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Quick Start

This walkthrough takes you from an empty app to a fired cue on a live display.

1. Choose a starting point​

On launch, nque shows a Welcome dialog with three options:

  • New Show — start with a blank show containing one scene and one cue.
  • Open Show — load an existing .nque file.
  • Import PDF — build a show from a PDF script using the OCR pipeline.

Pick New Show to follow along.

2. Edit the show​

You land in edit mode with a sidebar on the left and the show body on the right.

  1. Click the show title in the sidebar to rename it (e.g. Hamlet).
  2. Click a section title (e.g. Scene 1) to rename it (e.g. Act I).
  3. Click the cue text and type a line (e.g. Who's there?).

Add more structure with the controls next to each section:

  • Add scene adds a sibling section.
  • Add child scene nests a section under a container.
  • Add cue inserts a cue above/below an existing one.
Sections are leaves or containers

A section either holds cues (a leaf scene) or child sections (a container such as an act), never both. Attempting to add a child scene to a scene that already has cues is a no-op.

3. Save the show​

Use File → Save (Ctrl/Cmd+S) or Save As (Ctrl/Cmd+Shift+S). The first save opens a native dialog; nque writes a .nque file and tracks its path for subsequent saves. An unsaved-changes prompt protects you before destructive actions like New or Open.

4. Run the show​

Toggle to perform mode from the mode switch at the top of the sidebar, then:

  • Press Space to fire the highlighted cue.
  • Press ↑ / ↓ to move the highlight.
  • Press Esc to return to edit mode.

5. Open a live display​

In perform mode, click Open Display in the toolbar. A new full-screen window opens and mirrors the currently active cue. Open as many displays as you need — each one shows the same cue text, ideal for a stage monitor or projector. See Live Display for details.

Next steps​