"Finale cannot find the file Basic"

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mark carlson
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Post by mark carlson » Tue Aug 31, 2021 9:19 pm

For the past couple of years, whenever I open a new file, I get the attached message. I know that I am foolish for having put up with it for so long, but I now would really like to solve this issue. I *do* have a default file, which I thought was supposed to open automatically when I open a new file, and it used to do just that. And it has all of my preferences in it automatically, so I'd really like it to *be* the default file; it would save a lot of time and aggravation.

I guess I could follow the instructions here and "reinstall the missing file from my Finale installer", but I honestly don't know how to do that.

Any suggestions as to what I should do?

Mark
Finale 26.3
OS 11.5.2
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Screen Shot 2021-08-31 at 2.10.13 PM.png


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motet
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Post by motet » Tue Aug 31, 2021 9:27 pm

Look at your Preferences, especially New and Folders, and make sure you didn't accidentally add something called Basic.

mark carlson
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Post by mark carlson » Tue Aug 31, 2021 9:35 pm

motet wrote:
Tue Aug 31, 2021 9:27 pm
Look at your Preferences, especially New and Folders, and make sure you didn't accidentally add something called Basic.
Attached is what I find when I open Preferences-->New. In fact, it did say "Basic", so I changed it to the name of my default file, "Finale Default File". But now, when I try to open a new document, it says "Finale cannot find the file Finale Default File". So I've just traded one dead-end file name for another. Is there something I am not seeing here that will get it to be able to locate my default file?

Thanks!
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Screen Shot 2021-08-31 at 2.31.25 PM.png

mark carlson
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Post by mark carlson » Tue Aug 31, 2021 9:46 pm

Reading in the manual, I get this information for where the default file should be:

Library/Application Support/MakeMusic/Finale 2014 (or Finale 2014.5)

I assume that the same applies to Finale 26. But the directions stop there. Within that folder are a whole bunch of things, several of which sound as if they'd be there right place for a default file. Does it go into "Libraries"? If so, then where? "Default Libraries"?

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miker
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Post by miker » Tue Aug 31, 2021 9:56 pm

Marc,
F26 is basically the same as 2014, but some of the folder paths may have changed. Go to the program preferences, and click the Folders tab. That will show you the default directory paths, unless you changed something. Remember that on a Mac, there are two Finale paths; one for the computer, and one for the particular user. Make sure you’re in the correct one!
Finale 27 | SmartScorePro 64
Mac OS 13.2.1 Ventura
Copyist for Barbershop Harmony Society

mark carlson
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Post by mark carlson » Tue Aug 31, 2021 10:14 pm

miker wrote:
Tue Aug 31, 2021 9:56 pm
Marc,
F26 is basically the same as 2014, but some of the folder paths may have changed. Go to the program preferences, and click the Folders tab. That will show you the default directory paths, unless you changed something. Remember that on a Mac, there are two Finale paths; one for the computer, and one for the particular user. Make sure you’re in the correct one!
So far, so good--SORT OF. I put my default file in the place indicated by the directory path, as you suggested, but the file has none of the things, like page margins, that I carefully saved into it. Instead, the attached is what I get, trying to set up a document for an SATB and piano piece. It's ridiculous and enigmatic.
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Ridiculous result of default file.musx
(103.33 KiB) Downloaded 71 times

mark carlson
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Post by mark carlson » Tue Aug 31, 2021 10:57 pm

Does anyone have a clue as to why opening up my default file results in this? It looks nothing like my actual default file: not only are the page and system margins WAY off, but, as you can see, the staff height is quite amazingly tiny.

I'm attaching it again so no one has to hunt for it, and I am also attaching my actual default file.
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Finale Default File.musx
(46.55 KiB) Downloaded 68 times
Ridiculous result of default file.musx
(103.33 KiB) Downloaded 59 times

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motet
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Post by motet » Tue Aug 31, 2021 11:00 pm

Did you add the "Welcome Winter" just now? If not, looks like the wrong file. May be the wrong file anyway. Temporarily rename it and see what happens.

Are you creating with New document from template or New default document? Different things.

If you look at Document/Page Format/Score, you'll see the staff height is set tiny.

mark carlson
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Post by mark carlson » Tue Aug 31, 2021 11:14 pm

motet wrote:
Tue Aug 31, 2021 11:00 pm
Did you add the "Welcome Winter" just now? If not, looks like the wrong file. May be the wrong file anyway. Temporarily rename it and see what happens.

Are you creating with New document from template or New default document? Different things.

If you look at Document/Page Format/Score, you'll see the staff height is set tiny.
I renamed it, and it is still the ridiculous thing with tiny staff height and huge system margins. And yes, I checked the staff height setting and see that it is tiny, but that is not at all what my default file is set to, which is .25" height. Where is it getting these settings? I can assure you, I never chose to have a staff height of 0.13542" and a page reduction of 25%, nor systems with over 7" between systems. Arrrggghhh!

If I have Finale open and press Command-N, as I always have to open a new file, I get the same error message that Finale cannot find the default file. If, however, I quit finale and open it, it opens directly to Setup Wizard. I go through all of the steps to set up the document, only to have the thing with the minuscule staff height.

What am I doing wrong?

mark carlson
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Post by mark carlson » Wed Sep 01, 2021 12:13 am

motet wrote:
Tue Aug 31, 2021 11:00 pm
Did you add the "Welcome Winter" just now? If not, looks like the wrong file. May be the wrong file anyway. Temporarily rename it and see what happens.

