MidNote
by Wolfgang Maichen
sales2@pdamusician.com
www.pdamusician.com

Introduction
File Menu
Edit Functions
Markers
Moving Through Tracks
Playing Tracks
The Staff Display
The Edit Toolbox
View/Options
Tips And Tricks
Where To Get Help
Registering MidNote

Introduction



Hello, and welcome to MidNote, a handy tool to be musically creative no matter where you are!
MidNote is a program that allows you to enter music in staff notation, just as you would write it on a piece of paper. Editing is done by intuitive drag-and-drop operations of notes, rests, modifiers etc. Lyrics, chords, and drum tracks can be added as well. Up to ten tracks are available. There are many advanced editing features such as transposing the piece to a different key etc. The piece can be played on your handheld, and saved to and loaded from a file, or exported. Standard MIDI format import/export allows you to share your composition with others or with a desktop based composition tool.

File Menu



New File
Load File
Save File
Save File As
Recent Files
Play Full Piece
Play Selection
Import MIDI
Export MIDI
Mix MIDI Files
Exit

New File



Use this to clear the current file and the current filename. If the currently loaded file has any unsaved changes you will get a prompt asking if you want to save it before everything gets deleted. You will be asked to enter the time signature (e.g. 4/4) to be used for this piece. (You can always change this setting later in View->Time Signature). The first bar can have a signature that is different from the rest (e.g. 2/4, while the rest has 4/4).

Load File



Use this to load a previously saved file. If the currently loaded file has any unsaved changes you will get a prompt asking if you want to save it before the new file gets loaded. The default file extension is ".mdn". If you try to load a file that has not been created with MidNote, it will give you an error message. Loading a file will also restore the speed setting, display options, drum setups, as well as the current position and the marker positions for each track.

Save File



Using this command you can save the current file, including the present speed setting as well as the current positions and marker positions. If you haven't saved the file before, MidNote will prompt you for a new name, otherwise it will save the file under its current file name (if you don't remember the current file name, you can find it by selecting "File Info" in the file menu). The default file extension is ".mdn".
The save feature is disabled in the demo version.

Save File As



Use this to save a file under a new name. MidNote will prompt you for a new name. The default file extension is ".mdn". Apart from the file data also the present speed setting as well as display options, drum setups, the current positions and marker positions will be saved.
This feature is disabled in the demo version.

Recent Files



This gives you a list of files that you opened since the start of MidNote (to a maximum of 8), with the most recent one on top. Simply click on an entry to load this file again. In that way you can quickly switch between files. If you don't want to load any, click on cancel.

Play Full Piece



This function allows you to listen to your full polyphonic piece directly on your device. You can do the same by pressing the "Pl.Full" button on the main window.

It will export the currently loaded piece into a temporary MIDI file and then launch the chosen MIDI player (either GSPlayer, Mimidi, or PocketAMP) to play it. (To select which MIDI player to use, go to View -> General Settings). All you have to do then is press the "Play" button in the MIDI player window. When you are done, close the player and continue in MidNote. (Note for Mimidi: It is recommended to use the exit button on the lower right, not the standard WinCE exit button, or Mimdi will not get actually closed but rather only put in the background. If this happens, song title and the play time will not get updated the next time you launch it. Note for GSPlayer: while you need not exit through File -> Exit, doing so will assure that the next time you launch it the piece will start playing immediately, without having to press the play button. On the other hand, PocketAMP seems to work fine no matter how you exit). Which tracks are exported, which instrument sounds to use etc. is determined by the MIDI parameter settings in the View menu.

In order to use this feature, the chosen MIDI player (GSPlayer, Mimidi, or PocketAMP) must be installed on your system. MidNote will automatically locate it when this item is chosen for the first time. If it cannot find it, MidNote will display a message.

All those MIDI players are Freeware, written by third parties. You can download a version of GSPlayer or Mimidi with automated installer from the PDAMusician site, the link for GSPlayer is www.pdamusician.com/gsplayer.zip. GSPlayer only works on devices with ARM, StrongARM and XScale processor, so if you have a PocketPC 2003 device you are fine (all of them use XScale), for older devices it depends on the processor.

For Mimidi it is www.pdamusician.com/mimidi.zip. To get PocketAMP, go to the developer's download site at http://www.vsoftsol.com/PocketMIDI/preview.asp.

In the demo version only the first few steps of each track will get exported.

Play Selection



This function similar to "Play Full Piece", with the exception that it only plays the current track. You can do the same by pressing the "Pl.Sel." button on the main window.

If the markers M1 and M2 are set (M1 must be before M2), then only this selection (the part between those two markers) will be played, otherwise the full track.
This function is useful for example to check the isolated MIDI sound of a single track. It is also crucial because it is the only way to check a drum track (drum tracks can't be played in MidNote directly), and to hear chords played as such and not as arpeggios. MidNote will export the track (or the selected part of the track) into a temporary MIDI file and then launch the selected MIDI player (either GSPlayer, Mimidi, or PocketAMP) to play it. All you have to do then is press the "Play" button in the player. When you are done, close the player and continue in MidNote. (Note for Mimidi: It is recommended to use the exit button on the lower right, not the standard WinCE exit button, or Mimdi will not get actually closed but rather only put in the background. If this happens, song title and the play time will not get updated the next time you launch it. Note for GSPlayer: while you need not exit through File -> Exit, doing so will assure that the next time you launch it the piece will start playing immediately, without having to press the play button. On the other hand, PocketAMP seems to work fine no matter how you exit). Which MIDI instrument sounds to use etc. is determined by the MIDI parameter settings in the View menu.
In order to use this feature, the chosen MIDI player (GSPlayer, Mimidi, or PocketAMP) must be installed on your system. MidNote will automatically locate it when this item is chosen for the first time. If it cannot find it, MidNote will display a message.

All those MIDI players are Freeware, written by third parties. You can download a version of GSPlayer or Mimidi with automated installer from the PDAMusician site, the link for GSPlayer is www.pdamusician.com/gsplayer.zip. GSPlayer only works on devices with ARM, StrongARM and XScale processor, so if you have a PocketPC 2003 device you are fine (all of them use XScale), for older devices it depends on the processor.

For Mimidi it is www.pdamusician.com/mimidi.zip. To get PocketAMP, go to the developer's download site at http://www.vsoftsol.com/PocketMIDI/preview.asp.

In the demo version only the first few steps of the track will get exported.

