I am practicing pathagorean thirds on the horn. What tempered scale? Now if I can only remember in which keys I switch from 1 and 2 to 3rd valve only......hm....

I think Crestor is screwing with my embouchure....Hardening of the arteries...right.

Well yea there are a WHOLE lot of new folks and that's really great. The programs are working quite well with no real problems. I guess I'm feeling like the Maytag repair man. Three years in the mountains of NC with no job will do that to ya.

Mike, trumpet players, if not born old, get that way quickly by virtue of the instrument. But no, that's a recent picture of me, anyway. I just chose my parents carefully.

Silvertones, I have a relative about to move to Asheville. Bad choice for music jobs?

Terrible place, Southin' VA, Nawthin' Carolina, iff'n you play jazz...

Ouch. Thanks for the info, Mac. Triple Cs not welcome, either?

present!

I still check in frequently... I've been around since 2003 here, so maybe I qualify as an 'old-timer'...
especially now since I'm retired. Been retired for 3 weeks and loving it... waiting for my first Social Security check to arrive next week. ROFL

About to replace the counter tops in my wife's kitchen... although since I've been retired, I'm doing a lot more baking than I used to have time for. I got folks wanting to buy my Raisin-Filled cookies by the dozen since they tried samples at the music hall.

And, yes, I still play in the country music band one Saturday night a month now. And I've been promoting my latest CD, which is doing very well.

So, yes, I'm still here and kicking. Just taking a little break away from making music on the PC after spending a whole year producing and releasing my CD project.

I too have noticed a change of momentum lately in the forum, just figured everyone was up to other projects, practicing, etc. Which is a good thing, but I know what silvertones is referring to. I like the reference to the maytag repairman.

Good to know that everyone is busy with cool stuff, I'm playing with some new guitar pedals, etc. working on a couple of old Bob Wills tunes at a family function in a few weeks. My Dad had a Bob Wills cover band back in the late 40s and 50s. Even did live radio music on a local am station back in the day. Most of the band was comprised of his brothers or uncles, so every once in awhile we do a little tribute to our family musical heritage. This year we are adding "King without a Queen" and "From A Jack To A King". Two of my Dad's favorites. I'll try to post em when I get farther along with em.

Good to know everyone is busy and happy. God Bless.

Toucher

I have been using BIAB since about 1993. I don't remember for sure, but I believe it was DOS based, and on a floppy disc. Back then I had an 8088 puter, with a 20 mb hard drive. Boy, times have changed. Some of my single WAV files now are over 10mb. LOL. . My modem was 2400 baud, and internetting was so slow, you could go make a pot of coffee and come back, and maybe things would be loaded on the screen. I had to re-learn BB when I purchased the newest windows version. I slowed down on my posts because I got embarrassed about how many questions I had before I finally got a handle on the new upgrade. This is by far the most courteous, knowledgeable, and friendly forum I have ever been on, and it is a pleasure to be part of all of this. It will be a very good year for music, here.

Gene

I'm still here. I started a new job (the contract on my old job ended after working there 18 years, so that was quite an adjustment for me) where I can't really post during the work day anymore. That's limited my online time at the forum here. But I still read just about every post and jump in when I think I can help.

Huh? I've been around since the mid nineties and I bet you never even noticed. I jump out of a low profile every now and then to say "Hi". As Toucher said - been working on projects (no not the housing kind )

Hey Silver, good to see you're still around, I follow your technical problems from time to time - since you graduated OS versions, guess I'm the only one left using Win2K - legacyman I am, I am.

Cheers

Maybe it's because the U.S. election is over? Everybody's been playing pretty nice lately.

Anyhow, I'm still here also.

Don S.

Gene and Ian are good examples that people have been around this program a lot longer than some may realize. The current forum was created in 2000, but many of us go way back before that, on the prior version of the forum.

huh??

I did have a problem login in for a couple of days. Posted email to help with error message and it disapearred.

It is spring and I've just started on some house and yard projects, so have been on the site a couple of times a day but not posted too much.

At any rate it appears that we are all present and accounted for.

Good deal. Just checking.
Ian I changed computers but still use Win 2K SP4. I purchased it from MS a number of years ago. Makes it handy.

