Privacy & service details
Get the Dots is operated by Thomas Ibbotson. For support, questions about your data, or a request to delete your account and stored music, email thomas.ibbotson@gmail.com.
Signing in and using the service
Google supplies your account identifier, name and verified email address so we can sign you in, keep your scores private and track your free monthly allowance and credits. We request only your basic profile and email, with no access to your Google files or messages.
We use essential cookies for sign-in and security. We do not use advertising cookies or third-party analytics. Technical request information, including IP addresses, is used for security, rate limits and troubleshooting.
Your music and OpenAI
Uploaded pages and transcription instructions are sent to OpenAI to check suitability and transcribe the notation. Rendered pages are also sent for a comparison with the originals. Corrections send your existing notation and correction instructions to OpenAI; they do not re-read the original images. Your uploads and results are accessible through this site only to your signed-in account; the operator can access server data when needed to provide support and operate the service.
API requests use OpenAI's store=false option. OpenAI processes requests under its own API data controls; this setting does not mean that OpenAI never retains any data. See OpenAI's data controls.
If you supply your own OpenAI API key, it is stored encrypted on the server, used to make your transcription requests, and never returned to your browser. You can remove it from Account. OpenAI may charge your API account for work even when a transcription fails or is stopped.
Storage and payments
Source files and generated score files are kept so you can return to your scores; contact us to have them deleted. Account, job and credit records are retained to operate the service and resolve support requests. Daily database backups are retained for seven days. Contact us to request deletion or a copy of your stored information.
When credit purchases are enabled, Stripe handles checkout and card details. We send your email address and order information to Stripe and retain payment references and the credit ledger. We do not receive or store your card number.
What you receive
Get the Dots produces PDF, editable LilyPond and MIDI from readable Western staff notation or recorded melodies. Generated music can contain mistakes; compare it with the original before relying on it.
One free transcription per account per UTC calendar month covers up to four source pages or two minutes of audio, subject to processing capacity. Paid transcriptions use one credit per source page or started 30 seconds of uploaded audio. The full recording determines the price, even when you request a section. Corrections edit the existing score from your directions and create a new version for free, including when the original used your own API key. The site pays for correction processing. Limits are 10 attempts per score across all versions, 20 per account and 60 per connection in a rolling 24 hours, subject to processing capacity. Retries, rejected requests and failed attempts count towards these limits. New music requires a separate transcription. Failed, rejected and cancelled jobs restore the reserved site credits or free allowance automatically.
Upload only music you have permission to transcribe. Unrelated uploads, automated bulk traffic and attempts to evade account limits are not permitted. Contact support about payments or transcription problems.
Updated 12 September 2026.
For audio transcription we convert the recording into pitch-and-time images (spectrograms) and send those images and your instructions to OpenAI. The recording stays in your private source files for the same 30-day retention period.