DB97531 — Juggling Siteswap Animator & Generator

What the Controls panel does

The Controls panel drives the Animator: enter a siteswap, routine or passing pattern, choose the prop type, optionally load a trick, mark special moves per beat, and fine-tune playback, colors, multiplex behaviour, passing layout, dwell, holds, stills, polyrhythms and bouncing.

The Siteswap field accepts the native DB97531 notation described first in the next section, from standard hand patterns through multi-member, explicit polyrhythmic-stream, routine, passing and bouncing expressions. The guide deliberately teaches the site's own notation first. Only after those native forms does it show the optional Footswap notation (by Daniel @dtreiter) and Leon polyrhythm notation, always beside their DB97531 equivalents. Ratio queries such as 5@3:2 belong to the Siteswap Generator; if one is entered here, the Animator offers the first three generated explicit solutions. Concrete DB97531 forms such as 4@(5 5:4 4 4)~ are valid Animator notation. Use ; to separate routine/transition segments and reserve | for separating jugglers inside passing notation. The editable special-move buttons are generated from the current pattern, so the available buttons change with the members and throws that are actually present.

Click any blue example in this guide to load it into the Animator.

Trick section

The Trick section contains the controls that define what is being animated and the optional beat-by-beat movement setup attached to it.

Siteswap: type or paste the pattern to animate. The field accepts standard, synchronous, multiplex, multi-member, explicit polyrhythmic-stream, bouncing, routine and passing DB97531 notation. Ratio forms such as 5@3:2 are Generator queries, while concrete siteswap@(...) polyrhythms are valid Animator playback notation. The notation cards below explain the native DB97531 syntax first; Footswap and Leon compatibility/conversion are documented afterwards. Click any blue example to load it directly into the Animator.
Tricks: opens the prepared-trick picker. Loading a trick can restore its siteswap/routine together with the execution settings saved for that trick, such as props, colors, timing, holds and Special Moves.
Special Moves: enable the switch to expose editable beat buttons for special throws, body moves and special animations. In passing, use the J1, J2, J3... pills to edit each performer independently.
Advanced Options: expands the compact execution controls for the current trick, including Prop Settings, Playback, Timing Settings, Multiplex, PASSING, BOUNCING and Holds & Stills. Polyrhythmic runtime defaults are now internal and the former POLYRHYTHMIC card is hidden. All cards start collapsed and can then be opened independently.

Animator header buttons

The buttons above the Animator manage your account, private Studio library, sharing and the visual/renderer preferences without changing the notation itself.

Account / Login: opens the unified Google Account menu. Sign in connects My Space sync and lets Community use the same Google identity automatically; Sign out disconnects that shared identity. The status lines show whether My Space is local, syncing/synced or waiting for connection, while Community remains publicly browsable even when signed out. Local Studio data remains available when offline.
Favorite ★: saves the current pattern or routine to My Space. If it is already a favorite, pressing the star opens the remove confirmation instead. Favorite details in My Space can hold notes, records and multiple saved execution Variations of the same pattern.
Share & Export: opens five actions. Copy copies a link to the complete current setup; Share opens the device's native share sheet (or copies the link when native sharing is unavailable); Render video opens the dedicated 60 fps video-export controls; Animated GIF opens the GIF workflow directly, including 25/50 fps fidelity and background options; Publish sends the current Pattern or Routine to the Community. Video, GIF and Publish remain available while the Animator is Expanded/fullscreen. Shared setup links preserve the Animator state supported by the current trick, including timing, props/styles, Special Moves, passing layout and per-juggler passing specials where applicable. Publishing requires a signed-in Community identity.
Preferences: opens the global Animator preferences. Use Theme for Dark/Light mode and Canvas for Compact/Expanded layout. Animator-specific preferences include Scene, Model, Props, Prop Style, Zoom (Off, Auto Fit, Max), Trajectories (Off/On, off by default), View (3rd/1st person) and Rendering (Low · 30 fps, Balanced · 60 fps, Quality · 60 fps). These preferences are kept separately from the notation and the Trick section's Advanced Options.

Render video / Animated GIF workflow

Render video and Animated GIF are separate Share & Export entry points backed by the same deterministic render engine. Each opens the Animator directly in the requested export mode, so the redundant Format selector is hidden. The application always opens with its normal Animator aspect ratio; the export preview is activated only after choosing one of these export actions.

