Notation Composer and Musician version 25 major release

Hello Notation Composer and Musician Users,

If you are using Notation Composer or Musician version 2.0 through 2.4.2, you are highly encouraged to update to version 2.5. You can review the version number of Composer or Musician by using the About command in the Help menu.

Visit the following web page for a description of the feature enhancements and bug fixes in the various releases 2.0 up to 2.4.2 and for instructions for updating to the latest version 2.5:

http://notation.com/ComposerWebUpdate.php

or

http://notation.com/MusicianWebUpdate.php

Cheers
-- Mark

Hi,
I have done each of the updates since v2.2 and tried to run them and they load OK, but I find that each of them crashes or does something unexpectedly within the first few minutes of trying them. So I am still running on version 2.2

I tried the new 2.5 today, and again disappointment that many of the persistent bugs with the piano roll are still there, but more concerned that when replaying from somewhere in the score, there is a significant wait, and then the timing of the replay is totally wrong.

So back to a reload of version 2.2

Clyde

Hello Clyde,

Version 2.5 fixes a lot of bugs. This is the most significant bug-fix release Notation Software has ever issued. It represents many months of solid bug-fixing. We postponed further development of the 3.0 versions of our products in order to improve the baseline software quality of the products.

I'm absolutely confident that version 2.5 is of significant higher software quality than previous versions of the product. I know that because we have significantly whittled down the bug count in our bug database.

If you're "stuck" way back on version 2.2, I'm wondering whether maybe your Notation .not files are somehow locked into that old version and are incompatible with more recent versions. If you export your song from version 2.2 into a MIDI file, and then open that MIDI file in version 2.5, do you still see a problem? If not, then that would tend to confirm the theory that there is some version 2.2 versus later version file compatibility problem that I'm now aware of (but perhaps could fix).

Please send us a report of the piano roll bug(s) you ran into in version 2.5. You can send that to support@notation.com; or post it in the piano roll section of this forum; or, less optimally, post it below here.

Please take a look at the new lyrics support in 2.5. Since you're really into lyrics, I think you'll like how each verse of lyrics is separately highlighted during playback, with also better quality of display.

I hope everthing is going well with your http://www.jazzworship.com work!

Cheers
-- Mark

Hi Mark,
Thank you for your comments. I shall try what you suggested on the next song I do this afternoon and let you know how I get on.

I've moved on from the jazzworship.com site to the smallchurchmusic.com site where I actually do all (or most of the playing). This is mainly pipe organ music, but recently I have been doing some piano and organ duets (with myself), and these have been very popular.
(Typical one is at: http://www.smallchurchmusic.com/MP3/...an-128-CAM.mp3 - still learning how to record the piano sound better etc ). The site is proving to be popular with about 60,000 downloads per month from over 95 countries. I have recorded over 1,200 hymns (on the organ) and currently do about 3 or 4 a day. Of course Composer piano roll features are an integral part of all that for correcting my playing mistakes, and none of this would be possible without Composer - there is nothing like it on the market.

In regard to plain scores, I've recently been adding the score of the music (with lyrics at the bottom of the page) to the site. I've been also adding the chord names (courtesy of Composer). Typical of these scores is http://www.smallchurchmusic.com/Scor...-FesteBurg.pdf. All this of course, uses the score entry facilities and text handling, page formatting etc.

Through all this daily usage, I am still spending at least 8 hours a day with Composer, and so am fully aware of its 'foibles', and look forward to their elimination.

Cheers ... Clyde

Hi Mark,
Have restored back to version 2.2, and it was able to process the file OK, and played fine. I was also able to edit the bracket, etc.

So I will stay with version 2.2 for a while longer.

Cheers ... Clyde

Hi Mark,

Now on Composer 2.5, I have lost the content, of the little window on the info line, indicating the note value such as “Bb3”. This was a very useful recent addition. Can I please have it back?

Best wishes,

Herbert

Hi Mark
Load any song in Composer/Musician 2.5
SETUP---Staff setup---select drums---Composer/musician freezes up and I have to terminate the whole session and start over again.
Regards
Djim

Hello Djim,

I was able to reproduce the problem you reported in Composer 2.5:

1. Open a MIDI file.
2. Choose the Setup command in the Staff menu.
3. Select a non-drum staff.
4. Try to add a checkmark to the Drum Instrument [ ] checkbox.

Indeed, Composer 2.5 hangs at this point.

