Tab Conversion?

Roy Thomson · Post by **Roy Thomson** » 21 Mar 2000 5:26 pm

I do my steel guitar tab using ClickTab. It does a nice job but it is in .bmp format which I am told is not easy to download off a web site. Text format is preferred.
My first question is: Why is it hard to download (maybe print off is what I sould be saying)?
Secondly: Is there any program/software that could be used to convert my .bmp to text?

I can send anyone a sample page of .bmp tab as an email attachment if that might help answer the questions.

A very unfortunate situation. Ron Turner, the owner of ClickTab tried to help here but could not.

Hope someone can offer a solution and I thank you for your time.

Roy T.

Jerry Roller · Post by **Jerry Roller** » 21 Mar 2000 7:38 pm

Roy,

VIEWING .BMP files while on a
web-site IS a problem, because browsers like
Netscape and Internet Explorer are good at
displaying .JPG (JPEG) files and .GIF files,
but not .BMP files.
If your intention is for someone else to be
able to see your tab, then you would need a
program that would convert .BMP to .JPG.
Check out http://www.jasc.com for a program
called Paint Shop Pro. It was once Shareware
and may still be. Or check out http://www.download.com and browse for image converters. There are quite a few shareware or even freeware programs that will do the trick.
I hope this helps.

Jerry Roller

Ricky Davis · Post by **Ricky Davis** » 21 Mar 2000 8:46 pm

My understanding it that the ClickTab software has a lock on the program that prevents coping or pasting; so you won't be able to print it either. That to me is a flaw in the program. I've tried eveything with that tab Roy has sent me and that is what it keeps telling me.
If you can't copy something than it is worthless to everyone but the user. So it might be easy for you Roy to use it; but nobody gets to learn your extreamly skilled steel guitar playing pal.
I hope you can find the answer to converting that somehow and let us know what ya come up with.
Ricky

Dave Boothroyd · Post by **Dave Boothroyd** » 22 Mar 2000 12:45 am

It does occur to me that Logic Audio can convert MIDI to TAB (in any tuning) and also Standard notation to TAB.
I'll have a look to see what format the printout is.
I've never tried entering data as guitar tab- but tab to midi woulg be very useful sometimes!

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Cheers!

Ernie Renn · Post by **Ernie Renn** » 22 Mar 2000 4:21 am

Roy;
Get a screen capture program, like HyperSnap. That's what I use to display tab from Buddy. I just call up the tab, capture the screen and crop it down to size.

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My best,
Ernie

The Official Buddy Emmons Website
www.buddyemmons.com

Roy Thomson · Post by **Roy Thomson** » 22 Mar 2000 6:12 am

I am going to spend some time to-day following up on the suggestions in this thread.
Don Walters also emailed me and is trying to come up with an answer.
Thank You very much everyone.

Roy

Roy Thomson · Post by **Roy Thomson** » 22 Mar 2000 6:41 am

Ernie:
That sounded like the answer but when I brought my tab to screen it is in Paint Program and it seems to lock everything else out.
But I will use your suggestion for other purposes.
Much appreciated.
Roy

Jonathan Cullifer · Post by **Jonathan Cullifer** » 22 Mar 2000 9:18 am

One reason BMPs don't download well is that they are uncompressed. This can be solved by converting them to a gif or a jpeg using 3rd party software (like Paint Shop Pro, Adobe Photoshop, etc.). If the tabs are black & white, then a GIF is the way to go because they are naturally smaller than jpegs, but they can only store 256 colors. Jpegs can store up to the 16 million colors that are available, but are larger. You decide.

Jonathan

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"We get up at twelve and start to work at one, take an hour's lunch and then at two were done."

Graham · Post by **Graham** » 22 Mar 2000 3:38 pm

Seems to be a bit of confusion here that maybe I can clear up. The main problem is not that Roy's tabs can't be viewed but rather is in the fact they are not real easy to print out. Being done as a graphic, they do not print out as readily as a text file. He has sent me a few for Ricky and I's page which either Ricky or Ingo Mamczak have re-done as plain text tab which I then re-do as html documents. A person viewing the html page can then copy and paste the tab into a word processing program on his computer and do with it what he will as regards printing, changing font style/size etc.

Roy is on the look-out for a program that will do for him what Ricky and Ingo have been doing- convert his bmp tab to text.
Hope things seem a bit clearer now.

