[BandLeader]

Hi

I am new to MS and want to use it for playing piano from a score.

When you scroll by metronome is there a way to make it turn to the next page automatically?

Is there a way I can tell MS how many bars (or beats) there are on a page so it could tell when to turn the page?

[Zubersoft]

Version 5.0.0 is adding the ability to specify beats per page in the metronome, and have it auto-turn pages. I just finished coding that piece today in fact.

Mike

[BandLeader]

That's what I call a quick response to a suggestion. Well done. Do you know when you will release the update? I plan to use this facility for practice. I may get an air turn for performance.

Have you thought to display a progress bar to help gauge if you are ahead or behind?

[Zubersoft]

I'm in the middle testing the update and fixing bugs. I'm not sure exactly how long this process will take as I don't know how many bugs will need to be fixed. I'll post something when the beta is ready.

A progress bar? Do you mean use the microphone on the tablet to listen to the musician and try to determine his tempo? That would be incredibly complex, and most likely wouldn't work very well... Perhaps you can explain a little bit more about what you had in mind.

Thanks,
Mike

[thugdrummer]

Maybe a counter on the page indicating which measure you are on? E.g. 34/42 for 34th measure out of 42 total. It's up to the musician(s) to either adjust their tempo, or ignore the app metronome tempo (Stop the metronome? Skip the counter fwd or back a measure?). Users could annotate measure numbers on charts that don't already have them, so they have an idea where they are. (Actually this would have been really useful when I was playing timpani in high school. It get's tiresome counting 100+ measure rests. I used to leave the room, go grab a soda, and come back in time to hit the accents on the chorus.)

[Skip]

I'm not sure any of this is possible without a lot of major reworking since it seems to me the program basically displays pages not what's on the page.
I have an music editing program that does most all of this, but pretty much none of what MS does. Two different concepts.

[jeffn1]

I could see the metronome telling what measure number it was on, but not the total number of measures (unless the user input that information).

I'm not sure any of this is possible without a lot of major reworking since it seems to me the program basically displays pages not what's on the page.
I have an music editing program that does most all of this, but pretty much none of what MS does. Two different concepts.

[Skip]

I could see the metronome telling what measure number it was on, but not the total number of measures (unless the user input that information).

True, but the user would need to keep track of which measure they were on in comparison it to what the metronome said it was on. If you had a lot of measures, complex measures, large intervals between measures for some instruments or repeats that may pretty difficult to do. Numbering every measure on the score in a readable manner may help before uploading to MS.

[GraemeJ]

I think that, sometimes, MS users tend to lose sight of what this program is for.

It's a replacement for a ton of paper, often covered with illegible notes. It's not an all singing, all dancing, scoring/reading application. There are plenty of those out there already but, as pointed out, they can't do what MS does.

If someone has a 'problem' to solve, such as the one being discussed in this thread, the best approach is to ask yourself "How would I solve this if it was on paper?"

[jeffn1]

Agreed.

I think that, sometimes, MS users tend to lose sight of what this program is for.

It's a replacement for a ton of paper, often covered with illegible notes. It's not an all singing, all dancing, scoring/reading application. There are plenty of those out there already but, as pointed out, they can't do what MS does.

If someone has a 'problem' to solve, such as the one being discussed in this thread, the best approach is to ask yourself "How would I solve this if it was on paper?"

[Skip]

Me too.
Sometimes you use a truck, sometimes an auto.

Agreed.

[Zubersoft]

While I completely agree Graeme, there some situations where you really need to ask the question of, "What can I do with a digital display that I could never do with paper?". For example, a user asked me if, while using the two page display in version 5, if they could alternate page turns. This means if you were viewing pages 1 and 2, and you turned the page, it would change page 1 to page 3 on the left. If you turned again, it would turn page 2 to 4, and so on. This is something you really could not do with paper, but it makes perfect sense as your vision of the music you are currently playing would never be interrupted. It's very similar to half page turns in portrait (also something you can't do with paper).

I always want users to share ideas with me, regardless if they are a good fit for MobileSheets or not, because it can get people thinking about new possibilities. In this case, you are right - I don't really think MobileSheets should try to measure the user's progress in a performance. A simple indicator saying what total beat/measure the metronome is on is something that could be added for those that it would help, which is a good compromise.

Thank you for being a voice of reason Graeme - it always helps having someone stop me from trying to do too much. KISS (keep it simple stupid) is usually a good motto to follow.

Mike