Is EasyABC the same as Bayesian computation or alphabet learning software?

Updated

No. EasyABC is an open source ABC music notation editor, and it is not the same as Efficient Approximate Bayesian Computation Sampling Schemes or the various alphabet learning programs for children that share a similar name. If you are looking for a tool to write, play back, and export ABC music notation, EasyABC is the right program. If you are looking for a statistical sampling method or a children's literacy app, you are looking at a different piece of software.

What EasyABC actually is

EasyABC is an ABC music notation editor originally developed by Nils Liberg and released around 2014 on his own website. Since 2015 the program has been maintained by Jan Wybren de Jong and Seymour Shlien and moved to sourceforge.net. The program was originally written in Python 2, which is no longer supported, and the code has since been upgraded to run with Python 3.

It is described as a popular ABC editor that receives numerous downloads a week. To use it, you should know the fundamentals of ABC music notation, though it is possible to learn the notation using the built-in ABC assist feature.

Why the names get confused

The confusion comes from the shared "EasyABC" label being applied to unrelated projects:

Program What it is What it is for
EasyABC (this site) ABC music notation editor Writing, playing, and exporting ABC tunes
Efficient Approximate Bayesian Computation Sampling Schemes A statistical/computational method Approximate Bayesian computation sampling
Alphabet learning programs for children Educational apps Teaching children the alphabet

Only the first one is covered by the Guide to EasyABC on easyabc.sourceforge.net.

How to tell you have the right EasyABC

A few concrete signals confirm you are using the music notation editor:

  • The main window is split into 3 or 4 frames, and they are all empty when you start the program.
  • The left frame is a Tune list showing the X: reference number and T: title for each tune in a collection.
  • Clicking a tune in the list displays the musical score and the ABC code in the upper and lower frames on the right.
  • Clicking the play icon (a right arrow in a green circle) in the top menu plays the selected tune.
  • Editing a note in the ABC code updates the corresponding note in the score.
  • The ABC assist frame in the bottom left can be toggled on or off by clicking the light bulb in the top menu.

If what you see matches these behaviors, you have the ABC music notation editor, not a Bayesian computation package or an alphabet learning app.

Features that confirm its purpose

EasyABC's feature set is entirely oriented around music notation:

  • Good ABC standard coverage through internal use of abcm2ps and abc2midi
  • Syntax highlighting
  • Zoom support
  • Import of MusicXML, MIDI, and Noteworthy Composer files, with a custom-made MIDI-to-ABC translator intended to produce legible ABC code with more sensible beaming

None of these features relate to statistical sampling or early literacy instruction.

Practical takeaway

If your goal is to work with ABC music notation, EasyABC is the tool described on this site, and you can start by learning the basics of ABC notation or using ABC assist inside the program. If your goal involves approximate Bayesian computation or teaching the alphabet, you need a different program entirely, even if its name sounds similar.