FreeShow Friday 8-22-25 Summary | 1.4.9 Update & Companion Integration | Features, Q&A, and Benefits

If you missed FreeShow Friday on 8-22-25 and want to know what we discussed see a quick AI generated summary below.

1. Community Q&A and Practical Scenarios

• Audience raised practical, ministry-based questions:

  • Claudia: How to create a FreeShow presentation for a Cemetery Mass with one slide per deceased person including a photo, name, date? (Answer: design slides in Canva/PowerPoint → export JPEGs → import into FreeShow)

  • Brian: Can Companion/Stream Deck be used not just to trigger slides, but to build shows? (Answer: Companion can do a lot but you would have to dive deep into the API library to do more complex things like build shows)

  • Brian: What’s a quick bailout method if things go wrong mid-service? (Answer: Clear All button, don’t stop the presentation).

• Benefit: Shows FreeShow’s flexibility—users can adapt workflows for unique events, and the community shares real-time troubleshooting.

2. New Features in FreeShow 1.4.9

• UI Overhaul: Rounded icons, colored section boxes, cleaner project layout.

• Editable Template Defaults: Stock templates can now be customized and reset—streamlines design and clutter from duplicate templates.

• On-the-fly Categories: Create show categories instantly during setup.

• Collections in Scripture Tool: Group multiple Bible versions (API or local).

• NDI HX Support: Questions about differences with standard NDI (inputs vs. outputs).

• Section Colors: Now you can group your sections by color in their own box.

• Benefit: These updates reduce clutter, make shows easier to manage, and improve live presentation polish.

3. Advanced Integrations with Companion & APIs

• Demonstrated Bitfocus Companion: one interface to control FreeShow, OBS, and ATEM simultaneously.

  • Buttons can trigger overlays, start/stop actions, control audio, or fire off custom effects (e.g., fireworks).

  • Can also run FreeShow actions by name, stacking multiple steps (open project + start show + change style).

• Introduced FreeShow API: advanced users (like Jason) can script show creation, slide changes, even start cameras.

• Benefit: Companion turns FreeShow into a professional control hub, enabling one operator to run multiple systems from a tablet or browser.

4. Workflow Benefits & Closing Encouragement

• For special services (like Claudia’s cemetery mass):

  • Best approach = design slides in Canva/PowerPoint → export JPEGs → import into FreeShow.

  • Alternative = use FreeShow’s variable text sets for flexibility in on-the-fly corrections.

• Clear All = best bailout when things “go south.”

• Audience favorites: Section colors (“game changer”), customizable templates, and new category creation.

• Closing: Encouraged viewers to support my work by watching Our Lives Matter documentary (Kansas City-based, proceeds support youth ministry).