This is a list of what we wish to achieve for MuseScore 2.0. It is ideal for testing features in the nightly builds, particularily if they are deemed stable enough by developers. These are also subject to change.

Palettes

Custom palettes operations are described in detail in this forum post

• Add, move and delete a palette Done, ready for testing
• Add, move and delete elements Done, ready for testing
• Add SVG, PNG, JPG to palette Done, ready for testing
• Master Palette (Display -> Master Palette) to pick default elements Done, ready for testing
• Palettes shoud be saved on exit and become available upon program start Done, ready for testing
• Export/import all the palettes = profile. Use case: palettes for piano score, orchestral scores
  Done (move profile files from/to the MuseScore profiles folder)
• Export/import single palette. Use case: palette for handbells, palette for autoharp, etc... Done, ready for testing

Open Questions

• How to handle resize, scaling: spatium unit (usability question)

Known Issues

Issues tagged with palette

Time Signature, Corner Cases

• Spanner at start or end
• Time signature code could be used to copy/paste

Known Issues

Issues tagged with time signature

Linked Parts

Linked parts in one score are more or less the same as extracted parts, so testing one is also testing the others.

• Regression tests are needed
• Delete/Insert Measures DONE, ready for testing
• Feature missing: Ability to choose elements that will not be synchronised
• Feature missing: Add style for parts in Parts window, it’s already a preference

Tablature

• Staff configuration DONE, ready for testing Discussion
• Better note entry, specific shortcuts mostly DONE, ready for testing Discussion
• MusicXML in/out ??

Figured Bass

• Add, delete: DONE, ready for testing (preliminary instructions)
• Proper alignment and combined shapes: DONE, ready for testing
• Configuration: DONE, ready for testing
• Durations: DONE, ready for testing
• Continuation line formatting: DONE, ready for testing
• MusicXML in/out: Done?

Fret Diagrams

• Possibility to combine them with chordnames
• Add automatic fret diagram generation according to chordname, need chord spellings
• Automatic spacing vertically of diagram/chord names
• Future features: playback, voicing
• Example: http://www.qwikchord.com/portal/

Remarks

Requires expert help - someone who knows chordnames very well + guitarist for chord spelling and voicing

Frame For Chord Names/Fretboard Index

• Currently exists as a new type of frame
• Needs to be populated, chordnames sorted by order of appearance in the score TODO
• Ability to have one by section and chord collection should stop at section break TODO

Inspector

• Needs a better name
• Only implemented for some elements, need to finish the implementation
• Selecting several elements is possible
• Nice way to move z index of an image
• Nice way to align several elements
• Based on properties, QVariant with default, setter and getter, a name and an ID.
  • Properties should be used in Plugin Framework
  • Properties are used in Undo and Redo list
  • XML serialization is using properties name

Playback in sync with audio file

The goal here is to be able to play an actual audio file in sync with the score. An audio player needs to be added in MuseScore and an interface to map the audio with the score. The MuseScore file format will be modified to embed the audio file, like it does currently with images.

• Modified file format
• Add a vorbis player in MuseScore Done
• User interface for adding additional media (e.g. ogg vorbis file) Done
• User interface for selecting the play mode (play synthesizer, play audio track) Done
• User interface to create special tempo map to sync audio with score

Scroll View

A scroll view to edit more easily scores currently with multiple system per page is a popular request: #5982: Add a continuous (scrolling) mode view

Scroll View

A scroll view to edit more easily scores currently with multiple system per page is a popular request: #5982: Add a continuous (scrolling) mode view

Barlines

• #12398: Add more barline style : tick, short, dotted : TODO Document Ctrl for a single barline, MusicXML export/import, predefined barlines
• #13723: Ability to set left barline of systems

Quarter Tone Accidentals

• Playback should be a style (accidental -> X semitones)
• Support for key signature
• MIDI export with bend != Fluid export (microtune synth)

Line

• Unified UI - users want only one line dialog, even for a tremolo line, more line styleTODO

Playback

• Real instrument change
• Improve instrument description in instruments.xml (sysex, articulations...)
• Add a element to change instrument
• No panic button, bug is fixed

Instruments.xml → split in two files

• One file is the base, all instruments, language independent
• One file, language dependent, can add instruments

Chord articulations

Description?

Instrument Editor

See New Cascading Instrument Definition
Currently, the way to add/edit instruments requires you to edit the instruments.xml file. A user interface for this would be great.

Virtual Keyboard

• Animate keys during playback

Virtual Guitar Neck

Copy/Paste

Plugin Framework

Use properties

Redesign, Style Engine

• Toolbar icon set: technical info on how to design and test the toolbar

Documentation

Things we'd like to see improved:

• Don't package MuseScore with all the localized handbooks in PDF format
• Offer build in view of the handbook in MuseScore
• Offer a TOC
• Ability to search through the handbook
• An index (glossary)
• The handbook PDF file is not updated regular enough

Solution:

• Replace the packaged PDF with HTML: this reduces the size by a third, because fonts do not need to be embedded
• When rewriting the handbook 2.0, decide on markup to compile TOC and glossary index
• Pull in the handbook from the internet, instead of shipping it with the MuseScore package
• Create service to compile the PDF from the online handbook at regular times and offer the PDF download
• Create search facility in MuseScore to search through the handbook

Open issues which needs to be addressed in the meantime:
#16792: Most links to video tutorials in the local handbooks don't work
#8140: Documentation: Glossary vs. Snippets
#17994: Offer permalinks for titles in the handbook

Translation

Problems with the current translation system.

MuseScore

The translation server for MuseScore is located at http://translate.musescore.org. This solution is lacking many features, especially on community features such as emailing contributors when new translations have been submitted. There is a huge maintenance/development cost to run this server and improve things. The best solution would be to move towards a hosted solution such as Transifex.

MuseScore.org

When the English source page is updated, translators should be able to get email notification together with direct links to know what has changed so they can incorporate the changes into the page.
Handbook pages that have outdated translations, should mention a warning to the visitor that the content of the page might be updated. For a more updated version, check out the English one, or help (linked) to update the current translation. This is can all be implemented on musescore.org itself, therefore seeking for a hosted solution is not needed.

Video tutorials

Captions of the Getting Started video tutorials are being translated on musescore.org. It works well but the problem is that new or updated caption translations are not automatically uploaded to YouTube via API. As there is no PHP library available yet, we either use a different language available on a Linux machine, or we seek for a hosted solution.