On Apr 26, 2005, at 12:39 PM, ER @ HOME wrote:
Hello,
I'm soliciting advice and input regarding making the "BIG" Switch from
FinMAC 2002/'03 to Sibelius 3.1 (OS X). I'm an expert user of Finale (up and
running since the infamous US$1000.00 version 1.0) and am able to work
very quickly and efficiently in FinMAC 2002/Mac OS 9.2.2.
I use my system primarily for composing/arranging and music preparation for projects to be performed/recorded by acoustic ensembles. e.g.:
-Large Jazz Ensemble -Wind ensemble/Concert Band -Orchestra -Various smaller media.
Also, I like to be able to create "mock-ups" of the projects when needed.
In the next month or so, I need to purchase a major system upgrade for my studio and home this summer (yeah...I know...it's a rough problem to have... :). With all of the buzz in the Finale Digest and elsewhere about how much slower the carbonized OS X incarnations of Finale run than the pre-OS X versions, I refuse to lay out major cash for the privilege of working SLOWER...not to mention the new slew of post OS X Finale bugs I've been hearing about.
On the other hand, I've heard generally very good things about Sibelius 3.1/OS X in terms of speed and user friendliness.
Sibelius: speed, OK; user friendliness, fine at the beginning, but rising frustration as you learn more about the advanced things that it won't do easily.
If you are already an expert Finale user, by all means stick with it! Sibelius' main advantage is ease for new users.
Also, Fin 2005 for Mac OSX is pretty good, as good as the PC version. It's quicker than 2004, it is quite stable (though that might be more to do with OSX than Finale), and the OSX version allows you create PDF's from the print dialogue, without any 3rd-party utilities. And quite a few bugs have been squashed. You just manage to hear all about them in detail here, which is scarier than actually experiencing them.
Christopher
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