selected patter favorite; Loop checkbox
Singer Files — songs in the selected singer favorite; optional “Loop 15 seconds before end”
mp3 Files — searchable song list from the server (guest library, and more if you have access)

Play / stop

Click a song (or double-click a favorite entry) to load it
Use the audio control, the Play button in Now Playing, or Space
Now Playing: shows the current title

Speed

Slider roughly 0.80× – 1.20×
− / + buttons nudge speed
Click the word Speed: to reset to center (1.00× / no tempo nudge)

Speed is tied to the song’s BPM display (and to BPM Override when that is on).

Pitch

Slider from about −6 to +6 (semitones)
Independent of speed when the pitch engine is available
− / + buttons nudge pitch

BPM

The display shows the measured (or analyzing) BPM
Tap the letter b to tap-tempo BPM (see on-screen label: “Tap the letter 'b' for BPM”)
Per-song speed/pitch can be remembered for signed-in staff preferences (song transport)

Download

Download next to Now Playing appears for Dave & Bill (approved, not pending)
You can also right-click the Now Playing title for Download song or Server… (when allowed)

Show Flash

Opens a large Flash Lists overlay: pick a level (Basic, MS, Plus, A1–A2, C1–C3B, Sue’s C3B, C4). Calls flash on a timer (default interval around 7 seconds; you can change the number and use Stop). Use Hide Flash to close.

Tip timer (header)

Top right: clock + tip Timer (default 11 minutes). Start / Stop; change the minutes in the Timer: box. Separate from the Flash interval.

5. Favorites (Patter / Singer, guest lists, editing)

Two kinds of lists

Favorite files (top boxes) — e.g. a night’s patter set or a singer program (.ptr / .fvt style names)
Songs inside those files (bottom Patter Files / Singer Files)

Click a favorite file name to load its songs. The bottom boxes update.

Who sees what

Everyone (including not signed in) sees the shared guest favorites maintained for public use
Approved registered users also see their personal favorite files
Dave & Bill additionally see special upload lists such as Dave’s Uploads, Bill’s Uploads, and Shared Uploads

Shared guest list names typically start with guest. (e.g. guest patter/singer files). Dave and Bill edit those so callers at the hall all see the same shared lists.

Editing (approved users)

Drag songs from the mp3 list (or between Patter ↔ Singer) into a favorites box
Multi-select: Ctrl/Cmd-click, Shift-click; Delete / Backspace removes selected songs
Right-click a favorite file name for: New, Delete, Delete All, Duplicate (Patter / Singers / both)
Regular approved users edit their own favorites only; only Dave & Bill change the shared guest.* lists

Locked lists: Dave’s Uploads, Bill’s Uploads, and Shared Uploads are rebuilt from the upload folders. You can’t rearrange them in place—Duplicate the list first if you want a personal copy to edit.

Import Favorites (nav bar, approved users): upload a favorites folder or individual .zip / .fvt / .ptr files into your own favorites.
Choose Merge (add lists/songs only) or Mirror (make your personal server favorites match the upload — can delete lists not in the upload, only in your folder).
Apply Prefs (Admin): re-apply saved favorite selections from preferences.

Guests / pending / not signed in

You can play from the shared guest favorites
Import and changing favorites on the server require an approved signed-in account. Pending accounts stay on guest music until Dave approves them.

6. Song lists / search / .wav / .mp3

The bottom-right mp3 Files list is the main song browser.

Filter box: Filter MP3s…
Supports .mp3 and .wav
What appears depends on access (see section 14):
- Guest library (uploads/guest/…) — for everyone
- Personal uploads — approved non-staff users (their own folder)
- Main /data library — Dave & Bill only
- Dave & Bill may also see collaborative upload songs merged into the list

Click or drag songs as described above. Double-click in Patter/Singer loads and plays.

7. Looping

Quick switches

Loop in the nav replaces Favorite Patter with looping tools (Beat Editor, Test Loop). Press × or toggle Loop again to return to favorites.
Loop: checkbox on the Patter Files box — patter-only looping between memorized / auto downbeat marks (on by default).
Loop 15 seconds before end on Singer — optional short end-loop for singing calls.

Dual-stream patter loop

When playing from Patter with Loop on, the player can use two audio streams and a crossfade so the loop join stays smooth while calling. Test Loop plays into the join so you can hear flams. Beat Editor lets you adjust start/end anchors (with reset-to-auto options).

Looping is aimed at patter. Singer behavior is the separate “15 seconds before end” option.

8. Lyrics

Open Lyrics in the nav.

Left: lyric files with Filter lyrics by keyword
Right: Cuesheet viewer (iframe)
Count labels show how many files match

Marry / Divorce (staff): Right-click a lyric to link (“marry”) it to the currently selected/playing MP3, or divorce a link. You need an MP3 selected or playing first. Married lyrics can be highlighted as candidates for the current song; Show all lyrics clears that filter.

Lyrics lists are broadly available (the public lyrics index is not locked the same way as the main music library). Editing marry links follows the same staff-oriented tools in the player.

