Sibelius users out there?

mike ansberry · Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2023 3:11 pm Post subject: Sibelius users out there?

I have been using Sibelius with Photoscore for decades to scan music into my computer and manipulate it. I have used it on my old 2006 MacBook and my 2009 iMac. Suddenly the Photoscore menu is grayed out and unusable on both my 2006 and 2009 machines.

Any ideas? I have posted this on some Avid sites but replies have been useless.
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kehaulani · Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2023 4:29 pm Post subject:

Mike, this is purely thinking out loud but eventually most software maxes out in its effectiveness. By that I mean, most software needs periodic upgrading and eventually reach a point where that is not enough and a whole new platform is required. And when that happens, the program effected is upgraded fine, but may no longer be compatible with other, older programs that haven't upgraded.

Are all of these programs upgraded?
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Richard III · Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2023 5:30 pm Post subject:

Is your Sibelius version that old too?
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LittleRusty · Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2023 7:14 pm Post subject:

I used to manage a software package that was shipping twelve million new copies a month while I worked there. I estimated over a billion copies were installed when I left and probably over two billion before the software was no longer needed to support the hardware.

A software program does not degrade in itself. If you haven’t updated anything and the hardware doesn’t develop issues a piece of software never needs upgrading.

What does happen is the environment the software runs in changes. Todays world where the software does automatic updates means that the chances that a formerly working application will suddenly acquire issues is high.

Changing a hard disk or peripheral could cause issues with formerly working software.

It is very expensive for the application’s owner to patch old versions and most companies only fix recent versions and only test current operating systems and environments.

Mike,

Do you update the software on your MacBook and iMac? If so one of the updates since the program last worked could have broken something. If I were debugging this I would look at common changes on both machines since it doesn’t work on both.

On Windows the controlling parameters stored in the registry could have been compromised. I don’t know how apple handles that type of configuration.

A random bug could cause something to change in that area, but since it is on two discrete setups the chances are lower. This would be a secondary line of investigation.

Things you could try, baring finding someone who has overcome this:
1. Make sure Photoscore can interface with the scanner.
2. Make sure there aren’t license limits that have expired. Like the original license only covers twenty years.
3. You might try reinstalling the software. I would be very hesitant to do this if you don’t have a bulletproof way to backup and restore the current state of your machine(s).
4. Check the Sibelius and PhotoScore program settings to make sure the collaboration between the two is enabled.

This probably won’t help you much and you might already have tried this.

Good luck.

TrumpetFunk · Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2023 7:20 pm Post subject: Sibelius

Have you been updating your OS to the most recent ?

If your Sibelius is old, it may not be compatible without buying a yearly subscription.

I keep an older iMac on Lion OS. As well, on my laptop I have partitioned half of the drive to use for all new work and security, but an older partition strictly to run Sibelius which I spent a lot of money for and refuse to start paying for such a subscription.

Still works fine on older OS.

Crazy Finn · Posted: Tue Dec 26, 2023 7:50 pm Post subject:

Did you update you OSX? That might be it.
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Divitt Trumpets · Posted: Wed Dec 27, 2023 4:10 am Post subject:

Apple loves to remove compatibility from apps you own, so I wouldn't be surprised if they decided your computer can no longer run photoscore.

One of many reasons to never use Apple products.
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mike ansberry · Posted: Wed Dec 27, 2023 1:41 pm Post subject:

Thanks for all the replies!

My 2006 MacBook and my 2009 iMac have had no upgrades of any kind installed in many years. The laptop is running the original 10.6 OS and the 2009 iMac is running 10.7. Over the years the laptop has remained the same. I did upgrade the OS in the iMac all the way through 10.12 before I bought my current 2021 iMac. I eventually reinstalled 10.7 on the 2009. Both the 2006 and 2009 machines ran Photoscore well. I installed Sibelius 7 on my 2021 iMac. It worked well even though it is not supposed to run on a 64 bit machine.

Then I bought a Focusrite Scarlet. It came with a free version of ProTools, which I installed. This required me to get an Avid account. A short time later Photoscore quit working on all my machines. I suspect Avid disabled them somehow, but that idea sounds very paranoid when I say it out loud.
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Music is a fire in your belly, fighting to get out. You'd better put a horn in the way before someone gets hurt.

Crazy Finn · Posted: Thu Dec 28, 2023 1:25 am Post subject:

Andy Del · Posted: Sat Dec 30, 2023 12:41 pm Post subject:

Avid software. They appear to be highly invasive and strive to maximise every dollar they can get by taking control of anything they developed.

The only way to keep older versions running would be to NOT update any OS, and certainly NOT have any connectivity back to the manufacturer. You might be bald to remove the Avid software, all Sibelius and associated applications and reinstall if you have the disks / install apps on hand.

Otherwise, you are one lucky person to now be included in the Avid-verse of continual lockouts, every mounting bills and general PITA experiences.

Cheers

Andy
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LittleRusty · Posted: Sat Dec 30, 2023 1:13 pm Post subject:

kehaulani · Posted: Sat Dec 30, 2023 1:18 pm Post subject:

I had a version change on my OS and a LOT of my Sibelius files were either corrupted or became obsolete.

I was copying an opera into Sibelius from a written manuscript, and it was about 2/3 finished- took me close to two years of off-and-on work. But when it got dumped, I got so discouraged, I stopped working on it for several years.

Still, for me, It's the best thing out there. Also, with the advent of the cloud, off-site back-ups are available.
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Andy Del · Posted: Sat Dec 30, 2023 11:16 pm Post subject:

dershem · Posted: Sun Dec 31, 2023 3:22 pm Post subject:

My primary occupation is doing notation, and I've been using Finale since version 2, but... a lot of people asks me if I use Sibelius.
I looked into it, and it's a 'license' model where you have to pay every year. NOT gonna do that.
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