At 12:27 PM 6/9/03 -0400, Andrew Stiller wrote:...>adjust them all simultaneously.I find that layout in recent versions goes very quickly and easily. The key thing, I think is that one should do as little dragging as possible. Virtually all movement of staves and systems should be done with plugins (notably TGTools and JW Space Systems) and by entering numbers in the Adjust Page/System Margins dialogs. By these means, you can select any number of systems across any number of pages and
To wh. Dennis:
For example: There will be a stray note high or low, and I only want that system or staff moved on that page.
To adjust one system: increase its betw. systems number, then decrease the number for the other systems on the page. Sometimes its easier to do this second step w. JW Space Systems--but you have to make sure to check the "compact systems" checkbox.
Or there will be a line of notes that's higher or lower that goes on for a page or two, or a bunch of dynamics that need a staff moved out of the way for them to fit, or a particularly scrunchy batch of hairpins and text notations.
to move staves around, first optimize all the relevant systems, then drag the lower handle(s) of the stave(s) that need(s) to be moved. You can drag multiple staves by drag-enclosing the lower handles *from the bottom up*, then click on any one of those staves and *keep the mouse button down* while you drag. If staves are coming unselected for you, you are probably trying to double-click-drag, and the first click deselects the unclicked staves. If you keep the mouse button down, everything shd. drag properly.
BTW, once you've adjusted a given page in this way, TGTools has a Copy Optimization feature that will allow you to copy what you've done into any other system. It copies not only the optimization per se, but also any custom staff dragging, group alterations, etc. that you may have done w. the optimized staff. Further BTW, the TGTools Staff List Manager allows you to enter numeric values for the position of indiv. staves in an optimized system.
Sometimes for legibility I want to spread out the staves and systems of a piano part only on one page, and the tools to space systems evenly end up with gobs of white space that I don't want. Or I have added an ossia just above one system in one place. Or, less frequently, I want to change the look of a few systems in a more graphical score.
Again, be sure to optimize the system before dragging staves around. All inter-system spacing should be adjusted using the "Between Systems" value. One little-known trick introduced in recent versions allows you to respace all the staves in a given system without using a plugin. You just optimize the system, go to the Staff tool, select any or all of the lower handles in that system, and choose Respace Staves from the Staff menu. I find this easier, quicker, and more reliable to use than any of the staff-respacing plugins, but it only works on one system at a time.
-- Andrew Stiller Kallisti Music Press
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