Wow yard work in Otterwa. I still have a big pile of snow, but my kids arrived and raked up some leaves and picked up the tree limbs. No snow out front and the tulips and daffydills are pokin' up. I'm waiting for +20, then I'm sitting out back with one of the Montecristos I brought back from Cuba.

My other spring project is a folder of Canadian Folk Songs. Gonna try to do at least 2 a week in Band in a Box format.

Old timers respond to new timers. I do not know what the recession has done to pg music and their sales, but most of us respond to questions from new users. There is a dearth of that going on.

The conclusions are either:

a) Sales are way down so no newbies to ask questions.

b) The software is mature, not a lot of huge issues, and things are ticking along.

Not sure what the answer is, here in Canada the industries that are dependent on the USA are in trouble, but we ended up with the world's #1 banking system, and they only bought a bit of bad stuff from American Banks, so we are in some sort of limbo. I went to Cuba and the travel agency my buddy owns has never had a better year, it was cold and Canucks went south, we had all inclusive deals to Cuba with flights, taxes, meals, housing, and drinks for about $800. Canadian, which would be $600 US, and that from the frozen tundra..LOL.

I have temporarily lost about 80k in the meltdown, but that's all oil and minerals in Registered Retired Savings Programs, and it's moving back up right now. If oil goes to $100 a barrel I'm 'golden' as my kids say.

And no one has started some sort of flame, Ivan is gone, and I'm getting too old to argue, although if Fox news keeps up the stupidity when our soldiers are dying and they are mocking us I could get real mad very quick. I was going to go to the highway of heros today for the 4 repatriated soldiers who died last week in Afghanistan, but I found a cooling fluid leak and got to get that looked at Tuesday Afternoon. I trust most Americans do not hold the view that they should invade us because we are stupid and lack any kind of army and the greatest nation in the universe should just do us a favour and kick our butts, and I think most realize that all our police do not ride horses and wear red uniforms....

Yeah, It was nice on the weekend and I set up my workmate in the back deck. I cut, drilled, sanded while "little bug" play on his climber and swings for the first time this season. Well, actually we did wade out through the snow twice in the dead of winter to have a climb and a swing, but Papa Mikie was not too big on the idea of pushing the swings knee deep snow.

Also it got cold fast as soon as the sun began to get low.

Well, all that said, will not be long before I can turn the gardens, re-seed the lawn, and begin the second Tower and skyway for "little bug's" climber. However, "she who must be obeyed" has indicated the pergola and deck benches have priority over tower II, as does the cabinet under the butcher block.

So snow or no snow I figured I better get started.

I'm still here, but not spending as much time responding as I used to.

February and March are the two busiest months for my duo http://www.s-cats.com and we have been doing a lot of gigging - thankfully because the summer "dry season" is coming too soon.

I'm also working on converting Korg PA80 styles into BiaB format. The first volume http://www.nortonmusic.com/style18.html has received rave reviews and people tell me the free MIDI intros and endings work well in RealBand. So most of my spare time has been devoted to volume 2 of that project.

In addition, I still put an hour per day on the guitar. It's my 7th instrument and I've only been playing it a little over a year now. I'm doing very well for the amount of time I've put on it (thanks to the theory from previous instruments and fretboard knowledge from playing bass), and can bang out a decent rock/country/blues lead. My head knows where to go, but my fingers are still a little sloppy when things get fast, and the only way to overcome that is to practice.

So this old timer is still here, I check the board daily, but until I get a bit more time, I won't be responding as much as I used to.

Insights and incites by Notes

Life happens, and has happened to me, and I've been busy. I feel bad that I haven't been here, I've promised Glenn Boyce that I would do something for him, and have not had the time or the energy to do it, and I feel bad about that.

I try to pop in every once in a while, but time is something I don't have a lot of right at the moment.

I'm looking forward to life returning to at least semi-quasi-normal.

Gary

Isn't it funny how the economy is 'dead', no jobs... yet everyone is so busy!
I haven't spent as much time here lately, due to activities, college, kids, etc.
But I don't see many questions going unanswered.
Maybe they don't need us old timers so much anymore! The young bucks seem to have a pretty good handle on things.
I'm working on music every day (almost). Life is good

More like struggling to stay alive, Bob.

