SONAR to New REAPER Users MIDI Editing Info and How to Run Different Versions and Backup

I've been using Cakewalk as my DAW since 1997 and figured they wouldn't be around much longer after Gibson bought them and they stopped responding to support tickets and you couldn't call them for support for over a year.
 
I decided to start learning REAPER last year because it's very low priced, has a lot of tutorials on YouTube and has really helpful forum members. I also like how tweakable it is and how you can write your own programs/actions/scripts/Plug-ins. I'm really OCD and ADHD when it comes to editing and tweaking audio and MIDI, so I find all the customization you can do in REAPER really helpful.
 
I was able to do all the audio editing I could do in SONAR in REAPER but I struggled with MIDI Editing.
 
I asked the MIDI questions below on their forum and all my of them were answered and I'm able to do everything I could in SONAR and more. The only thing I have to figure out is how to use Melodyne without ARA. Below my MIDI questions I explain how to install different versions and how to backup your install and all configurations.
 
MIDI INFO
= Here's the link to my REAPER Forum Post: https://forum.cockos.com/showthread.php?t=199986
 
1. Is there a MIDI Trim knob that can be added to a track?
** I used this in SONAR to raise or lower the velocity of a MIDI track
*** As a workaround I've been using one of the JS MIDI Velocity plugins in the MIDI track's FX
2. Is there a way to apply one of the JS MIDI Velocity plugins to the MIDI track destructively?
3. Is there a way to select a bunch of notes and change all their velocities at once to something like 107?
4. If I click on a note, is there a window that will show the note's properties like Name, Duration, Velocity Timestamp and MIDI Channel?
5. How do I view and edit multiple MIDI tracks at once?
** I've been double clicking on the MIDI clips and they each open a separate Drum Piano Roll window, which I have to individually resize to see everything, which is very time consuming.
6. In SONAR, if a note is selected and you press SHIFT+G, the cursor moves to the start of the note
** Here's more info from the SONAR Manual: hhttps://www.cakewalk.com/Documentation?product=SONAR&language=3&help=KeyboardShortcuts.html 
7. In SONAR there's a process called Groove Quantize that I use to match the velocity of other MIDI clips to a selected clip or selected notes.
** It's really helpful with Hi-Hats and Snare rolls, so they don't sound like machine gun static and can have some bounce and dynamics.
** Here's more info from the SONAR Manual:
*** Process > Groove Quantize: http://www.cakewalk.com/Documentation?product=SONAR&language=3&help=Menus1.139.html 
*** Groove Quantize dialog: http://www.cakewalk.com/Documentation?product=SONAR&language=3&help=Dialogs2.001.html 
*** Groove Quantize: http://www.cakewalk.com/Documentation?product=SONAR&language=3&help=EditingMIDI.39.html#1419040 
*** To use the Groove Quantize command: http://www.cakewalk.com/Documentation?product=SONAR&language=3&help=EditingMIDI.39.html#1419121 
*** Groove Quantize tips: http://www.cakewalk.com/Documentation?product=SONAR&language=3&help=EditingMIDI.39.html#1419251 
 
 
HOW TO INSTALL REAPER and DIFFERENT VERSIONS
= Here's the links to where I found this info: 
* https://forum.cockos.com/showthread.php?t=194280 
** https://forum.cockos.com/showthread.php?p=1868403#post1868403 
** https://forum.cockos.com/showthread.php?p=1869024#post1869024 
 
= Install REAPER As Portable Instead Of The Standard Install: 
If you install REAPER as portable, you'll be able to easily backup the entire folder you install it into. You can also install different portable versions into different folders to test out new versions before you update your main install or you can install the 32bit and 64bit versions too.
 
I create folder names for each version like REAPER_64, REAPER_32, REAPERv562_64, REAPERv540_32. My REAPER_64 and REAPER_32 folders are my main portable installs that I update to new versions once I've tested them. The other folders I put the version of the portable install and if it's the 32bit or 64bit version and then delete them once I update my main folder. Installing different versions is really helpful if you think you're experience a new bug and want to verify if it was in previous versions.
 
