finding out how far back I go

[lynndavidnewton]

I see that on the Finale / About Finale menu it shows my serial number. Is there any way to determine from this what was the earliest version of Finale I bought and when?

I've had it for a long time, probably since about 2002 or 2003, as I remember getting in on my daughter's student discount at Arizona State University. Many years ago, I was a music "engraver" using the old music typewriter + graphic arts techniques, but I never used Finale to do that sort of work for others. Well — yes, I did one job for a friend. (He paid me.) I haven't always been an active user, and there have been lapses of years, after which I've had to teach myself again how to use it.

The last few years I've used it more, mostly to make electronic versions of legacy work, but also some new things.

I'm writing a sort of memoir (for private use) and am seeking to determine with some accuracy when I first started learning Finale.

[N Grossingink]

Log in to your account on the Make Music website to get your order history.

[lynndavidnewton]

Hmm. It's been a long time since I've logged into makemusic.com, but I do have an account login name and a password.

So I tried it but it rejected it. This happens far too frequently on sites I don't use often.

So I clicked the usual Forgot Password link. The email login is correct. It's recorded in my software, and I see that I verified it as correct not as long ago as I thought (August 23, so only about a month ago).

Email never arrives allowing me to reset the password. I've had the same Gmail password since about 2005 (I was one of the first to use it). I get no email instructions nor any on-screen sign that it doesn't know who I am.

This kind of nonsense drives me crazy. I'm hung out to dry.

[motet]

If you have a spam folder, look there.

[lynndavidnewton]

Not in spam.
However, I solved the problem.
Below the regular login there is a link that says:

Looking for Finale, Garritan, or MusicXML?
[Login Here]

Duhh. Well, I saw it and I saw Garritan and MusicXML but somehow read right through Finale. I must have assumed that Finale was the default thing.

When I went to that, my verified password worked and I was able to see my order history.

If anybody cares, I first got Finale on January 22, 2004. Just a little bit later than I thought.

Now all I have to do is to remember how to login correctly.

Thanks as always to those who kindly responded.

[RMK]

But be aware that sometime in the early 90's Coda (the company that owned Finale then) changed all the serial numbers.

I bought Finale when it first came out and my serial number was 7XX.

[lynndavidnewton]

That's fine. I was seeking to find out only for the sake of a writing project. I don't have any issues with compatibility of files with versions or anything like that. I just wanted to be sure of when it was that I first acquired Finale. And that information is recorded in the Order History.

Thanks again.

[Bill Stevens]

I don't know if this helps, but if you can identify what you think is your oldest file and go to Score Manager > File Info, it will tell you when it was created.

::: Bill