Gary

Ok, so who is the oldest timer here? What version of BIAB and what date? I remember being shown BIAB by someone back in about 92 ish. But I'm a brand spanking newbie January 2009 person. Just got round to buying it!!!!

From a newbie perspective: I kinda feel like Mac is the grandaddy here, because he knows so much and seems to be able to answer all questions! But then there are lots of benevolent and wise uncles as well - the expert knowledge on the forum is really great and I've benefitted very much from all the veteran folk's help.

This probably the most supportive forum I've ever been on! Mind you I ain't been on many!

Thanks from all us newbies to all you "old timers" for your help and support. Pass it on!

Hey Mel,

Watch out this crowd will wear on you sometime making you feel like an old timer. Now in real years I qualify for the old timers title but in BIAB years I've only been around for 5 or so years. And come to think of it I joined the forum even before I purchased the product. You see like many I was in search of just what this program could do and if it would indeed support live performances with decent backing tracks. And as I recall it was indeed Granddad who answered my first post telling me BIAB was just what I was looking for in the way of software to write arrangements and then use them for backing tracks.

Hmmmmm, Granddaddy Mac . . . does have a nice ring to it.

PS: I became a great granddaddy a couple of years ago. I still wonder who is that old man I see in my mirror when I am shaving each morning.

Later,

I started out with BIAB Version 8 Pro (not 2008, but version 8). I know a lot of others started earlier than that. I just looked and the version 8 files are dated 2/23/1999 and I joined the forum on 12/20/2000. I then upgraded to Version 9 MegaPAK and then every version since. BIAB is one of only about 3 or 4 programs that I generally do something with every single day. Thanks, PGMusic!

Hi John. That date is a bit after the current forum software was installed, and those of us who were here before started all over again (making Mac's post count all the more remarkable).

Mel, I go back to version 4, and I think that was about 1994. There was no forum (nor the Internet as we know it) at that point. I think there was a forum for three years or so before the changeover in 2000.

I'm guilty as charged.

But the reason I have been less visible than usual around here is that I was recruited to the keyboard stool of a second band. Unlike 'my' band, i.e. the one I was already in, these guys take it very seriously and have plenty of bookings in the pipeline

There is a 40-song setlist and, while I "know" most of the songs, learning them to a performance standard is quite a different matter and I feel I owe it to these guys to pull my weight.

The result is that I don't have a lot of time for anything - even my own home studio projects are on the back burner for a while - but I certainly don't regret it.

As for the old version game, Mel, I still have a version, but not in service (on floppies) of the forerunner to PTPA, MasterTracks!! Even my version of B-I-A-B is the venerable Version 7. And you know what, it does all that I require of it!

Not anywhere near the oldest, I was here before we switched the forum over, I think. I started out with either version 6 or version 7 of BIAB. I've gotten forgetful, was it actually possible that I had PowerTracks that was just a MIDI sequencer, and had no audio feature in it?

Well, I guess that was wrong. I see I registered in 2002. For a long time, I wasn't too far behind Mac in terms of posts, but then I was moving to a new location, starting a new job, and generally not able to be here as much, so I've fallen to fourth. I see even my friend Russ has passed me. Good on ya, Russ.

Gary

Gary, you caught my interest, with your high post count ranking. You can click on the User List button above and sort by number of posts, or date registered. I had no idea I am just outside of the top ten in terms of user post count. Think I'll lay low for awhile.

I have an old DOS Ver 2.3 around here somewhere; remember coming across it recently and chuckling to myself.
I've enjoyed a lot of years here, and hope for quite a few more.
That user post count was interesting.. thanks Matt
Seems that Russ is missing in this thread, wonder if he's doin OK?

Bob, you're in third, just ahead of Gary!

There's a big gap between you and Gary, and a bunch of us around 3000. I see that once I reach 3000, I will no longer be called a 'Veteran', but a 'Team PG - Journeyman'. Is that a good thing? I feel like Ben's father on Lost: "Workman? What do you mean, I'm just a Work Man?".

