First, let me say that the Library Manager is a wonderful tool, the kind of thing I would expect to ask for as an enhancement and never actually get!
I am be using it incorrectly, though, so I am looking at the “best practices” to setting up a house style. As I am not a professional engraver, I learn things as I go, so I tend to make changes to certain settings over time, but I would like all my scores to use whatever my latest settings are.
I realize this might require manually updating and reviewing any existing documents because some settings may affect music that has been carefully laid out.
My current process is this:
- I start with a file whose settings I like.
- I export my setting with Library > Export Library. These become my “master” settings.
- When I start a new document, I compare the settings in the project to my master settings and then make the current project match everything in the master.
When I want to change my master settings, I would:
- Load a project file.
- Check that the settings in the project match the master settings.
- Make whatever changes I want.
- Use Library > Export Library to overwrite my master settings.
- For any existing projects, when I get around to revising them, check them against the latest master.
I was trying to eliminate the need for exporting and importing libraries. In the Library Manager, a “User Library” is the factory library plus any custom items or options I have saved as default. The new process would be:
- I start with a file whose settings I like.
- I make sure that each of those settings is saved as a default. In theory, I only need to save as default those settings that are not factory.
- When I start a new document, I shouldn’t have to do anything—it will have my latest master settings.
When I want to change my master settings, I would:
- Load a project file.
- Make the setting changes and make sure that they are saved as default.
- For any existing projects, when I get around to revising them, check them against the User Library.
This seems a lot simpler. I was trying to switch to this model. I can load a project and make its settings match my saved library, which is my current master. I would like to make my User Library match the library I exported earlier, but there is no option for doing this that I can find.
Trying to do this manually is not working out either. For example, I have different Expression Maps in my exported library vs. the user library. In the Expression Maps dialog, I have options for resetting to library defaults, importing, and exporting, but no option for making my expression maps part of the user library. Is this not possible?
Next, I move on the Font Styles. I have a different in the Rehearsal Mark Font. When I bring up the Font Styles dialog, there is no Rehearsal Mark Font entry. Even allowing the user library setting to get applied doesn’t make it show up.
Next is Noteheads. I don’t even know how to fix these! There is no library for Noteheads that I see; just for Notehead Sets, which are OK.
For Paragraph Styles, I have differences in paragraph styles that don’t appear in the Paragraph Styles dialog. I have some that do appear and that I’ve marked as default, and yet the Library Manager claims that there are differences. For example, the Libary manager claims the Lyricist style is different. When I expand the difference, every item seems the same, although a number of these end with an asterisk whose meaning is unclear.
Any help would be appreciated, either on fixing the specific items noted, or on a better way of handling the various settings in a global manner.