Import MIDI



Use this function to import MIDI files created with other programs, dowloaded from the internet, etc. A typical application is to use it in combination with the MIDI export function to share pieces between MidNote and a desktop based composition program. Another use is to import a chord progression or pattern sequence from PocketSynth Pro. If the MIDI file originates from PocketSynth Pro, it will be completely imported, with two minor exceptions: MidNote does not know grace notes, and chords can only have up to 5 notes (whereas they can have up to 6 in PocketSynth Pro. This is a great way to use PocketSynth to create e.g. a rhythmic pattern or chord progression - which is easier then entering all the single notes in MidNote - and then export it to MIDI format and import it into MidNote.
MidNote will import each track of the MIDI file (provided the track is not empty) into one of the 10 available tracks. If a specific track is polyphonic (several notes playing at the same time in the same track), MidNote will try to import this by using chords. If this results in chord types that are not yet defined, it will tell you so and give you the option to add those new types to its chord type list. Drum tracks can contain up to 12 different drums. If more are encountered, the additional ones are simply ignored.
The MIDI import function is designed so that MidNote can re-import its own tracks (that may have been exported to MIDI format and then edited with a PC based composition tool) without any losses, therefore allowing to share a piece between MidNote and other (PC based) composition programs like Finale, Cakewalk, or Sibelius. To achieve that, MidNote will also export and import some additional information about global accidentals (# or b), track names, lyrics, bar lines, and drum mapping.

MidNote will automatically set bar lines - with the time signature found in the MIDI file - by calling the "Set Bar Lines" function after the piece has been imported. It will not issue an error of it cannot split up notes at some point, but simply continue setting bar lines where it can.

You can set some options for the way import is done in the MIDI parameter settings (View->MIDI Parameters).

MidNote will do its best to approximate the original playback speed as well as the original note durations, down to the smallest duration selected in the MIDI parameters.

The MIDI import feature is disabled in the demo version.

Export MIDI



This function enables you to export a file into standard MIDI format that can be played everywhere, including your PC, and you can distribute it to your friends, put it on the web, or modify it further with some desktop based composition program.
MIDI files are a format that is very compact (even long files won't exceed a few KB), because it does not contain the actual sounds, but rather information which notes shall be played when, at which volume, and so on. The files created this way use the MIDI standard sound set (general MIDI) and the general MIDI drum set. To play them, a MIDI player has to be installed on your device (such a player is usually already present on your PC, but not on your handheld. For the PocketPC there are some good players available as Freeware. For Mimidi go to http://www.pdamusician.com/mimidi.zip. GSPlayer (much better sound!) can be downloaded from http://www.pdamusician.com/gsplayer.zip. Others are PocketMIDI, PocketAMP, and MidPlay.
When exporting to MIDI format, you can choose the MIDI instrument to use as well as the volume for each track separately. This means that you can use a wide selection of instruments even when you haven't installed any additional MidNote sound sets, and different tracks can use different sounds. The resulting sound quality will be largely dependent on the MIDI player and the sound hardware you use and may range from excellent to very poor. To set these settings, open the MIDI parameter settings under View / MIDI Parameters. The MIDI import function is designed so that MidNote can re-import its own tracks (that may have been exported to MIDI format and then edited with a PC based composition tool) without any losses, therefore allowing to share a piece between MidNote and other (PC based) composition programs like Finale, Cakewalk, or Sibelius. To achieve this, MidNote will also export and import some additional information about global accidentals (# or b), track names, lyrics, and drum mapping.

To play MIDI files, a MIDI player has to be installed on your device (such a player is usually already present on your PC, but not on your handheld. For the PocketPC there are some good players available as Freeware. For Mimidi go to http://www.pdamusician.com/mimidi.zip. GSPlayer (much better sound!) can be downloaded from http://www.pdamusician.com/gsplayer.zip. Others are PocketMIDI, PocketAMP, and MidPlay.

In the demo version only the first few steps of each track will get exported.

Mix MIDI Files



This function allows you to mix together several MIDI files created by MidNote, PocketSynth, or PocketDrums. In other words, this enables you for example to mix your MidNote composition with a PocketDrums track. When you choose this menu item, a new window opens up where you can select the files you want to mix together, and the output (target) file. Once you have made your selection, press "Mix Files" to start the mixing process. Pressing "Quit" will get you back to the main window.
To play MIDI files, a MIDI player has to be installed on your device (such a player is usually already present on your PC, but not on your handheld. For the PocketPC there are some good players available as Freeware. For Mimidi go to http://www.pdamusician.com/mimidi.zip. GSPlayer (much better sound!) can be downloaded from http://www.pdamusician.com/gsplayer.zip. Others are PocketMIDI, PocketAMP, and MidPlay.

This feature is disabled in the demo version.

Exit



Use this to exit MidNote. If there are unsaved changes, MidNote will ask you if you want to save the file before the program quits. When installing a new version of MidNote, it is absolutely necessary to use this way to exit, because it shuts down MidNote completely (unlike the "X" button which only puts it in the background).

Edit Functions



Undo
Copy
Cut
Paste
Paste Multiple
Delete
Mirror Harmonic
Mirror Chromatic
Reverse
Transpose
Change Speed
Swap Drums
Change to b/#
Set Bar Lines

Undo



Choosing this item will undo the last edit operations (through the edit menu, or through drag-and-drop in the staff display), up to a maximum of 10. It will go back to the track and the position where it was before the edit to be undone. In case the contant backups slow down operation too much (or you just prefer to live dangerously), you can turn Undo off through the View menu.

The same function is also accessible by clicking on the Undo-Tool in the Edit toolbox on the bottom of the screen.

Copy



This functions copies the block between (and including) the markers M1 (start) and M2 (end) into the clipboard. It will issue an error of these markers haven't been set or M1 is after M2.

Cut



This functions moves the block between (and including) the markers M1 (start) and M2 (end) into the clipboard. This is equivalent to "Copy Block" with a subsequent "Delete Block". It will issue an error of the markers haven't been set or M1 is set after M2.

Paste



This functions pastes the block between that is currently in the clipboard after the step marked by the marker M2. It will issue an error of the markers haven't been set. To insert the block at the beginning of the song, set the marker M2 above the treble clef.

You cannot copy blocks from a melody track into a drum track or vice versa.

Paste Multiple



This functions pastes the block between that is currently in the clipboard multiple times after the step marked by the marker M2. This is very handy in order to e.g. duplicate a drum pattern or a rythmic figure. You will get an error of the markers haven't been set. To insert the block at the beginning of the song, set the marker M2 above the treble clef.

You cannot copy blocks from a melody track into a drum track or vice versa.

Delete



This functions deletes the block between (and including) the markers M1 (start) and M2 (end). It will issue an error of these markers haven't been set or M1 is set after M2. To delete single steps, the easier way is to use the Eraser tool from the Edit Toolbox on the bottom of the screen.

