Force Full Names

Force Full Names allows you to see the full names of your instruments (rather than the abbreviated names) on any system you choose. This is useful, for example, when a Finale document contains more than one movement of a musical composition.

It is possible manually to do the same thing that Force Full Names does. But, especially for scores containing many staves, it can be time-consuming and tedious. This plugin automates the process.

To use the plugin, simply select anywhere in any staff of the first bar of the system you want to change. Then select Force Full Names from Finale's Plug-In menu. The plugin does the rest:

• Creates and applies staff styles for each staff with a visible full name where the staff style's abbreviated name matches the staff's full name. No duplicate staff style definitions are created. If the necessary staff style already exists (usually from previously running the plugin), that one is used rather than a new one.
• If the system is not already optimized, the plugin optimizes the system but leaves it looking exactly as it did before. The number, order, and spacing of staves remains the same.
• For any staff groups on the system, the abbreviated names are replaced by the full names.
• For both staff styles and group names, the Full Name positioning is transferred correctly.

If you have questions, comments, or suggestions about the operation of Force Full Names, please feel free to contact me.