Is Nomad recommended for tech-capable beginners? Should we look at others?

Question

Looking for software for Windows/Linux for rural theatre club including ETC SmartPack 12.1K DMX.
Is Nomad recommended for beginners? 20 channel dimmer, maybe 6 shows per year, tech/electrical capable operators with Good PC knowledge.

ueliriegg · Answer

ok, since the cobalt people won't reply... ;) 
 
Eos and Cobalt do the same: they control stuff. it's just the way how you get there that's different. i'm an Eos person, so my summary of the Cobalt side might be over simplified. 
 
but first of all let me say this: i'm convinced that in the big leagues there are no good or bad consoles, it's just the person sitting in front of it and the console aren't happy with each other. 
 
Eos uses what's called a command line. you write phrases into the command line. you get the words to those phrases by pressing the button that has the word written on it. so you want to start a phrase with Record, you press the button that says Record. when you're happy with your phrase you press Enter and the console will try to achieve what you said. the syntax of the phrases usually follows the order how we speak. "Record Cue 15 Time 5 Enter" or "Channel 15 at 30 Enter" or "Channel 5 CopyTo Channel 3 Enter" or "Delete Cue 3 Enter" or "GotoCue 5 Time 7 Enter". i like it because it's straight forward and you learn by analogy. you don't need to have used every single command in every single possible situation. as soon as you understood what the word means, you can start to think of situations where you can use it. 
 
Cobalt on the other hand uses RPN (Reverse Polish Notation). the advantage is you don't need enter in the end, the disadvantage is that you don't type in the order you speak. when Eos uses "Channel 1 Thru 5 at 40 Enter", Cobalt says "1 Channel 5 Thru 40 Level". Numbers first and explain what the number means afterwards equals less keystrokes. 
 
because Cobalt has really powerful masters that can be configured in any way you want, the current opinion seems to be that cobalt is better for Live environments whereas Eos shines in theatre environments. but let me come back to the beginning: there are no good and bad consoles, just ones that don't work with the person sitting in front of it. Eos and Cobalt both can do live and theatre, you just might need more workarounds in an environment.