Yes - we know - you want to get immediately into composing with SCOM. But before letting you running wild, we suggest that you start just by browsing the documentation and practising with the indenting submenus to learn to navigate in the program.
1. Read the Environment document
This gives you an overview on the tools found in SCOM. You will find it in the Tools/Tutorial folder.
2. Read the Nigel's Tutorial
This gives you an overview of the basic composition procedures. You have to go through the trouble of putting together your first song score. Check out the examples in the Tools/Examples/First Tutorial folder, and compare the score with the resulting music. Experimenting is the key to learn SCOM.
If you have enough memory in your Macintosh you can keep both the Environment and Nigel's Tutorial open at the same time while running Symbolic Composer. From the Tools/Access menu you can also access the SCOM web page and contact the authors for further advice.
Note that you may feel that the Nigel's Tutorial doesn't reflect your way of composing. Then follow your own path, and write your own Tutorial. Actually, this is what many users have done - and all have done it differently.
3. Experiment
Make experimentations as you go on. Use Visualizer, double-click HyperHelp and evaluate expressions. It is important that you get the idea of each function. Then you'll start seeing the powerful combinations. Save all your files for future use.
4. Further Advice
Listen to your favourite music and try to hear how it could be realized with SCOM. Study closely material which you feel is worth of 'cloning'. How close to the original can you come? Can you make it better?
If you are on commercial production try to automate your routines on drum and bass production. Write a template on your target style, fill in the libraries and compile several songs. Develop routines for mass-compiling, mutation and selection. You can program it all with SCOM functions.
