You wrote: “When I put in an expression message for dynamics, it is automatically placed above the staff rather than below. Who’s ever read music with the dynamics above the staff?”

Vocal music is usually written with the dynamic markings above the staff, since the area below the staff is usually cluttered with lyrics. (There’s a lot to know after 550 years of refinement in the art of music printing. I encourage all composers to get Kurt Stone’s /Music Notation In The Twentieth Century/.) Of course, you can put them wherever you want them, but the Sibelius default is correct.

If your dynamics are appearing above the staff on instrumental parts, you’ve probably somehow accidentally chosen a vocal House Style. One way to fix this is to go to House Style > Import House Style and then select one of the styles that is not for vocal works. Leave all the boxes checked and click OK, and your entire score will have the new appearance.

Most of the other “peeves” sound like a lack of comfort with the interface, shortcuts, etc. There are shortcuts for all of these things, and you can change them under Preferences.

I encourage you to spend some time with Sibelius before you dismiss it, even if you decide it isn’t your software of choice. I’ve talked to many people who prefer Sibelius, and some who prefer Finale, just as there are some people who enjoy using Macs and others who are more at home with Windows machines. I had used Finale for a number of years. I switched to Sibelius around 2002 and I’ve been very happy with that decision, but you may prefer something else entirely. (If you’ll be submitting scores for publication, check publisher guidelines; I’ve heard of publishers *only* accepting work created with Sibelius because it is more in line with industry standards of good layout.)

Best wishes making art and having fun with whatever tools you use.

Peace,
Mark