Mirror Harmonic



This functions is only available for melody tracks (i.e. not for drum tracks). It mirrors the block between (and including) the markers M1 (start) and M2 (end). It will issue an error of these markers haven't been set. "Mirror" means the pitches within the block will get inverted, so what the highest note will become the lowest, the second highest will become the second lowest, and so on. "Harmonic" denotes the fact that the mirrored block will contain the same notes as the original one (so the scale used is preserved). For example, mirroring the sequence "C3 D3 A3 G3 C3" (all contained in the C major scale) will be mirrored as follows:
The pitches contained are C3, D3, A3, and G3. Sorted from low to high this gives C3, D3, G3, A3. Harmonic mirroring means that C3 (the lowest) will become A3 (the highest) and vice versa; D3 will become G3 and vice versa. Thus the mirror operation yields "A3 G3 C3 D3 A3", which is still part of the C major scale.

Mirror Chromatic



This functions is only available for melody tracks (i.e. not for drum tracks). It mirrors the block between (and including) the markers M1 (start) and M2 (end). It will issue an error of these markers haven't been set or M1 is set after M2.
"Mirror" means the pitches within the block will get inverted, so what the highest note will become the lowest, the second highest will become the second lowest, and so on. "Chromatic" denotes the fact that unlike "Mirror harmonic" the mirrored block does not necessarily contain the same notes as the original one: this function does not preserve the pitch values, but preserves (and mirrors) the intervals instead. So the original scale is not preserved. For example, mirroring the sequence "C3 D3 E3 F3 C3" (all contained in the C major scale) will be mirrored as follows:
The pitches contained are C3, D3, E3, and F3. Thus the tonal range goes from C3 to F3. Chromatic mirroring means that C3 (the lowest) will become F3 (the highest) and vice versa. D3 is two half tones above C3 (the lowest pitch), so it will become the will become the pitch which is two half tones below F3, the highest pitch, which is D#3. Note that D#3 was not in the original sequence. E3 is four half tones above C3, so it will get converted to the tone four half tones below F3, which is C#3. Thus the mirror operation yields "F3 D#3 C#3 C3 F3". This is not the C major scale anymore!
A small hint: if you want to do this mirroring with a sequence from a certain scale, but the block under consideration does not contain all the scale notes, mirroring can give somewhat counterintuitive results. In this case simply precede the block with the full scale, include this scale part into the block, mirror the block, and then remove the scale part
To determine/change which accidental (b or #) MidNote shall use, select "Using: b" (or "Using: #) from the View menu - this will toggle the preferred accidental.

Reverse



This functions reverses the block between (and including) the markers M1 (start) and M2 (end), i.e. the notes sequence will be turned around. It will issue an error of these markers haven't been set or M1 is set after M2. Example: The sequence C3 D3 E3 C4 B4 A4 will become A4 B4 C4 E3 D3 C3.

Transpose



This functions is only available for melody tracks (i.e. not for drum tracks). It transposes the block between (and including) the markers M1 (start) and M2 (end) to a different pitch. It will issue an error of the markers haven't been set or M1 is set after M2. In addition you must enter how much the pitch shall be altered (in half-steps), and in which direction. For example, selecting "Shift down by..." and then "2" will change "A" to "G", "C" to "A#", i.e. always the note two steps below the original one. MidNote will not perform the transposition if any of the notes would exceed the available range ("C(1)" to "B(6)"). To determine/change which accidental (b or #) MidNote shall use, select "Using: b" (or "Using: #) from the View menu - this will toggle the preferred accidental.

Change Speed



This functions modifies the timing of the block between (and including) the markers M1 (start) and M2 (end) to make it play at either twice the original speed ("Half Time") or half the original speed ("Double Time"). It will issue an error of the markers haven't been set or M1 is set after M2. For example, if you have selected a block of 1/8 notes and choose "Change Speed", then "Double Time", the block will now be all 1/4 notes. MidNote will not perform the change if any of the notes would exceed the available time value range (1/32 to 1/1).

Swap Drums



This function is only available for drum tracks. It swaps the positions of two drums in the staff display without having to modify the whole track by hand, step by step. This is useful e.g. after importing a MIDI file: MidNote places the drums in the sequence it encounters it, starting with the lowest position on the staff, which may not be a very intuitive grouping. With the "Swap Drums" function you can now make MidNote display the HiHat on top of the staff, an so on.

Change to #/b



This functions will change all accidentals (b and #) of the block between (and including) the markers M1 (start) and M2 (end) to the type selected. It will issue an error of the markers haven't been set or M1 is set after M2. This will not change the way the block sounds - the actual pitches remain the same, only the display changes. For example, selecting "Change to b" will convert G# to Ab.

Set Bar Lines


This functions inserts bar lines with a in the chosen time signature (e.g. 4/4) for all tracks of the piece at once. (To change the time signature to be used, go to View->Time Signature and select the desired one from the list). This assures that the same bar number corresponds to the same timing position in each track, making navigation fast and easy.

If necessary, i.e. when a note crosses a bar, MidNote will try to split it up into two tied notes (i.e. a note at the end of the bar and a subsequent note - tied to the previous one - at the beginning of the next bar). This will only work if the split is possible with the note durations available in MidNote. If you have e.g. a quarter note, but the bar only needs another eigth to be completed, MidNote will split it up into two eigths, the first one followed by a bar line, then the second one being a tied note of length 1/8. If MidNote encounters a note that it cannot split up automatically, it will issue a message and set the display to the offending step - you may be able to correct it manually, e.g. by splitting up the note into more than two tied notes.

Since MidNote does not enforce bar lengths during edit, you can always modify the automatic bars by adding or removing single bar lines with the "Bar Line" tool from the edit toolbox.

Markers



What are markers used for?
Setting a marker
Jumping to a Marker
Removing a marker

What Are Markers Used For?



MidNote provides you with a set of four markers (aka bookmarks) called M1, M2, M3, and M4 that are used for a variety of tasks: When you save a file, the current marker positions will get saved as well, and will be restored when you load this file again.
Each track has its own unique set of four markers, MidNote will remember their positions when you switch from one track to another.

Setting a Marker



To set a marker to a specific poition, scroll or jump to the step where the marker shall be placed. To set a marker (for example M1) to this position, drag the appropriate marker symbol from the Edit Toolbox on the bottom of the screen over the note (or rest) at the desired position. Dragging the marker once more onto this position will remove the marker again.
To set a marker to the start of the track (i.e. before the first step), go to the beginning of the track (position 1) and drag the marker onto the treble clef on the left.

Jumping to a Marker



You can jump to any marker that has been set by clicking on the Position Display Button and clicking on the appropriate marker button. The step that has the marker will be the leftmost displayed on the staff display. If the marker hasn't been set, you will get a warning and the current position in the track will not change.

Removing a Marker



To remove a marker, drag the appropriate marker symbol from the Edit Toolbox onto the same step once more.

