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Chris Walshaw's ABC website relaunched

28 Jun 09 - 01:07 PM (#2666548)
Subject: abc website relaunched
From: GUEST

The abc notation website has been relaunched, with some exciting new features:

* a new location - the website is now hosted at
   http://abcnotation.com
* abc tune search - the web-wide index (as it used to be known) is now searchable
   http://abcnotation.com/search.html
* discussion forums are now available
   http://abcnotation.com/forums

The former address http://abcnotation.org.uk will take you the new website too.

Previous host addresses (such as http://www.walshaw.plus.com/abc and http://staffweb.cms.gre.ac.uk/~c.walshaw/abc) will still get you there but you should adjust your bookmarks and/or links.

The old address (http://www.gre.ac.uk/~c.walshaw/abc) has not worked for some years now - sorry about that, but there's nothing I can do about it.

Please enjoy the new site and let me know if you have any suggestions, corrections or comments.

Chris Walshaw
    I added Chris Walshaw's name to the thread title because many people know the site by Chris's name. Hope you don't mind, Chris.
    -Joe Offer-

28 Jun 09 - 11:34 PM (#2666839)
Subject: RE: abc website relaunched
From: Joe Offer

Glad to see you're back, Chris. I used your old site many times. Wikipedia says that you're the one who originally developed ABC notation - I hadn't known that.

-Joe Offer-
Thread #63210   Message #1025225
Posted By: GUEST,Jon
26-Sep-03 - 02:17 PM
Thread Name: Tune Req: ABC Files and how to read them?
Subject: RE: Tune Req: ABC Files and how to read them?
Here you go Mark, on the origins and original designs of abc (from Phil Taylor, found in the abcusers archive):

[..]Chris Walshaw invented abc when he was on holiday in
France, encountered some French musicians with interesting tunes, and
lacked manuscript paper to write them down. So he just wrote the names
of the notes along with a multiplier for the length as necessary, and a
bit of header information required to read the rest. Later, faced with
a pile of scraps of paper with tunes written in text he wrote the first
version of abc2mtex as a way of converting this material to conventional
musical notation.[...].

29 Jun 09 - 10:45 PM (#2667699)
Subject: RE: abc website relaunched
From: Mark Clark

Thanks, Chris, for the great new site. I was first introduced to ABC notation here on Mudcat about ten years ago. I've used it for quite a variety of things including four-part Byzantine Liturgical music. It's sure an easy syntax to master and use.

These days I use a lot of other stuff too (e.g. LilyPond) but ABC notation is still useful for me and, it would seem, thousands of other people too.

      - Mark

30 Jun 09 - 07:48 AM (#2667899)
Subject: RE: abc website relaunched
From: Tradsinger

Can anyone tell me the best ABC2win to download. I am using the version which is Beta 2.2.14, but it's a bit flaky and prone to throw up error messages all the time. Thanks.

Tradsinger

01 Jul 09 - 05:13 AM (#2668702)
Subject: RE: abc website relaunched
From: GUEST,.gargoyle

THANK YOU - Mr. Walshaw

You developed a wonderfully easy method for transcribing
and more importantly, sharing music in the early internet days.

I learned your system here at mudcat.

Your new website looks good and is easy to navigate with clear
easy to follow instructions.

Your production of a bagpipe - hurdy-gurdy duet CD - certainly suits
a whimsical fancy.

Thanks again for sharing your fun.

Sincerely,
Gargoyle

01 Jul 09 - 06:27 AM (#2668744)
Subject: RE: abc website relaunched
From: johnadams

Tradsinger wrote

Can anyone tell me the best ABC2win to download. I am using the version which is Beta 2.2.14, but it's a bit flaky and prone to throw up error messages all the time. Thanks.

Opinions will vary of course, but my present recommendation for abc software for PC is the French programme ABC Explorer which has collated the best bits of abc software into a single package. My colleague in the Village Music Project, Chris Partington, has translated the manual from French to English and has tested the programme extensively with mostly favourable outcomes. He may well post some comments here himself but in the meantime check out the site.


ABC Explorer

01 Jul 09 - 06:30 AM (#2668745)
Subject: RE: abc website relaunched
From: Jack Campin

Can anyone tell me the best ABC2win to download.

None of them. It was never updated to deal with changes in ABC over the last 10 years. It generates ABC that more modern programs can't handle and barfs on most of the ABC now on the web.

Get abc2midi and abcm2ps instead. They're free.

01 Jul 09 - 07:08 AM (#2668760)
Subject: RE: abc website relaunched
From: treewind

Jack is right but it should be added that ABC Explorer uses abcmidi and abcm2ps for its back end processing, so they are compatible.

Personally I don't like the file management of ABC explorer (not nearly transparent enough about what it's doing and where its files/tunes are being kept) and I use abcm2ps, plus a text editor than does syntax highlighting and knows ABC.

However ABC Explorer's ability to show the tune graphics updated in real time as you type in the raw text is a real bonus for anybody not fluent in ABC.

Anahata

01 Jul 09 - 07:28 PM (#2669310)
Subject: RE: abc website relaunched
From: Tradsinger

OK, I've downloaded ABC Explorer but I can't see a print option. Can someone enlighten me.

Tradsinger

02 Jul 09 - 02:43 PM (#2669983)
Subject: RE: abc website relaunched
From: SteveMansfield

OK, I've downloaded ABC Explorer but I can't see a print option. Can someone enlighten me.

Enlightenment ahoy -

File menu >> Export Score

gives options to print the dots or the abc. That's also the place to export the dots in various graphic formats, or to email the abc file.

I know, I know ...

03 Jul 09 - 08:37 AM (#2670571)
Subject: RE: abc website relaunched
From: GUEST,Chris P

Tradsinger.
Certainly I'll help you.
Read the help file I translated for you! ;-)   

- and there you will see that you select the tune you want, or the file of tunes, or your selection of tunes in the 'temporary list', click on the icon thingy of a printer which leads you to the dialogue box where you can change some stuff (scale,size title font etc), choose to print it quick and dirty (direct printing) or posh (PDF,BMP,PNG,JPG).

There are other options available for individual tunes and the temporary list, such as exporting in various other ways e.g. Midi.
Make your selection and the relevant menu becomes available, then choose 'export tune' and a dialogue box appears.

13 Jul 09 - 10:40 AM (#2679094)
Subject: RE: abc website relaunched
From: nutty

I'm having difficulty accessing Chris Walshaw's abc sites from the links he gave above.

Can anyone help? Pleeeeeese

13 Jul 09 - 11:53 AM (#2679148)
Subject: RE: abc website relaunched
From: Geoff the Duck

Just got the following error message when trying the Blickies to the site :-

Service Temporarily Unavailable
The server is temporarily unable to service your request due to maintenance downtime or capacity problems. Please try again later.

Additionally, a 404 Not Found error was encountered while trying to use an ErrorDocument to handle the request.


Hopefully just down for maintenance.
Quack!
GtD.

13 Jul 09 - 12:13 PM (#2679174)
Subject: RE: abc website relaunched
From: Jack Campin

Error 503. You must know what that means after being on Mudcat as long as you have...