If you have an HP Printer, Vista or XP, and are running into an issue where your parts or scores are printing the first couple of lines, but only printing out the notes for the remaning lines on the page, HP has a fix for the issue.

I ran into this with a client this morning and MakeMusic refered me to HP.

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Realtek has recent driver/audio codecs updates for their soundcards. These were updated around 10/9/2007.Being one of the worlds largest, low-end, sound card manufacturer’s, this could create a playback issue for many Finale users.The new driver number is 5.10.0.5559 for XP, and 6.0.1.5559 for Vista.You can check your driver version by using your device manager(here is an article about the Device Manager from Microsoft),don’t let the device manager search the web for the driver as it will rarely find the correct file,by accessing the Realtek HD Audio Manager that may be installed on your machine or by running a DXdiag (system profile) of your machine.Realtek has a README file that is available along with the driver download.It contains the detailed instructions for downloading, uninstalling and reinstalling the newest driver.Here are the links:Realtek Site: Realtek AC 97:Realtek HD:Remember - Finale will only perform as well as your machine will allow.

 Let’s face it, midi devices and their drivers are mysterious enough as it is - they don’t need any help in order to act strange or to flat-out not work at all.

So, if you use a midi device while using Finale, I recommend connecting it directly to your computers USB port - not through a USB hub. I have looked through some of the major midi manufacturer’s support sites for information regarding this subject - but of course most are very vague. All of them claim that the device will work and offer no trouble-shooting methods whatsoever.

Here is what led me on this quest:

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Took a few months, but they’re here!

Note: the official statement on the homepage still says that they are working on the updates, but skip that and head right to the driver section.

M-Audio Drivers

If you are currently running a computer with the minimum Finale 2008 RAM requirements, 512mb,
then there really isn’t any reason why you don’t get this:

CHEAP MEMORY!

They even provide video instructions on how to install the memory if you are uneasy about digging around the inside of your tower or laptop. Another good resource for “how-to” videos is YouTube.

The cost of memory is really getting cheap. I would recommend getting two!

Your computer will thank you!

One of the most important tools for the modern composer, engraver and educator, besides Finale of course, is……the computer. Unfortunately, too many of us are too busy worrying about voice leading or grace note placement to pay any attention to the primary piece of hardware that our world revolves around. Finale will only work as well as the piece of hardware that it is running upon so it is important to dedicate some time to not only maintaining the computer, but adjusting the settings to maximize its performance. Continued