
       

                   Mup Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

       1.  Frequent questions for those who have not yet used Mup

       1.1  Q: What makes Mup unique? Why should I consider using
       Mup?

         1.  Mup  provides  high  quality  music output at very low
             cost.  You  can  download  Mup  and  try  it  out  for
             yourself.

         2.  Mup  is  available  ready-to-run  for several computer
             operating systems, and is  also  available  in  source
             form,  so  that  it  can  be run on almost any kind of
             computers, including Windows, Apple, Linux or Unix.

         3.  If you prefer a command line interface,  Mup  provides
             that,  and doesn't require using a mouse or learning a
             new editor; you can just create a Mup input file using
             any  text  editor  of  your  choice.   However, if you
             prefer an interface with menus and integrated  editor,
             the companion Mupmate program provides that.

         4.  Mup  input  can  be easily generated or manipulated by
             another program.  Input files are typically small,  so
             it doesn't take a long time to create them. Since they
             are ordinary text they can easily be  moved  to  other
             systems,  even  if  the  other system uses a different
             operating system. For example, it  would  be  easy  to
             email  a  song  in Mup format to a friend, and if they
             had Mup, they could then print it out or play  it  via
             MIDI.   Since  Mup  output  is  standard PostScript or
             standard MIDI,  output  files  are  also  portable  to
             almost any operating system.

         5.  Mup  handles page layout details, but provides ways to
             alter the layout if you wish.  It  has  the  power  to
             handle    complicated    scores,   and   can   produce
             professional-quality output quickly.

         6.  Mup's ability to  produce  MIDI  output  can  be  very
             helpful  for "proof listening" to your music, which is
             usually a very effective way to spot errors  that  you
             might miss by just looking at the score,

       1.2  Q: Will Mup run on my computer?

       We  currently  provide Mup in ready-to-run form for Windows,
       Mac OS X,, and Linux x86 systems.

       If you use a different operating system, Mup source code  is
       also  available,  so  if  you  have  a  C  compiler, you can
       probably compile and run Mup. It has been run using  several
       versions of UNIX on x86, Sun, Digital, Silicon Graphics, and
       other systems.   Mup  require  no  special  libraries.   The
       Windows  version will run under ReactOS.  An ANSI-C compiler
       is recommended, but not required.  If you try to compile Mup
       and  have problems, please let us know at support@arkkra.com
       We'd like to make it portable to  as  many  computer  system
       types as possible.  The companion Mupmate program requires a
       C++ compiler and the FLTK toolkit.

       1.3  Q: How long will it take to learn how to use Mup?

       This will vary from person  to  person.  A  person  who  has
       experience with computer languages will probably pick up Mup
       more quickly, but such knowledge is not necessary.  Mup  has
       a  broad  array  of features, so if you want to learn how to
       use every feature that Mup  has  to  offer,  this  may  take
       several  days. (The Mup User's Guide, which explains all the
       features, and includes many examples,  is  about  150  pages
       long.)  However,  once  you get Mup installed, you can start
       experimenting with Mup after reading the first few pages  of
       the  User's  Guide,  and  it  should take no more than a few
       hours to feel comfortable with the basics, enough  to  enter
       simple  songs  and  get  professional-looking  output.   The
       User's Guide includes many examples, and is provided both as
       a  PostScript  file  that you can print out on paper, and as
       HTML files with hundreds of hypertext links,  that  you  can
       view  with  your  Web browser.  The Mup installation package
       contains several sample files and a template  file  to  help
       you  get  started.   You can also download sample songs from
       ftp://ftp.arkkra.com/pub/music

       1.4  Q: How long will it take to enter music?

       This will vary greatly, depending on a  number  of  factors,
       such  as  how  complicated the music is, how much experience
       you have had with using Mup, how  fast  you  type,  etc.  An
       experienced  Mup  user  can  typically enter simple music in
       less than 15 minutes per page, but very  complex  music  can
       often  take  over  an hour, especially if you like to make a
       lot of adjustments to make things look just exactly the  way
       you want.

