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We still have MG(1-9 and A-N) and SG(1-9 and A-N) file extensions, an obsolete file system where the third letter used to refer to the original 24 built-in styles:

http://www.pgmusic.com/techfaq28.htm#85

If you open an *.MG1 file, it seems impossible (please, correct me if I'm wrong) to save it with the modern "MGU" extension, which is necessary, for example, if you want to open the file with third party programs like musescore, which only reads MGU/SGU files.

After some trial and error, I discovered that you can get MGU files from MG1 files simply by manually renaming them from the OS, so this is not really a serious problem for an experienced user, but it can be really confusing for newcomers or for people not used to old MS-DOS filename conventions.

PS: yes, I know that you can export the song in musicxml format, but I've experienced a lot of problems with the new musicxml support feature.


Last edited by Cerio; 11/25/16 02:51 PM.

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You have a good point. I haven't encountered those extensions in so long. Once every few years, someone asks on the forum for an explanation of the extensions.


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Hmmm Could not open the old and then Save As .MGU ??

DE


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Originally Posted By: DEddy
Hmmm Could not open the old and then Save As .MGU ??

DE


Unfortunately, that seems to be impossible.


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So Cerio, I haven't tried it but it seems you could do a one-time global rename of *.sg1 to *.sgu, then .sg2 etc. and never be bothered again (assuming this doesn't encounter files with duplicate names). Is that right?


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Originally Posted By: Matt Finley
So Cerio, I haven't tried it but it seems you could do a one-time global rename of *.sg1 to *.sgu, then .sg2 etc. and never be bothered again (assuming this doesn't encounter files with duplicate names). Is that right?


Yes, it's right. You can manually rename all *.sg1 to *.sg2, etc... using a batch renamer program and the problem is gone. It's not really a problem if:

1. You're an advanced user, or...
2. You already know how to fix it.

(Btw, I spent about 15 minutes trying to figuring out how to resolve the problem, with an inelegant workaround that works, but that is not intuitive at all)

IMO, 99% of the users would expect being able to save old files in the new format simply with the "Save as..." command.



Last edited by Cerio; 11/25/16 04:38 PM.

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I agree.

+1


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+1

Reads like a good housekeeping practice to me. When I have run across a song file that uses an older file extension the song file is typically so elementary as to be obsolete and not worth using. There just has been too many feature advancements in Band-in-a-Box that the older song files don't use.

All of us can go through the motions and convert all our files which means the tasks are repeated many times or PG Music can convert the files and we can get them on the next update. Which way do you think requires less effort?


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True; PG Music could convert the existing extensions and supply them. Deleting the numbered extensions would be an easy batch command for the installer. There is danger in automating that, though, since someone could possibly have overwritten a factory song with his or her own. I suspect the size taken up by those old songs would be insignificant; I'll take a look later.

EDIT: OK, while I do ruthless editing of my computer for space since I have the audiophile version, I have zero files with the extensions of MG1, MG2 etc. Perhaps I renamed them years ago.


Last edited by Matt Finley; 11/26/16 11:05 AM.

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