Abe,

Please remember that this is a user forum. Although Finale staff does (occasionally) drop in, you should submit the request to them, using the tab at the top of this page. (It's also a bad idea to post your serial number.)

You could (partially) solve the problem with an upgrade to Finale, which will allow you to use plugins. JW Change>Chord>Resize will let you enlarge the chord and symbol. Unfortunately, it also drops that symbol to the baseline, rather than having it as superscript.

Further experimentation...

You can enter the chord as a text expression. This still gives you the symbol on the baseline. SongWriter does not have Superscript, although the full Finale, does. Or, as I did in the second example, you could do the C and the ø as separate characters, and move them to suit. I also tried creating the figure in a word processing doc, using superscript, but when I pasted it into SW, it dropped, again. If you can live with it on the baseline, you can set it up as an expression.

And just as a BTW, MM has pretty much said that SongWriter will not be upgraded. So the chances of them fixing anything is approximately, zero.

Abe,

Typing in all caps is offensive. The people who contribute to this forum are primarily users, many of whom try their best to help other users. They do not create the programs you are angry about.

As Mike R put it, "You can enter the chord as a text expression." 

On a Mac, Option-j gives you the ∆ at any font size in any font that supports it such as Times New Roman

PrintMusic 2014 does not have the ∆ available except as a text expression but you can resize the default Text font. It does show ø correctly as a Chord Suffix when typed in (Option-o).

BTW, I avoid the ∆. I come from the old school that knows C∆ is a CMaj7 chord. I don't know when it came to mean half diminished (nor do I care). When playing guitar books in shows, I got used to checking the guitar book against the piano score. With Tams-Whitmark, Irving Berlin or Rodgers and Hammerstein, that was never necessary.

https://music.stackexchange.com/questions/6676/what-does-a-triangle-mean-in-chord-notation

https://bretpimentel.com/jazz-chord-symbols-a-primer-for-the-classically-trained/

These were done in Text, 18pt Times New Roman in PrintMusic. I don't have SongWriter.

Mike,

How did you get the symbols in the raised position? Does PrintMusic have a superscript option?

Sorry that my temperament got away from me in my previous post. It is so frustrating that the answers are always about upgrading. I want to write simple lead sheets using Finale songwriter. there must be a better solution other than upgrading to Finale for another $700. I am just trying to increase the size of my chord fonts and suffix.

Everybody who uses PrintMusic, SongWriter, or NotePad have the same issues. If you don't want to go to the full program, you have to accept some limitations. And everybody has their own view about that one thing that they need, and don't want to upgrade, to get.

We've given you a couple of options. I'm afraid that's all we can offer.

Hi Mike. I did it the same way you did by using Text (the degree ° normally sits that high). It's the only way to get it right in 18pt type.

As in Songwriter, you get question marks when you change the default from 12pt in Times New Roman — per Abe's complaint.

Here's a new page using the Chord tool in Print Music.

The top line shows the colon:0 shortcut. The middle line shows the text you type into the Chord tool. The bottom line contains the chord symbols as PrintMusic displays them.

As I discovered in another thread yesterday, if I open a file created in 2011 or earlier, I was limited to only 86 choices in the colon:0 menu. Only by creating a new document or opening one created in 25 or 2014.5 could I get the full 272 choices. Weird but true.

To save looking it up, on a Mac,

ø is Option o

° is Shift Option 8

± is Shift Option =

∆ is Option j

So, back to Abe's OP...

How do you get it larger than the default? Do it in Text with a larger font.

How do you make The Chord tool display the correct symbols? Keep the default Times New Roman 12 pt.

How do you make the default larger? I don't know that you can—I couldn't make it work in PrintMusic 2014.5.

What's the other option? Uhhhh... Unless MM Support has another idea that works in PrintMusic, it is likely to be upgrade to Finale.

Like Mike R and Adrian, I am only a messenger.

Turns out that I was on the phone for hours with AT&T trying to solve a sales issue. This kept me at my desk looking at this every way I could. Sorry I couldn't crack this nut but I did have fun trying.

If the real issue is not being able to see the fonts while you work, that's easy on a Mac.

If it's that the chords print too small, that goes back to the earlier solutions involving Text. I am at that age where chord symbols at 12pt would not be fun to sight read.

I've done lots of charts for my synagogue choir. The last year or so, I've been doing a second chart for the pianist and bass player, with enlarged chords. We call it the geezer version.

Hi Abe,

Thanks for posting!

Just wanted to jump in here and acknowledge that these feature limitations can definitely be frustrating; however, it looks like you have had some good discussion here and found some useful workarounds that well help given the current circumstances.

Also, I wanted to mention that I've edited your serial number out of your original post here and on this post as well. For your security, we ask that you avoid posting secure information (serial number, email address, etc.) on the public forum.

That being said, it certainly sounds like you are on the track with this conversation! Thanks all for your knowledgable input. I'm sure this type of thread will be a helpful resource for many.

Lawson,

As a side question, can you confirm (or deny) that SongWriter has gone the way of Allegro and the dodo?

Hey Mike,

Great question - I'm sure you're not the only one with this question.

We are planning on releasing a blog post soon that will discuss this in more detail, so I would recommend keeping an eye on the Finale blog for that information. We're hoping to get this info out in the next 2 months or so.

Stay tuned!

Here's a link to the older products comparison chart. I used it to guess what could be done in PrintMusic that might translate to Songwriter.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&cad=rja&uact=8&ved=0ahUKEwiRqc24w4LVAhVU12MKHZPFBeQQFggtMAE&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.finalemusic.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2015%2F07%2Ffinale-2014-product-comparison-chart-2.pdf&usg=AFQjCNHz4VytFZw0iEgBJRM0R21wwJ17YQ

Aside from the 24 vs 8 max staves, there aren't that many differences between the two — but they're big differences. Still, it's not hard to see why Songwriter was phased out in favor of PrintMusic in the same way that Allegro no longer fits in between Print Music and Finale.

At one point (I don't remember the version) SongWriter was actually BETTER than PM, because you could still use the "secret" workaround to hide empty staves.

And it didn't have Speedy entry, which still is the only way to horizontally adjust notes in PM (no Note Mover tool.)