9. Choreo

Choreo loads the dance/sequence tool inside the page (so your place in a dance is kept when you flip away and back).

Typical flow (sign in on the main sqmp3 page first):

See a table of dances (filter by name)
Open a dance to read sequences, or edit / build a dance
Drag sequence names into the dance order; reorder by dragging
Reader view shows frames / sequence numbers for calling

If you are not signed in, the choreo home hint asks you to sign in on the main page first. Managing dances and reading stored sequences expects a signed-in session.

SD

SD on the main nav (approved signed-in users only; guests and pending accounts do not see it) runs Bill Ackerman’s real Sd program on the server. The square is drawn as checkers (couple 1 red, 2 green, 3 blue, 4 yellow; boys squares, girls circles; pointed end = facing). Sd’s text transcript stays hidden; you work from the checkers, the call lists, and the “Calls so far” column. It is not a rewrite of Sd.

Sign in with an approved account
Click SD (just before Manual)
Pick a level (Mainstream, Plus, A1, …) and press Start
At the startup prompt, type something like heads start and press Enter
Then type calls, one line at a time, e.g. pass the ocean, recycle. Short abbreviations are fine — “Calls so far” shows the full call Sd ran (so plan ahe lists as plan ahead). Each row has a tiny picture of the square after that call. For an <anything> prefix call you can type the replacement first: ah so motivate is sent as <anything> motivate, then ah so. For an <anything> suffix, type the base then the call: 8 by reach out is sent as 8 by <anything>, then reach out. For a fraction slot, type the fraction anywhere in the call: loop and 3/4 tag or loop and tag 3/4, tag the line 3/4 or 3/4 tag the line. Star turns can be short: motivate star 1/4 or motivate 1/4. A but replacement can be on the same line: tally ho but mix. Mic (Chrome or Edge) stays on: speak a call, pause ¾ second to send it (same as Enter), then keep talking. Spoken words are spelled against the legal call and concept lists (so “square through four” becomes square thru 4). Say escape (or press Esc) to wipe a misspoken line so Sd does not keep the leftover words. Click Mic again to stop
If a line is wrong, press Undo (or type undo) — the last call comes back in the box so you can fix it. Up arrow also recalls what you typed. If Sd rejected the line, it stays in the box; no undo needed
Click a tiny picture to enlarge that square. Back up to here? undoes later calls and returns to that point. Those later calls move to Coming up — you can Remove any one of them, Redo next, Try all to the end, or Drop remaining. Close without backing up leaves the current square as-is
Type resolve or use Command → Resolve to have Sd search for getouts. A two-box panel appears, like desktop Sd: the top box is the proposed getout, the bottom box is Sd’s search commands (find another, accept current choice, next, previous, quit the search, …). If the Mic is on, say accept or next, or click a command. Those keys are not added as dance calls. After you accept, the getout calls appear in “Calls so far” with a picture of the resolved square

Useful Sd commands: Command menu (Resolve, Undo, Write, Reconcile, …), undo (or the Undo button), ? (list matches for what you have typed), resolve, exit to end. Closing the browser tab, or sitting idle for about 12 minutes, stops that Sd process. If the page is still open, it starts a new Sd and plays the calls back so you can continue from the last square.

Saving sequences into Choreo is not wired up yet.

10. Lists / Definitions / Callerlab

Lists/Definitions page:

Lists buttons: Basic, MS, Plus, A1, A2, C1, C2, C3A, C3B, Sue’s C3B list, C4 Concepts, C4 Calls, Coop’s C4 Concepts/Calls, etc.
Definitions buttons: Basic through C3A, plus Ben’s C3B / C4 definitions

Click a button to load the PDF in the viewer. Mouse-scroll the PDF; Space still starts/stops music (the page tries to keep focus so the PDF doesn’t steal Space forever).

Admin → Update Callerlab (Dave & Bill): downloads the latest CALLERLAB lists & definitions into the site’s lists/ folder.

11. Play Log / History / Color / BPM Override

Play Log

Opens a panel with:

Tonight — songs that actually played (~60 seconds of real play; short cue-ups are ignored)
History — past nights you’ve archived
Optional dance name for tonight
Search across titles, tip numbers, dates
Tips advance when patter follows a singer (classic tip = patter + singing)
End night — move tonight into history
Discard tonight — clear tonight without keeping it
Print / Download .txt

If you’re signed in, the log can sync with your saved preferences so another browser can pick it up.

History (yellow highlights)

Separate from Play Log. Marks Patter/Singer entries you’ve played tonight (after a short play threshold) with a yellow background. Click History for options to clear Patter, Singer, or both, and to pick the highlight color. Ending a Play Log night can clear these highlights. The big mp3 list is not painted yellow (performance).

Color

Opens a simple dialog to change the brand green (header / nav accent). Apply, Cancel, or Default. Remembers the choice in the browser (and preferences when signed in).

BPM Override

Forces every song toward a target BPM by adjusting Speed (pitch stays independent). Default target is around 124. While on, the nav button shows something like BPM 124. Speed ± nudges around that target for the current play. Turn it off to return to normal per-song rates. Very large BPM jumps may be limited by the 0.8×–1.2× speed range.

