Hello Drew, Thats great to hear! For some reason I can't get access to the video maybe you can provide another link? There is one more thing and that's the contrast ratio. lol!! I've been doing some research on different types of monitors and I see that there are a few different types the IPS and VN panels. There is also a TN but I think these are getting outdated. Some of these are better with blacks than others because of there contrast ratios. Should I be concerned about these different contrast ratios when working with Finale with the black back grounds. Not sure if it will make a big difference? Thank you for any help! Kevin.

Hi Kevin, great questions, thanks for posting! An ultra wide monitor, or pretty much any monitor setup should work great with Finale 3D. The main design window has two modes. In the default mode, the simulation area adjusts based on the size of the window. In this mode there not bars at the top or sizes regardless of the aspect ratio of your monitor. The design window can also be set to the standard 16:9 'letterbox' aspect ratio. This mode will introduce bars on the top or sides of the simulation depending on the scaling of the window. The 16:9 mode is useful for previewing/framing photos and videos because they are exported in this format. Here's a quick video that shows how the design window responds to being resized in both the default mode and the 16:9 'letterbox' mode.   https://www.loom.com/share/fd754e43677f4955921d93c4da972f33

I'm building a gaming pc with a high end nvidia graphics card. I'm in the market for a monitor or monitors to use with finale. I'm currently looking at a 34 inch ultra wide with a 21:9 aspect ratio, but not sure if your app will work with this ratio? My concern is those black bars that you can get on the sides of a monitor with some apps that are designed for a more normal aspect ratio like the 16:9. If this is going to be a problem I might have to look into maybe two smaller monitors side by side. The thing that's nice about the ultra wides is you can have a muitiple screen set up on just one monitor. Any help would be greatly appreciated! Kevin.

Hello everyone,   Tayler Malsam here from the pacific northwest, thanks for providing such a great platform for us to use!

The GPU is the most important part of your machine specs for simulating large shows.  Do not get a machine with only "Intel Integrated Graphics" or "Intel HD Graphics" which basically means the machine does not have a GPU.  We generally recommend Nvidia GPUs, though it is not a requirement.   Two things I'd like to add related to Nvidia GPUs specifically are:   1) The Nvidia GeForce line of GPUs are the ones we spend the most time optimizing for.  These GeForce GPUs generally have model numbers like GTX 1060, and the bigger the number the better (and more expensive). For me personally, being a little price sensitive, I usually get the second best number available, since the very best is usually priced at a premium and the second best is usually a good value, but that's just a general guideline.  The high end GPUs can be really expensive but they are what matters for your large shows.   2) Nvidia also has an expensive line of GPUs called "Quadro".  Don't get these.  They are a different architecture that helps with some types of applications but they aren't great for the type of graphics that Finale does, so their performance relative to their price is a bad deal.

Hi Azan,   the requirements are still the same as mentioned on the website: Requires Microsoft Windows 7, 8, or 10, and a computer with 8GB of RAM and good graphics capabilities. The Nvidia GeForce 1060 is the recommended GPU, though almost any GPU made after 2017 will work. If you use a Mac, you need to run Windows over Bootcamp or Parallels. The Professional version, Hobbyist version, and Free Trial all use the same download.   In your case i would treat thas as minimum requirement, so i would suggest at least 16GB of RAM. Depending on your budget you should spend most of the money in a good or very good grafic card. This is were most of the work is done in FINALE, so a stronger GPU is better.     Here is how I check:  I just type the GPU name + "passmark" into google. "Nvidia GeForce 3050 passmark" -> https://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu.php?gpu=GeForce+RTX+3050+Ti+Laptop+GPU&id=4393 "NVIDIA GeForce Laptop 3070TI -> https://www.videocardbenchmark.net/gpu.php?gpu=GeForce+RTX+3070+Laptop+GPU&id=4331 Here, I see that the 3050TI has a benchmark of 9000, and the 3070 has a benchmark of 15000 For reference, a 1050 has a benchmark of 4598 and a 1060 has a benchmark of 8998. So, it is good to look for a "Gaming" laptop . Maybe you sholuld also look for a bigger screen than 15" and some interfaces that allow you to connect additional monitors. Also, if you travel a lot you will be happy about every gram your laptop is lighter;-) I use a 3 years old GIGABYE Laptop with a (old) 1060. For my purpose as trainer or customer consulting it is fine (and not to heavy) but for now (andyour requirements) i would recommend a newer and better(faster) GPU .  Before i used a LENOVO and was very happy with this brand, too !   Dirk

Hello Will/Drew, We are in the process of getting a new laptop for Finale 3D. With all the updates and advancements being made to the software, what are the minimum specs on the laptop you’d recommend to keep up? (As you know our sites span miles and we need a device that can compute accordingly.) Please advise. Thank you! Azan Morani

You can generate that with the instructions I linked.

Hello Everyone !! I'm Csaba, I live in Romania, but I am of hungarian nationality, I have been involved in fireworks since 2013, I am a show designer and pyrotechnician, in my city and throughout the county.

Thanks so much Drew, i have just sent it to you! Mirco