Installing a portable version is great when you're new to REAPER and learning how to customize things because sometimes you can't figure out how to put things back the way they were. Make sure to read the section below about backing up REAPER's configuration files and always make a backup before making changes, so then if you can't figure out how to change something back, you can compare the config files to see what you changed.
 
= To Install REAPER As Portable
* Create a new folder in the location you want to install REAPER and you can name it like my examples if you want
* Start the install, I recommend Right clicking on the install file and selecting Run as administrator
* Agree to the EULA
* Under the Destination Folder field, put a check mark in the box that says: Portable install
** Click the Browse... button and select the location you created to install REAPER
** Click Next and then Install
* Once the install is finished say now to opening it
* Go to the location you installed REAPER and open the folder
* Right Click on reaper.exe and select Send to > Desktop (create shortcut)
** NOTE: If you can't see the file extensions, and there's multiple files named reaper, right click on the largest sized one
* Now a shortcut will be on your desktop and I recommend renaming it the same you named the install folder
* You can create Desktop shortcuts for each version you install and name them, so you know what version they are
 
= To Update A Portable Install: 
Just point the new portable install to the folder of your previous version. I don't recommend trying to downgrade a version, so you should just install it into it's own separate folder.
 
 
HOW TO BACKUP REAPER
= To Backup Your Configuration Files: 
* Go to Options > Preferences > General (At the top of the left menu) > Export configuration... (In the center at the top)
* Select ALL the boxes on the left
* Click Save
** Select a location to save the file
** I include the REAPER version, date and time in the file name, EXAMPLE: REAPERv5.62_Configuration_Backup_2017-12-02_2152
 
= To Backup REAPER Portable Version: 
* If you installed REAPER as portable, just make a copy of the folder you installed it into and it will include your REAPER resource folder
 
 
= To Backup REAPER Standard Version: 
* For the 64bit version: Copy the folder REAPER (x64), located at C:\Program Files\
* For the 32bit version on 64bit OS: Copy the folder REAPER, located at C:\Program Files (x86)\
* For the 32bit version on 32bit OS: Copy the folder REAPER, located at C:\Program Files\
 
** For the REAPER Resource folder: Copy the folder REAPER, located at %USERPROFILE%\ AppData\Roaming\
*** %USERPROFILE% = C:\Users\(Your_Profile_Name)\
 
 

Thank you so much for sharing this!

Frank Harvey
Still bumping around in Reaper and discovering what it can do intuitively.
(And Yes.....OK ....I Will eventually read the instructions)
Well Surprise, Surprise !!.. ( & BTW RIP Jim Nabors).
A pleasant surprise is that Cakewalk TTS-1 is working fine , although it wasn't yesterday....actually crashed Reaper several times when I first tried it  :(.   I use it for browsing my MIDI Files.
 
I read in many posts that TTS-1 requires a valid version of Sonar on your PC to work in Reaper.
Maybe So..not sure about that.
BUT ....FWIW ..I Got up this morning and fired up the Ole Sonar first. Then opened Reaper & TTS-1 worked like a charm.
PS: ( Sonar does not have to be open simultaneously forever). I even rebooted my PC to check this fact.
I may have resolved something BUT Then again the Ole Girl TTS-1 may have just decided to jump ship of its own accord .....Sonar being open just a coincidence. ;)

Before I rebuilt my DAW and went 64-bit at the beginning of this year, I had the TTS-1 available, and had even produced a song using nothing but it as a proof of concept to someone who thought it wouldn't work in REAPER.
 
I no longer have it, since I only installed Sonar 5 and REAPER this time, leaving all the older versions of Cake and Sonar uninstalled. For jollies I looked last night and I have CD or DVD installs for Cakewalk Home Audio, Cakewalk Audio, Pro Audio 7, Pro Audio 8, Pro Audio 9, Sonar, Sonar 2 XL, Sonar 3 Producer, Sonar 4 Producer, and Sonar 5 Producer.  I also had, but no longer know where installers for Cakewalk for Windows, and Cakewalk for DOS.
 
Needless to say, I have dropped some serious coin on Cakewalk over the years, but have been a very happy camper using REAPER for the last nine!   :-)