Expression assignment oddity

[motet]

The attached 2014.5 document contains rehearsal marks centered over the left barline. When there's a double barline, though, (rehearsal "2") it's centered over the leftmost line (in Page View and in print), and to my eye would look better centered over both.

Set your measurement units to EVPUs. In Page View, right-click on rehearsal 2, Edit Expression Assignment, and give it a Horizontal Offset from Alignment Point of 6, which is half the double-bar spacing of 12. This should center it between the two lines, but in fact it jumps too far right. Another right-click and Edit reveals that instead of 6 the Horizontal Offset has been set to 12! If you set it to 6 again, it goes back to 0! Experimenting seems to suggest that it subtracts the old number from the new, doubles that difference, and adds that to the old value to obtain the new setting.

I vaguely recall reporting this on the old forum, but wonder if anyone knows why it behaves like this.

The other odd thing is that if you look at the unedited mark in Scroll View, it's centered over the rightmost of the double-barline pair as opposed to the leftmost in Page View.

[Charles Lawrence]

motet,

I looked at your file in F25.2. Adding 6 EVPUs to the offset aligned the rehearsal mark perfectly over the double bar. Maybe this has been fixed in F25. The scroll view was not centered, as you reported.

I'll try it in F2014.5 just for grins.

Worked OK for me in F2014.5 too.

[motet]

Did you change the assignment rather than the definition? This happened to me with F2011 as well, so I'm not imagining it.

[Charles Lawrence]

Did you change the assignment rather than the definition? This happened to me with F2011 as well, so I'm not imagining it.

I used "Edit Expression Assignment..." from the right click context menu, as you suggested, both in F25.2 and F2014.5. I am using your document to test.

"Edit text Expression Definition..." uses category positioning. I did not change any of that.

I believe that you are not imagining things. Maybe there is some other setting that is impacting this for your setup. I don't know.

[zuill]

I just tested this in v25.2 and it centers with 6EVPU.

Zuill

P.S.: Does pressing Backspace when the handle is selected reset the offset to 0?

[motet]

Yes it does.

I just confirmed that the problem exists in F2011 as well. Perhaps they fixed, or perhaps I have a setting that's different from yours.

[Charles Lawrence]

I just tested this in v25.2 and it centers with 6EVPU.

Zuill

P.S.: Does pressing Backspace when the handle is selected reset the offset to 0?

Yes, it resets the offset to zero in both F25.2 and F2014.5.

[motet]

Just to make sure we're talking about the same thing. Page View.

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[zuill]

I don't get that behavior. Maybe you have a metatool or shortcut interfering.

Zuill

[motet]

Maybe, but I don't know what that would be. I made it from the default document, so probably not a metatool (not typing letters anyway). It's plagued me for years (and across multiple versions), as I say. Looked at Preferences but don't see anything germane.

[motet]

It turns out the bug manifests if using the Selection tool, but not the Expression tool. For you, too?

[Charles Lawrence]

It turns out the bug manifests if using the Selection tool, but not the Expression tool. For you, too?

This appears to be the case. Anomalous behavior if using Selection Tool, right click. Correct behavior using Expression Tool, right click.

Just goes to show you how you have to be precisely accurate in describing the steps necessary to show a particular behavior. One path to an end shows anomalous behavior, another path to the same end shows correct behavior. Speaking as a retired computer professional/programmer with over 30 yrs experience, this is really bizarre.

[motet]

Just goes to show you how you have to be precisely accurate in describing the steps necessary to show a particular behavior.

I know that, but I wasn't even aware of which tool I was using in this case. At one point the problem had seemingly fixed itself after I tried changing a preference and changing it back. I even went so far as to fetch the previous FINALE.INI from backup to compare. I guess I do tend to avoid the Expression tool in this case since the handle obscures the rehearsal mark (see below). I realize there are ways to change the handle appearance.

You would think that the two methods of editing the assignment would have common code. But perhaps instead of refactoring the code when they added Selection Tool editing as they should have, someone just made a copy of it and modified it, and something broke.

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[Charles Lawrence]

motet,

I was just making a general observation in that statement. I was not reprimanding you in any way. I myself would never have thought to use the Selection Tool in this case. The Expression Tool was the obvious choice for me. Not so for you.

As a programmer, common code is the only way I would have approached programming this feature. One code path to display the context menu, and one code path for each of its selectable options. Anything else would have never entered my mind. That would be insane.

[N Grossingink]

I might be missing something, but it seems to me that simply nudging the rehearsal box to the right a few clicks of the right arrow key centers the box above the 2 barlnes. As a matter of fact, that's precisely the method I myself use. You can easily tell when the square handle straddles the double barlines. A very quick no fuss adjustment.

N.

[zuill]

Okay. Now we have all the info. No wonder I didn't get the behavior you did.

So, double-click with the Selection Tool and it takes you to the Expression Tool. Then it works properly. Obviously a programming bug if the results vary. Sounds like an old bug that continues in v25.

Zuill

[motet]

N,

A number is more precise than nudging, and doesn't require one to be zoomed in. Best of course would be if the program did the right thing and no adjustment was necessary.