Platform: opens a dropdown of output presets. Available presets include Original animator, YouTube Landscape 16:9, YouTube Shorts 9:16, Instagram Reels / Stories 9:16, Instagram Post 4:5, Instagram Square 1:1, TikTok 9:16 and Custom. Choosing a platform updates the live aspect-ratio preview immediately.
Resolution: opens the resolutions available for the selected platform, for example 1920 × 1080 for YouTube landscape or 1080 × 1920 for a vertical Full HD export. Changing resolution updates the preview immediately. Custom output can use explicit width and height values where available.
Automatic render length: Video and Animated GIF no longer need a Duration setting. A pattern with both a cold-start dot and a final collect dot, or any routine containing ; segments, renders one complete authored routine. All other patterns automatically detect the shortest safe seamless loop: cold-start-only and collect-only transitions are ignored, the repeating ladder/orbit window is detected, equivalent prop classes may shorten it when structurally proven, and the endpoint is not duplicated. For video, that complete loop is repeated an integer number of times until the export lasts at least 8 seconds; GIF keeps one detected loop. For a circular camera, one 360° revolution is synchronized to each seamless loop.
Preview: only the Animator frame changes shape; the application itself does not permanently change layout. Export framing is always Fit, so the whole Animator view is preserved and background margins are added when the source view and output frame differ.
Render: starts a deterministic frame-by-frame export at a fixed 60 fps. Device lag can make the export take longer, but it does not lower the frame rate of the finished video. While rendering, the action can be cancelled from the same control.
Replay before capture: pressing Render first saves the current camera view and performs the same full internal Replay used by the Animator. The siteswap/routine, props, models, passing state, segments and Special Moves are rebuilt before frame 0 is captured, so export starts from a fresh execution rather than from the current playback position.
Camera / orbit / zoom: before the internal Replay, the renderer saves the current camera position, orbit target, orientation, zoom/FOV and related OrbitControls state. That view is reapplied after Replay and immediately before frame 0, so the video uses the framing chosen by the user. Camera movement can keep that view Static or move it in a deterministic Circle around center; the configurable rotation period defines how many seconds one full 360° revolution takes. The circle keeps the current camera height and horizontal distance from the saved orbit target. Third-person renders protect this authored path from delayed Auto Fit/Replay recentering; first-person keeps its performer-relative pan/pitch/FOV behaviour.
True output resolution: the render drawing buffer is temporarily resized to the selected video resolution instead of upscaling the small on-screen preview. A 1920 × 1080 export therefore renders internally at 1920 × 1080 whether the phone is portrait, landscape, compact or Expanded. The normal screen resolution is restored after export.
Video format: export always prefers MP4 · H.264. If H.264 is unavailable through the browser's WebCodecs implementation, the renderer automatically falls back to a compatible WebM encoder rather than failing.
Download: becomes available after a successful render and downloads the finished file using the correct extension and output-resolution information.
Close: exits the current export mode, removes the aspect-ratio preview and restores the Animator's normal application format. Choosing the same export action again from Share & Export also exits that mode.
Expanded/fullscreen: the Render controls and Community Publish flow remain accessible when the Animator is Expanded/fullscreen; they are placed in the active Animator fullscreen layer rather than behind it.

Siteswap notation

Standard siteswap grammar

These are the core forms used by the Animator. The following notation cards extend the same grammar with destination tokens, extra body members, independent rhythms, routines and bounces.

Vanilla / asynchronous: one throw per beat, such as , or .
Synchronous: paired throws in parentheses, such as . A trailing * mirrors the synchronous half, as in .
Multiplex: several props released in the same slot are enclosed in brackets, for example .
Hybrid / mixed: synchronous, crossing and multiplex forms can be combined, for example .
MRN beat groups: ! separates independently timed beat groups, for example .
Throw values above 9: lowercase letters continue the numeric sequence (a = 10, b = 11, and so on). Uppercase letters are reserved for notation modifiers such as the bounce suffix B.

Throw tokens

Crossing and member destinations

These suffixes are written directly after a throw value. They change where the prop goes, not its numeric siteswap height. For hand and foot throws, x, y, xy and z describe the destination relative to the throwing member. Throws that originate from the head use h, f and the explicit member tokens below.

