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Playback

Is there a way with either Noteworthy Composer or Viewer to playback where the notes and lyrics scroll across the screen instead of jumping once it gets to the right hand margin?
Thanks.

Re: Playback

Reply #2 –
Much as that might be easier to follow, I can imagine the extra programming lines required to move all the staves on display smoothly to the left whilst keeping the red playing note(s) steady roughly in the middle of the screen.  When I was a newbe to NWC, this used to annoy me as well, but I guess you get used to it since it hasn't bothered me for years. In fact, I hadn't thought about it for I don't know how long until I read this post.  Now, I suppose, it will annoy me again for a few weeks and then become, once again, something that my  conscious thought process ignores.

I suppose if you think about it, it is no more than reading, or for that matter, reaching the end of a page of music and turning the page.

I have to say that personally, there are many more "musical" developments that I would rather have effort devoted to, but if I had to choose a non-musical development as an enhancement, I would choose a "pause" / "restart from wherever" feature in the viewer. For those of us that provide rehearsal music in NWC format for non-registered NoteWorthy Composer choristers, it would be a real bonus.
Rich.

Re: Playback

Reply #3 –
Hear hear!
I am no composer, and do not know many composers. I do know conductors who arrange music for their own choir(s), but most of the Noteworthy-users that I know of use Noteworthy as a rehearsal tool. (I do too, but not uniquely for that purpose.)

Sigh... give us a viewer that is good for rehearsing, please. I now resort to different solutions that I would rather not discuss, except for the fact that my method has moved a few friends into buying Noteworthy.

Re: Playback

Reply #4 –
Quote
most of the Noteworthy-users that I know of use Noteworthy as a rehearsal tool

I use the playback for two things, primarily:

  • listening to songfiles people post - they're often beautiful
  • as an aid for proofreading - I can read the source score and hear notation errors in the playback.


I'm satisfied with the way the bars move on playback.  I wouldn't object to a change, but worry that change might increase the size of the .exe file (I like small, easy installations and updates) and could affect users with old computer setups that don't handle graphics graphics that quickly, particularly with a large multipart score. 
 

Re: Playback

Reply #5 –
Quote from: David Palmquist –
I use the playback for two things, primarily:
  • listening to songfiles people post - they're often beautiful
  • as an aid for proofreading - I can read the source score and hear notation errors in the playback.
My uses, as well.

I would note that NWC works very much like the "follow the bouncing ball" cartoon animations of sing-alongs. I suspect that animation studios spent some time and money studying the best presentation method. I don't recall any that continuously scroll so that the current syllable is in the same place.

Currently, when NWC jumps, it puts the center of the last note played at the left. I think it should show a bit more, so that the entire last syllable would usually show.

NWC seems to use a rule that it jumps when the current measure cannot be entirely displayed. Perhaps it should also jump when the barline is marked 'Force System Break'. This would give some control to the user.

Registered user since 1996

Re: Playback

Reply #6 –
Quote
...when NWC jumps, it puts the center of the last note played at the left. I think it should show a bit more, so that the entire last syllable would usually show...Perhaps it should also jump when the barline is marked 'Force System Break'
.
I concur with both suggestions.

Re: Playback

Reply #7 –
As do I. And Rick's point about the "bouncing ball" animations is well taken. I don't think I would want a continuously scrolling playback display.

Re: Playback

Reply #8 –
There should be enough in view of upcoming measures for musicians (in my case, singers) to read ahead. Often enough, the jump is a bit too late.

Re: Playback

Reply #9 –
Being able to read ahead is invaluable when playing the violin (as well as a lot of other instruments) as how any given note is fingered, bowed, or plucked depends upon what went before and what comes next.  I've long since given up trying to play a muted violin staff from a NWC screen--I can't see (or find) the next notes fast enough.

If we could keep the currently played note in the middle of the screen, we might have networked laptops on our music stands instead of paper music.  No page turns <g>.
Since 1998

Re: Playback

Reply #10 –
Yesterday my band played tunes with metronome markings of q=56 and q=240.  I  wonder how the program would cope with that sort of range, or manage tempo changes on the fly.

Re: Playback

Reply #11 –
I suspect that a continuously scrolling display would use a lot more CPU time than the current method, and would require a complete rewrite of the graphics loops. I suspect that NWC - in common with most software that displays graphics on successive pages - constructs the next page in the background, and then simply exchanges it for the current page. This is a far simpler programming task than a continuously scrolling display is, especially for sideways scrolling. Changing it would be a big commitment of time on Eric's part, for something many of us aren't sure we want.

That said, it might be a good idea to update the Viewer in this manner. Together with a pause key, and perhaps a few more enhancements, it might allow the Viewer to fill the needs that Rob and Warren have expressed - leaving the editor operating in its old (and, to me, highly satisfactory) manner.

Cheers,

Bill

Re: Playback

Reply #12 –
I just realized - thinking about my own suggestion - that, since there is a very useful "Viewer Preview" option on the "View" menu in the editor, the editor would have to incorporate the Viewer's scrolling display loops anyway - or else have a means of calling up the Viewer from within the editor (which would make the Viewer Preview unusable on systems where the Viewer itself wasn't installed). Hmmm......

Re: Playback

Reply #13 –
Would it be feasible to have playback when print preview is showing, and the red highlight move across and preview screen?  Then the user could read ahead just as we do with regular sheet music. 

Re: Playback

Reply #14 –
Quote from: David Palmquist –
Would it be feasible to have playback when print preview is showing, and the red highlight move across and preview screen?
Yeah. It is called Scorch

After slurs are fixed, I'd rather see the time spent getting Print Preview to remember its last state instead of always starting maximized. Working mouse wheel and cursor keys would also help.
Registered user since 1996

Re: Playback

Reply #15 –
agreed