I am trying to run MusicEase that I previously could run on a different PC (OS XP), but now I can?t get it to run on Windows 7. The program tries to launch, but then does nothing. I look in the install folder, and I keep seeing this dump file ...

Current versions of Microsoft operating systems, such as XP, Vista/7, and Server come with a security feature enabled called Data Execution Prevention. While it helps protect against a common class of malicious attacks, it also can prevent several of our programs (written in Allegro Common Lisp) from running! To correct this, first verify that DEP is enabled and is what is causing the problem.

• Right-click on 'My Computer' and choose Properties.
• In the dialog that appears, select the 'Advanced' tab, and then in the Performance section of the dialog, press the 'Settings button.
• Another dialog will appear. Choose the 'Data Execution Prevention' tab.

There are a couple of options here.

• Turn on DEP for essential Windows programs and services only.
• Turn on DEP for all programs and services except those I select.

If DEP is only enabled for essential Windows programs, then DEP is not causing the problem. If DEP is enabled for all programs and there are no lisp program exceptions, it is likely the cause.

Choosing the first option is the simplest, since Allegro CL (Common Lisp) provides a number of different executables from which Lisp can be used. If you decide to add DEP exceptions for Allegro CL, you will need to create a temporary file named update.exe in the MusicEase (Allegro) directory and add it using the DEP dialog.

This information about Windows DEP comes from Franz.com:

    http://www.franz.com/support/faq/index.lhtml#dep

How can I save a MusicEase piece as a PDF graphics file?

A user of MusicEase has provided the following list of programs which will create a pdf when you print to them. They are:

• pdfFactory by Avalanche, www.avalanche.com.au
• PDF Transformer by ABBYY, pdftransformer.abbyy.com
• Universal Document Converter by fCoder, www.print-driver.com

When I run your program under Windows Vista I receive a message saying Help will no longer run. What's up?

Microsoft is moving away from supporting .hlp style help files. However you can still access help within our programs using the Run command.

Click the Start button , click All Programs, click Accessories, and then click Run.

In the Open box, type WINHELP. When Windows Help appears, click File on the menubar and then Open and then navigate to the MusicEase help file ("musicez.hlp") in the MusicEase folder in the Program Files folder and click OK.

Tip: For quick access to the Run command, drag it from the Start menu to the Quick Launch toolbar, where you can access it with a single click.

Using Vista when I try to play a piece, I can only play it once. And I cannot stop playing in the middle. Is there a solution to this?

What you need to do is first save the piece as a MIDI file. Click File and then Save-As, browse to the folder in which you wish to save the midi file, and enter for the name a string of characters that ends with ".mid". For instance,

    mysong.mid

Then play the file using Windows Media Player or similar program. One way to do this is to double click on the midi file using Windows Explorer.

I receive a Windows error message when installing regarding AUTOEXEC.NT. What is the problem?

This probably results from a damaged or missing Windows file. Microsoft provides instructions on how to fix this at their support site at

However another fix some have used is to do a search for AUTOEXEC.NT. You will probably find it in C:\WINDOWS\REPAIR. Copy and paste it into C:\WINDOWS\SYSTEM32. That should fix the problem. This may be the simplest route to follow.

Can you describe in detail how one can automatically add proper tenor/plectrum chord diagrams to the "lead sheet".

1) Create a single MusicEase file containing chord fret diagrams for each chord for each pitch (you need only create this file once.) By this we mean you need to decide the range of pitches that are likely to appear in all the melodies that will ever be used in your lead sheets. Then determine all possible chords that may be used. Since each pitch may appear as the melody note to be played for any chord, for a given pitch you need to provide fret diagrams for each chord. This is done by creating a MusicEase file consisting of single notes and fret diagrams. Each note will appear many times, each time with a different fret diagram. These pitch/fret-diagram combinations determine which fret diagram will be used when adding a fret diagram to a melody note when it is being played with a specific chord. The MusicEase file "CHORDS4P.CHD" provides a sample of what this might look like. The sample file covers only white notes from the B below middle C to the E a little over an octave higher for only the chords C, F and G7. It would be more realistic to include the notes with accidentals and also to include all other chords that might appear in a melody. However this file will work for melodies like Annie Laurie (see the MusicEase file "ANNIEL.MEZ") in the key of C which don't contain accidentals or chords other than C, F, or G7. The fret diagrams in this file are for the top four strings of a guitar.

2) Then, to automatically add the fret diagrams defined in this file to a melody with chord names, load it as the set of chord frame definitions to be used when automatically adding fret diagrams (select Load Chord Frame File under the File Menu and then select the file you created in step 1 --- e.g. "CHORDS4P.CHD").

3) And then automatically add fret diagrams by invoking Chords under the Tools Menu and then selecting "Add chord fret diagrams". For instance, load "ANNIEL.MEZ" and then add chord fret diagrams.

I am previewing your MusicEase program. When I printed the file Avondale on my HP DeskJet 560C, the clef, key, meter, and notes all printed white in a black box. Will this program print black clefs, notes, etc.?

Hewlett-Packard is notorious for making really BAD printer drivers. You need to select the best H-P driver for your printer that comes with Windows -- not an OEM H-P driver. This invariably fixes the problem.

I am evaluating a download copy and, although my ensonic sound card is working for other apps, I can't get music to play using MusicEase. Any suggestions?

MusicEase simply creates a MIDI file and then uses the Windows MCI player to play it. Thus you need to insure that your windows' multimedia player is configured to play MIDI files. (Windows comes with some MIDI files you can use to test with.)

When I'm tying some chords, sometimes I want to invert the position of only one of the ties (e.g., from a down tie to an up tie). Is there any way to do that?

Position the cursor at the first chord and invoke Shift - Tie from the Modify Menu.