x — cross side: sends the prop to the opposite side from the normal destination for that throw, while staying in the same member group. With hands this is the familiar crossing modifier; the same rule applies to feet. Example: .
y — change member group: transfers the prop between hands and feet while keeping the normal side relationship for the throw. Examples appear in multi-member patterns such as .
xy — change group and cross side: combines x and y: the prop transfers between hands and feet and also lands on the opposite side from the normal y destination. Example token: 3xy.
z — to Head: sends a throw from a hand or foot to the head/forehead member. Example token: 4z.
h — Head to hand: on a throw originating from the head, sends the prop to the hand selected by the normal beat/parity mapping. Example token: 4h.
hx — Head to opposite hand: the crossing version of h; it sends the prop to the opposite hand from the normal h destination. Example token: 4hx.
f — Head to foot: on a throw originating from the head, sends the prop to the foot selected by the normal beat/parity mapping. Example token: 4f.
fx — Head to opposite foot: the crossing version of f; it sends the prop to the opposite foot from the normal f destination. Example token: 4fx.
rh — explicitly to Right Hand: head-origin throw with a fixed destination, independent of the normal parity choice. Example token: 4rh.
lh — explicitly to Left Hand: head-origin throw with a fixed destination. Example token: 4lh.
rf — explicitly to Right Foot: head-origin throw with a fixed destination. Example token: 4rf.
lf — explicitly to Left Foot: head-origin throw with a fixed destination. Example token: 4lf.

Token order: the destination token follows the throw value and comes before an optional bounce suffix. For example, 4xBB combines the crossing token x with the bounce suffix BB; bounce behaviour is defined in the Bouncing notation card below.

Multi-member notation

Hands, feet, head, elbows and body in one pattern

Multi-member notation keeps the existing fields unchanged and appends the new members at the end. The canonical member order is LH, RH, LF, RF, Head, LE, RE, Body, so every existing pattern remains compatible.

Asynchronous layout: the extended order is hands - feet - head - elbows - body. The original one-, two- and three-section forms keep exactly the same meaning. Example: .
Elbows: the fourth section is the elbow pair LE/RE. It follows the same left/right alternating member convention and is reserved as a real prop lane, not as a visual body move. Example syntax: 645-222-0-33. From v191, LE/RE run as independent solo prop lanes. Elbow-only patterns are valid, for example 0-0-0-2, 0-0-0-3 and 0-0-0-4. Odd values alternate/cross between LE and RE exactly like an asynchronous hand siteswap. The elbow is an IK effector. Its Rest pose is the natural elbow position produced by the ordinary hand animation. Catch, hold and release use the forward pose (about 10° below horizontal); catch preparation is 0.6 beat (0.5 beat shoulder rotation + 0.5 beat elbow extension, overlapping for 0.4 beat), carry is 1 beat with a small flexion before re-extension, and recovery to Rest is 1 beat unless another catch is due in +1/+2 beats.
Body movements: the fifth section is a movement timeline written B(...), with one code per beat. It uses the existing Body special-moves channel and does not carry props. Example: . Use 0 for no body movement on that beat.
Body codes: supported codes include P (pirouette), HP (half pirouette), BF (backflip), DP, TP, QP and CR±angle for a custom rotation. Existing aliases such as SS, HS and SF remain accepted by the movement engine.
Async multiplex: brackets remain valid in the hand section, for example .
Synchronous layout: the extended sync order is LH, RH, LF, RF, Head, LE, RE, Body. Five-field sync notation remains valid. A body-only extension can therefore be written .
Mirror and empty slots: * continues to mirror left/right hands and feet; the extended contract also pairs LE↔RE, while Body is unchanged. 0 means that member has no throw or no body move in that slot.

DB97531 polyrhythmic notation

Explicit member streams in the Animator

The Animator's native polyrhythmic playback form is siteswap@(member streams). For example uses 4 as the reference siteswap, spaces to separate throws inside one member stream and : to separate the streams. Explicit stream order is LH:RH, then LF:RF, then Head when those members are present.

Two hand streams: 4@(4 4:6 6 6) describes the complete left- and right-hand streams explicitly.
More members: the canonical extended member order is LH:RH:LF:RF:Head:LE:RE:Body. The canonical order remains LH:RH:LF:RF:Head:LE:RE:Body. LE/RE are independent solo elbow lanes and Body movements remain authored with the multi-member B(...) track. Passing continues to use the established five physical prop members per performer.
Member phase: an explicit stream may carry +p, with 0 ≤ p < 1, to offset that member on its own local rhythm.
* — mirrored pattern: reuses the written streams on the following cycle with the left/right member ownership swapped, matching the mirror operator used elsewhere by the site.
Dwell timing: no suffix means Same dwell time; % means Relative dwell (50% of each member's local beat); ~ means Adjusted dwell (equal empty-hand time).
~*: Adjusted dwell plus mirror is evaluated over the complete direct + mirrored cycle, so the dwell calculation does not restart artificially at the mirror boundary.
Generator query is different: compact ratio text such as 5@3:2 is a Siteswap Generator search, not the Animator's explicit playback notation. If entered in the Animator, it offers generated explicit solutions instead of playing the ratio query directly.
Throw Diagram: polyrhythmic results show the effective physical throw value in global siteswap beats and the actual routing. The horizontal ruler remains global while denser member rhythms use an internal microbeat grid.

