Latest file won't open

[mgj32]

Help!
Tried to open the piece I've been working on all summer, hopeful of finishing a complete draft. Got the message "File Thou Voice of My Heart, Nelly X could not be opened according to the expected format.
"If this file was save by another user of a more recent version of Notation, then you should check for the availability of a free update...etc."

I have been using 2.52 (don't change horses crossing a river). All other files open as they should.
Finally, I updated to 2.61. However my mididev.cfg of 87KB was GONE, replaced by one of 19KB which had only General Midi and MS Wavetable set as the default.
I tried pasting the 87 KB mididev.cfg that I saved last night into the Composer director, after renaming the 19 KB one, but it stripped the 87 KB down to 19 KB, and I was faced with at least a couple hours of typing my banks and all the patches.

I restored my computer to an earlier date, hoping that the file I am (was) working on would open again. No such luck. Same message.

My question is how do I either get the file (than noone was working on in a later version to open), or get my banks and patches without a lot of typing?

One interesting note. While 2.61 was installing, Threatfire popped up a message that the current process was attempting to manipulate the computer in the manner of a virus or malware. I allowed the process to proceed thinking it would be just part of the installation. That may be when my banks and patches got wiped out.

The question, however, is the one in the paragraph above the last.

all best,
mgj

[mgj32]

Addendum.
I have solved one problem, that of getting the file to open. I renamed Composer.exe, which I have been using all along, to 2.52.bac and read in the exe file for version 2.51. The file that will not open in 2.52, now opens. I will use 2.51 to finish the piece a couple of days later than planned.
The leaves the question of how to update to 2.61 with out losing all my bank/patch information if 2.61 is going to force the saved minidev.cfg back to its default.

best,
mgj

[Sherry C]

Howdy MG,

Sorry to hear of the troubles here. There were a couple of "can't open the file" re-opening issues that were addressed in 2.6.1 which should work to reopen the file you mentioned.

Addressing the MidiDev.cfg problem, that's bad that your old MidiDev.cfg got wiped out during the upgrade process. (I don't know that that's what the Threatfire issue was, but it may have been since the MidiDev.cfg is a configuration file).

Smart man to have a backup copy! (And it's always wise for any heavily modified files to keep a backup copy.) I'm not sure why that would have happened, because I did test for that problem here and didn't have any problems upgrading from 2.5.2 to 2.6. I'm testing on a Windows 7 machine here, though, and if I recall correctly, you're using XP? After restarting your machine, you should be able to copy/paste your backup copy of the MidiDev.cfg into c:\program files\Notation\Composer\ and have it correctly get used rather than reinitiated.

Do keep a backup copy handy, as well as make a "Device Description" file by using

1. Setup/MIDI Device Configuration (the big one)

2. Device/Export Device Description

3. In the left-hand panel, select the device you want to export (eg. your Creative Banks

4. In the right-hand select the device (if you've saved one of these before) or select "New Manufacturer" if this is the first time you've saved one.

5. Click the "Export" button in the middle of the dialog box, and then give the file a name and click "Ok."

Now if anything happens to your MidiDev.cfg file, you can always then use Device/Import Device Description and bring your bank information into the current MidiDev.cfg while running Composer, and avoid all that retyping.

ttfn,
Sherry

[mgj32]

Hi Sherry,
Actually I was updated from 2.51 according to Add/remove programs. You had sent a 2.5.2 exe which worked and which I've been using for many months, so still can't figure out why only the one file (and the same under two other names) wouldn't open with the same setup as I've been saving and opening it since June.

Nevertheless, I am ready to try again.
I will disable Threatfire this time, just in case. I can't see anything else that would have caused the mididev.cfg that I copied to the Composer folder get stripped.
I have been using New Configuration Detected for ages, using the Ports to include only what 's there. (I had the original Audigy 2, the Soundblaster I tried, since A and B worked together on the previous computer, as well as the replacement and current Audigy two.
In Setup/Device, I listed "Creative" as a new manufacturer and moved everything on the left that is actually present to it, then saved as Composer.mdd and to be safe, also saved as Creative Composer.mdd.
I backed up again, my latest mididev.cfg file.
I put the backups in three places on two hard disks.
Can you think of any other precaution to take?

If not, I will give the update another try. For the brief time I had it going, I really liked the speed of 2.61.

all best,
mgj

[Sherry C]

Howdy MG,

There were a couple of conditions, one of which was if a staff had either the staff name or the abbreviation deleted and then save/closed the file, the file would not reopen in 2.5.2. This and another "cannot reopen" bug that I can't recall off the top of my head were fixed in 2.6.1 Perhaps one of those conditions existed in the file, and therefore it wouldn't reopen. They should open in 2.6.1.

It sounds like you've got everything backed up quite safely. Tally ho!

Let us know how it goes!
Sherry

[mgj32]

Hi Sherry,
It went quite well. I feel the problem was not giving Threatfire the correct answer. With that disabled, there was my old mididev.cfg file. It took me a while to figure out that I had to import from the right side of Composer.mdd what I had exported. Once done, no typing was necessary. I suppose it would be a good idea to make a new Composer.mdd eacj if I change the bank in Sound Font Mgr, or add new instruments to existing banks.

Thanks for the help.
mgj

PS. 2.6.1 does, indeed, seem to respond faster than 2.5.2.