12. Admin (who sees it)

The Admin menu appears only when signed in as Dave Wilson or Bill Haynes (approved, not pending).

Tool	Who	Purpose
Refresh Lists	Dave & Bill	Rescan MP3 / lyrics folders
Apply Prefs	Dave & Bill	Apply saved favorites preferences
Update Callerlab	Dave & Bill	Refresh CALLERLAB PDFs into `lists/`
Review duplicates	Dave & Bill	Opens duplicate-review admin page
Approve users	Dave only	Approve or reject new registrations

Server and Import Favorites are on the main nav (not Admin) for any approved signed-in user. Regular users only touch their own uploads/<name>/mp3s/ and …/lyrics/. Dave & Bill keep guest-library write, main /data download, and browsing other callers’ upload folders.

Approve users (Dave only)

Open Admin → Approve users (or admin_users.html). Sign in as Dave Wilson. You’ll see pending names and emails; Approve or Reject. After approval, that person gets a full account of their type (personal uploads for regular users; staff rules still apply only to Dave/Bill).

Bill sees Admin tools but not Approve users.

13. Server screen (My computer vs Server)

Server on the main nav (any approved signed-in user). Best in Chrome or Edge.

Layout

Left: My computer	Right: Server
Choose folder or files — entire folder or individual files (same idea as Import Favorites) Up / Refresh Filter box File list with ▶ preview	Folder dropdown (see below) Up to main / Refresh (Dave & Bill) Filter box File list with ▶ preview

Server folder choices

My uploads — your personal music (/data/uploads/<name>/mp3s/ — .mp3 / .wav)
My lyrics — /data/uploads/<name>/lyrics/ (.html / .htm / .txt)
Guest library — songs everyone can see (Dave & Bill may write; others read-only). Guest music stays in the guest folder root (not under mp3s/).
Main library /data — full main library (download only; Dave & Bill)
Matching Guest lyrics / Main lyrics

Hint on screen: use Guest library for songs everyone should hear; Up to main for the full /data library (download).

Transfers

▶ — preview an .mp3 / .wav without loading the main player
Double-click a file to send it to the other side
Select many files; 25+ asks whether to zip first or send one-by-one
Progress bar for large transfers
Delete confirms (with optional “don’t ask again”)

Closing Server refreshes player lists when appropriate.

Collab uploads

Uploading songs for Dave/Bill also feeds Shared Uploads / personal Uploads favorites (lists rebuilt from disk). Name conflicts offer a suggested rename. Prefer the Server screen for day-to-day upload/download rather than any older standalone Upload button.

14. Guest vs full library access rules

Simplified rules the site enforces:

Who	Songs in the Player list
Anyone (including not signed in)	Guest library only (`/data/uploads/guest/`)
Signed in, still pending	Same as guest
Approved regular user	Guest library + their `/data/uploads/<theirname>/mp3s/`
Dave Wilson / Bill Haynes	Guest library + full main /data music + collab upload paths (`…/mp3s/`)

Favorites: shared guest favorites for everyone to play; approved users write their own personal lists; only Dave & Bill also edit shared guest.* lists.

Server (upload your own music/lyrics): any approved user. Main /data browse / guest write / other callers’ folders / song Download button / Admin menu: Dave & Bill.

Approve new users: Dave only.

Lyrics index: not gated the same way as the main music library (full public lyrics list remains available to the lyrics page).

15. Tips / troubleshooting

Hard refresh if the page looks old after an update: Ctrl+F5 (Windows) or Cmd+Shift+R (Mac), or clear cache for the site.
Sign in (approved) for personal favorites import/edit, Server uploads, choreo management, password change, and preference sync. Dave/Bill also get Admin, guest-library write, and shared guest-list editing.
Space won’t play? Click outside a text field; on Lists, click the page chrome once so the PDF doesn’t keep keyboard focus.
Pending account? You can already play guest music; ask Dave to approve for personal uploads / favorites import.
Can’t edit a favorite list? It may be a locked Uploads list—Duplicate it—or you may be pending / not signed in (shared guest.* lists are Dave/Bill only).
Forgot password email? Use the same username; wait a minute between reset requests; check spam.
Server folder picker missing? Use Chrome or Edge; allow the site to see the folder you choose.
BPM Override sounds wrong? Wait until BPM finishes analyzing; extreme targets may hit the 0.8×–1.2× speed ceiling.
Play Log empty? Songs need ~60 seconds of real play; previews/short cues don’t count.
Wrong person has Admin? Names must match exactly (Dave Wilson, Bill Haynes)—extra words don’t count as admin.

Quick reference — keyboard & clicks

Action	How
Flip pages	← →
Play / stop	Space
Prefer Singer arming	Ctrl/⌘ + Space
Tap BPM	`b`
Reset speed center	Click Speed: label
Favorite file menu	Right-click file name (top lists)
Marry lyric	Right-click lyric (with MP3 selected)
Now Playing menu	Right-click title (when signed in)