Sibelius 6 Vs Finale 2011

[PaulR]

(This may be in the wrong place, sorry if it is)

I have been thinking of getting one of these programs.  I looked at the different features, but I am not positive which one is "better".  (I am hesitant to use the word better.)  I have had some experience with Sib. 5 in the past, and Finale 2010.  (As well as Finale NotePad, but that is not a very good representation of the finale program.) 

I think both programs are good, but I am kind of interested in hearing people's experiences with one, or both of the programs so I can make a more informed purchase.

Thanks for any help  

[Luke]

I haven't used Finale of any sort, nor Sibelius 6. I've only got Sibelius 3 - but even then I find it matches my needs pretty much perfectly, and the scores I write are sometimes quite demanding, notationally speaking.*. The descriptions I've heard of the updates to Sibelius since then sound to me mostly unimportant to my own needs, and I'd say that if you need a flexible, good-looking, user-friendly piece of notation software, you won't go wrong with Sibelius.

*I have a few minor niggles and gripes, but there's almost always a way round them.

[greg]

Sibelius 6 is as good as I've seen any notation program get. It even comes with Sibelius Sounds built into it, so when you write scores, they sound much more realistic than MIDI.

[snyprrr]

It even comes with Sibelius Sounds built into it,

But this one goes up to 11.