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Topic: New feature request (Read 4061 times) previous topic - next topic

New feature request

Who's in charge of adding new features??? :)

Here's a feature that would be really fantastic: The ability to draw controller values graphically instead of using MPC commands. There could be a pop-up window for the currently selected staff that looked like this:

<Image Link>

That would make life SOOOO much easier when editing scores for performance on a synth.

It's just so hard to try to visualize what a series of MPC's are doing in a passage. The popup could show whichever controller was selected, pitch bend, mod, velocity, tempo, etc.... Then a pencil tool could be used to draw the contour freehand, or a line tool to draw point-to-point ramps for cresc, etc.

--gary shannon

Re: New feature request

Reply #1 –
It's not a bad idea, but it's incredibly complex, and I don't think that it's too important compared to other things that could be done.  Maybe in NWC 3...

Re: New feature request

Reply #2 –
I'm inclined to agree with Kahman.  Whilst I would definitely like to see improved acces to MPC's the reality is that NWC is primarily focussed on notation, not sequencing.

The fact that it sequences as well as it does is a wonderful bonus.
I plays 'Bones, crumpets, coronets, floosgals, youfonymums 'n tubies.

Re: New feature request

Reply #3 –
Since the focus of Noteworthy is notation, I see your point. The problem with sequencers, however, is that I just can't read piano roll as fluently as I read scores, so I find it difficult to work with. I'd rather just do all my work in one piece of software instead of having to go back and forth. In addition, once I've added dynamics in a sequencer I can't go back and reload the project into Noteworthy to make changes without loosing all my dynamics changes.

As a compromise, it would be nice if Noteworthy preserved all the controller values while importing a MIDI file instead of discarding them all. But that's another whole can of worms in itself.

Maybe I'll have to write my own stand-alone C++ program to display notation and controllers together. But that is yet a third can of worms, and could take years! The whole reason I retired is so I could stop programming and start composing. :)

--gary shannon

Re: New feature request

Reply #4 –
If a line-draw feature were implemented, someone could write a user tool to convert between MPCs and lines, possibly.

Re: New feature request

Reply #5 –
Not easy. When the top ends of the lines align, a number of lines means "one MPC". If they do not, it will mean a whole host of MPC's. Well, maybe the easiest way would be not to bother and simply insert as many MPC's as it takes.
The size of the nwc-file will go up a bit. Nothing drastic in modern terms, but I wonder if NWC2 will be very happy to have a file that all of a sudden gets 20 (or 100?) times as big just because all MPC's will have been entered. Time, pitch, whatever!

Also, after such a process the NWC-file will be hardly editable, unless you strip it: remove all MPC's with a (simple) user tool.

cheers, Rob.

Re: New feature request

Reply #6 –
How about this as a compromise: Enter the controller data with MPC's but have the option of displaying the MPC data graphically. At least that way you could tell when you got the MPC's right. I have a recurring problem with overlapping  MPC's where I set up a ramped cresc. MPC, for example, and then follow it with a quieter absolute MPC, but the ramp goes a few ticks beyond the lower absolute MPC and then I wonder what's wrong when the absolute MPC doesn't take effect. It took effect but the tail of ramp canceled it out.

I've tried a few other notation programs that offer graphic controllers, but they're not Noteworthy. E.G. Notation Composer that looks like this:

<Image Link>

The problem it it has other "features" that are just plain annoying! I want to keep my Noteworthy. I just wish it had graphical controllers. Oh well. No software is perfect I guess.

I'll stick with Noteworthy anyway. It's the best so far.

--gary shannon

Re: New feature request

Reply #7 –
It's time for a Noteworthy Pro. (Whoops. This might offend users, especially the Virtuosi. No offense intended!)
The Pro version could include this kind of behaviour, and maybe cost a whopping 80 dollars. And be sold in zillions. Everyone happy.