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Topic: Thanks for 1.7, & system breaks question (Read 2517 times) previous topic - next topic

Thanks for 1.7, & system breaks question

So far the transition to 1.7 has been utterly seamless! Thanks!
Question: I've just finished entering a score. In some parts of the score, notes within a bar are pulled out quite wide for what appears to be no reason (other places the same type passage appears and prints fine). In still other places some bars are squashed together too much, again for no apparent reason. This makes the printed score look a bit strange in places. Would it help to use the "system break" feature and would that both contract where appropriate as well as spread out other places, or would I end up with a mess? Obviously I'm asking before I do this, because this is a rather long score and I would prefer to not screw it up! Many thanks. Your replies and insights are always great. Beautiful use of the Internet - yes?

Re: Thanks for 1.7, & system breaks question

Reply #1 –
Without seeing your actual file I can't answer whether the system break would help any. However, first find out what's causing the measures to be spaced excessively; usually there's a text or other expression item that has Preserve Width on, or something like that.

Also, are you aware of the "Revert to Saved" option in the file menu? Play/experiment all you like; you can undo all your changes since the last save using the File --> Revert command. Rather like a super-heavy-duty "undo" button. :)

Re: Thanks for 1.7, & system breaks question

Reply #2 –
System Breaks stretch out the score; they do not compress it (although I wish they would). I would guess in your case the line is stretched because the next line begins with a long bar that would not fit on the previous line. Well placed System Breaks can even up the score. I use them all the time and recommend them. Just add them one at a time and check the results with Print Preview.

Re: Thanks for 1.7, & system breaks question

Reply #3 –
Thanks, Fred and Blair, for your insights. I will keep them on file. In this case it was "operator error" - big surprise, huh? What happened was that there was no bar line in the upper voice where there should have been one. I missed it, since the upper voice has nothing for several bars at that point in the score. The absence of the bar line caused the gross stretch out of the preceding bar. Thanks for the tips, and I shall go forth with no fear of using system breaks! Cheers! Oh, and by the way, Fred, your Web site is a hoot!