On Sunday, June 2, 2002, at 08:49 AM, Robert Patterson wrote:
> Darcy James Argue wrote: >> All major Mac applications (with >> the exception of Quark and a handful of digital audio apps) > > This "handful of digitial audio apps" cannot be so lightly dismissed. > (Read on.) I didn't mean to lightly dismiss them -- it's just that (A) there seem to be plenty of digital audio apps that have been upgraded/written for OS X, including "name" apps like BIAS Peak, and a host of shareware apps (I use Amadeus II, which is a very nice product), and (B) my digital audio needs are rather modest so I don't know the scene as well as others here. >> So what's wrong with Coda? > > More to the point, what's wrong with OSX? A fair question. However, I should point out again that Sibelius seems to have solved this problem a few months ago, while Coda wants us to wait another year. > I think it no > coincidence that these programs are lagging behind the curve. > > Apple has promised impressive built-in features for both MIDI and > digitial audio in an unspecified upcoming release of OSX. I believe that > rather than rolling their own MIDI and audio drivers, many music > programs (esp. those committed heavily to MacOS s.a. Digidesign and > MOTU) are waiting for these to be available before releasing OSX-native > versions, and I can't say I blame them. Coda delaying Carbon a year may > be evidence of a strong commitment to using the new OSX midi features. > If so, I'd rather wait. If that's the case, then I wish Coda would simply *say* so! And rather than wait for the next upgrade cycle (a year from now), I would appreciate a policy such as "Coda has effectively finished the Carbonization of Finale and we are simply waiting for Apple's OS X MIDI drivers to be completed. As soon as these features are added to OS X, we will incorporate them into Finale and release an OS X version as soon as possible. > Meanwhile, if Finale runs acceptably in Classic mode, the only thing > you're really missing is the transluscent blue aqua buttons. Well, no actually, right now I'm missing: - *any* MIDI support at all (and that's the deal-breaker -- I could stop right there.) - comparable performance to OS 9 (FYI, I have 768 MB of RAM and a 400 MHz G4). Launching Classic mode also slows down the performance of the entire system -- for instance, QuickTime videos which played back perfectly without Classic running in the background now stutter and drop frames. - the ability to "Save as PDF" right from the File menu - the ability to use the OS X-native version of QuicKeys (QuicKeys runs noticeably slower under Classic). - the system-wide spelling dictionary (for lyrics and other text) - Quartz graphics -- yes, this is purely "cosmetic," but anyone who has compared OmniWeb to any other web browser out there knows how much of an aesthetic difference this makes. And the new version of Quartz (in OS 10.2) will be hardware-accelerated, which should greatly improve redraws, scrolling, and moving windows. - window translucency -- this is a biggie for plugins with large windows like Tobias's Staff List Manager, where I frequently wish I could see *behind* the window so I can look at what I'm doing. - access to the OS X printing drivers -- the OS 9 drivers for my HP LaserJet 2200D are incredibly buggy. They require me to turn the printer off and on before beginning my first print job, and they frequently crash the system entirely. The OS X drivers work flawlessly and never choke on big jobs. You can also save and name an unlimited number of print settings for future retrieval. In OS 9 you can only save one set at any given time. - and, as you said, dynamic memory management and protected memory. Classic mode is a kludge, a stop-gap measure. It is (still, unfortunately) a necessary kludge, but the only real stragglers left appear to be audio apps and Finale. If, as you say, this is Apple's fault, not theirs, then I am still just as angry and frustrated, but at Apple, not Coda. And really, if it turns out that MIDI does work under Classic mode in FinMac2003, then that's *something*, at least -- it means I won't have to boot back to OS 9 every time I want to work on Finale. Still, if the MIDI drivers are the real hangup here, I would also want Coda to assure us that the OS X version will be forthcoming shortly after those drivers are released -- no waiting around for the next upgrade cycle. - Darcy ----- [EMAIL PROTECTED] Boston MA _______________________________________________ Finale mailing list [EMAIL PROTECTED] http://mail.shsu.edu/mailman/listinfo/finale
