IWBNI it were possible to use the Move Layers utility to move the contents of a given layer of one staff into another layer of another staff. As it is now, this utility may be used to move the contents of a given layer to another layer within the same staff, for each staff in a selected region.

This could be implemented by adding four staff-name list boxes to the Move Layers dialog box in the case when there is only one staff in the selected region. Each staff-name list box could be placed to the right of one of the existing layer list boxes and preceded by the text of. By default, each of the four staff-name list boxes would be set to the one staff that is in the selected region.

--------------------------------------
Move Layers Dialog Box  (Case 1: One Staff in Selected Region)

[ ] Move Contents of Layer 1 into |list box of layers| of |list box of staff names|
[ ] Move Contents of Layer 2 into |list box of layers| of |list box of staff names|
[ ] Move Contents of Layer 3 into |list box of layers| of |list box of staff names|
[ ] Move Contents of Layer 4 into |list box of layers| of |list box of staff names|
--------------------------------------

For example, one could select a staff called "Horn 1 and 2", select the menu item MassEdit>Move Layers, and specify that the contents of layer 1 of the selected staff should be moved to layer 1 of an existing staff called "Horn 1" and that the contents of layer 2 should be moved to layer 1 of an existing staff called "Horn 2", in one step. Or, one could move the contents of layer 1 of the staff "Horn 1" and layer 1 of the staff "Horn 2" into layer 1 and layer 2 of the staff "Horn 1 and 2", respectively, by applying the Move Layers utility twice.

In the case when the selected region contains more than one staff, these new controls could be replaced by the text in the Selected Region, and in this case the Move Layers utility would function as it does in the current version of Finale.

--------------------------------------
Move Layers Dialog Box (Case 2: More Than One Staff in Selected Region)

[ ] Move Contents of Layer 1 into |list box of layers| in the Selected Region
[ ] Move Contents of Layer 2 into |list box of layers| in the Selected Region
[ ] Move Contents of Layer 3 into |list box of layers| in the Selected Region
[ ] Move Contents of Layer 4 into |list box of layers| in the Selected Region
--------------------------------------

Created: June 27, 2000 (based on comments by Jeffery Cotton and Thomas Stone)
Last Updated: June 27, 2000
Version: Finale 2000b