View/Options



About
Help
Track Info
Time Signature
Global Accidentals
Chord Type Editor
MIDI Parameters
MIDI Drum Setup
General Settings

About



This displays general information about MidNote (version, contact address).

Help



This displays this help file.

Track Info



This will give you some general information about the current track as well as the current file, such as the current file name, the length of the file, the track in steps, the time signature, and the total track play time in minutes and seconds.

Time Signature



Choosing this item will pop up a window where you can define the time signature (e.g. 4/4) to be used in the current piece. This setting will be used when MidNote sets bar lines automatically (through Edit -> Set Bar Lines). To view the currently selected time signature, you can also use View -> Track Info.

You can choose a different time signature for the first bar of the piece, thus allowing for upbeats.

This parameter will also get modified when you import a MIDI file. The settings will be saved with the piece, as well as written when you export the piece into a MIDI file.


Press the "Done" button to exit this window.

Global Accidentals



Choosing this item will pop up a window where you can define the global accidentals to be used in the current piece. The settings will be saved with the piece. These settings are roughly equivalent to the accidentals at the beginning of a staff line in regular music notation: Every time you move (drag) a note to a position that has a global accidental defined (or any octave thereof), the accidental will be added automatically. They will have no effect when you apply edit operations (like "transpose") or move a note in half steps by tapping above or below the note. This is to allow you to override the global accidental settings whenever necessary. Press the "Use #" or the "Use b" button, respectively, to define which type of accidental to use. Check the appropriate boxes to the left of the b/# in the staff. (You can define both a set of b's and a set of #'s at the same time, but only one of them can be active).
The parameters in this window will get modified when you import a MIDI file, in order to preserve as much information as possible from the MIDI file for a subsequent re-export into MIDI format.

Press the "Done" button to exit this window.

Chord Type Editor



Before you can use any chords in your track, you must first define the needed chord types (like major, minor, and so on). To edit existing types or create new ones, select "Chord Type Editor" in the Edit menu. A new window labeled "Edit Chord Types" will pop up, giving you a number of controls for this task.
On top you have a combobox that contains a list of all chord types defined so far. At the first start of MidNote, a few basic types are already defined by default. (If you ever want to go back to those default definitions, then exit MidNote through File->Exit, delete the file mdn_chords.dat in the MidNote directory on your handheld, and start MidNote again).
If you want to define a new chord type not yet in the list, you enter its definition using the interval comboboxes at the bottom. The numbers there mean "half steps above (or below) the root". A positive number means the note is higher than the root, a negative means it is lower, and 0 (zero) is the root itself. A bar (---) in a box means that it is not used (for chords that consist of less than five notes). For example a major chord (1-3-5 in standard chord notation) is entered as "0" (the root), "4" (the major third), and "7" (the fifth). Negative intervals are very useful since they allow to define inversions and slash chords.
You must also enter a name (in the "Name" field) for the type you want to create. Once you entered all the necessary information, press the "Add" button to add the definition to the end of the list, or the "Replace" button to replace the currently selected chord type. To rename a chord type, select it in the list, press "Show", change the name, then press "Replace".

If you want to check how an already defined chord type is built, or maybe want to use it as the basis for a new chord type, you can select this chord type in the list and the press the "Show" button. It will display the chord definition in the boxes below.
To delete a chord type definition, select it in the list and press the "Del" button. You cannot delete a chord type when a file is loaded. In this case unload the file (choose "New File" from the "File" menu) and then delete the chord type.

Sometimes you might want to change the order of the chord types in the list (e.g. in order to have the most frequently used ones at the top). To do this, select the desired chord and press the "Up" or "Down" button to move it up or down in the list. Again you can do this only when no file is loaded.
The "Done" button will save all your changes to the definitions and close the chord type edit window.
If you try to load a file (or import a MIDI file) that contains chord types you have not yet defined, MidNote will ask you if you want to add these definitions to your list. The file will not be loaded if you choose "No". MidNote will only add those definitions that are actually used in the loaded piece.
Using "Save List" and "Load List" you can also save all current definitions into a separate file. This is particularly useful if you import some MIDI files, which may result in may new chord types being added to the list that you may not want to keep. In this case save the definitions first, then import the file. After you are done, use "Load List" to restore the original list again.

MIDI Parameters



This item will pop up a window where you can set the parameters to be used for export of the piece into MIDI format, for import of MIDI files, as well as for polyphonic replay through an external MIDI player like GSPlayer, Mimidi, or PocketAMP (press "Pl.Full", or select File->Play Full Piece). The settings will be saved with the piece.

MIDI Export Parameters:

Use the combo box on the top to choose the track you want to change. The current settings will be displayed and you can make your changes. The parameters include if the track should be included into the exported piece, which instrument to use (from the 128 standard MIDI instruments), the MIDI channel tu use, and the volume. The volume setting actually consists of two slider bars: The upper one, called "Volume", sets the base volume the notes of the track are to be played. The second one defines the strength of any accents, i.e. how much louder and accented note shall be played compared to unaccented notes. (Accents are set with the "Accent" tool of the edit toolbox).

MIDI channel 10 is special because it is normally used as the drum track. Thus when you choose channel 10 for a MidNote track, this track will become a drum track. Since this change is only possible for an empty track, MidNote will warn you before it clears out the track and changes the channel. Because it would not make sense anyway, no instrument can be selected for such a track, and the instrument selection box is not shown.

The MIDI track names are also used as the track names displayed in MidNote in the track selection dropdown.

The parameters in this window will get modified when you import a MIDI file, in order to preserve as much information as possible from the MIDI file for a subsequent re-export into MIDI format (most importantly, the instrument information, and if the track contained melody or drums).

MIDI Import Parameters:

Many MIDI files you may get from the internet contain somewhat uneven timing and other hidden features to make the piece sound authentic, like a "real" musician would play it. However, this can make it very difficult for an automated program to figure out what the essential events are. MidNote offers two parameters which you can set to improve the accuracy of the imported piece. First, the minimum duration tells MidNote to ignore all notes (or rests) in the MIDI file that are shorter. So e.g. very short breaks that are only used to separate two notes, but would not be explicitly written in sheet music, will not get imported either. (Still, MidNote's import algorithm will remember what it neglected, and assure the timing of subsequent notes stays correct). Secondly, if you know that the MIDI piece should not contain any triplets, you can tell MidNote (through the "Use triplets" checkbox), which reduces the number of possible durations further.


Press the "Done" button to exit this window.