Are there veteran benefits??
It ain't a race - if it were I'd be losing to guys that are more 'old timer' than I! I try to hang out and 'pay in kind' for all the help I've received here over the years, and give a little back to PGMusic; they have been generous in repaying me for any help I've given them (which has been very little)

Getting close to time to sing Kumbya with all those over 200 posts.

Should we argue about the key sig, I'm still basso profundo, or for ya southern lads, I croak...

Maybe with a Cajun style so we can put steel guit from Howard, Furries squeeze box, some guit from Russ, and Mac on fuegelhorn, I can add a bombardo part, and we got Mel for Vocals, and Allanah to backup the accordian and vocals while we throw in Gary to organize a moving van and some keys, and Matt to write us and lead some latin horn parts. Of course we ask Oliver Gannon to get us some extra licks, and Wien Sam to tell us some good stories on how to put in some vocals about horses, and top it off with Rachel who is way prettier than that black cat.

Once the cats get the thing in the right key we can practice the circle of fifths in a RealDrum circle and use an eagle feather for inspiration. Just don't drink too much Orange Peeko, or you'll drown in yer teapee.

Run! Notes Norton is gonna write a style for Cajun Latin Country Canuck German world muzak and sell us some stylin'.

I am a newbie in this forum, and I could write a lot about how great forum this is, but I think Mel maguire said it in a better way.
About being a grandaddy:
When my father in law get hes first grandchild they asked him: "isnt it great to be grandfather" he replyed "yes this is great, but in my life I newer thought of going to bed with a grandmother"

Best regards
Tono

Thanks Mel for sending us down memory lane. Been here awhile, haven't said much.

Using the User's list at Matt's suggestion I showed up on page 5.
Registered in 2000 but my first BIAB is v.5 dated 1/25/93 but bought it in 95 along with a ton of midi and sound stuff.

I was actually introduced to the wonders of BIAB by a Peruvian musician living in Ottawa. He did part time accounting for my employer. Once he found out I was a musician he started to come in and tell me all about his music projects and this amazing software he had. Funny how things are connected sometimes.

Forum Members: Let's take this one step further - How did you discover, or were you introduced, to BIAB et al?

Ian

A salesperson at Sam Ash in New York City recommended BIAB to me when I asked about a more powerful version of the Yamaha QY-10 portable hardware sequencer. At the time, I had no idea that there was software that could do what BIAB did. When I found out how inexpensive BIAB was, I was skeptical until I heard a demo. I bought it on the spot and have hardly missed a day with BIAB since 1994.

I haven’t been using BIAB nearly as long as some of the so-called “Old Timers” (this term is used in the politest sense), but here’s my introduction to BIAB.
In 1987, after twenty-odd years of playing in a band, I gave up music completely. In 2001 I dusted of my old Roland EP to have a play, only to find out that I had lost the ability to play at a reasonable standard. The brain knew what notes to play, but the fingers had rusted up, and it was one of the scariest & most frustrating times in my life. I was previously a reasonable keyboard player, and to have lost what I believe was a God given talent made me very angry/sad/frustrated/bitter….you name it.

I decided to take try to learn to play again, and in order to stimulate my interest I went to the music shop with the view to buying a new keyboard. Having been off the music scene for almost fifteen years, I knew nothing about new technology – the only brands in the shop that I recognised were Roland & Yamaha – but the salesman showed me a Casio (yes I know what you’re thinking) and it seemed to fit my needs. I told him I wanted to try to make recordings of backing tracks, in order to accompany me while learning, and he said “This is what you need…” and handed me a set of computer disks…..it was called Box in A Band or something. I was in techno shock and walked out of the store without buying anything, thinking “No…this is too difficult.”

After a few days of pondering I bit the bullet and went back to the music shop, bought the keyboard, bought the Box Band (“No….it’s called BAND IN A BOX!! – silly old fart”)
So for the last eight years I have had endless hours of pleasure using my new found musical friend. I recently worked out that the cost of my keyboard, plus BIAB, plus regular upgrades, divided by the number of hours pleasure I have received equates to less than fifty cents per hour.

Where else can you get value like that?