       1.5  Q: How did Mup and Arkkra Enterprises come about?

       We are musicians and computer programmers who wanted a music
       publication program that  would  produce  very  high-quality
       output  with  a  minimum  amount  of  fuss. We wrote the Mup
       program for our own use, and continue to use it for all  our
       own compositions. When other people expressed an interest in
       getting a copy of Mup, we formed Arkkra Enterprises  to  set
       up  a  Web site to make Mup available as shareware to anyone
       who wants it.  We rely on  the  shareware  registration  fee
       that you pay to cover the cost of maintaining a Web site and
       providing support to answer questions. We add  new  features
       based  on  user  suggestions, and once you register, we will
       notify you of any future free upgrades.

       1.6  Q: How do I pay for Mup?

       If you wish to pay online, we have  arrangements  with  both
       PayPal  and  setSystems  (part  of  Digital River) to handle
       paying for Mup with a credit card.  They are able to  handle
       transactions  in  many different currencies.  Otherwise, you
       can fill out the registration form and  send  the  form  and
       (US) $29 in cash, check, or money order to the address given
       on the form.  If you are writing a check from a bank outside
       the  United  States,  please make it out in the bank's local
       currency in an amount equivalent to  29  U.S.  dollars;  our
       bank  will not accept US-dollar-denominated checks from non-
       US banks.  As soon as we receive your payment, we will email
       the  registration  information  to you.  <I>Please make sure
       that any "spam filters" used by you or your provider do  not
       block     this     mail,     which     will     come    from
       support@arkkra.com.</I> Once you register,  we  will  notify
       you via email of future Mup versions, and you can upgrade to
       any  future  versions  of  Mup  for  free.   Once  you  have
       registered,  you also can join the Mup users mailing list if
       you wish, at no additional charge.  We only use your address
       to  send  you information about Mup; it is our policy to not
       give out names, email, or street addresses to anyone else.

       --------------------------------------------------

       2.  Frequent questions from Mup users

       2.1  Q. Is there a mailing list for Mup users?

       Yes.  There  is  a  "majordomo"   mailing   list   available
       exclusively  to  registered  Mup users.  It provides a forum
       where you can ask or answer questions, get tips on how other
       people are using Mup, etc.

       2.2  Q. Can I put Mup output into some other document?

       There   is  a  tool  that  comes  with  Ghostscript,  called
       "ps2epsi" that converts a PostScript file to an Encapsulated
       PostScript  file,  which  can  then  be  imported into other
       documents.

       2.3  Q: Can Mup produce PDF files?

       Not directly, but since Mup produces PostScript output,  you
       can easily convert the output to PDF format using the ps2pdf
       utility that comes with Ghostscript.

       2.4  Q. Why is the first score indented differently than the
       others?

       The first  score  of  a  piece  of  music  is  traditionally
       indented  somewhat  more  than  subsequent scores, so that's
       what Mup does by default.   It  does  that  by  setting  the
       default label parameter to a few spaces, whereas it sets the
       default for the label2 parameter to an empty string.  If you
       don't want the indentation, you can set
         label=""

       2.5  Q: Is is possible to specify a pickup measure?

       Yes. You use "space" on all voices. For example,
       1: 2.s; 4e;
       2: 2.s; 4c;
       will  produce  a  pickup measure with just a quarter note in
       it.

       2.6  Q: Is it possible to display a tempo marking of the
       form '(N = 120)' where N is a note symbol, like a quarter
       note?

       Yes. Try something like
       rom above all: 1 "( \(sm4n) = 120 )";

       2.7  Q: Can Mup take a MIDI file as input?

       No. However, it is possible to write a program that reads  a
       MIDI  file  and outputs a file that can be input to Mup. Two
       programs that do this, called "mtm" and "midi2mup" have been
       donated  by  Mup users.  They are limited, and not supported
       by Arkkra Enterprises, but may be useful  for  some  people.
       Check out the programs donated by Mup users.

       2.8  Q. Where can I find general information about MIDI?

       There  are  thousands  of  MIDI  tutorials  on the web; just
       search for "MIDI tutorials."  One place you might  start  is
       http://www.harmony-central.com/MIDI/Doc/doc.html  which  has
       links to several tutorials, ranging  from  very  high  level
       overviews to low level technical details.