MIDI Drum Setup



Standard MIDI offers a selection of almost 50 different drums. Since no single piece will ever use all availabale drums at once, and displaying all possible drums would overload the available screen space, MidNote allows to create custom drum sets: Each drum track can contain up to 12 different drums (so if you need more than 12 drums, simply define another track as drum track (MIDI channel 10) and enter the additional drums there.
The drums of a track are divided into two groups of six, "A" (on the upper staff) and "B" (lower staff). Select the appropriate box on the bottom of the popup windows to change the drum mapping for the respective group.
The parameters in this window will get modified when you import a MIDI file, in order to preserve as much information as possible from the MIDI file for a subsequent re-export into MIDI format. MidNote will automatically create the drumset mapping based on the drums it encounters in the particular track. If you don't like the order of the drums the use Edit->Swap Drums to change it.

Press the "Done" button to exit this window.

General Settings



This popup windows lets you define a number of global options for the piece as a whole (in the upper half of the window), as well as specific settings for the currently displayed track (in the lower half). To see/change the parameters for a different track, exit this window, choose the desired track in the track selection dropdown, and bring up the general settings window again.

Global options:
Notation
Preferred Accidental
Scrolling
Sounds
Undo
Bar#'s (Bar Numbers)
Midi Player

Options for current track:
Mode
Pitch Range
Chord Labels
Lyrics

Press the "Done" button to exit this window and save all changes, or press "Cancel" to exit the window without saving.

Notation



Music for guitar and bass guitar is typically notated on octave "too high" (as compared to standard pitch). This is done in order to avoid the bass clef for the guitar, and and keep the bass centered on the bass clef, and so make the (bass) guitarist's life easier. This menu option gives you the choice between standard pitch (e.g. for piano music) and guitar pitch. It only affects how the notes are displayed, but it will not change the pitch of notes already entered.

Preferred Accidental



This displays the accidental (b or #) that MidNote is going to use when there is a need during any editing operation (transposing notes, mirroring, etc.). Select this item to toggle between b (flat) and # (sharp). This option is equivalent to the "Use #" or the "Use b" buttons in the "Global Accidentals" popup. It will also get modified when you import a MIDI file (depending on the key the MIDI file is written in).

Scrolling on/off



This item selects of the staff display shall scroll with the currently played note during play or loop. Scrolling can take considerable time (at each change of display the whole display has to be refreshed) and can cause timing inaccuracies during replay. It is however a great tool to check out a track for mistakes - it will show you immediately where they are. You can speed up the screen refresh by turning off lyrics and chord labels. (Note: Even when scrolling is turned off, the position display (the label on the "Goto" button) as well as the scrollbar will still get updated for each step and show the currently played position.
The default setting is "Scrolling: On".

Sounds on/off



This shows if MidNote will play sounds when performing drag-and-drop editing operations (placing of notes, deleting notes, etc.). These sounds give you a quick feedback about the pitch of the note you just placed or moved, so there is no need to constantly play a portion of the track to check how it sounds. Select this item to toggle between sounds on and sounds off.

Undo on/off



When editing very large blocks, the backup operations performed before each edit can take a while. If this is the case, you can turn the undo functionality off by selecting this item. However, be aware that by doing so you are no longer able to undo any of your operations.

Bar Numbers



Bar numbers are extremely helpful to navigate between tracks, given that due to the restricted screen space on a hendheld device, MidNote only displays a single track at a time. Bar numbers are displayed vertically above the corresponding bar lines. Use View->Time Signature to set the desired measure, and then Edit->Set Bar Lines to automatically set (or re-set) bar lines in all tracks of the piece. You then know that the same bar number corresponds to the same time position in each track.

However, having MidNote keep track of the bar numbers during edits and display, and draw those numbers, slows down screen refresh and scrolling a lot. This setting thus gives you the option of turning the bar number display on and of as needed.

MIDI Player



MidNote uses an external MIDI player to provide polyphonic play of the full piece. You can choose between three players, GSPlayer, Mimidi and PocketAMP. Make sure the chosen player is really installed on you handheld device. (MidNote will automatically search for the chosen player when needed, and issue a message if it cannot find it).

All three players are Freeware, written by third parties. You can download a version of GSPlayer with automated installer from the PDAMusician site, the link is www.pdamusician.com/gsplayer.zip.

For Mimidi, with automated installer from the PDAMusician site, the link is www.pdamusician.com/mimidi.zip.

To get PocketAMP, go to the developer's download site at http://www.vsoftsol.com/PocketMIDI/preview.asp.

Mode



This settings of a track contains melody ("normal" notes) or drums. You cannot change the mode for a track that already contains some notes. If you attempt to do so, MidNote will warn you and offer the possibility the empty the track (delete all of its contents) to allow switching. Setting a track to be a drum track will change its associated MIDI channel to 10, i.e. the standard MIDI drum channel (in View->MIDI Parameters).

Pitch Range



MidNote offers a pitch range of 6 octaves, but due to limited screen space on a PocketPC handheld only a range of 5 octaves can be displayed at once. This menu item shows and lets you switch the displayed range up and down in order to see either the lower 5 octaves ("Bass", octaves 1 to 5), or the upper 5 octaves ("Treble", octaves 2 to 6). The same switch can be performed faster by tapping on the "Change Pitch Range" field in the toolbox (this field is the one with the symbolized staff lines and the up- and the down-arrow). Notes exceeding the display range (i.e. either too high or too low to be displayed) are indicated by a small greyed out note on the upper (or lower) border and an arrow in the respective direction).

The pitch range can be set individually for each track and the setting will be saved and loaded with the piece.

Chord Labels



When you place chords into a track, MidNote will automatically display labels on top of them, denoting the root note as well as the chord type. However, if you prefer to label them yourself, you can turn these labels off and use the lyrics function to add any text. Turning the labels off will also speed up the screen refresh rate (and thus the achievable scroll speed during playing) considerably.

Lyrics Top/Bottom/Off



MidNote lets you add lyrics to the notes in a track. Use this menu item to turn the display of the text on and off, and to decide where the text shall be placed (i.e. above the notes - for chord symbols - or below - for lyrics). This position can be chosen for each track separately. Turning the lyrics display off will speed up the screen refresh rate (and thus the achievable scroll speed during playing) considerably.

Moving Through Tracks



Selecting the Active Track
The Scroll Buttons
The Scrollbar
The Position Display Button Navigating by Bars

Selecting the Active Track



A piece can contain up to 10 separate tracks. Each tracks consists of a single voice (and possibly chords), with the exception of drum tracks that can contain up to 12 different drums. Though within MidNote itself you can only play one track at a time, you can use File->Play Full Piece to hear all track played together. All editing is performed on the current track. To select a new active track, simply choose the appropriate track from the "Track" dropdown box. The new track will be displayed in the staff display, the position will be the one where you left it.
Per default the tracks are simply named "Track 1" trhough "Track 10". You can change this and give them more meaningful names in the MIDI parameter screen (View->MIDI Parameters). Those names are also included when you exported the piece into a MIDI file, and they are imported from MIDI files.

