Sorry that there are folks that are having issues with installation. I switched from Sibelius a couple of years ago and am on Mac. I have never experienced an issue with installation or updates. It was all very straight forward for me. I’m sure there must be others like me where installation went smoothly. I only post this to show that maybe installation issues are not the norm. Again, sincerely sorry to hear of installation issues.
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+1 (FWIW)
I wish everyone who is struggling with it a successful outcome.
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The installation process that I remember in 2020 was very confusing to me because there was the need to download X things manually first, and then install Dorico. Why not do everything with 1 click? Thank god when I upgraded to Dorico 5 there were no issues, so it seems they improved it a lot.
because it’s Steinberg . . . . SMH
I use Finale a lot and was blindsided by the recent news. I am kind of worried about all the Finale documents I have - that will not be accessible at some point in the future. But, you’re right - we do have some time (years?) before Finale is 100% dead. But, I’ve got to be honest when I say I have that panic feeling in me right now.
As I said in my initial post at the top of this thread, there’s plenty of time to take stock, and consider your next move; so try to take a deep breath and stay calm.
Yes, you will need to migrate your data at some point to some other format and app; and that will mean revising/restoring/correcting, whichever app you choose. But you needn’t let that overwhelm you.
I’d certainly start to make sure you’ve got PDFs and XMLs for documents, as you go through them.
If you do decide to move to Dorico, you can bet that there will be plenty of people here to help – not only the development team, and @Lillie_Harris the documentation editor; but lots of users as well; many of whom have also made the journey from Finale.
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Just a quick hello and thank you for the welcome. I bought my first (non Commodore haha) computer in 1995 for the explicit reason to run Finale… so yeah, I’ve been at it for a minute (but not as long as many.)
I’m looking forward to this. Even when I had been working in Finale recently, I’d ask stupid questions on the forums. So, I’ll be starting over again, and stupider. Apologies in advance… and thank you for your patience.
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I bought Dorico 2 days ago after the announcement. Been with Finale (daily) since 1998 so the news is a shock to say the least.
In my LIMITED experience with Dorico, I’m excited for what I can learn.
I’ve decided to keep using Finale for immediate and short term projects and in the meantime writing “practice” charts in Dorico.
I have a MILLION questions but I’m sure with time, they’ll get answered.
Thanks for the warm welcome to all us “former” Finale users.
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How are Dorico updates handled (frequency, cost)?
I’m a very casual Finale user. I’m looking at the cross-grade option. I’m willing to pay the price if it gets me access for several years, but I’m wary of paying it to use the program once or twice a year, then have to pay for updates every time.
Thanks very much. I’m knocking on every piece of wood, because it seems to be downloading… there’s an error message on every single file, but if I click on each file individually, they all load… so instead of clicking “Install All,” I’m going one-by-one and it seems to be working.
One part of me is frustrated that capitalism allows companies to buy out their competitors and close them down. All it does it hurt the little guy (us). I watched several Doric videos (I’d never even heard of Doric before) and they all looked like production software, and I kept thinking, “So how is a production software company shutting down my notation/engraving company? What the what?” But then I started watching YouTube videos by Tom Corpus, and he was showing off some pretty amazing things you can do using Doric. And Tom Corpus is correct in that Finale is pretty glitchy. I was initially worried because the music teacher’s online China group was discussing Doric and people were saying to stay clear of it… anyhow… I’m going to follow this forum’s advice and stay on Finale until it dies, but I’m going to start doing tiny projects on Doric to see how it goes. Oh, and Tom Corpus’ advice to post the shortcuts on the wall beside you seems pretty good. I’m going to try that… if/when the software successfully loads.
Cheers,
Amy
You seem to have misunderstood. Dorico didn’t “buy out” Finale, or “shut it down”. MakeMusic made the decision to stop developing it; and they then partnered with Dorico as a means of offering users an ‘escape route’.
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Normally, there’s a major release every two years or so. Upgrades are $99. (from Pro version to Pro version).
Between that, there are several free updates that add new features and fix bugs. So a bit like Finale 27 is the paid bit, and 1, 2,3, 4.
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Excellent post, Dan Kreider, thank you! I came here to this thread looking to see what advice I might humbly supply but Dan’s post is basically it. I mean, look at my username folks, it’s “Finalished”. I finished, kaput, done with Finale completely within a short time of discovering Dorico 5 years ago, I just found it unmistakably superior and far less frustrating and time consuming than Finale.
And the main reason I was able to reach that happy conclusion is because right from the start I somehow had the intelligence (for once!) to think carefully before beginning—I naturally ended up doing basically all that Dan lists. I strongly recommend you do too. Learn the well-realized Dorico concepts first, the philosophy that informs the program’s design and use, do not skip. Read all of the First Steps Guide and also the Introduction and Dorico Concepts sections of the online Help. There’s overlap but it’s all beneficial.
After that I’d personally recommend setting up one single project for yourself, something not too big yet challenging such as a small chamber piece with a few movements. Work through the entire thing from start to finish, skip nothing, get the layout just right, make your parts and all. When you hit a snag and don’t know how something is best done in Dorico, don’t just DRAG IT (oh, how I do not miss those Finale days), instead look in the online help and PDF manuals for the answer to your question, following Dan Kreider’s points #3 and #4. Finally, if you can’t find the answer on your own—and we’ve all been there—come to the forum and search some terms to see if anyone else has asked the question and been answered. If not then start your own thread and some very kind and knowledgable users will soon help you. Patiently enter/apply and manipulate all elements using Dorico as Dorico, don’t let yourself regress into using it Finale-like (something akin to hammering a screw). Finish that project then start another that ups the challenge, apply what you’ve learned. Trust me, lights will go off in your head and by the third or fourth piece you’ll be swell. There’ll always be new things to learn of course, but you’ll be working on a solid foundation.
Welcome and happy notating!
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Great order of operations, @Finalished!
There’s your proof.
The argument that, ‘oh, it’s only a few users having issues with Steinberg software - besides, installing Finale is equally as bad’ just doesn’t hold water. And, even if true (and it’s NOT even by a long stretch) - that doesn’t matter given the immense trouble I experienced with Steinberg in the past.
Why would anything be different now? Nothing has changed - that part seems pretty certain as I read through the forums.
Steinberg software is the absolute worst and they have next to ZERO support. So, expect to spend the next few days wasting your time guessing how to install Steinberg’s nonsensical, wretched, perquisite software and then dealing with all the bloatware it’ll install on your computer. And, this is all BEFORE you install Dorico.
The last time I installed Steinberg software both Logic Pro and Final Cut Pro (Finale as well) began displaying a ton of annoying messages (sort of like error message) each time I ran those programs - all due to the needless, inane, Steinberg bloatware that got installed on your computer.
I made that mistake once. Once is enough. Let’s keep it that way.
That’s just not true for Dorico.
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I’ll need video proof.
Dude, you do know that there is senior Steinberg management and developers in this very forum every day answering even the most inane and rude questions politely and factually?
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I have lots of productive software that I’ve installed and use every day. Then I have the Steinberg experience. Was that experience just an anomaly? I see a lot of users this very moment struggling furiously to install Dorico.
Well zoom meetings are video -like the ones Ulf does regularly to help stuck users from another continent’s time zone when he probably should be sleeping. The regular influx of Dorico video lessons are obviously video. Lillie’s presence, interaction and clear dedication to the best documentation and help system possible every day here.
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