I'll fix this soon in a Composer 2.5.1 maintenance release. The problem was newly introduced in Composer 2.5; it is not a bug in 2.4.2.

For now, you can easily work around the problem. Instead of using the Setup command in the Staff menu, use the Staff Setup button that is displayed when you choose View / Staff Controls. The resulting "single staff setup" dialog box also has a Drum Instrument [ ] check box, and it works without any problem.

Thanks for reporting this problem, Djim!

[Note to myself and Sherry: task #1784]

Cheers
-- Mark

Hi Herbert,

I have confirmed the problem you reported:<blockquote><hr size=0><!-quote-!><font size=1>quote:</font>

Now on Composer 2.5, I have lost the content, of the little window on the info line, indicating the note value such as “Bb3”. This was a very useful recent addition. Can I please have it back?<!-/quote-!><hr size=0></blockquote>It was newly introduced in 2.5, not a problem in 2.4.2. I'll fix in the next 2.5.1 maintenance release.

Thanks for reporting this problem.

[Note to myself and Sherry: task #1785]

Cheers
-- Mark

Hello Clyde,

Thanks for the carefully prepared sets of steps for reproducing the paste problem with JosephDearesr-Laudibus-PipeLC-CAM.not in Composer 2.5.

When I opened that Notation .not file in a debugging version of Composer 2.5, I observed a problem with file compatibility, which might be consistent with my previously stated theory about file incompatibility between version 2.2 and later versions. As you suspect, perhaps the paste command is also involved.

In order to investigate this further, it would help a lot if you you send me: (1) your originally recorded MIDI file, and (2) the version 2.2 template file that you used.

I think the problem might be with the version 2.2 template file. I can investigate that here. However, if you feel like doing so, you might try the same steps that you reported above, except don't use any template file or any Notation .not file that passed through version 2.2. More specifically, just use a new 2.5 template file, for testing purposes, even though it isn't the template you really want. This will help me isolate whether the problem is with (1) file incompatibility and/or (2) pasting.

Thanks!

Cheers
-- Mark

Hello Clyde,

Thanks for showing the example of the Either/Or time signature. That practice has been used for a long time (I don't know how many decades or centuries).

For now, there might be a way to fake such Either/Or meters in Composer. Part of the solution would be to take advantage of Composer's support for hiding meters. The other part of the problem is adding the "ambiguous" meter text, such as 2:2|3:2. You could add the second meter using Composer's free text feature. But this is admittedly just a work-around, not a happy solution.

I'm add this "ambiguous meter" to the wish list for a future version of Composer. [Task #1786]


Cheers
-- Mark

Hello MG,

I confirmed the problem that playback in your file prematurely stopped before the end of the song.

This is a serious problem, which is more generally the following: If you add new measures to the end of the song, during playback Composer prematurely stops at the old end of the song.

For now you can work around this problem as follows:

1. Choose the Edit Repetitions command in the Measure menu. Notice that the repeat instructions incorrectly tell Composer to stop playing at your old last measure of the song.
2. In the Repeat Instructions dialog box, click the Use Default button. That resets the instructions to play to the new end of song.
3. Exit the Repeat Instructions dialog box by clicking OK.

Thanks for reporting this problem. I'll fix this soon in a 2.5.1 maintenance release. [Task #1787]

Cheers
-- Mark

Hi Mark,

Thanks. I'll use the work-around.

Regarding abnormal terminations: I seem to have been getting quite a few, only one of which I could repeat, but you or Sherry couldn't repeat it. Most are one-time things. However, quite a bit of work can be lost, depending on how long since the last auto save (now set at 2 minutes). So I was wondering (hoping)is there any way that clicking OK on the abnormal termination box could trigger a mandatory save before the program shuts down?

One more question. What would be the shortest interval auto save could be set to without slowing down Composer? At 2 minutes, I notice no slowing at all.

all best,
mgj

Hi Mark,

Just a couple of things. One of them, implemented in earlier versions, was the ability to hold the mouse pointer over notes as the file played and see the note velocities. That is still missing in the current version.

In one version, quite far back I think, starting playback deep into a large file required a wait of several seconds for the sound to start. That seems to be back in this version.

Overall, it's working very nicely, though.

all best,
mgj

Howdy Clyde,

For informational purposes, what system were you running 2.5 on? I recall that you were planning to go to a Mac, running Parallels for your Windows applications. Is that what you're currently using? If not, what is your system setup?

