The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #66142   Message #1095285
Posted By: wysiwyg
17-Jan-04 - 11:17 PM
Thread Name: Tech: Set List Software
Subject: RE: Tech: Set List Software
Why not just set it up as a blank table in Word and drag-drop things into that? Or why not do it all up in Excel with song keys keys and comments, and drag-drop to that? You could add a column in Excel for some kind of attribute and sort by that to divide your total repertoire into various segments of the list. Highlight and Print Selection to print the post-sorted segmnent. This way you could add details like "singalong" or "weeper" or "non-PC" so you could see not only the titles, but the shape and mood of the set, the flow from mood to mood.

Add how long the song is, which instrument you need to grab, capo to what fret, etc., so that you can organize the set with minimal stage fussing. You can even program in your patter with reminders to tell certain jokes or anecdotes. You can put intro details in there too, you know, the things you want to be able to say as you introduce each item. You can move rows around as desired till it all makes sense, and you can copy and bulk-paste cell content wherever details repeat. You can highlight only those columns you actually need to see while onstage, and print just those columns in small type.

Yeah, Excel... I'd do it in Excel. Some people would use Access instead (or some other database), but I like to see things all laid out in a table more than I like a card catalogue effect, and Excel will do that as well as let you sort.

~S~