For years, they have claimed there are no archived copies. Have you checked ebay, or similar sites?

Turns out I had 2001. I do have many old versions. I’m reassembling my office (Thanksgiving deadline). If a 2001 CD shows up, I’ll post that info

An issue is when the license manager went online. I don’t remember when that happened. Before that, Finale used a key code to activate. If 2001 or earlier and not your license, good luck activating.

One year, I received my Upgrade CD but CodaMusic forgot to include a key code. I couldn’t get the code over the phone but was promised it would be mailed. While waiting for it to show up, I typed in UPGRADE out of frustration—it worked and continued to do so for a number of years. 

What is the target for the newer format? Finale v26, MusicXML, or something else? Do you have printouts or PDFs of the 2001 files as well as the Finale file? Roughly how many files / pages are involved in this project?

I'm trying to get a better understanding of what you're trying to do to see what might help out. I've worked on repertoire conversion, most recently moving our SmartMusic repertoire over to a new technology platform.

If you DM me on Twitter (either at MusicXML or MichaelDGood) in a way that I can DM back, we can follow up from there.

Some really great questions - I realised there is no nested replies on this forum, so I hope this reply finds those who asked! 

If a 2001 CD shows up, I’ll post that info

That would amazing, thank you. 

Have you checked ebay, or similar sites?

Thats part of what I'm doing - we are trying to make sure we are not using software illegally or otherwise unethically, and it gets a little complex with older / "abandonware". 

An issue is when the license manager went online. I don’t remember when that happened. Before that, Finale used a key code to activate. If 2001 or earlier and not your license, good luck activating.

Great intel, thanks. Its useful to have the historical technical context from experienced / expert users! 

I typed in UPGRADE out of frustration

Noted. Thanks! 

What is the target for the newer format? Finale v26, MusicXML, or something else?

An excellent question, and one that we can't answer right now. I'm working with curatorial colleagues to ensure we have a good idea about that the future state should look like, and how accurate migrations can be. I understand that Finale is MIDI under the hood, so it might be out to MIDI and then back into something more contemporary like MusicXML, or finale v26 native. My work at the moment is to try and compare something of a "render" via v26 and v2001. 

Do you have printouts or PDFs of the 2001 files as well as the Finale file? 

We only have .etf or .mus files in this particular collection. There might be some printouts in the collection, but it would difficult to link them directly and absolutely to any given version of any piece. 

 Roughly how many files / pages are involved in this project?

This collection is around 800 files, which appears to be about 37 pieces, each with various etf (probably full  and final scores) and mus ( seems to be a mix of versions, parts, and full scores)

Finale's file format is not very much like MIDI at all. I don't think MIDI would be very helpful for you as an archival format unless there is something very special about the playback in these Finale files.

I think these days most people try to archive files with a combination of 1) the native file format of the original files, 2) PDF for capturing the appearance in an open format, and 3) MusicXML for capturing the musical semantics in an open format. Good luck with your project!