The only dangerous part of insert mode is that it’s too easy to trigger it and forget it’s triggered. The whole part where you use it knowing that you do is really a very interesting feature and you’re simply not using it, which is a pity. I think it’s reasonable to get rid of the “i” shortcut (I’m seriously considering it) and force the use of the mouse (which I use as seldom as possible) to limit the risk of an error with the key. Anything more that this looks overshoot to me. YMMV of course.
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Thanks Marc
It would be nice if you could preselect options for the range of the insert, one being “this measure only” (if feasible).
There have been so many great thoughts on this topic and I understand how difficult coding can become so easily:
A tar baby for sure.
The insert stop-bar is specifically designed to do this.
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Yes, I think this is sensible. Get rid of the key command and you should be fairly safe. I would be open to another visual cue like a change in the background color when insert is enabled, just because it can cause such a lot of damage and because you generally only use Insert mode for specific tasks and then (hopefully) turn it off again. I don’t think it would be a terrible thing to have, but the function itself is invaluable if used correctly.
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Hi Janus
Are you using Dorico 5 or 6?
By this insert stop-bar do you mean:
under the control insert icon where it says “global adjustment of current bar”
or where it says “set stop position” under the Write column.
What does this the set stop position exactly do as compared to the “global adjustment setting …do”?
Please excuse my lack of expertise.
Thanks
Ken
Available in 5.1 and 6.1
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It prevents insert actions from affecting later bars.
Select a barline and use shift-alt-I. A big red vertical bar will appear and downstream notes will not be affected by insertions before it.
IIRC it was introduced in Dorico 4.
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Thanks, Janus
I will try that!
Best
Ken
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For me, Insert mode is a critical feature of Dorico. I can’t speak for Sibelius (the software), having never used it, but inserting notes was also a feature of Finale. Finale’s insert mode was part of Speedy Entry, and prompted the user how to handle the extra notes (including to keep pushing things downstream in subsequent measures). So in my experience, it was pretty near impossible to screw things up by inserting notes. Plus, like with Dorico, the cursor changed appearance.
That’s not the issue here. The issue is when you’re in Dorico’s Insert Mode and not directly entering notes (such that the cursor changes its appearance, which is a great tipoff), but when you insert measures or repeat whole runs of notes. As a minimalist composer, I repeat things a ton often after I’ve already input a bunch of measures since I’m prone to change my mind as part of the composition process, and if I’m not careful, there will be downstream changes I might not pick up until after the damage has been done. This is why some sort of non-cursor indicator that Insert mode is on (besides the icon being activated on the left panel that is often easy to not be looking at while doing the damage) would be helpful. But avoiding Insert Mode is not really ideal for me; it’s something I really liked from the start in terms of Dorico’s implementation.
Now, one can set the input scope pretty easily, and perhaps until there is a UX remedy, that might be something I do more often than I had been doing. That should avoid some downstream problems in most cases, I think
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It might be nice to have a setting: turn off insert when leaving note entry. My biggest problem is forgetting it’s on. I’m usually composing also, not copying music, so the thoughts are on the music instead of the status of the software.
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But insert mode is used so often without being in note entry.
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Exactly. Hence my posts on this. It’s part of my normal usage of Dorico to insert measures after the fact; that’s part of how I compose since it’s an iterative process.
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Good point. Maybe a setting to have insert turn off after the next operation? Not sure how to define “next operation “ though.
I’ve seen a million Insert Mode posts lately and so I apologise if someone has already mentioned this:
You can actually add (and remove) bars without Insert Mode activated.
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Well of course, and I do that as well. I was talking more about copying/pasting existing music in between or within existing measures or using R to insert a repetition of something. I do indeed use shift-B to insert measures after clicking a barline. But I use that to enter one or more empty measures. I probably should have been clearer in my wording-thanks.
Best description yet! 
