BIAB is not static! A new version comes out about twice a year and each version changes something about the way things are done. PG Music publishes a new features video and changes the front page blurb to describe new features and how they can be used. This forum and postings on YouTube provide a wealth of tip and tricks.

What's tough is starting BIAB as a newbie! Things like knowing the names of the chords you want to use, selecting one style from the many available, selecting real tracks or midi styles, changing instruments as needed from the style defaults, knowing when it might be better to use Real Band versus Band In A Box. It's like learning an office suite of programs (word processor, spreadsheet, database, etc.) for music.

The existing manual is not friendly to newbies as it really doesn't tell a new user where to start. There are no exercises where a new user will feel safe to try things and mess up. Each feature and function are described but seldom are examples given that demonstrate how they can be used. Think about this, I can't even find out what pushes and holds are, but there is a folder full of them.

Using the office suite analogy, there are too many ways to do the same thing. You can press an "F" key, select from the drop down menus and sub menus, use the icon buttons, right click or go into preferences to change settings. All of this is confusing to a newbie and makes it difficult to seek advice because the newbie may be trying to do it one way and another user may know an entirely different way to perform the same function.

The constant version upgrades quickly outdate any manual while the multiple ways to perform a task make training very difficult. Having said that, core functionality doesn't often change and training could be presented using a "here's just one way to do it" method.

I performed industrial training for almost 30 years and it's much tougher to put a course together than it is to present it. It helps to either have an intimate knowledge of the subject and to have good mentors to guide the course direction.

Jim Fogle - 2025 BiaB (Build 1128) RB (Build 5) - Ultra+ PAK
DAWs: Cakewalk by BandLab (CbB) - Standalone: Zoom MRS-8
Laptop: i3 Win 10, 8GB ram 500GB HDD
Desktop: i7 Win 11, 12GB ram 256GB SSD, 4 TB HDD
Music at: https://fogle622.wix.com/fogle622-audio-home