If you recall, my last post was mostly historical, but this one will contain more about the software. Since writing the last post, 2 significant things have happened.
The first is that I have changed my work laptop from Ubuntu to Linux Mint (yes I know, it is a variation of Ubuntu). Why? I'm not a fan of the way Ubuntu is going with their desktop environment, but I still like the general way it functions. So I switched to Mint since I wanted to stay connected to the Ubuntu repositories, as there is a lot of great software there and I require something reliable for this computer, since it is for work. My other pc has remained my test computer for running the more fun stuff ;)
The other significant thing is that I have finished that instrumental music assignment I had mentioned in part 1 and have been assigned another one. This one is a composition assignment as opposed to the previous assignment which was just arranging. Once again I used MuseScore 0.9.5.
Having never used the alternatives, it is hard to really compare this WYSIWYG music notation software to anything else but I will try to pass on my experience. Installation on Mint was a breeze, as it is included in Ubuntu's repositories. If you are not using a Debian derivative, MuseScore has also provided a RPM and the source code.
My first impression was good, I was impressed with how professional and clean the interface was. it is obviously designed for ease of use, which is good when doing long compositions. Navigation is accomplished by grabbing and dragging or scrolling using a scroll wheel. Being a true WYSIWYG editor, the composition looks just like it will print when you're done. Adding instruments was easy as well, and MuseScore contains more than anyone will ever probably use, including a massive amount of voices. It is worth getting acquainted with the many keyboard shortcuts, as they will save you a lot of time. Entering notes is rather intuitive: the number keys change the length of the note, and the note itself is entered by using the corresponding letter on the keyboard. MuseScore also is capable of working with a MIDI piano keyboard. Transposition headaches are a thing of the past, as all of your transposing is as easy as hitting the "Concert Pitch" button which (surprise, surprise) toggles concert pitch on or off.
I did have a few little glitches with the software. For one, it crashes occasionally. Probably once every 3-4 hours of work, so keep saving if you don't feel like composing the same thing twice. Another thing was sometimes when I switched to concert pitch mode and back some notes were given flats, and sometimes double flats. This was fixed by going Notes -> Pitch Spell, so it wasn't too much of an inconvenience but a glitch none the less. Also, once and a while it would stop recognizing my keyboard, this was fixed by restarting the program. Since I haven't had the time to test this on any other machines, I don't know if these are isolated incidents or not.
Overall, I'd recommend this software to anyone looking for notation software. I believe it can defiantly compete with other free software, and may even be able to compete with some paid software. Plus it is opensource and cross platform, what more can you ask for?
Here are the links to the project that appears in all the screenshots:
Coincidently it is also my project for my instrumental music class. I'd like to include a disclaimer. I am not a professional composer, listen at your own risk ;)
That brings us to the end of the post, don't worry, I'll be Bach.
-The Thoth-
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