Structure notation

Repetition, routines and boundary dots

These symbols operate on complete patterns or routine parts rather than changing an individual throw.

^N — repetition: group a pattern and repeat it N times, for example or . Polyrhythms also support the compact placement shown in the previous card.
; — routine / transition boundary: join complete siteswaps and transition segments into one continuous sequence, for example or . The Transition Generator uses the same separator. A routine without a final collect is cyclic: after the final segment it returns to segment 1, including that segment's TPS and timing settings. A final collect dot keeps the routine finite and stops normally.
| — passing performer separator only: the vertical bar no longer separates routine or transition segments. It is reserved for J1/J2/J3/... inside <...>, for example .
Polyrhythmic routines: use the explicit ({...},{...}) stream notation returned by the Siteswap Generator in each routine segment. A ; remains a hard synchronization boundary between routine segments.
Leading . — cold start: preloads and renders the props in their starting members before the authored throws begin.
Trailing . — collect: after the final authored throws, each prop remains held by its receiving member as its physical catch occurs. Using both dots gives cold start and collect, for example .
Boundary dots with polyrhythms: leading and trailing dots may wrap an explicit generated polyrhythm in the same way as an ordinary pattern; decimal points inside a member +phase remain part of the phase value, not boundary dots.
Boundary dots with routines: the input accepts dots without positional restrictions. When used as routine boundary markers, for example . A trailing-only dot is collect-only and does not add a leading dot.

Passing notation

Passing between 2 or more jugglers

Passing uses the same throw values and member routing as the Animator, but each performer gets their own stream inside angle brackets. A plain p means “pass to the next juggler” in a 2-juggler pattern; pN targets a specific juggler number in 3+ performer patterns. In the Generator, Props is the total inventory shared by all jugglers, not a separate prop count for each performer. When Feet is enabled for a juggler, generated passing solutions include at least one throw launched by that juggler's feet to another juggler; the receiving member may be hands (yp) or feet (p), and generic hand and foot wildcards also explore crossing passing variants such as xp, xyp and foot-to-foot xp, whenever the R/L phase makes that crossing valid. Crossing passes respect the async R/L phase of both performers: with the default right-member start <3xp|3xp> is invalid, while <3xp|L3xp> is valid. The same independent start-side rule applies to feet, so a routed 2xp or 4xp may be valid when the receiver phase requires the crossing, e.g. 3p-L2xp; local same-juggler 2x/4x keep the solo restriction. Passing now uses the same cyclic capacitated CSP kernel as hands-only and multi-member generation: its domains add recipient, destination member and crossing to the throw height, while capacities are indexed by receiving juggler, member and beat. For large passing searches, cyclic beat rotations are deduplicated and symmetric performer topologies are collapsed. Beauty ranking, family quotas and stratification run only after the CSP has produced valid candidates, so they do not participate in MRV/LCV or validity. Results are exposed in balanced batches of up to 5000, with the normal 1000-result pagination inside each batch. In the rare case that adjacent multiplex throws would make a recipient suffix ambiguous, the Generator inserts a space inside the multiplex, for example [3p 3]; the space only separates the two simultaneous throws.

Synchronous passing: use the standard passing wrapper with synchronous tuples per juggler. Hands-only uses (LH,RH), for example . Multi-member passing uses the same tuple layout as solo: (LH,RH,LF,RF) for hands+feet and (LH,RH,LF,RF,Head) when Head is included. Therefore templates such as <(?,?,?,?)|(?,?,?,?)> and <(?,?,?,?,?)|(?,?,?,?,?)> are valid Generator input. In every synchronous foot pair, at least one of LF/RF must be a pure local 0 or 2; left/right reflected passing families are generated together so neither foot is hidden by the finite candidate frontier; result ordering then alternates between identical-member symmetry across jugglers and inter-juggler mirror symmetry (J1 R ↔ J2 L, J1 RF ↔ J2 LF); the partner foot may perform the active routed/pass throw, for example (4,4,0,2yp) or (4,4,4xyp,2). When feet are present, every enabled foot source contributes at least one pass to another juggler. The p comes after routing modifiers; generated cross-group passes use the standard order xyp. With 3+ jugglers use pN. Bare wildcards solve height, recipient and member routing together. Multiplexes remain valid only in LH/RH. Synchronous passing uses even throw values and exact receiving-juggler/member/beat conservation on the common cyclic CSP kernel: a 0 is an empty site and therefore cannot receive a throw.

Compact beat form: write each juggler inside <...|...>. Example: .
Explicit chained beat form: consecutive passing beats may also be written as adjacent blocks, for example . This is equivalent to .
Multi-member passing: each performer's stream may itself use hand/foot/head routing, for example .
Independent performer polyrhythms: each juggler may use their own @ timing, for example . The performer timelines are compiled independently and synchronized on one common physical-time grid.
Independent cold start / collect: boundary dots belong to each performer stream, so one passing expression may contain finite routines such as . J1 performs the written 14 throws of 7 and J2 the written 9 throws of 9; each performer uses their own cold start and collect, and a performer that has finished stays collected while another performer continues.
Different routines per juggler: | is reserved for performers and ; separates each performer's routine segments, so no extra grouping is needed. Example: . Here | separates J1/J2 and each ; separates segments inside that performer’s own routine.
3+ jugglers: use explicit targets p1, p2, p3, … inside each performer stream. Example: .
Performer order: within <...|...|...>, the first field is J1, the second is J2, and so on. In 3+ patterns, plain p means “next juggler in cyclic order”; pN overrides that with an explicit target performer.
Solo as one-performer topology: for selection and performer-specific animation, a solo trick such as 531 is treated conceptually like a one-juggler passing topology. Clicking the solo performer selects J1 with the same visual selection feedback, without enabling Passing Custom move/rotate controls.
Special moves and shares: passing supports per-juggler special-move pills, performer-specific body moves, and shared links that preserve the current passing state, including specials and custom layout.

Bouncing notation

Floor bounces with B, BB and BBB

Append uppercase B directly to an individual throw to make that prop bounce on the floor while keeping the original siteswap value, duration and landing member. Repeating the suffix requests more floor impacts.

B — one bounce: for example or .
BB — two bounces: for example or .
BBB — three bounces: for example . The Animator uses three floor impacts and four ballistic arcs.
Per-throw modifier: bounce notation can be mixed with ordinary throws, so only the throws carrying B, BB or BBB use a bouncing trajectory.
Restitution coefficient: open Advanced Settings → BOUNCING. The dropdown ranges from 0.50 to 1.00 in steps of 0.05, with 0.90 as the default. Higher values preserve more vertical speed after each floor impact; lower values make the bounce lose more energy.
Physical timing: the bounce solver keeps the authored throw duration and catch member. If a requested BBB cannot physically fit three fully ballistic bounces at the current TPS, carry and restitution, playback is stopped and the Animator reports the problem instead of silently replacing it with an ordinary throw.
Case matters: uppercase B is bounce notation; lowercase letters remain throw values above 9 (a = 10, b = 11, etc.).

External notation compatibility

Footswap notation → DB97531 notation

Footswap notation, introduced by Daniel (@dtreiter), is an alternative shorthand for hand–foot juggling. Add F, FS or FT to a throw to describe a foot interaction. The Animator keeps the Footswap input visible and converts it to a compatible native DB97531 multi-member pattern for playback; when several equivalents exist, choose one in the conversion card. Native DB97531 notation remains the reference throughout this guide.

F — foot stall: ↔ 4y33-02y0.
FS — foot swap: ↔ 6y33-22y2.
FT — foot toss: ↔ 4y33-224y.
Multiplex: ↔ [43y]23-22y2. Footswap modifiers are supported inside asynchronous hand multiplexes; foot-lane multiplex throws are not.
Synchronous example: (6xF,4)(4,2x)(4,4)* ↔ (4xy,4,0,0)(4,2x,0,0)(4,4,0,2y)*.
Side variants: FX, FSX and FTX select the opposite foot for the corresponding foot interaction. The x in synchronous throws continues to indicate crossing.
Reference: Original Footswap notation guide by Daniel (@dtreiter).

External notation compatibility

Leon polyrhythm notation → DB97531 notation

Leon notation can also be entered for explicit polyrhythmic streams, but the site's native equivalent is shown here so the relationship is unambiguous. Member-stream order is the same; the main differences are the wrapper/separator syntax and the adjusted-dwell symbol.

Basic explicit streams: ({4,4},{6,6,6}) ↔ 4@(4 4:6 6 6).
Another concrete example: ({5,5},{4,4,4})° ↔ .
Adjusted dwell: Leon ° ↔ DB97531 ~.
Relative dwell: % has the same meaning in both forms.
Mirrored pattern: * has the same meaning in both forms; therefore Leon °* ↔ DB97531 ~*.
Generator searches: ratio queries such as 5@3:2 are not Leon playback notation and are not DB97531 explicit playback notation; they are Generator requests that produce one or more concrete explicit solutions.
Reference: Leon's original polyrhythm-notation guide.

Special Moves switch

Off: the siteswap plays with the normal Animator body and prop paths.
On: beat buttons appear for the editable throw/body-move slots in the current pattern.
Async patterns: each beat normally has one editable hand slot.
Sync patterns: each beat can expose separate left-hand and right-hand slots.
Multiplexes: compatible multiplex throws can still be marked with special throws.
Body-source sections: when the pattern includes hands, legs or head/body sections, the editor exposes compatible hand, foot and head/body buttons.
Passing: when passing is active, performer pills J1, J2, J3... appear above the beat row so you can edit the special throws and body moves of each juggler independently.

Using a beat button

Click a beat button to open the special option picker.
The picker groups compatible choices into Special throws, Special catches, Special moves and Special animations.
Only options that work with the current prop and the selected body member are shown.
Select the same active option again to clear it, or choose another option to replace it.
Use the small gear on a Special Throw or Special Catch to inspect the member Catch/Mid/Release positions and tune hand-path offsets; prop rotation/release controls remain available on compatible Special Throws.
Passing workflow: first choose the active juggler pill, then edit that juggler's beat buttons. The throw row shown belongs only to the selected performer.

Extended notation

Siteswap-X (JuggleFit)

DB97531 supports the JuggleFit Siteswap-X raw format. Enable it in Advanced Settings → Siteswap Extensions → Siteswap-X. Modifiers use curly braces after the throw: throw{throw modifier spin / catch modifier}. The Siteswap-X text and supported DB97531 Specials synchronize in both directions.

Examples: 3{B} = backcross 3; 3{B/Pe} = backcross 3 that is later caught as Penguin; 53{B}4{/Rs} = backcross 3 plus a Reverse Shoulder catch on the prop thrown as 4.
Throw abbreviations — fully mapped: B Backcross → BX; S Shoulder → SH; Ou Outside → OT; In Inside → IT; Ul Under The Leg → ULT; N Neck → NCK; Oh Overhead → OH; F Flatfront → OFFT; Pc Pancake → PAN. Prop-specific club/ring/hat variants are selected automatically where required.
Catch abbreviations — fully mapped: Pe Penguin → PEC; Rb Reverse Backcross → BXC; Rs Reverse Shoulder → RSC; L Lazy → LC; Ul Under The Leg → ULC. Internally the catch is moved to the beat where that prop actually lands and controls the catch → mid part of the carry.
Prop spin / rotations: write the spin count after the throw modifier, for example 3{B2} or 5{Oh1/Rb}. It maps to the existing Rotations value of the Special Throw. When DB97531 writes Siteswap-X automatically, the number is omitted if it is equal to that throw's standard rotation count, keeping the notation compact.
Catch and throw on the same carry: they remain independent. A catch modifier belongs to the earlier prop that lands on the current beat, while the current beat's throw modifier controls the release. Hands/body can therefore show combinations such as BXC→BX.
Editing: removing a mapped {…} modifier from the Siteswap-X string clears the corresponding mapped Special. Editing a mapped Special updates the Siteswap-X string. Any Siteswap-X text that is not mapped by the current context is preserved rather than discarded.
Passing: Siteswap-X braces are accepted in passing notation, but automatic per-juggler Special mapping is not yet applied.
Tags: Show tags is a separate option in the same Siteswap Extensions card. Tags can describe props, siteswap, Special Throws, Special Catches and body spins even when Siteswap-X itself is disabled.

Special throws

Special throws change the hand path and, for clubs/rings, may also change prop orientation or spin. The visible choices depend on the selected prop.

All props: Outside Throw (OT), Outside Front (OF), Inside Front / DIPS (IF), Backcrosses (BX), Reverse Backcrosses (BXR), Inside Throw (IT), Over Head (OH), Over the Arm Crossed (OAX), Under the Arm Crossed (UAX) and Centered Outside Throw (OTX).
Clubs: Outside Helicopter Throw (OHT), Club Helicopter Throw (CHT) and Club Inside Helicopter Throw (CIHL). Club-specific versions of over-head, outside-front, inside-front and backcross/reverse-backcross paths are applied automatically where needed.
Rings: Pancakes (PAN) and Outside Sideways Pancake (OSP). Ring-specific over-head, outside-front, inside-front and backcross/reverse-backcross paths are applied automatically where needed.

Special catches

Special catches change the catch → mid part of the carry at the selected beat; the Special Throw on that same beat controls the mid → release part. The catch gear opens the same carry-offset editor and shows the effective Catch/Mid/Release member coordinates live. When both are present, Hands/body shows both on the same beat in carry order, for example 3-BXC→BX. Available Siteswap-X catches are Reverse Backcross (Rb → BXC), Penguin (Pe → PEC), Reverse Shoulder (Rs → RSC), Lazy (L → LC) and Under The Leg (Ul → ULC). The catch modifier is exported on the earlier throw whose prop lands on this beat, so DB97531 keeps catch and release together in the carry while remaining compatible with JuggleFit notation.

Special moves

Special moves are body rotations that can be attached to compatible hand slots. They affect where the body, the carrying members and the future catches will be, so throws launched before a rotation still aim at the rotated catch position.

360: SS, duration 2 beats.
720: DS, duration 4 beats.
1080: TS, duration 6 beats.
1440: QS, duration 8 beats.
Custom rotation: CR..., for example CR15, CR90, CR-45 or CR270. Choose the angle from a dropdown ranging from −360° to +360° in 15° steps. The default is 180° and the move lasts 2 beats.
Held props: during SS, DS, TS, QS and CR..., props in hand stay attached to the corresponding members while the body rotates.
Passing: body moves are performer-specific, so J1, J2 and later jugglers may each perform different rotations at the same time.
Direction: reverse variants are available where supported. A reversed backflip is shown as a frontflip.

Special animations

Special animations are helper body/limb poses used by spin, grab and still modes.

Spins: Spin Preparation Left/Right (SPL, SPR), Spin Still Left/Right (SSL, SSR), and Spin Out Left/Right (SOL, SOR).
Arms / grabs: Arm Preparation (AP), Arm Close (AC), Arms Global (AG), Arm Out (AO), plus pure-2 grab helpers for Standard, Front2side, Front2front, Side2front and Front2back modes.
Stills: floor-hold helpers for Standard (S2F), Front2side (F2F), Front2front (FFF), Side2front (SFF) and Front2back (FBF).

Automatic animation modes

custom: keeps your manual special-move selections.
spins: builds spin rectangles for compatible 2 and 0 throws.
spins + legs animation: adds automatic leg animation to the spin rectangles.
spins + arms animation: adds automatic arm animation to the spin rectangles.
spins + full animation: combines spin rectangles with automatic arms, legs and body preparation.
Natural leg modes: custom, standard, front2side kick, front2front kick, side2front kick and front2back kick.

Throw rotation, prop direction and offsets

Rotations: choose auto, 0 to 9, or negative values -1 to -4 for reverse rotation counts.
Prop rotation direction: choose auto, +x, -x, +y, -y, +z or -z.
Prop release direction: use the same auto / axis choices to set how the prop leaves the hand.
Offsets: drag Catch, Halfway and Throw points to change the hand path. X moves left/right, Y moves up/down and Z changes depth.
Apply / cancel: click the check button to apply the gear-modal changes, or close/click outside to cancel.

Advanced Options switch

Off: keeps the compact advanced controls hidden and uses the current/default Animator settings.
On: opens the compact Prop Settings, Playback, Timing Settings, POLYRHYTHMIC, Multiplex, PASSING, BOUNCING, Holds & Stills and Siteswap Extensions cards directly inside the Controls panel.
Timing Settings dwell: dwell is controlled independently for RH, LH, RF, LF and H. Older grouped hand/foot/head dwell values are used only as compatibility defaults.

Prop Settings

Random props: randomly distributes balls, clubs and rings across the detected objects.
Random props off: every object uses the single prop chosen in the main prop buttons beside the Siteswap field.
Main prop buttons: clicking Balls, Clubs or Rings beside Siteswap turns Random props off and applies that prop to all objects.
Orbit colors: off uses one color for every prop; on assigns the palette in order to the canonical orbit classes, so props in the same orbit share a color.
Random colors: with Orbit colors off, gives every physical prop a different random color; with Orbit colors on, randomly assigns one shared color to each orbit class.
Object buttons: click an object symbol/number to open the prop and color modal for that object.
Prop Type card: choose whether the selected object is a Ball, Club or Ring.
Prop Apply to all: in the Prop Type card, apply the selected prop type to every object instead of only the selected object.
Colors card: choose the selected object color from the color palette.
Color Apply to all: in the Colors card, apply the selected color to every object instead of only the selected object.
Validate: click the check button to confirm the prop/color changes and close the modal.
Cancel: click the close button, click outside the modal or press Esc to close the modal without applying the temporary changes.
Source: the number of object controls is detected from the current siteswap/object count.

Playback

Allow Impulse: lets the body add impulse/momentum to throws. Turning it off keeps the animation more rigid and mechanical.
Collision Detection: enables object collision checks so props react when their paths intersect.
Realistic Throws: uses a more physical throw style for a less perfectly geometric animation.

Timing Settings

TPS: throws per second. The dropdown goes from 1 to 20 in steps of 0.5.
RH Dwell: sets the carry/dwell percentage independently for the Right Hand.
LH Dwell: sets the carry/dwell percentage independently for the Left Hand.
RF Dwell: sets the carry/dwell percentage independently for the Right Foot.
LF Dwell: sets the carry/dwell percentage independently for the Left Foot.
H Dwell: sets the carry/dwell percentage independently for the Head/forehead member.
Range: every member dwell is selectable from 5% to 95% in 5% steps.
Compatibility: older Hands/Feet/Head dwell settings are used as the initial RH/LH, RF/LF and H values respectively; after that, the five member values can be adjusted independently.
Polyrhythm interaction: explicit generated streams define their dwell timing through the suffix: no suffix = Same dwell time, % = Relative dwell, and ° = Adjusted dwell.

Polyrhythmic playback

The former POLYRHYTHMIC Advanced Options card is hidden in the Animator. Generated explicit polyrhythms carry the timing method in their notation, while the remaining runtime defaults are fixed for consistent playback.

Minimum airborne time: fixed at 0.5 beat.
Sync on: fixed to Release.
Start phase: fixed to Start sync.
Dwell timing from notation: no suffix = Same dwell time; % = Relative dwell (50% of local beat); ° = Adjusted dwell (equal empty-hand interval). These suffixes are authoritative for explicit streams.
Relative dwell: hands and feet use a canonical 50% of their own local beat, independent of the ordinary RH/LH/RF/LF dwell preferences.
Same empty-hand time: ° keeps the absolute empty-hand interval equal and derives dwell event by event while preserving the catch grid; with °* the calculation continues through the direct/mirrored boundary.
Automatic protection: when necessary, the Animator shortens carry so a routed throw still keeps at least the fixed 0.5-beat airborne interval.
Throw Diagram: labels show effective heights in global beats; microbeats are internal timing resolution only and do not create extra ruler divisions.

Multiplex

Layout: switches between Line and Pattern. In Line, props are arranged front-to-back. In Pattern, props are arranged in compact formations such as triangle, diamond or layered shapes depending on the multiplex size.
Default layout: the Animator starts with Line selected.
Release order: chooses Automatic or Manual. Automatic uses the Animator's default ordering rules. Manual follows the written multiplex order more directly.
Spacing: controls how far apart multiplex catches appear. The default is 60%.
Delay: sets the maximum time gap between the first and last catch for equal multiplex throws. The options go from 0% to 100% in 10% steps, where 0% means 0 beat and 100% means 0.5 beat. The default is 20%.
Scope: these settings affect compatible multiplexes in both standard and multi-member patterns.

PASSING

Distribution: choose side by side, front to front, back to back, circle or custom.
Circle: places all jugglers automatically on a circle and orients each one tangentially around the arena.
Custom: each juggler can be selected directly in the 3D arena and moved independently.
Selection: each juggler has an invisible selection cylinder around them; tap/click it to select that performer. Tapping outside deselects the active juggler. The same J1 selection feedback is also available for a solo trick; solo selection does not activate Passing Custom movement/rotation.
Custom movement: selected jugglers move in snapped steps of 100 px during drag, inside a 1200 × 1200 px square centered on the arena.
Custom rotation: selected jugglers rotate in snapped steps of 15°.
Performer-specific animation: passing supports independent special throws, special moves, member carries and rotated catches for each juggler.
Share: passing shares preserve the current distribution, custom layout, performer orientations and per-juggler special moves.

BOUNCING

Restitution coef.: controls how much vertical speed is retained after each floor impact. The dropdown ranges from 0.50 to 1.00 in steps of 0.05; 0.90 is the default.
B: one bounce suffix uses the single-bounce ballistic path for that throw.
BB: uses the dual-bounce form with three ballistic sections.
BBB: extends the same notation to the triple-bounce form.
Routing: bounce suffixes can follow ordinary destination modifiers, for example 4xBB; the destination is resolved first and the bounce physics is then applied to that routed throw.
Boundary dots: cold-start/collect prop inventory also accounts for bounced throws, so dotted bouncing routines preload and collect the correct objects.

Holds & Stills

Hold 2: treats compatible 2 throws as held/carried objects instead of normal tosses. It is on by default.
Hold 3x: treats compatible crossing 3x throws as holds when the pattern allows it. It is on by default.
Still 2: keeps the hand and arm fixed during the carry of a held 2. It is on by default.
Still 3x: keeps the hand and arm fixed during the carry of a held 3x. It is on by default.
Dependency: Still 2 requires Hold 2, and Still 3x requires Hold 3x. Turning a still on automatically turns on the matching hold. Turning a hold off also turns off the matching still.
Catch response: even with a still active, the arm can still show a damped catch reaction when a prop arrives to start or join that hold, then settle back into the still position.