       2.9  Q: What are some of the shorthands that can be used to
       reduce typing?

       There are many shorthands available. Some of the most useful
       are:

         -- When the time value of a chord is the same as  that  of
            the  previous  chord in the measure, it can be omitted.
            If all pitch values of a chord  are  the  same  as  the
            previous chord, they can be omitted. For example:
            1: 4c; 4c; 4ceg; 4ceg;
            is the same as
            1: 4c; ; ceg; ;

         -- If several voices have the same music data, they can be
            given on a single line.
            1-3 1-2: mr;
            is equivalent to
            1 1: mr;
            1 2: mr;
            2 1: mr;
            2 2: mr;
            3 1: mr;
            3 2: mr;
            A similar shorthand works for text and music symbols:
            rom above 1-4: 3 "mf";   // staffs 1 through 4
            < below 2-3: 4 til 3m+2; // staffs 2 and 3
            mussym 1-5: 1 "ferm";   // staffs 1 through 5

         -- If several chords in a  row  have  the  same  items  in
            square  brackets before the chords, only the first must
            have everything included. By giving an  ellipsis  after
            the  ]  the  items in brackets will be repeated for the
            rest of the  measure  or  until  cancelled.   Thus  the
            following lines are equivalent:
            1: [with .] c; [with .] d; [with .] e;
            1: [with .]... c; d; e;

       2.10  Q: The Mupprnt command doesn't seem to work right.
       What do I do?

       You  may  need  to  edit  the  mupprnt file to make sure the
       variables and paths  are  set  to  match  where  things  are
       installed on your system.  In particular,

         -- GS_DIR  needs to be set to the directory which contains
            the  Ghostscript  font  files  (*.gsf)  and  the  other
            Ghostscript setup files (gs_*.ps).

         -- GS_DEVICE  needs  to be set to the proper type to match
            your printer type.

         -- The path to Mup must be correct

         -- The path to Ghostscript (gs or gs386 on  MS-DOS/Windows
            system) must be correct.

         -- On  MS-DOS/Windows  systems, dos4gw.exe must be in your
            PATH.
       If you are using a viewer such as GSview or gv, you may want
       to use its print feature rather than using mupprnt.

       2.11  Q: On MS-DOS, the Mupdisp command comes back with
       ghostscript error 1. What do I do?

       Check your config.sys file. You need to have a line like
       files=10
       where  the  number  after the equals sign is greater than or
       equal to 9.

       Also, make sure gs386.exe exists and is in your PATH. If you
       are  running  Mup  from MS-DOS directly or from a DOS prompt
       under Windows, make sure you installed the  DOS  version  of
       Ghostscript,  not  the  Windows  version.   If you are using
       Mupmate, or Winmup, make  sure  you  installed  the  Windows
       version of Ghostscript, not the MS-DOS version.

       2.12  Q: If I use Mup for a language other than English,
       will it handle the letters that are not used in English?

       Mup  handles  all  the  symbols  in  the standard PostScript
       fonts, which covers most  Western  languages.  Only  Latin-1
       characters  are  handled directly from Mup input, but others
       can be entered via names like  \(Euro)  or  \(lambda).   The
       User's  Guide  section on text strings gives a complete list
       of supported non-ASCII characters.

       2.13  Q: Under Linux, Mupdisp says it can't open
       /dev/console. What do I do?

       The svga library  used  by  Mupdisp  in  non-X-windows  mode
       requires write permission to the console. To allow this:

         -- Make Mupdisp setuid to root:
            chown root mupdisp
            chmod 4755 mupdisp

       2.14  Q: What if I have more questions about Mup?

       Send  us email at support@arkkra.com We welcome any comments
       and questions  about  Mup.  Normally,  you  should  have  no
       problem  contacting  us  this way. In the unlikely event you
       get a "rejected" reply when sending email, this  is  because
       excessive  "spam"  (junk  mail)  has been received from your
       domain at some time in the past, and  our  Internet  service
       provider  has installed a "spam blocker."  In this case, you
       will have to send email from another address or  send  paper
       mail.
