Mail of the Month - October - Import, Sort, Backup and other favourites

Old and new features, this month's mails really are Frequently Asked Questions.

I have been using Fakebook Pro for a few months now, and I LOVE it. However, there is a function I need, and I will explain why:
I need a SORT PLAYLIST function.  (mainly sort by name [alphabetize], but I suppose sort by date might also be useful)
I am not using the default fakebook songs but I am growing my own song library, and I add a few new PDF files each week. So I maintain a MY LIBRARY songlist, and for a weekly gig, I create a temporary playlist.  (typical, I’m sure)
Well, every time I add a new song and add it to the MY LIBRARY playlist, I want it to appear alphabetically in that list. As it is now, I have to manually drag it into alphabetical order, and this is a slow, tedious process, especially when MY LIBRARY contains over 1000 songs. If I could add my new songs, and simply touch a “sort this playlist” command, that would make my weekly updates a LOT faster and easier.

The “auto-sort playlist” feature has been on the to-do for quite some time, but some time ago we actually decided to get it into the planning board and implemented for version 2.9. But as we’re now working on 2.7.0 and the pace of development is quite depending on other commitments (gigs, mostly), your mail prompts us to re-do the planning and include it in 2.7.0, to be released mid-November.

The first thing I wanted to do was BACK UP the library of chord charts included “Facebook” and “Popbook”. I can’t find the files when looking around the Android file system (I’m new to Android, and have a desktop iMac)
Alternatively, can I re-download the library later?  I’m concerned about editing/experimenting/accidentally deleting.

Backing up is always a good idea! Please have a look in the menu->Settings->Database and backup (in the bottom). In this dialog you can initiate a backup as well as import a backup file (in case this is needed). Here you'll also find the option to completely remove or reset the original Fakebook/Popbook songs.

I was able to “add” (import) another Fake Book (Hal Leonard Real Book) but unfortunately Fakebook Pro doesn’t index the song titles; only the 400+ pages.
Is the only way to index to go thru and manually type each title??

There's a short introduction to PDFB scripts, which greatly helps in importing and indexing large PDF collections, at our web page: http://www.skrivarna.com/2014/02/automatic-indexing-of-pdf-real-books.html
Then there's a lot of ready made scripts and some useful examples at http://www.skrivarna.com/p/fakebook.html (this is also the page you get to if you select the menu->Add new songs->Download from Internet. For instance, some of the most common PDF Real Books are available there.

Your program have note for sax tenor ( Bb)?

Fakebook Pro comes with thousands of chord charts (not melodies) that can be transposed e.g. for sax (look in the Settings in the main menu). When importing other music formats, like PDF, you need to be careful as many of these formats cannot be transposed but most be the right key from the start.
Have a look at www.skrivarna.com/p/fakebook.html where you'll find index scripts for importing e.g. The Bb Real Book (5th ed) and The Creole Jazz Band Fakebook Bb.

What's the best way of getting melodies into this apps database to tunes that are already in there? The same with lyrics?

The most popular way to import jazz melodies and lyrics is to add some of the many Real Book versions in PDF format. Have a look at http://www.skrivarna.com/p/fakebook.html for some useful links, both to standard Real Books but also to the Vocal Books with lyrics.
Another popular option, which also provides the possibility to transpose charts, is to use ChordPro files for lyrics and chords.