The abc format devised by Chris Walshaw is a system for writing tunes in plain text. There are many programs for PCs and Macs which can read the format and can either play it (through sound cards or through MIDI) or print it on paper. There are also a large number of tunes available in abc format, most of whcih can be accessed via a world-wide index.
All the tunes in this virtual book have been stored in abc format.
To learn about abc format, to find suitable programs for your computer, and to locate the word-wide index, visit the abc home page.