MuseScore 2.0 release schedule

• Feb 25, 2015 - 13:16

With all the blocking issues being addressed and the plethora of other bugs fixed since beta 2, we have now set a release date for MuseScore 2.0!

* March 12th 13th: 2.0 Release Candidate (RC) for Windows and Mac
* March 24th: Final MuseScore 2.0 release for all platforms

So what will happen between now and the release date:
* Translating the MuseScore interface
* Reviewing and improving the 2.0 handbook
* Create a press release and prepare for media buzz
* Also, you will be able to upload 2.0 files on your account at musescore.com
* We continue to fix more bugs until the RC
* After the RC, only critical issues will be fixed. Other code contributions will not be accepted during this period.

If you have any questions about the release schedule, feel free to answer to this post or to ping me on IRC #musescore on freenode.net.


Comments

In reply to by JoeAlders

Hey Joe, currently we have lined up Linux Mint, Ubuntu, Debian, OpenSUSE, PCLinuxOS, OpenBSD. If your distribution is missing, please leave a comment and if you know who is your distribution maintainer that would be great. This way I can get in touch.

  1. How will the compatibility be between files made in 1.x and 2.x?
  2. Will 1.x ask to be updated to 2.x when after the final is released?

In reply to by Svish

1.x files can be loaded into 2.0, and for the most part should look the same or better (due to numerous improvements to the layout algorithms). Some scores with heavy use of manual adjustments or other devices might require some tweaking to look the same. Feel free to install a beta or nightly build to see for yourself. But 2.0 scores *not* load into 1.3.

No idea if 1.3 will ask about update. I see there is an option in preferences to specify how often it checks, so in theory, it's possible.

This is awesome news! I've been using 2.0 for a while, and is by far my preferred notation program (having ditched Finale Printmusic for 2.0). Hope all goes well :D
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*On a side note, I look forward to having .deb instead of compiling ;)

Is there any chance that it will be a regular Ubuntu release instead of a PPA? I don't really know how this works, but I wonder if there is any chance of getting it promptly for all currently supported Ubuntu versions. I thought I had version 1.3, but I just noticed that I actually have 1.2! I'm running 32-bit 12.04 LTS (Precise), and that's all I can get, even with a PPA. Will I need to upgrade the OS?

This is great! I also have a question. Have you added anything more for the guitar tabulature (i.e. hammer-ons, slides, etc.)?

Very nice!!! I really like the beta 2.0, so I know the RC and final release will be amazing. This software really blows Finale and Sibelius out of the water, (especially since it's open source). I have created beautiful looking scores with such ease using 1.3 and the 2.0 beta releases.

Ever grateful,

Anthony Tabacco

>After the RC, only critical issues will be fixed

Does that mean I should hold off on reporting non-critical issues until after 2.0 has been released?

In reply to by zian

@zian No, you should absolutely keep on posting critical issues. Critical issues are those who lead to crashes or loss of data. But also other issues are welcome. So don't let the 2.0 release schedule stop you from reporting issues.

In reply to by jonathan aakene

Have you installed the marching percussion extension soundfont?

Marching percussion will not work properly otherwise.

You also may need to check the drumkit option in the mixer for the percussion parts.

Regarding the measures needing fixing, MuseScore 2 is much more finicky about complete bars than 1.x used to be. If you have measures with rests deleted in Voice 2 this will trigger this error.

The simplest solution is to load the score in 1.3 select each stave in turn and perform the "Exchange Voices 1 & 2" procedure twice.

This ensures all measures with a second voice are complete.

HTH

In reply to by jonathan aakene

I don't think it is intended that a hole in voice *2* would flag a score as being corrupt. As far as I know, it's still supported to delete rests from voices other than voice 1, although the trick you mention is helpful if you change you mind and wish to enter music into those hoels afterwards.

I am pretty sure the warning abut corruption should only happen if there is a hole in voice *1*, which should never happen, and which you cann;t make happen on purposes even if you tried, but occasionally will happen anyhow due to bugs in the software. These corrupt scores can lead to other problems later, including crashes, so it seems good to warn about them now. The warning that occurs when you load into the RC tells you exactly where the problem is, and then you can try to fix it.

In reply to by Marc Sabatella

Actually, in many cases, you *can*, and in fact, we might consider putting together a how-to and perhaps linking to it from the warning dialog, if the system supports that.

See http://musescore.org/en/node/50566#comment-236431, in particular the second approach I mention. If the corruption is in the form of a "hole" in the measure, and you can tell where the hole is, simply lengthening the note before the hole fixes the corruption much of the time. I don't know why I never thought of this before, and maybe it wasn't effective in 1.3, but it actually works quite well much of the time in 2.0

And yes, automatically fixing holes (by adding rests and/or shortening notes) seems like a good thing to do, and could be worth trying to add. Depending on the actual problerm, any automatic solution might make the proboem worse, so we could make this something you initiate explicitly from that dialog (ie, a "Attempt Fix" button).

In reply to by JApgood

It's your choice. If you can wait a few days, then do so, as some bugs have been fixed between the RC and the actual release. The RC is usable if you need to do work before Tuesday, but you will still want to download the final version 2.0 when it's released.

In reply to by llopatin

Shift+number shortcuts were removed as they create conflcits with keyboards used in a number of countries. You can always added them back via Edit / Preferences / Shortcuts if you live in one of the counrtries where they work (or add *different* shortcuts for these commands otherwise).

Shift+up/down (formerly, diatonic transposition) and Alt+Shift+up/down (formerly, extend selection to previous/next staff) have been exchanged, for more compatibilty with 1.3 and generally consistency with how selection works in other applications.

That's the changes I know of since the RC, anyhow. Others were made earlier (like making Shift+S the staccato shortcut to solve the conflcit with ">" for diminuendo that existed for keyboard in a number of countries).

In reply to by Marc Sabatella

I am still using the old version and there is a shortcut (undefined) for a natural sign. I defined it as shift+n. I don't see a way to add back a shortcut that is gone. I'm in the middle of a major project and it's probably for the best that I stay with the old familiar version until finished anyway.
Thanks,
Lenny

In reply to by llopatin

To be clear, though: these are *not* the shortcuts you'd normally use to enter accidentals. Simple up & down arrow is the more proper way. The explicit accidental commands enter "user" accidentals, which is to say, they are commands to make the accidental appear whether needed or not. The intended use is courtesy accidentals. So if that's what you are using them for, great, then just re-apply your custom shortcuts in 2.0. But if you were trying to use them for ordinary accidentals, you should switch to using up & down instead.

I find the audio sampling sets are very different Piano and Strings are less realistic sounding 1.0 is better in this regards. But brass instruments are much better in 2.0. I write mostly Classical music, and use the software as a performance too.

In reply to by rkarle

I guess what constitutes "better' is subjective - I find the piano and especially string sounds in FluidR3 (the default soundfont in 2.0) *infinitely* better / more relaistic than the corresponding sounds in TimGM6mb (the default in 1.0). But while personal preference is subjective, both 1.0 and 2.0 allow you to select whastever soundfont you want, and what is objectively better about 2.0 is that it allows to you select *multiple* soundfonts, so you can choose the brass sounds from FluidR3 and stirngs from TimGM6mb if you like. Althought I would recommend you check out the other avialable soundfonts as well - there many soundfont that are much better than default for 1.3.

I Don't know if this would be considered a bug or not. I successfully change sound fonts. After doing so I noticed the volume was much louder. But as soon as I change the instrument setting in the Mixer the Volume dropped a great deal maybe 70 to 80% lower I had to turn up my head set all the way to even hear the playback.

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