Are you creating with New document from template or New default document? Different things.

If you look at Document/Page Format/Score, you'll see the staff height is set tiny.
This much I have figured out, but it's still not letting me do what I want. I realized that my default document was already in the Default Files folder, so when I corrected its name to match in the "new" setting in the Preferences, now, if I click Comman-N, I get a new document, but only with one staff. If I create a new document from a template, everything is fine.

If I set up a new document using the Setup Wizard—which is what I want to do—that's when I get these impossible settings that seem to come from nowhere.

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motet
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Post by motet » Wed Sep 01, 2021 12:15 am

Preferences/Folders/Default Files shows the folder where the default document should be. For the Maestro font, it should be called Maestro Font Default. In Preferences/New, Default Document should also say Maestro Font Default. Perhaps someone with a Mac could upload that file here and you could start over.

See this manual page:

http://usermanuals-prod-finalemusic-com ... cument.htm

mark carlson
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Post by mark carlson » Wed Sep 01, 2021 12:22 am

motet wrote:
Wed Sep 01, 2021 12:15 am
Preferences/Folders/Default Files shows the folder where the default document should be. For the Maestro font, it should be called Maestro Font Default. In Preferences/New, Default Document should also say Maestro Font Default. Perhaps someone with a Mac could upload that file here and you could start over.

See this manual page:

http://usermanuals-prod-finalemusic-com ... cument.htm
Thanks. I did figure out that it was already there (see my most recent post in answer to your post), and I renamed what file to use in "new". So now I am able to access--but only if I open a new document from the default file or from a template. If I try to open one with the Setup Wizard, I get the thing that I posted with tiny staff height, etc. I'd really like to find out how not to have this happen.

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motet
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Post by motet » Wed Sep 01, 2021 12:27 am

The Setup Wizard is obviously using a different file. You could maybe look at the modification dates with the Mac Finder and see if you can figure out which one has changed. Mike says there are two sets, one system-wide and one per user. Make sure you are looking at the right one; you may be able to compare the two sets and see where they differ.

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motet
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Post by motet » Wed Sep 01, 2021 12:30 am

Here you go: the setup wizard uses Music Files/Document Styles/Engraved Style (or handwritten). I suspect this is the one that is the goofy one.

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motet
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Post by motet » Wed Sep 01, 2021 12:33 am

.
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mark carlson
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Post by mark carlson » Wed Sep 01, 2021 12:41 am

The mystery deepens: Now that I have located the proper default file, the Setup Wizard works fine EXCEPT when I am trying to set up a combination of voices and piano, and then I get the tiny staff height and huge system margins. Any solo voice and piano works fine, two voices and piano works fine, three or four voices and piano gets the tiny staff height thing.

This is really weird.

I guess I will have to set things up with different instruments and rename them once the score is otherwise ready to go--or only write for things that can use a ready-made template.

mark carlson
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Post by mark carlson » Wed Sep 01, 2021 12:43 am

motet wrote:
Wed Sep 01, 2021 12:30 am
Here you go: the setup wizard uses Music Files/Document Styles/Engraved Style (or handwritten). I suspect this is the one that is the goofy one.
That's definitely what I am using. As mentioned in my last two posts, it all works fine now except when I have three or four voice and piano. Very weird.

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motet
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Post by motet » Wed Sep 01, 2021 12:53 am

Piano plus SATB works for me.

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motet
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Post by motet » Wed Sep 01, 2021 12:55 am

If you have changed Engraved Style and can put the one that comes with Finale back and see if the phenomenon persists, that would be interesting. If you can upload your version here, I can try it on Windows--it should work.

mark carlson
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Post by mark carlson » Wed Sep 01, 2021 1:05 am

motet wrote:
Wed Sep 01, 2021 12:55 am
If you have changed Engraved Style and can put the one that comes with Finale back and see if the phenomenon persists, that would be interesting. If you can upload your version here, I can try it on Windows--it should work.
I haven't changed the Engraved Style, though. What should I upload? In case you mean my default file, I'll upload that now.
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Maestro Font Default.musx
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motet
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Post by motet » Wed Sep 01, 2021 1:16 am

It sounds Engraved Style is the one that's involved, yes.

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motet
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Post by motet » Wed Sep 01, 2021 7:19 pm

Can you upload your Engraved Style, which is what the setup wizard uses?

mark carlson
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Post by mark carlson » Wed Sep 01, 2021 10:26 pm

motet wrote:
Wed Sep 01, 2021 7:19 pm
Can you upload your Engraved Style, which is what the setup wizard uses?
Hmmm I thought that's what I did yesterday, but maybe I am not understanding. I thought that the Engraved Style used the Maestro Font Default. Let me know what I should do differently.

Thanks,

Mark

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motet
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Post by motet » Wed Sep 01, 2021 11:06 pm

In Preferences/Folders you'll see "Document Styles." Look in whatever folder is listed there for a file called Engraved Style. That's what's used when you use the set-up wizard.

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Post by BuonTempi » Sat Sep 04, 2021 12:45 pm

miker wrote:
Tue Aug 31, 2021 9:56 pm
F26 is basically the same as 2014...
7 years well spent, I think you'll agree! :lol:

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