Manual 2.3 · Server 2.2 — October 2026
Two tools built on tour, not in an office. Manual puts the text in the operator's hands. Server locks it to the audio, the timecode and every screen on stage.
macOS · Windows · any browser on the network
01 / Products
Same look on screen, same keyboard and ShuttleXpress controls. What changes is who drives the scroll: the operator's hand or the timecode.
The operator drives, the text follows. Runs from a USB stick, with a second backup computer ready to take over.
The text follows the music. Scrollmaps on the audio, live LTC, setlists and every screen on stage served over the network.
02 / Manual
Open the Word script, plug in the ShuttleXpress, go live. If someone saves the file, the prompter updates itself.
DOCX, RTF and HTML with bold, colours, highlighting, lists and images. Edit on the fly and save back to DOCX.
Reloads automatically on every save: the writer fixes it in Word, the prompter is already up to date.
A tab-indented paragraph becomes a marker. Jump with Ctrl+↑/↓, search by title or through the text.
Two computers kept in step through a shared folder, even with different screens and fonts. If the Main goes down: “MAIN OFFLINE — TAKE OVER”.
Green/red Ready Light, instant message to the artist, timer, clock, countdown, blackout, Daylight, test pattern.
Load the show's logo and put it on screen with a single key. Mirrored on the Backup too.
Every event logged with its exact time: files opened, play, pause, every marker that crosses the pointer.
The script splits at each marker: one DOCX per song, named after it. All of them, or just the ones you pick.
Portable app: take it on tour on an external drive, license and settings included.
Download Manual →03 / Server
Map the script to the audio once. From then on the timecode decides where the reading line is: frame-accurate, every night.
Keyframes on the text, right above the waveform. Magnetic snap, keyboard nudge, data exchange with Reaper.
Reads timecode from the audio input. 24, 25, 29.97 and 30 fps detected automatically, drop-frame included.
Picks up timecode from BWF (Cubase via iXML) or from LTC recorded in the audio.
Notes, spoken, titles and songs tracks on a single line. Zoom up to 2000×, autosave.
Library and setlist side by side, repeats, automatic or manual songs. End of song → the next one loads.
A show is a folder: lyrics, spoken parts, audio, scrollmaps, setlists. Songs travel as .apsong packages.
Every browser on the LAN becomes a prompter: iPad, Raspberry Pi, PC. Lines, flip and Daylight per screen. Scan a QR code to connect.
Spoken lines as an overlay, with their own scroll. Next Song banner, notes and song title.
Manual's two-machine redundancy is coming to Server too.
Download Server →04 / Control
Real hardware, software remotes and control-room integration. Works with both Manual and Server.
No drivers. Shuttle ring for speed, jog wheel for fine steps, Cruise mode with smooth pause and resume. Five remappable buttons.
The Shuttle in a window: ring, jog and five buttons, handy as a spare or on a second screen.
Marker list, text appearance, Ready Light, countdown and instant messages in separate windows on the computer. With Server, also from tablets and phones on the network.
Transport, speed, markers, setlist, overlays, timers: all over OSC, with feedback. Companion module with song and marker menus.
05 / Compare
| Manual | Server | |
|---|---|---|
| Manual scrolling + ShuttleXpress | ● | ● |
| DOCX / RTF scripts with watchdog | ● | ● |
| Markers, search, Ready Light, timers, Daylight | ● | ● |
| Virtual ControlXpress and Remote | ● | ● |
| Main ⇄ Backup with failover | ● | coming soon |
| Show Log and DOCX song export | ● | — |
| Portable from a USB stick | ● | ● |
| Live LTC and audio scrollmaps | — | ● |
| Setlists, 24h Timeline, .apsong library | — | ● |
| Unlimited browser viewers on the LAN | — | ● |
| OSC / Bitfocus Companion | — | ● |
| Systems | macOS · Windows | macOS 14+ |
06 / License
Download it and use everything, right away. In Demo mode a DEMO watermark appears on screen; nothing else is locked.
The license is a signed file tied to your drive. Import it from the app and you're ready to go, even offline.
Time-limited for the tour, or unlimited. No cloud: your scripts stay on your disk.
07 / Download
08 / FAQ
The apps aren't distributed through the App Store. For Manual, run “Installa AutoPrompter (Mac).command” included in the ZIP; for Server, open the DMG, drag the app into Applications, then right-click → Open the first time.
No. Everything runs locally. Server only uses the stage network to connect viewers and remotes.
The standard Contour ShuttleXpress. It plugs in over USB and works without installing any drivers.
Copy the device code from the License screen and send it to us: you'll get back a file to import with “Importa file licenza…”. Renewals work the same way.
Yes: the scripts are the same DOCX/RTF files and markers work the same way.
Free demo · File-based license