I'll just add my 2 cents-
When I first started composing, I used Finale Notepad. While it is,
very limited, its not
bad. However, I very soon was wanting something more. I researched the products and tried the demos and found that
I like Sibelius a heck of a lot more. I found it a lot easier to get straight to the music and the page view is a lot clearer. With the student discount, it wasn't
that unaffordable and my work output pretty much quadrupled. A professional program is
definately worth it, in my opinion. And if you do decide to go for a full fledged product, I would suggest
not taking anyone's word for it. Try them out, see which one works best for you.
Just my thoughts, take them for what you will.
