Does anyone have any hints as to how to avoid various lock-ups and crashes on a mac? I’ve been working for a few hours on a project and I think I’m averaging maybe 5 minutes between issues of one kind or another. The most common is that write mode stops showing changes, which can usually be fixed by switching to setup mode and back. I’ve also had write mode malfunction in other small ways; e.g., note entry with a mouse doesn’t show the note that is about to be placed. But I’ve also had four or five hard crashes with no warning, and at least an equal number of UI lock-ups that require a forced restart. Also, for some reason, restarting after a crash leaves the project in a state where playback is silent; I have to shut Dorico down cleanly and restart to get sound back.
(I fully understand how hard it is to write and debug concurrent software, and I’m not blaming the development team. I just wondered if anyone has any hints as to what activities to avoid.)
What sort of system are you using the software on:
Operating system?
Sound card?
Size of RAM?
Hard Drive size and amount of free space?
Any additional sound libraries you are trying to use?
Method of inputting information: XML import? MIDI keyboard? Computer keyboard? Mouse only?
These are going to be important for anyone trying to help solve your difficulty.
Most likely the reason why there is no playback when you restart Dorico after a crash is because the original playback engine (which is a separate program) didn’t crash and is still running. That prevents Dorico loading a new version of it when it restarts, but it can’t talk to the old version either - so you get silence. When Dorico shuts down normally, it cleans up the mess.
Sorry, I’m not a Mac user so I have no idea about the rest of your problems.
Does the bug (a rather elusive one, it seems) described in this thread seem as though it fits or mirrors what’s going on for you?
What you describe is definitely what I experience if I fail to restart Dorico (in line with what Rob points out, when I do get a freeze or a crash - e.g. after trying to export a score as audio - to re-instantiate the audio engine) after the playback head disappears.
iMac: 4 cores; 32G RAM; 1T internal flash (> 500G free); 1T external flash for samples
Focusrite USB sound
OS: Sierra 10.12.6
Dorico 1.1
Vienna Ensemble Pro Server 6.0.16178
Vienna Instruments Pro 2.4.15962
Inputting information with just a computer keyboard and a mouse today — my MIDI keyboard is elsewhere.
But I’m sort of doubtful that any of that matters. I’d guess they’re using a lot of multi-threading in the UI and are having locking problems.
My hardware configuration is very similar to yours. I would add that I get this even when not using VSL VIs.Nor does the MIDI keyboard’s presence or absence affect the phenomenon.
As several folks have reported, it’s a very elusive bug - for me switching modes from Engrave back to Write usually does the trick. I would avoid shifting large numbers of notes forward / backward. Instead just copy & paste.
For me the strangest thing is that I can go - and have regularly gone - relatively long work sessions without a single occurrence; or, it can occur within a few minutes (seconds, even - the first time I Play); or only after many hours work.
Sometimes it happens but once. Others repeatedly. And it’s then (after multiple occurrences) that I know I must restart Dorico to avoid what the OP describes because there is a variety of runaway consequences if I don’t.
Thanks to Daniel and team for making this a priority !
No, the problem was certainly not new to Dorico 1.1. We first saw it before Dorico 1.0 was released, though it is possible that whatever is causing it has caused it to become more evident at some point.
!