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Rebel™
ICQ 614585

Steve Feldman · Post by **Steve Feldman** » 22 Mar 2000 4:05 pm

I've been unhappy with most any tab probram that I've seen that will do 10-string tab. There are a lot of really nice guitar, etc. programs out there and available as shareware, etc., but they don't do 10-string!
I wish there was something out there that would do what I wanted as well as allowing me to input the annotation for, say grace notes and other subtle things that aren't otherwise transmitted easily.

Roy Thomson · Post by **Roy Thomson** » 22 Mar 2000 5:33 pm

Graham,

Thanks for posting. Now tell me how Ricky converts my .bmp tab.?
Does he key it in or does he use a program ie notepad. I tried that but I found it awfull hard to work with.

Ricky Davis · Post by **Ricky Davis** » 22 Mar 2000 6:21 pm

Hey Roy I manually write all my tab on Notepad. So I look at your Clicktab on one screen and write it manually on Notepad in another screen.
Notepad is the best manual program I have found that all the numbers line up properly.
Microsoft Word is dang good; but I lost it when I had to re-formate my computer a few weeks ago; and I have'nt loaded it back in yet.
After a while you get real good at working with any program; it's just that simple Notepad has never let me down in anyway; so I keep using it and that's what I write tab with and copy other tab onto; or in your case looked at your bmp file and manually wrote it>it was fun>LOL
Ricky

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Ricky Davis
http://hometown.aol.com/sshawaiian/RickyHomepage.html
http://users.interlinks.net/rebel/steel/steel.html
sshawaiian@aol.com

Roy Thomson · Post by **Roy Thomson** » 22 Mar 2000 7:46 pm

Thanks Ricky. I tried notepad the other nite and I can work with it, but it is real slow compared to Click Tab.
I have contacted Ron Turner again to see if he will address the issue once more.

Ron Turner · Post by **Ron Turner** » 25 Mar 2000 8:20 pm

Roy, for now I can convert your BMP file to JPEG. So continue to send them to me and I will send them back. I plan on adding this feature to ClicTab as soon as I have time. As far as a lock on any graphics or on anything ClicTab does is false. There are none. There never was on any graphic file that's converted, and the last few months I don't even have a lock on the program that you download. It is more of a light version now for try out. Thanks.

JB Arnold · Post by **JB Arnold** » 27 Mar 2000 1:45 pm

ANY graphics program, like photosuite, will let you save the file as a gif-which is the best format for line art drawings, which is what clictabs are. simply open it as a bmp, and then do a save as, and in file type, click down to gif. All the tabs in Dick's Lix are done this way, and they print just fine. The odds are you already have enough of a rudimentary program that came with your computer to do that.

www.johnbarnold.com/pedalsteel

check out Dick's lix.

John

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Better Late than Never!
www.johnbarnold.com/pedalsteel

Roy Thomson · Post by **Roy Thomson** » 27 Mar 2000 2:12 pm

JB:
I tried following thru on your suggestion and I do not have gif. as an optional file of type for saving tablature.
Maybe photosuite is the answer but I don't have that either.
I appreciate your input however and that is an interesting Web Site you have. Nice job!

Roy T.

John Lacey · Post by **John Lacey** » 28 Mar 2000 4:07 am

Roy, I haven't sent my tabs around much, but I've constructed them on Microsoft Excel. The reason being that I can line them up much better within the cells than I can on Word. Maybe I should send you some and see if it transfers all right. Do you have Excel or Microsoft Works?

Roy Thomson · Post by **Roy Thomson** » 28 Mar 2000 6:20 am

John:
In reply to your post I do not have Excell.

I want to stay with ClickTab because I believe it makes tablature faster than Notepad, Excell etc. My problem is getting the ClickTab .bmp files converted to text,.jpeg or gif which would make it easier for others to download from the Internet.

There apparently is no simple "fix" for me until Ron gets time to write it into his software and I can get the ClickTab upgrade.

I thank you however for your suggestions.

Roy

Ron Turner · Post by **Ron Turner** » 28 Mar 2000 8:29 pm

With ClicTab 5 or greater you can open Excel files and save your tab as excel files or text files. It's a little more versatile then it has been in the past. I plan on making it more friendly to the internet as soon as I can. Thanks for your patience.

Roy Thomson · Post by **Roy Thomson** » 29 Mar 2000 1:45 pm

This problem is solved so you can close this thread now if you wish bob/Jack.
I am very thankfull to all who have offered suggestions and assistance.
A neat little program was in my email box this morning that does the trick for me beautifully. It took just one person from that big state of California.
Not mentioning any names.

Roy T.