version for Apple silicon?

[lynndavidnewton]

Is there a version of Finale that works on macOS running Apple silicon?
I just acquired two new Mac M2 Minis, and while I also still have my MacBook Pro, I'm more than a little dismayed to find that the OS plunked the app in the Trash for me saying "Finale.app is damaged and can't be opened."

I understand the ramifications of this since I was a software system tester for a Fortune 50 company for twenty years. I use Apple computers because they are Unix under the hood, which is way faster and simpler.

[michelp]

MakeMusic made Finale compatible with Apple Silicon from version 27.2 on (we are now at 27.3).

Updates in Finale v27.2 include:
Finale is now installed as a universal application, allowing it to run natively on computers using either Intel or Apple Silicon processors.

[lynndavidnewton]

I have version 27.3.0.160 of Finale.
My macOS is Ventura 13.5.1 running on an M2 Mini (with 8 cores, 24 GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD).

When I click on the app to open it, I get a popup that says

"Finale.app" is damaged and can't be opened. You should move it to the Trash.

Obviously, I'm not going to do that.

What do I do next?

[N Grossingink]

I would trash it and download Finale again.

[lynndavidnewton]

OK, but this is a dumb question. I'm a long-time Finale user, and whenever I've downloaded Finale it's been from some link that MakeMusic supplied, i.e. for upgrades and fixes and the like and it somehow knows that I'm a legitimate paying customer, etc., and things work out just fine.

What URL can I use to just jump on and download it after I've trashed it?

I suppose if I trash it, all my preferences will also disappear. Sigh. I'm not happy about that.

Thank you.

[Bill Stevens]

Go to makemusic.com and log in to your account to download the program.

You can save your preferences file and use it for the new download.

::: Bill

[lynndavidnewton]

I didn't realize preferences were saved in a file.
Where is it?

I won't be able to save it from the program because I can't load it, which is the original problem.

I was a software system tester in a Unix/Linux environment for 25 years so I'm completely comfortable with prowling around pathnames with a shell if you can tell me where to go.

[michelp]

Finder ► menu Go (hold down the alt key) ► Library ► Preferences ► com.makemusic.finale.fprf.

[lynndavidnewton]

Thanks to all the generous help I got from this group I was able to download the latest version with the universal binary, install it without problems, and bring it up. Evidently all my preferences are intact.

michaelp, although I'm sure most Mac people navigate the system using the Finder as you describe, I'm such a heavy shell guy that I haven't used the Finder like that in years and had to think about it. The file is there though!

Everything is working fine now. No further help needed. Thanks again.

[Bill Stevens]

Lynn,

Now that you have located the Preferences file, it's a good idea to make a copy of it in case that file goes bonkers, which happens occasionally. If it happens you can just drag the copy into that spot.

Glad that you had a happy ending.

::: Bill

[BuonTempi]

I'm more than a little dismayed to find that the OS plunked the app in the Trash for me saying "Finale.app is damaged and can't be opened."

I had the same error when I migrated the contents of my old Mac onto my new one (including Finale). The OS will render an app 'damaged' if it is modified in any way; but it seems like it is a little too sensitive. I've heard other reports of apps being 'damaged' simply by moving them from volume to another.

I suppose if I trash it, all my preferences will also disappear. Sigh. I'm not happy about that.

No: the app is the app; your user preferences are entirely separate. (As an old unix hand, it's the difference between the binary and the config file!) Trashing the app will not remove your prefs. Just download and install the app again, and your prefs will still be there.

Now that you have located the Preferences file, it's a good idea to make a copy of it in case that file goes bonkers, which happens occasionally. If it happens you can just drag the copy into that spot.

Of course, you already will have copies of this file, as part of your backup.

[lynndavidnewton]

All of what Buon Tempi says is true.

When I installed the new binary in /Applications, it came right up. I tested it on the most recent piece of work I've done, and all my preferences are intact.

Nonetheless, I did copy the files recommended just in case.

Hint to less-than-expert Mac users: Never mess with stuff in ~/Library (currently over 282,000 files for me) unless you want to spend a season in Purgatory. I finally learned that the hard way.