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From: chow@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu (Christopher Chow)
Newsgroups: comp.sys.mac,rec.music.synth
Subject: Re: Which Is Better: DMCS or Studo Session? (Mac)
Message-ID: <2261@batcomputer.tn.cornell.edu>
Date: Sat, 5-Sep-87 12:23:06 EDT
Article-I.D.: batcompu.2261
Posted: Sat Sep  5 12:23:06 1987
Date-Received: Sun, 6-Sep-87 06:10:59 EDT
References: <37@mtunj.ATT.COM> <1377@killer.UUCP>
Reply-To: chow@tcgould.tn.cornell.edu (Christopher Chow)
Organization: Cornell Theory Center, Cornell University, Ithaca NY
Lines: 59
Xref: mnetor comp.sys.mac:6404 rec.music.synth:1401

In article <20472@ucbvax.BERKELEY.EDU> oster@dewey.soe.berkeley.edu.UUCP (David Phillip Oster) writes:
>In article <3787@sdcsvax.UCSD.EDU> jww@sdcsvax.UCSD.EDU (Joel West) writes:
>>A revised version of DMCS will support Sonata, which, a year ago, was
>>listed as "Real Soon Now."  I have not heard anything since then.
>
>DMCS version 2.0, supporting the Sonata (postScript) font, MIDI, and
>cutting and pasting music to the clipboard (like into MacDraw) has
>been out for at least 4 months. Electronic Arts wazs very good about
>mailing people an upgrade offer. Many problems were fixed. Printing is

Well, if you only think that DMCS 2.0 has been out for at least 4 months
then Electronics Arts isn't very good a mailing out upgrad notices.  I've
been using DMCS 2.0 for almost a year now!

While DMCS 2.0 is a vast improvement over DMCS 1.0, it does have a few
problems:

1.  The midi implementation seems to be a afterthought.  For example, in 
	midi input mode, try typing in a chord.  On my copy the chord just
	gets longer and longer until it takes a duration value equal to the
	length of the measure.  I.e., play a C maj chord and hold it for one
	quarter note -- in a 4/4 measure you'll see the chord cycle from 
	quarters, to whole notes.

2.  It uses the PACE copy protection system.  This system uses encrypted code
	segments, while drastically slows down program loading time,
	especially if you're running of a hard disk.  Even worse, if you
	have a debugger running (Macsbugs/TMOM), it'll reboot the computer
	w/o unmounting all volumes, meaning that your hard disk has to go 
	through a lengthly volume verification process before you can reboot.

	Luckily, there is a public domain DA, "FixJT" which can remove this
	protection -- however Opcode systems has now implemented something
	which prevents FixJT from working correctly, so FixJT might not work
	w/ DMCS anymore.  BTW, on my system, the unprotected version of DMCS
	2.0 loads in ~10 sec, the protected ~25 sec.

3.  Printing dosen't seem to work under SuperLaserSpool.  Since I don't have
	a LW or LW+, I didn't buy Adobe's Sonata laser font.  But, shouldn't
	the Sonata screen font be substituted?  Well, this summer, when I 
	has acess to a LW+, I tried to print from DMCS 2.0 thru
	SuperLaserSpool and I got no output!

All things considered, I wouldn't recommend DMCS 2.0 for anything except for
a notation package for Opcode's Sequencer 2.5 and possibly teaching childern
a bit about music.  If I had to do it all again, I probably would also go
with MasterTracks Pro instead of Opcode, thereby not using DMCS at all.

A word regarding DMCS support - I did try to call Electronic Arts several
months ago about DMCS, but noone every even answered the phone!

Christopher Chow
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