The Scroll Buttons



To move back and forth within the current track, you can use either the scroll buttons, or the Position Display Button, or the scrollbar. The slow scroll buttons (labeled ">" and "<") advance one step at a time. The fast scroll buttons jump by a whole screen (10 steps). Whenever you move, the Position Display Button will show the step number of the leftmost position.

The Scrollbar



To move back and forth within the current track, you can use either the scroll buttons, or the Position Display button, or the scrollbar. Whenever you move the slider of the scrollbar, the staff will change to show the selected part of the track, and the Position Display button will be updated show the step number of the leftmost position on the screen.

The Position Display Button



To move back and forth within the current track, you can use either the scroll buttons, or the Position Display button, or the scrollbar. The Position Display button has a dual function. First it always shows step number of the leftmost position on the screen. Second, when you click on it, a window will pop with several choices. You can enter the step you want to jump to (this will be the leftmost step on the display), choose a bar to go to (bars are separated by bar lines). If you haven't set any yet, the track contains only one - possibly very long - bar). Enter either the step (or bar) number into the appropriate edit box, and then press the button left to it.

Bar numbers are extremely helpful to navigate between tracks and find the same beat or timing position across different tracks, given that due to the restricted screen space on a hendheld device, MidNote only displays a single track at a time. Bar numbers are displayed vertically above the corresponding bar lines. Use View->Time Signature to set the desired measure, and then Edit->Set Bar Lines to automatically set (or re-set) bar lines in all tracks of the piece. You then know that the same bar number corresponds to the same time position in each track.

However, having MidNote keep track of the bar numbers during edits and display and draw those numbers slows down screen refresh and scrolling a lot. Use the "Bar#'s" checkbox in View->General Settings to turn the bar number display on and of as needed.

There are additional buttons to jump directly to the beginning of the track, the end of the track, or to one of the four markers (M1, M2, M3, M4), provided they are set.

Navigating by Bars



Bar numbers are extremely helpful to navigate between tracks and find the same beat or timing position across different tracks, given that due to the restricted screen space on a hendheld device, MidNote only displays a single track at a time. Bar numbers are displayed vertically above the corresponding bar lines. Use View->Time Signature to set the desired measure, and then Edit->Set Bar Lines to automatically set (or re-set) bar lines in all tracks of the piece. You then know that the same bar number corresponds to the same time position in each track.

However, having MidNote keep track of the bar numbers during edits and display and draw those numbers slows down screen refresh and scrolling a lot. Use the "Bar#'s" checkbox in View->General Settings to turn the bar number display on and of as needed.

Playing Tracks


Setting the Replay Speed (BPM)
Playing the Track Once
Playing the Full Piece

Setting the Replay Speed



Select the desired speed in the BPM box. This speed will be used not only for replay, but also when exporting the piece to MIDI format. The units is "BPM" (quarter beats per minute). The larger the number, the faster the piece will be played. The setting will also be saved when you save the piece to a file.

Playing The Track Once



To play the current track within MidNote, press the "Play" button. (This is not available for drum tracks). The button label changes to "Stop" and replay will start from the current position, or if markers M1 and M2 are set then it will only play the section between those two markers.

Chords will be played as arpeggios to give at least a first impression of how they sound. Also you cannot play drum tracks in MidNote directly. In both cases, i.e. either to hear the full chords, or to check a drum track, use either File->Play Full Piece or File->Play Selection (see below).

While playing, the position display and the scrollbar will be continuously updated to show the currently played step. In order to have the staff display follow as well, activate scrolling in the Settings menu (View->General Settings). Scrolling can take considerable time (at each change of display the whole display has to be refreshed) and can cause timing inaccuracies during replay. It is however a great tool to check out a track for mistakes - it will show you immediately where they are. You can also speed up the display by turning the lyrics display off (again in View->General Settings).


To stop the replay, press the "Stop" button.

To play the full piece (all tracks at once, and including chords, using the selected instrument sou d for each track), use File->Play Full Piece (or press the "Pl.Full" button), which will launch an external MIDI player. To play only the current track (or the selection between the Markers M1 and M2 if they are set), use File->Play Selection (or press the "Pl.Sel." button).

Playing the Full Piece



To play the full piece (all tracks at once, and including chords, using the selected instrument sou d for each track), use File->Play Full Piece (or press the "Pl.Full" button), which will launch an external MIDI player. To play only the current track (or the selection between the Markers M1 and M2 if they are set), use File->Play Selection (or press the "Pl.Sel." button).

The Staff Display



The staff display in the middle of the screen shows a section of the current track, starting with the current position. Though it largely works as you would expect from standard music notation, there are a few small differences: Accidentials (b and #) only apply to the note they precede. That means to play e.g. two F# notes, you have to precede both with a sharp (#), otherwise MidNote will play an F# followed by an F. As a consequence there are no naturals to resolve a previous accidential (because they are not necessary). You are free to mix sharps and flats. To choose which accidentals MidNote should set automatically whenever you add a new note, select them in View -> Global Accidentals. There you can also determine which type of accidental to use (b or #), which can also be done through View -> Using b/#

Markers (numbers 1 - 4 in a pointed box) are displayed above the step they are set to, on top of the staff display. The only exception is a marker set to the beginning of the track (before the first note - to allow e.g. inserting a block at the beginning) which will be displayed above the treble key.
The available pitches range from C(1) to B(6), which is the note on the bottom dotted line and the top dotted line, respectively. You cannot lower the lowest note or increase the pitch of the highest note by using accidentials (MidNote will refuse to put them).

Drum tracks are displayed slightly differently. Each line in the staff display (or more precisely: the spaces between two adjacent lines) corresponds to one drum. The note durations are displayed above the staff lines, while a small mark in the respective line indicated that this drum sounds on this particular beat. Which drum each line corresponds to is defined in the drum setup for the particular track (View->Drum Setup, only visible when the currently displayed track is a drum track). The mapping can also be modified through Edit->Swap Drums which is very useful when an existing drum track shall be changed.

The Edit Toolbox


General Remarks
Notes and Rests
Modifiers
Chords
Bars
 Lyrics
Markers
 Pitch Range
Eraser
Undo
The Staff Display

General Remarks



Most editing on a track (except block operations which are accessed through the "Edit" menu) is done using drag-and-drop from the Edit Toolbox on the bottom of the screen, or within the staff display. You can drag elements from the Edit Toolbox into the staff display, then if needed drag them within the staff display, or remove them from there by activating the Erase tool and clicking on the notes you want to remove. In most cases MidNote will also give acoustic feedback when a drag-and-drop operation has been performed. You can turn this off by selecting the "Sounds:" item in the "View" menu.

Notes and Rests



Notes and rests constitute the main part of a track. MidNote offers six basic durations ranging from 1/1 down to 1/32. These can be further modified using the modifiers to obtain triplets and dotted notes of each of these durations, or you can tie two notes together using the "tie" modifier (the horizontal bow in the edit toolbox).

