Timeline doesn't work in MuseScore under MacOS
For some time now I've been suspicious of the TimeLine. On my MacOS system I can open a score, and point at a note , and if the TimeLine is open, then the location will be marked in the TimeLine.
However this does not work the other way round. I ought to be able to point to a point in the TimeLine, and then go straight from there back to the score.
Actually it now looks to me as though basic navigation using CMD-F command also does not work.
On the other hand using the Navigator tool does seem to work as expected.
Is this a known bug? Maybe my system has been corrupted - but I've suspected this for some time.
I finally looked at this video which gave me some indications as to what I should see -
I don't!
Maybe I should try installing a new version. Other MacOS users may also have noticed this problem.
Comments
Timeline and Find are both affected by the "Pan Score Automatically >||" button, so make sure that is enabled.
In reply to Timeline and Find are both… by jeetee
See #330598: Disabling "Pan score" button breaks direct navigation by the Find command and the Timeline
In reply to Timeline and Find are both… by jeetee
A quick check doesn't throw any more light on this, nor "solve" the problem for me.
I can check this out to see if it's limited to just one computer system, or if it affects the other machines I'm using. Some may still be using earlier versions of MacOS. The one I'm sure has the problem is currently rurnning Catalina.
The location in the score does appear to be identified, as indicated in the Status line, but the score does not scroll to each new point.
If others spot a fix that will be great. It may take me a while to do checks on all the machines, as I do have other things to do, and generating or finding consistent examples of this may take some time.
This is a feature which I've not found reliable at all in recent months, and before that I didn't really know about it or use the Timeline. Some scores do work (i.e. scroll to location) with the Navigator, though I'm now checking to see how consistent and reliable that is.
At least if I know what to look out for that's helpful.
In reply to A quick check doesn't throw… by dave2020X
Everything about your description screams that you have the pan score button disabled.
Commands working and relocating (cfr status bar) but the score view not repositioning itself is exactly the symptom of not enabling that toolbar button.
In reply to Everything about your… by jeetee
Indeed - but I've tried to reset that button, and it still doesn't work. That's why I might try on the other machines. I have tested this several times following your comments.
In reply to Indeed - but I've tried to… by dave2020X
Gradually getting there. There are definite issues regarding this. On my laptop the Timeline works if the Pan button is selected - not otherwise - which fits with what has been written here. I think the Navigator works whether the button is pressed or not, which presumably is why I have been tending to use the Navigator in preference to the Timeline.
Returning to the desktop I couldn't get it to work - but then I noticed that I'd reset some of the workspaces - probably as a result of trying to test workspaces. If the Pan button is not shown then it doesn't work.
It takes some fiddling around to reset the Toolbar so that the Pan button shows. That can't be done it seems unless a score is loaded - does that mean that the Toolbar settings are score dependent?
A few more tests to do, but things are looking better.
I have now tested with rather large Holst Planets file - https://musescore.com/openscore/scores/5271023
This seems to work - though as one might perhaps expect it's very slow. I can probably get it to work faster with more memory in my computer - though how much faster it'll go I don't know. Most things seem to work now, with that file.
One thing which doesn't work is that the file contains images in the first few pages. The Timeline doesn't seem to take any notice of those. Not sure if it should, but one of the files I was trying to get to work with this also had images - so maybe that is something which should be addressed.
Another comment - is it possible to select sections of a file in the Timeline? I don't think so - but only navigate. If it were possible to select sections, then this could potentially be very useful.
In reply to Gradually getting there… by dave2020X
Glad it seems figured out!
As far as I know, the actual state of all toolbar buttons is global, so if you have one workspace that has the pan score button, just be sure it's on there and I think it should be on in all workspaces whether the button is displayed or not. If you find otherwise, it's probably a bug.
The toolbar settings are definitely not score-dependent, so it's definitely a bug if you need a score loaded to access the customization dialog.
And yes, you can make selections within the Timeline, within the bottom portion (the display of instruments & measures). It works the usual way - click one location, Shift+click another. Note the timeline is also customizable. There's a bunch of info on this in the Handbook.
As noted, you do need to make sure you haven't turned off "Pan Score Automatically". But also, be sure you are clicking the proper location within the timeline. It should work to click an actual rehearsal mark, time signature, or other marking shown in the timeline. It should also work to click anywhere within the bottom portion of the timeline where it shows the instruments and measures.
Whatever is going on, it's extremely unlikely to be a general macOS problem or we'd hear tons more reports about it. Probably either you've turned out the pan score button or are simply clicking an invalid area, like the blank areas between rehearsal marks or key/meter changes.
If you continue to have trouble, please make a screen recording so we can see where you are clicking.