Irwin Oppenheim wrote - >Abc2win is significantly incompatible with the standard >that was set by abc2mtex, and worse, its deviations >have never been documented, up to this day.
Taking the second point first, from the Help files for ABC2WIN - >The exclamation point will force a new staff line when the tune is drawn- you need >not necessarily start a new line in the editing window as well...... > >Copyright 1996, 1997 jimvintSystems As to the first point, this is standard setting by precedent of one piece of software in the absence of a written standard. You'd better take this up with Frank Nordberg who says, as an example - >There is no standard for specifying midi program changes in an ABC file, >so any claim that BarFly's way is wrong and abc2midi's is right (or vice >versa) simply have no fundation. >Syntax like |!: instead of |: is not an extension Nor is it part of abc2win, it is simply bad abc. I've only seen it once in a recent example that someone posted to this list but I've seen aaaa| :aaaa many times. >You did not notice those Abc2win users that complained >that their program could not handle lyrics or print >their tunebook properly? These are not breaches of the standard. >This program is hopelessly broken, something of an exageration >archaic, But still adequate for a lot of peoples needs >totally unsupported You can understand why Jim Vint may have got a little fed up with the whole business. >and not documented. What? Have you looked at its Help files? >Forget about it. I can't. It is widely used in the abc files that I am interested in. It is worth considering this from Chris Walshaw's short history of abc - >The real explosion in interest came when Jim Vint released his package abc2win in >September 1995. The tool was taken up by a large number of the members of >IRTRAD-L and abc's of tunes started appearing regularly. abc2win's strength is that it is easily accessible to non-geeks. Bryan Creer To subscribe/unsubscribe, point your browser to: http://www.tullochgorm.com/lists.html