The editing is different between drum tracks and "normal" melody tracks:
Melody Tracks: To insert a note or rest into the track, drag the appropriate symbol to the desired position in the staff display, using the stylus. If you drop it behind the last step of the current track, it will be appended to the end of the track. Otherwise it will be inserted between the two notes where you dropped it. If you reach the end of the display, MidNote will automatically scroll the track to the left to create space for another note. When you drop a note, it will be played in the chosen pitch (determined by the vertical position on the staff).
To change the pitch of a given note that is already in the staff display, there are three possibilities: First, you can drag an accidential (b or #) onto the note. This will set the chosen acidential, thus lowering (b) or increasing (#) the pitch of the note by a semitone. To remove an accidental that you have set, drag the same once more onto the note. Second, you an click above or below the note, which will change its pitch by a semitone in the respective direction (if MidNote has to use an accidental to achieve this, it will take the one chosen as the preferred accidental in the global settings (acessed in the "View" menu). Finally you can click on the note and drag it to a new pitch. However you cannot drag the note to a different position in the track.

Unlike notes, a rest can only be placed onto two vertical positions: either in the treble clef (fiver upper solid lines), or onto the bass clef (lower five solid lines). To move a rest between these two positions, drag it up or down as desired. However you cannot drag a rest to a different position in the track.
To remove a note or rest from the track, click on the Erase tool in the toolbox (the little eraser with "Del" written below it). It will become inverted. Then tap on the notes (or rests) you want to remove. Once you are done, tap again on the Erase too to turn it off.

If you want to undo your latest actions, just tap on the "Undo" tool in the toolbox.

To remove, move, or modify) a block of notes and/or rests, use the edit functions from the "Edit" menu. Drum tracks work somewhat differently: Each space between two lines in the staff display corresponds to a particular drum. Which drum each line corresponds to is defined in the drum setup for the particular track (View->Drum Setup, only visible when the currently displayed track is a drum track). The mapping can also be modified through Edit->Swap Drums which is very useful when an existing drum track shall be changed.

To enter a new step, drag a note or a rest of the desired duration into the staff display. When you release the stylus, the drum corresponding to the vertical position will be activated and a note (or rest) of the chosen duration displayed above the staff. Now additional drums can be placed on the same step simply by tapping on the desired vertical location. If you tap on a drum that is already set, it will get removed again, so it's easy to toggle a particular drum in a particular step on and off. If all drums in a step are turned off, the note will change into a rest. You can also add drums by dragging notes into the staff like for the first one. If you drag them onto an existing step, the drum gets added to that step. If you drag them between two steps, a new step with this drum will get inserted.

Deleting steps works just like it does for "normal" tracks: Activate the Eraser tool in the toolbox, then tap on the particular note or rest (only this time they are displayed ABOVE the staff). To delete a single drum without deleting the whole step, tap on the drum beat as described above.

Modifiers



Modifiers are additional marks that can be placed at a note or rest to modifier its duration (both of notes and rests) or its pitch (notes only). There are several of them:

The "Sharp" accidential (symbolized in the Edit Toolbox by a "#") will inrease the pitch of a note by a semitone. To apply this accidential, drag it onto the respective note or rest. To remove it from a note where it has been applied, drag it once more onto this note.

The "Flat" accidential (symbolized in the Edit Toolbox by a "b") will lower the pitch of a note by a semitone. To apply this accidential, drag it onto the respective note or rest. To remove it from a note where it has been applied, drag it once more onto this note.

The "Triplet" modifier (symbolized in the Edit Toolbox by a greyed out note with the letter "3" close to it) will modify the duration of the a (or rest) to a triplet. Three triplets of a note together are as long as two "normal" notes. To apply this modifier, drag it onto the respective note or rest. To remove it from a note where it has been applied, drag it once more onto this note.

The "Dot" modifier (symbolized in the Edit Toolbox by a greyed out note with a dot after it) will modify the duration of a note (or rest) to a dotted note. Two dotted notes together are as long as three "normal" notes (or in other words, a dotted note is longer by half than the corresponding "normal" note). To apply this modifier, drag it onto the respective note. To remove it from a note where it has been applied, drag it once more onto this note.

With the "Accent" modifier (symbolized in the Edit Toolbox by a greyed out note with a ">" above) you can tell MidNote to playe some notes louder than others, in other words, to accentuate them. The strength of the accentuation (i.e. how much louder) is set in View -> MIDI Parameters. You cannot set accents on rests or on notes tied to the previous note (because it would not make sense). To accentuate a tied note, set the accent on the note it is tied to.

Of course you cannot set pitch modifiers (sharps or flats) in drum tracks, but only duration modifiers as well as accents.

Chords



MidNote allows the use of chords consisting of up to 5 notes. Due to the limited screen space chords are symbolized by the root note and two greyed-out notes stacked on top of the root; in addition, the name of the root note and the name of the chord type (e.g. "F#m7") is displayed above the note (in this example, F# is the root, and m7 is the chord type). To use chords, you must first define some chord types in the chord editor (Edit->Edit Chord Types). Once this is done, you can place first the root note as usual, and then drag the chord symbol (three greyed-out notes stacked on top of each other) onto the note. A window pops up that lets you select the chord type and an octave offset. An offset of e.g. +2 means that the chord will sound two octaves higher than the root note indicates. This is very useful when you use a bass line to build up a chord progression, but want the chords to sound at a higher pitch. It also offers the possibility to access the pitch range above or below the normal range (C(1) tho B(6)). While MidNote cannot play those very high or low notes directly, they get played in the external MIDI player (File->Play Full Piece or File->Play Selection) and also get exported into MIDI format.

You cannot add a chord to a tied note (which always inherits pitch as well as chord from the note it is tied to) or a rest.

To clear a chord that has been set, select either "<NONE>" in the chord list, or press "No Chord".
You cannot use chords in a drum track.

Bars


Bars (symbolized in the Edit Toolbox by a "|" in a field of greyed out staff lines) is useful to make a track more readable and closer to the way it would be written in standard notation. It does not affect the way MidNote will be playing the track (i.e. there won't be any emphasis on the first beat after the bar line. Use the "Accent" tool to accentuate some notes more than others). To set a bar, drag it onto the note or rest after which it shall be placed. To remove a bar, drag it onto the note or rest in front of it.

To set all bars in the piece, it is usually easier to set first the time signature through View->Time Signature, and then let MidNote set all bar lines automatically by selecting Edit->Set Bar Lines.

