The End of FINALE

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hautbois baryton
Posts: 104
Joined: 06 Jan 2018, 17:06

Re: The End of FINALE

Post by hautbois baryton »

What will likely happen is some clever folk on the internet will crack Finale 27 so it doesn't require authorization, and Finale will live on on the dark web as shareware. It happens to other abandonware.

(EDIT: feel free to remove if talk of piracy is shunned, I'm not advocating it)
Composer and engraver
MichelRE
Posts: 340
Joined: 07 Aug 2021, 17:11

Re: The End of FINALE

Post by MichelRE »

it doesn't matter anymore anyways.
MakeMusic declared that they were changing it so there would be no limit for the authorization.
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Fred G. Unn
Posts: 479
Joined: 05 Oct 2015, 13:24
Location: NYCish

Re: The End of FINALE

Post by Fred G. Unn »

MichelRE wrote: 28 Aug 2024, 18:40 I was wondering if SmartMusic would also die if Finale went the way of the dodo.
I think SmartMusic sales sort of exploded during COVID lockdown. I know the local public schools where I live are now using it. That's probably MM's current revenue stream and I assume one of the reasons they are killing off Finale is to focus all resources on it.
MichelRE wrote: 29 Aug 2024, 17:09 MakeMusic declared that they were changing it so there would be no limit for the authorization.
I know they backtracked and that's their current position, but I have to think at some point in the future they will change again and discontinue it. When? I dunno. 2 years? 5 years? Certainly I wouldn't expect to still be able to install Finale 10 years from now. And that's assuming some OS update doesn't render it incompatible if you aren't keeping a legacy system around to run it. At least for me, I feel like the clock is ticking to get my 14,000+ Finale files all saved as MXL and PDF. After the current backlash they experienced this week after announcing authorizations will cease in 1 year, I feel reasonably confident that we'll have at least 2 years, but anything after that is a gamble IMO.

There was a bug in the PC version of Finale where they changed the font naming structure of Maestro Wide in the mid-00s, that caused previous files that used that font to open as gibberish. I thought those all had to be opened one by one and the font swapped, until this week when I sent one of my older files to a good friend (Harry Connick's copyist) who opened it fine on a Mac. I wish I had known this when my kids were younger and we still had a "family" Mac Mini, LOL! I was due for a new laptop anyway, so I bought a MacBook yesterday with converting old Finale files as one of my primary motivations for the switch. (Unlike some PC users I've never been opposed to Macs, and use Apple for everything else, just opposed to Mac pricing! Bit the bullet and got one.)
Hector Pascal
Posts: 100
Joined: 17 Oct 2021, 23:15

Re: The End of FINALE

Post by Hector Pascal »

Today I went to look at the Finale Forum (https://www.finaleforum.com), but it was not viewable on my computer, and I am wondering if anyone else can view it? Hopefully, it's just a temporary outage.
Cheers,
Hector.
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David Ward
Posts: 554
Joined: 05 Oct 2015, 19:50
Location: Aberdeenshire, Scotland
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Re: The End of FINALE

Post by David Ward »

I clicked on the link at 12.10 GMT and immediately got through…
Finale 26.3.1 & 27.4 Dorico 5.1.51 waiting but not yet in use
Mac 11.7.10 & 14.7
https://composers-uk.com/davidward/news-links/
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OCTO
Posts: 1814
Joined: 05 Oct 2015, 06:52
Location: Sweden

Re: The End of FINALE

Post by OCTO »

Fred G. Unn wrote: 30 Aug 2024, 12:24 I know they backtracked and that's their current position, but I have to think at some point in the future they will change again and discontinue it. When? I dunno. 2 years? 5 years? Certainly I wouldn't expect to still be able to install Finale 10 years from now. And that's assuming some OS update doesn't render it incompatible if you aren't keeping a legacy system around to run it.
Buy a very cheap computer (can be even a desktop), install Finale on it, authorise, see everything works well and put it in basement for a long time storage.  Use HDD (spinning one) so that the data is retained.  Or just buy an extra HDD for your computer, install everything on it, and disconnect it from the motherboard.
I have still an iMac from 2007 with Snow Leopard that works well (but not in use).
Freelance Composer. Self-Publisher.
Finale 27.5 • Sibelius 2024.3• MuseScore 4+ • Logic Pro X+ • Ableton Live 11+ • Digital Performer 11 /// MacOS Monterey (secondary in use systems: Fedora 35, Windows 10)
John Ruggero
Posts: 2594
Joined: 05 Oct 2015, 14:25
Location: Raleigh, NC USA

Re: The End of FINALE

Post by John Ruggero »

OCTO wrote: 12 Sep 2024, 14:42 Buy a very cheap computer (can be even a desktop)
Oh no. There's only so much obsolescence one can take in two weeks. Next, it's desktops.
M1 Mac mini (OS 12.4), Dorico, Finale 25.5, GPO 4, Affinity Publisher 2, SmartScore 64 Pro, JW Plug-ins, TG Tools, Keyboard maestro

http://www.cantilenapress.com
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OCTO
Posts: 1814
Joined: 05 Oct 2015, 06:52
Location: Sweden

Re: The End of FINALE

Post by OCTO »

In desktops we trust!
Freelance Composer. Self-Publisher.
Finale 27.5 • Sibelius 2024.3• MuseScore 4+ • Logic Pro X+ • Ableton Live 11+ • Digital Performer 11 /// MacOS Monterey (secondary in use systems: Fedora 35, Windows 10)
MichelRE
Posts: 340
Joined: 07 Aug 2021, 17:11

Re: The End of FINALE

Post by MichelRE »

It always seems so odd to me.
I refuse to use a laptop simply because the screen is far too small, and I hate the constrained feeling of the tiny flat keyboard.

I always upgrade my computer to a powerful desktop, never to a laptop.

But then, I work from home, so I never really need to be on the road with work stuff (although I DO have access to a powerful laptop - my spouse's), I rarely ever make use of it.
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OCTO
Posts: 1814
Joined: 05 Oct 2015, 06:52
Location: Sweden

Re: The End of FINALE

Post by OCTO »

I think, for running Finale, you don't need a very strong computer.  I have had a laptop connected to the external monitor and keyboard for years and it worked well.
Freelance Composer. Self-Publisher.
Finale 27.5 • Sibelius 2024.3• MuseScore 4+ • Logic Pro X+ • Ableton Live 11+ • Digital Performer 11 /// MacOS Monterey (secondary in use systems: Fedora 35, Windows 10)
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