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Dolet® 5 for Finale Release Notes

Version 5.4 for Mac OS X

June 2010

Installation - Using Dolet for Finale - What's New - Translation Limits - Reporting Problems - Thank You!

Installation

To install the Dolet 5 for Finale plug-in, first quit out of Finale. Then simply drag the MusicXML folder containing the Dolet4.bundle file into your Finale plug-ins folder. If you have multiple versions of Finale on your computer, just make a copy of the MusicXML folder and place it in the each additional Finale plug-ins folder. When you restart Finale, the plug-ins will be available. Keep these release notes and the license files wherever you like.

Note that the default location of the Finale plug-ins folder has changed as of Finale 2011. Instead of being a subfolder within the Applications/Finale 2010 folder, it is now a subfolder within the /Library/Application Support/MakeMusic/Finale 2011 folder.

Dolet 5 for Finale is not compatible with earlier versions of the Dolet for Finale plug-in. Remove any Dolet4.bundle, Dolet3.bundle, and Dolet2.bundle files from any Finale plug-ins folders where you are installing the Dolet5.bundle file.

The Dolet 5 for Finale plug-in is a Universal binary and requires Mac OS 10.4 or later.  The Dolet 5 for Finale plug-in cannot run under Rosetta, so only Finale 2007 through 2011 are supported on Intel-based Macs.

Using Dolet for Finale

Dolet software serves as a translator between music programs. These translations are done using the MusicXML file format. Dolet can read and write MusicXML files, allowing you to exchange music between Finale and any other program that can read or write MusicXML.

To bring MusicXML files into Finale, first create a new Finale document. Go to the Plug-ins menu and select the MusicXML submenu. Then select the "Import MusicXML..." item. If you have an empty Finale document open, Dolet 5 for Finale will import the MusicXML file into this empty document, making use of your document settings wherever possible. Otherwise, Dolet 5 will create a new default Finale file and import into that.

To bring files from other programs such as Sibelius and PDFtoMusic Pro into Finale, first save the files in these programs in MusicXML format. Then use the Import MusicXML feature to read the file into Finale.

To save a Finale document as a MusicXML file, go to the Plug-ins menu, the MusicXML submenu, and then select the "Export MusicXML..." item. You can choose to save files in MusicXML 2.0, Compressed MusicXML 2.0, MusicXML 1.1, MusicXML 1.0, or Open Score Format. The earlier versions are useful when sharing files with programs that do not yet support the newer versions of the MusicXML format.

If you want to read a Finale file in an earlier version of Finale, first save a MusicXML file in the newer version of Finale using Export MusicXML. Then read this MusicXML file in the older version of Finale using Import MusicXML.

You may translate an entire folder of Finale files to MusicXML format or vice versa. These batch routines will overwrite any files with the same name that are currently in that directory. Use the "Translate Folder of MusicXML Files..." menu item to save Finale files from your MusicXML files (batch import). Use the "Translate Folder of Finale Files..." menu item to save MusicXML files from your Finale files (batch export). Batch translation is not available during the 10-day free trial period.

Dolet 5 for Finale supports Finale 2004 through 2011 on Mac OS X on Power PC Macs, and Finale 2007 through 2011 on Intel Macs. It will read and write files in MusicXML 2.0, MusicXML 1.1, MusicXML 1.0, and Open Score Format. When you do a batch export, the format used is based on the last MusicXML file you exported (MusicXML 2.0 by default).

When using Dolet 5 for Finale, please be sure to just use the full version from the plug-ins menu. Going back and forth between the MusicXML functions in the Plug-ins and File menus may confuse Finale and produce error messages. If this happens accidentally, just restart Finale to get things working correctly again.

What's New

Version 5.4 adds Finale 2011 support, including improvements to lyrics, staff layout, and pickup measures. It also fixes a problem when importing mid-measure expressions without MusicXML offsets into Finale 2008 and earlier.