Can I enter notation directly from a MIDI Keyboard?

No.

How do I create an orchestral score?

First enter the number of staves in the system with the correct clef signs, etc. Then position the cursor on the first staff and press lower case "o" bringing up the connect menu. Specify which connections you want between this and the next staff. Then move the cursor to the next staff and repeat this operation. Do this for every staff except the last in the system. Instrument headings (which appear to the left of the staves) can only be entered in the professional version.

Once you have done the above, each time you press the Enter key, you will start a new system. Pressing Backspace when the cursor is at the start of a staff will append that system to the end of the previous system.

I am having difficulty creating four-part scores (as one would use for choral music: soprano, alto, tenor bass). When the program first opens, it displays a single staff. I hit the Enter key four times, and then position the cursor at the first staff. Then I hit the "o" shortcut key and the "connect staff" box pops up. I check the three boxes ("First barline", "Interior barline", and "Last barline"), and choose "4" as the "Number of staves to bracket staring with this staff". I finish by clicking "okay".

The "o" command only connects the staff containing the cursor and the staff following it. Thus you need to repeat the "o" command with the cursor positioned on the second and third staves also. This will connect all 4 staves into a system. As they are the first system and have just been defined, they may not line up temporarily. You can then just, for instance, click on the "Unjustify tool" and things will line correctly. Once you have defined this system, pressing the Enter key will begin a whole new system so you don't have to repeat the "o" command anymore. And pressing Backspace when the cursor is on the first note of a staff will append that system to the previous system.

I tried printing out a relatively complex file on my HPLJ 5L. It wouldn't work at 600dpi, and I could do it only at 300dpi. I have 32M RAM on my Dell Pentium 200MMX. I would have thought that was enough. Should I need even more memory to print out larger multi-staff files?

It's probably because you are printing out long ties or slurs. At 600 dpi you have a lot more dots and if your printer doesn't have enough memory, this memory (buffer) will fill up before the whole page has been sent. You don't need any more memory on your computer.

Can I have bowing symbols (up-bow, down-bow, etc.)?

Yes, these are standard symbols with both the standard and professional versions of MusicEase.

Can I import a MIDI File and have MusicEase convert it to notation?

The professional version of MusicEase will import MIDI files. The MIDI files should have been created using a steady playing tempo. The MIDI files need to be quantized first using a sequencing program like Cakewalk before they are imported into MusicEase.

I do collections of tunes. In order to save space, I like to put a treble clef only on the first line of a song. It usually works O.K. But on one tune yesterday, when I used &ltCR> to move to the next line, the treble clef came along. When I used Erase - Clef, it would not erase. I have tried every permutation to get that darn clef to go away. I presume I am overlooking something. I just don't know what. Can you help?

Go in under the Modify Menu and select Staff. Then click on the entry that says "Make clef invisible at beginning of current staff". Once you have done this, all following staves created by pressing &ltCR> will also start with invisible clef signs.

I write music in Spanish as well as English. So, I am interested in finding a music word processor that will support accent marks, tildes, etc.

MusicEase uses any scalable (TrueType) windows' fonts. So as long as you have a font that provides characters with these marks on your computer, you can use them for lyrics, dynamics, etc.

Can I have a blank measure (or beat) in a part? There are special symbols for ethnic instruments that you may not have, and I'd like some blank measures (or beats) where I simply write them in by hand later. Is this possible?

Yes, Just insert an invisible note using an uppercase "I" instead of "a" or "b" or etc.

Can I have grace notes taking up an entire measure or beat, without the actual total lengths of such notes adding up to the actual length of the measure or beat? I'm sure you have seen it before: A series of grace notes written in, say, 32nd, is supposed to take one beat, but there are not exactly 8 notes but rather, say, 11 of them.

You could use invisible notes or you could insert a tuplet of 11 notes to be played in the duration of 8 (one option for tuplets is to display nothing indicating it is a tuplet as opposed to, for instance, a bracket with a 8 in it.)

I'm not sure what you meant by "fingered tremolo," as opposed to some other tremolo. Did you mean a note with three slashes on it?

Fingered tremelos are used for certain woodwind notations. MusicEase does have the kind you want with 3, 2 or 1 slashes.

The Director of Worship with our organization needs to print the music in a smaller format to fit into the worship aids he creates. Can the music be brought into another program and "shrunk" to fit the page size we need?

MusicEase Professional can shrink the music within the program itself. That is, you can scale the music down so that a normal sized page of music prints out as the size of a postage stamp if you want. What you would probably want to do is set the margins in MusicEase Professional to fit the page size you need. Then scale the music smaller and justify (or even re-castoff first) until the music and verses look like you want.

I am interested in knowing if MusicEase can be used to notate unmeasured music. I am a church musician and I occasionally need to transcribe Gregorian Chants. Could MusicEase be used easily for this purpose?

Yes, you just specify that there is NO METER. Then you would be responsible for inserting any bar lines as opposed to MusicEase automatically displaying single bar lines at the end of measures.

I am interested to know if the professional version allows changing the size of the printed music. Can the music be scaled larger and smaller than the default printout? I am running your testdrive software now.

The professional version allows you to scale down everything - notes, text, and all to a smaller size (down to 30% of the size in the evaluation version) but not larger. Both castoff and justify take the scale into account.

Can music for a several part piece be saved as one file (like a conductor's copy), but still have the ability to be printed in separate parts? For example, you have a piece written for four voices, but you want to print out just the soprano part. Can this be done?

Yes, the professional version allows you to make any staves in a system invisible. You could print out a single part or just several parts this way. Also when saving in the professional version, you are asked in you want to save only the visible staves. This allows you to create an extraction which is what we recommend as often you would want to condense large sections of rests and etc.