Lyrics


MidNote lets you add lyrics and chord symbols to the notes in a track. (Lyrics will appear below the notes, chord symbols are usually placed above the notes). To do this, drag the lyrics symbol ("La La") from the toolbox to the note you want to set the lyrics/chord symbol for. A small window will pop up where you can enter the lyrics (or chord symbol) for this step. When you are finished, press "Done". "Clear" will clear the input field, this can be used to remove lyrics from a step. The text will be displayed either on the bottom or on the top of the staff display:

Use the "Lyrics" item in the View menu (View -> Lyrics) to turn the display of the text on and off, and to decide where the text shall be placed (i.e. above or below the notes). This position can be chosen for each track separately. Larger amounts of text can slow the display refresh down and cause the timing during play to become uneven.

Markers



Markers can be placed by dragging the respetive marker symbol (symbolized in the Edit Toolbox by numbers 1 to 4 in a pointed box) onto the desired step. To set a marker to the start of the track, scroll to the beginning of the track (position 1) and the drag the marker symbol onto the treble clef. The marker symbol will be displayed at the chose position on the top end of the staff display.
To move a marker to a new position, simply drag the symbol from the Edit Toolbox onto the desired step.
To remove a marker that has been set, drag the symbol once more onto the step it is set to.
To jump to a previously set marker, click on the position button. A window pops up where you can press one of the correpsonding buttons ("1" through "4").
Markers M1 and M2 are special because they are used by all the block edit operations (accessible through the Edit menu), as well as for looping and for playing a selection of the current track. Markers M3 and M4 have no such additional functions, you can use them freely to set bookmarks for quick navigation within the track.

Pitch Range



MidNote offers a pitch range of 6 octaves, but due to limited screen space on a PocketPC handheld only a range of 5 octaves can be displayed at once. By tapping on this tool (the one with the symbolized staff lines and the up- and the down-arrow) you can switch the displayed range up and down in order to see either the lower 5 octaves ("Bass", octaves 1 to 5), or the upper 5 octaves ("Treble", octaves 2 to 6). The same switch can be performed by choosing "Pitch Range" in the View menu - there you can also see which range is currently set. Notes exceeding the display range (i.e. either too high or too low to be displayed) are indicated by a small greyed out note on the upper (or lower) border and an arrow in the respective direction).
The pitch range can be individually for each track and the setting will be saved and loaded with the piece.
This setting has no effect when the current track is a drum track.

Eraser



You can remove single steps from the track using the Eraser tool (the small symbolized eraser with "Del" written below. Click on it once -it will become inverted, meaning that the erase mode has been turned on. Then tap on the notes (or rests) you want to remove (if it is a drum track, you have to tap on the notes/rests that are displayed above the staff lines). Once you are done, tap again on the Eraser too to turn it off.
To remove modifiers or bars (but otherwise leaving the note or rest intact), drag the appropriate symbol onto the particular note (or rest) once more. To unset a marker, either drag it once more onto the step it is set to, or choose "Remove Mx" (x = 1/2/3/4) from the "Marker" menu.

Undo



With the Undo tool (to the very right in the toolbox) you can easily undo the latest edits you made (up to 10 steps). Simply click into the undo field.

Tips and Tricks



If you don't get a sound, check the sound settings in the control panel (just cranking up the volume control is not enough). There are several different settings. Turn them all on and see if you hear something now. The fact that Windows Media Player works fine is no indication that all settings are on! The setting that must be turned on is "Sound for programs". If that does not improve the situation, try a warm reset of the handheld (press the reset button on the back). It is recommended that you to a complete backup of your device data before performing this reset though.
In some cases it has been reported that the popup keyboard gets covered so it is no longer possible to enter text for lyrics or chord type names. In this case a simple workaround to bring it back is to choose File->Load and then cancel the operation. The soft keyboard will come up with the file menu, and it will stay even after the file menu closes. This issue only seems to affect PocketPC's.
The volume with which the notes are played depends on the volume you set in the control panel. On a WindowsCE device, choose Start -> Settings -> Control Panel -> Volume and Sounds to change it. On a PocketPC there is typically a volume control button located on the start bar on the top of the screen. If your setting is to high, the sound might get distorted because the small loudspeaker of a handheld easily gets overdriven. In this case, choose a lower setting.

If the playback speed is bumpy, it can be that your handheld's processor lacks the power to update the screen fast enough (especially for sections with many very short notes). In this case try to turn off lyrics and chord labels in the Settings panel (View->General Settings). Printing text on the screen takes up a lot of processor resources. In addition, you can also turn scrolling off (View->Scrolling).

Due to restrictions in the WindowsCE event handling, the song playback might be stopped when you repeatedly click on a button while the song is playing, without MidNote being able to notice that. If this happens, simply continue playing by clicking on the "Play" button or the "Loop" button, or reset the play state by pressing "Stop".
If you still need help, feel free to write the author of this program (Wolfgang Maichen) at sales2@pdamusician.com.

Where To Get Help



If you have any questions about MidNote, suggestions for improvements, want to report a bug, or need information about how and where to get the full unrestricted version, feel free to write to the author (Wolfgang Maichen) at sales2@pdamusician.com.

All feedback is greatly appreciated!
You should also check out the MidNote home page (www.pdamusician.com) for updates, add-on programs, and new developments.

Registering MidNote



A registered version of MidNote is available at www.shareit.com, and the price is US$ 19,-. To order it, go to www.shareit.com and enter "MidNote" into the "Search" field (alternatively you can search for the program number, 166344). When you register there, you will receive a link from where you can download the full version directly. MidNote is also available at www.Handango.com and www.PocketGear.com and www.PDApointer.com (just search for "MidNote" on these sites).
However, if you prefer (and want to save some money), payment can be made via www.paypal.com as well. Unlike Shareit, Paypal takes only a small transaction fee out of the payment, and I can pass these savings on to you - if you pay using Paypal, you get MidNote for $15,-. You find a direct link for this on the MidNote website (www.pdamusician.com)! If for any reason you want to set up the payment manually, all you need is to set up an account with Paypal (this does not cost you anything), and then send $15 to my email address (sales2@pdamusician.com). In this case please do not forget to mention which program you are paying for!

If you pay through paypal, the full version will be mailed to the email address you provide during the payment process (typically within less than 24 hours). Please make sure that your mailbox is not full (at least 1MB of free space), and that it can accept executable files (virus software in company networks will often strip out any executable files, or even bounce the mail completely. If this is the case for you, you can always provide a free webmail address like Yahoo or Hotmail where the program will be sent to.)
The easiest way to register is to go to the MidNote home page (www.pdamusician.com) where you find links to buy it through either Shareit or PayPal.
If you don't have a credit card and cannot use any of above methods, please contact me (Wolfgang Maichen) by sending an e-mail to sales2@pdamusician.com, and we can work something out. I accept almost any form of payment except Kauri shells :-)

Additional features of the registered version: