foo_vis_milk2 Installation Guide

System Requirements

No additional runtime libraries are required.

Download

Download the latest foo_vis_milk2.fb2k-component from the component page or the GitHub Releases page.

Installation

  1. Open foobar2000.
  2. Go to File > Preferences > Components.
  3. Click Install... and select the downloaded foo_vis_milk2.fb2k-component file.
  4. Restart foobar2000 when prompted.

The component registers itself as a visualization plugin. No registry entries are created outside of foobar2000's configuration.

First Run

After installation, add the visualizer to your layout:

Default UI

  1. Right-click on a panel area in the foobar2000 window.
  2. Select Visualizations > MilkDrop 2.

Columns UI

  1. Right-click on a panel area.
  2. Select MilkDrop 2 from the available panels.

On first run, the component initializes its base profile directory:

Create milkdrop2\presets\ and milkdrop2\textures\ yourself (or extract a preset pack that includes them).

Play some music and the visualizer responds automatically.

Essential shortcuts:

Key Action
F1 Show/hide help overlay
SPACE Next preset (soft blend)
H Hard cut to next preset
ALT+ENTER Toggle fullscreen
BACKSPACE Previous preset
ESC Exit fullscreen

Directory Structure

After installation, the component uses the following paths under the foobar2000 profile directory:

<foobar2000 profile>\
  milkdrop2\
    presets\              — Preset collections
      *.milk              — MilkDrop 1 or MilkDrop 2 preset files
      *.milk2             — MilkDrop 3 double preset files
      preset_order.csv    — Optional preset scheduling (CSV with header)
      playlist.txt        — Alternate optional preset scheduling file name (still CSV with header)
    textures\             — Texture files referenced by presets
    cache\                — Compiled shader bytecode cache (created on demand)
    debug\                — Shader source dumps (HLSL, created on demand)
    screenshots\          — Screenshot output directory (created on demand)
    milk2_msg.ini         — Custom message definitions (slots 00-99)
    milk2_img.ini         — Sprite/texture definitions (slots 00-99)

Configuration

foo_vis_milk2 stores all configuration in foobar2000's preferences system. Open File > Preferences > Visualization > MilkDrop 2 to access settings.

The only files that use INI format are:

File Purpose
milk2_msg.ini Custom text messages with font, color, and animation
milk2_img.ini Image overlay definitions with blend modes and EEL code

Adding Presets

foo_vis_milk2 uses .milk preset files compatible with MilkDrop 2.

To add presets:

  1. Create a subfolder in milkdrop2\presets\ (e.g., milkdrop2\presets\MyPresets\)
  2. Copy .milk files into that folder
  3. The new presets appear when you press L to open the preset browser

See the Resources Guide for recommended preset collections.

Updating

  1. Download the new foo_vis_milk2.fb2k-component file.
  2. Import it via File > Preferences > Components > Install...
  3. Restart foobar2000.

Your configuration and preset library are not affected by updates.

Uninstalling

  1. Go to File > Preferences > Components.
  2. Select MilkDrop 2 and click Remove.
  3. Restart foobar2000.

Support