Version 5.3 added the following fixes:

  • The default topline to topline distance document option for staves is now set correctly during import.
  • Expressions with Above Staff or Entry / Below Staff or Entry vertical alignment points have their vertical positions exported more accurately.
  • The Simplify Spelling option in the Chord tool is supported more accurately.
  • Lyrics that include hyphens with syllables now import correctly, displaying an en dash for the hyphen rather than a ú character.
  • Both staves are now hidden when a Hide Staff style is used in a multi-staff part.
  • Parts with dotted quarters but no eighth notes now export their MusicXML durations correctly.
  • Clef changes in cross-staff notation after a tied whole note no longer export forward elements in an incorrect voice.

Changes in previous maintenance releases are listed in the Dolet 5 for Finale Version History at http://www.recordare.com/finale/v5versions.html.

Dolet 5 for Finale adds support for Finale 2010, including the following features:

  • Finale 2010 percussion maps.
  • Finale 2010 chord symbols.
  • Export of Finale 2010 auto-sequenced rehearsal marks.
  • PNG, JPEG, GIF, and BMP graphics formats.
  • Broadway Copyist font family.

Dolet 5 for Finale also improves import of MusicXML files exported from Sibelius with the Dolet 5 for Sibelius plug-in, including the following new features:

  • Improved import of optimized systems that use default staff spacing.
  • Import of text in glissando lines.
  • Improved import of jazz articulations.
  • Improved import of arpeggios.
  • Import of feathered beams.
  • Import of German and Scandinavian chord styles.
  • Credits on blank pages, with an approximate location based on the center of the page.
  • Import and export of more notehead styles, including arrow up, arrow down, slashed, back slashed, and shape notes.

Dolet 5 for Finale also improves support for MusicXML 2.0 and Open Score Format features:

  • Per-system, per-measure, or no measure numbers displaying per part, using MusicXML 2.0's measure-numbering element.
  • Accidentals in part and group names and abbreviations, using MusicXML 2.0's name-display elements.
  • Open Score Format support is updated to Version 1.0. For more information on Open Score Format, see http://openscoreformat.sourceforge.net/.

Other new features include:

  • Specifying both a named and generic (engraved vs. handwritten) default music font.
  • Improved export and import of trills and glissandos.
  • Improved import of:
    • Stems in percussion staves.
    • Transposed instruments without key signatures.
    • Cutaway staves.
    • A4 and other metric page sizes.
    • Nested tuplets.
    • Unknown fonts as text fonts for lyrics and words.
    • Percussion clefs in documents using the Jazz font.
    • Major seventh and half diminished chords in documents using the JazzCord font.
  • Improved export of
    • Non-printing key signatures.
    • Endings over empty measures.
    • Total pages text insert.
    • Number of instruments per part.
  • Support for the Kousaku Percussion font.
  • Non-TIFF graphics now import into Finale 2009 as well as Finale 2010.
  • The export dialog changes the file suffix on .mus files when the MusicXML format changes.

Translation Limits

Any type of translation has limits. Things expressed in one language sometimes cannot be expressed the same way in another language. Sometimes the translator does not yet understand all the idioms and vocabulary in both languages. The Dolet software and MusicXML format provide much greater music notation accuracy than MIDI translations, but both types of limits apply to this software.

The Dolet for Finale plug-in supports most of the musical features that are shared between Finale and MusicXML. However, this Version 5 release does not support the following Finale features:

  • Figured bass
  • Beam extensions
  • Graphical Finale shape expressions
  • Many MIDI tool performance details
  • Exact articulations, expressions, and chord symbols in symbol fonts other than those provided with Finale or selected third parties (GoldenAgeMusic, Sonata, November, NovemberExtra, Toccata, Bill Duncan's ChordSuf)
  • Importing guitar bends
  • Exact positioning for articulations
  • Importing measure widths, beat charts, and exact note positions

Reporting Problems

Given Finale's great flexibility, you may find problems in how we handle scores set up in your particular format. Please contact us at support at recordare dot com if you encounter problems with our software.

If you do find a problem, please give us a description of what the Dolet plug-in is doing, compared to what you expect it to do. Attaching a .mus or .etf file that shows the problem will help us to find and fix the problem more quickly. Please let us know which versions of Finale and OS X you are using. Should you see a message box reporting an error, please be sure to include the text of the message.

Thank You!

Thank you very much for your interest in Recordare® and MusicXML™ software. We greatly appreciate your support of an open, Internet-friendly format for representing musical scores.

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Last updated June 18, 2010.