Definitely not. The developers are very interested in any feedback.
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I used to use Sibelius for years, and in Sibelius they don’t have this separation of modes and it is just one mode. I frequently encountered issues in Sibelius in crowded situations where I would just be trying to select this one item to make a very small change to it and it proved nearly impossible without moving other items out of the way first, or I would accidentally create a note or perform some other operation unintentionally like dragging a stave up or down and change the spacing when I didn’t mean to. In those situations I often wished that there would be some kind of way to prevent making certain edits unintentionally when there was a particular type of edit that I was wanting to make. Usually I wanted to do something very simple like deleting something or moving it slightly and it would become a big thing due to accidentally activating a handle on some other nearby object. By separating the modes a bit, Dorico makes it easier to avoid these situations, so I prefer it.
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Correct me if I’m being too narrow-minded, but my understanding of feature request/suggestion comprises things like “ability to import MP3 files” or “additional cross-the-half-bar notation options,” etc.
This thread really suggests instead a new tag-category: fundamental software redesign request.
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The only way that I can imagine ever being able to adjust pitch in Engrave mode is somehow via the Key Editor in the Lower Zone - or somewhere ridiculously out of the way that would make less sense than just doing it in Write mode.
(And I don’t think this will ever happen)
Kent, have you had a look into
Page View (Dorico)?
This sentence of yours lets me think:
Dorico does not equivalent to
Scroll View vs. Page View (Finale)
Galley View vs. Engrave Mode (Dorico)
This might be just for you: in Dorico you can stay in Write Mode and switch between Galley View and Page View (Dorico). You will not have to switch to Engrave Mode to have a look at your Page Layout.
In Write Mode-Page View (Dorico) you can do the compositional edits “edit pitches, durations…” you probably want.
Does this help your workflow?
My short-key to switch from Galley View to Page View is cmd-alt-1.
That’s a good point - the fact that @kasky1 suggests that “Page View” in Finale is the equivalent of “Engrave Mode” in Dorico suggests that he’s possibly unfamiliar with the Page View in Dorico’s write mode, which is the more direct analog of Page View in Finale.
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Maybe a tiny little bit… 
Some random thoughts here. Just as a starter, I like the division between write and engrave mode.
The reason is that the notes ends up in several different places. I mainly work on orchestral music, with score and parts. In note entry each player is given the notes to play. These notes then end up in several places, quite often four different places. Each of these places would have adjustments specific to them.
- The score layout given to the conductor
- The players part layout given to the player
- Sometimes as cues for other players
- As base for the sound output
And, yes, it would help to be able to make “smaller” adjustments to the notes in engrave mode, say correct the odd note entered wrong. But I want layout changes to be local to one layout. Modifying the “look” of things in a part should not be propagated to the score or vice versa.
If you write a single layout document, things are different of course. If the output is only for one instrument moving between write and engrave mode will feel unnecessary.
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For me, the conceptual barrier between Write and Engrave is one of Doricos most important strengths. It devides content (and semantic connections) from design/layout. If you are a software programmer, you might know HTML and CSS, that’s exactly the same approach (the same content displayed different ways). You have the same information displayed in different layouts (mostly score and parts), so it’s important to be able to input concisely what is the content information (e.g. at which part of the grid a text is connected to the music) so the algorithm laying out the parts (also those which you might not see at that time) won’t get your connections wrong.
I remember countless situations in Sibelius where a Segno (or any other „text“) was connected to the wrong system in parts and I was experimenting bouncing it back and forth in the score to make it appear at the right bar (not even saying the right beat!)… never a problem in Dorico. BTW I wonder how you want to get any input progress if you always make sure it looks right in every layout (not just the score!) at that time and probably not having entered everything around it that might take space and therefore influence, too (these might even be objects in another system and include page breaks, which all evolve while you change content).
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It’s not only old-school; it’s that of an amateur. You seem to be expecting Dorico to work like a word processor rather than DTP software. It might be OK dashing off a letter in Microsoft Word (formatting as you go) but it would be insane to use it for a magazine. As it happens, it isn’t difficult to format elements directly in Dorico (the same is true with InDesign) but it’s not the right approach.