Thanks!
Sherry

Hello Clyde,

Thanks for sending me your USERSONG02.MID and Organ.not template files. I have indeed found some problems with Edit / Paste Special / Insert New Measures from Clipboard. Perhaps that feature became broken after version 2.2, which explains why you have particularly wanted to stay back on 2.2, which in most respects is inferior to more recent versions in terms of software quality and usability.

I will work on this Edit / Paste Special / Insert New Measures from Clipboard bug for the next 2.5.1 maintenance release, which is tentatively scheduled for about 7 to 10 days from now.

Cheers
-- Mark

Hello Clyde,

The Edit / Paste Special / Insert New Measures from Clipboard bug you reported is now fixed for the upcoming 2.5.1 maintenance release. Thanks for reporting it!

<blockquote><hr size=0><!-quote-!><font size=1>quote:</font>

When I run 2.5 it does disastrous things to my O/S, which involves a lot of messing around to fix (reload 2.2, reconfigure midi setup etc) <!-/quote-!><hr size=0></blockquote>It's difficult for me to interpret the scope of "when I run 2.5 it does disastrous things to my O/S." Did that happen just for this Edit / Paste Special / Insert New Measures from Clipboard bug? Or were there other cases?

Notation Composer has some robust internal safeguards against "disastrous things" happening. Composer indeed does have internal bugs, like any complex software, but it catches such accidents on the highway and immediately moves the damage off the highway before there is a chain reaction, pile up, of cars crashes behind it. I wonder whether Composer's safeguard mechanism does not work under the Mac/Apple Parallels that you, but very few other Notation Composer uses. Please Note: Notation Software does not claim to support the running of its product on Mac/Apple Parallels. I do not even have a Mac machine here, so absolutely no testing of Notation products is done on the Mac / Parallels.

Do you have an old PC lying around with Windows 98 or later on it? If so, you might want to try out Notation Composer version 2.5 on it, to see whether it works better than Notation Composer on your Mac.

You and a few other rare users that use Notation Composer on the Mac might force me to invest a lot of time testing Notation Composer on the Mac / Parallels. But I'm afraid that will be a poor way to spend my development time.

Cheers
-- Mark

Hello MG,

Beautiful report of this D+RightArrow bug! I was able to reproduce the bug the first time. That's one of the best reports you've sent. Thanks a bunch. It's just what I need to fix this bug, which I'll promptly do for the upcoming 2.5.1 release.

Cheers
-- Mark

Hello MG,

The above bug (D+RightArrow at end of song) is now fixed for the upcoming 2.5.1 release, due within a week.

Thanks again for the very helpful bug report! (See the timestamps on these posts, and you'll notice how quickly I was able to fix it, given your good report.)

Cheers
-- Mark

I have a problem to report:
When I start a new .not file with a time signature of 4/4, 2/2, C, or cut time, the file, during playback, will always stop at the 16th measure, 4th beat, and will not play any measures after, even if you click in them. I've done this many times:
1. Start a new .not file.
2. Choose any template.
3. Choose the 4/4, 2/2, C, or cut time meter. Any other meter does not have this problem, only meters that contain 4 quarter notes per measure. Also, change the note groupings does not help the problem.
4. Choose any key.
5. Choose any title, or none at all.
6. Push play, go to the 16th measure. Play back stops at the 16th measure, 4th beat, even though the playback button is still down.

The only work around I could find was to make a new file in 2/4, then manually change the meter to 4/4 or whatever else you want. After changing from 2/4, the playback does not stop at the 16th measure, but plays as usual.

~Daniel

Hello Daniel,

In version 2.5, some work was done in the area of repeats, but a bug was introduced that has the symptom you have described, that playback stops prematurely.

For now, you can work around the problem as follows:

1. In the Measure menu, choose the Edit Repetition Instructions command.
2. In the Repeat Instructions dialog box, click the Use Default button, and then the OK button.

This problem will be fixed in the upcoming 2.5.1 maintenance release.

Cheers
-- Mark

Howdy Jeff,

Thanks for this report, and the included file. I'm seeing the same problem in 2.5 (and not in 2.4.2), so I'm writing this up so we can find and fix the problem.

Thanks!
Sherry

Thanks, Sherry.

I'm glad to hear it's not my imagination (or my computer). I tried this file in a couple of other programs, and it worked fine. If it helps, I'm running Vista with a Soundblaster X-Fi. I tried it with various soundfonts, and it made no real difference. Other files I've used are seeing similar issues, though they don't seem quite as obvious since they're at a slower tempo.

Thanks again,

Jeff