Obviously, you’ll annoy people with such a statement. Is it not evident that people have chosen to use Dorico (migrating after long experience with other software) because they consider it the best tool for the job? The folly has been persisting with the moribund Finale instead of moving to Dorico as soon as it’s been practical.
I understand the anxiety about Finale’s demise but you’d do better to consider the good advice you’ve been given rather than expect Dorico to be changed because you’re disorientated.
There’s still plenty to do of course and there’s been quite a lot of frustration with recent priorities but hopefully the influx of Finale refugees will be positive in this respect.
@kasky1 I often have multiple windows open in different modes, work between them, and have never had a crash. I hope the crash reports are helpful to you, because this is a very good way to handle your issue, which is also mine.
I was once a hand copyist and the rule was to never leave out anything as one worked because this lead to omissions and errors. Once through, and then proofreading. The idea of going through the music in passes, putting in the notes, and then the dynamics etc. was complete anathema. In other worlds, the complete opposite approach to what is most efficient when engraving with a computer program with its various tools and modes. Finale is a little more like hand copying. Dorico is a bigger change for me, and I can well understand your reaction. But I found that one can adapt Dorico to one’s own working style and also take advantage of its many strong points.
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Continuing with these programming/computer science analogies, we could say that Dorico tends to work like declarative programming, while many people coming from Finale are trying to use it in a very procedural way.
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It’s a shame that we have lost the ability to recognize hyperbole and take it in stride.
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@kasky1 Thanks for your extensive answer. Sorry to keep on nagging. 
Yes, I am a devotee. What I am wondering is the following: What do you do in engrave mode, can you give an example? Because I don’t fully understand it.
When I work in write mode, page view, I can see how it will turn out, right? If I want to make an engrave adjustment in that stage of progress, it will be in engraving options, because the piece is not finished yet, so all adjustments I have to make in engrave mode are not yet certain, because everything can still change. I can just open engraving options in write mode and they also have an immediate effect. I will also have to do that when I am in engrave mode. So that is no more work. The same for layout options.
Adjustments that I make in engrave mode are usually system breaks and frame breaks. I really see those as final edits. If you want a fixed number of bars on a system, I can indicate that with layout options casting off, for example.
So I think if you work in write mode page view (I personally prefer galley view) and you do all the design stuff with engraving options in combination with layout options you have very little left to do in engrave mode and it is better to leave that as a last adjustment. This way I think you get the most benefit from Dorico.
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I find it unpleasant in any case, and inappropriate in this case, to be reminded of Jonestown, where over 900 people died because of a charismatic leader. Sorry, but it’s not just a random metaphor to people my age.
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I think that allowing some more features to ‘cross the boundary’ between engrave and write modes would be helpful.
Particularly, I would love it if it were easier to create system breaks in write mode. My workaround in write mode is to select an existing break and alt-click where I want the new one, which is bearable, but not ideal.
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This one is hackable. I removed whatever Shift+S originally was in Write mode, then added this to the kGlobal context of my user keycommands file:
Now Shift+S works in either Write or Engrave for me.
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In Dorico 10 users will be able to specify whether certain commands reside in Write Mode or Engrave mode or both. 
Also, Stream Deck’s Notation Central package can do it without hacky workarounds…
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One minor idea came to mind this morning while I was in the shower (uh-oh) – rather than a merging of the modes, what if there could be a temporary placement override while in write mode by holding down a modifier key while dragging an element?
I think this could be helpful for those occasional elements, such as dynamics, hairpins, slurs, and staff text, which are not lining up well but in write mode they “stick” to exact areas, where the only way to really line up correctly is to enter engrave mode. In the small cases such as this, I thought maybe holding down a modifier key combination while dragging could “unlock” the sticky magnet quality, giving more free range of placement on a case-by-case basis.
This would not address all the more complex panel options in engrave mode, but I think having a quick un-sticky override without leaving write mode could be helpful from time to time.
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