saving layout-confused

lin · Post by **lin** » 2007 Aug 01, 17:30

i am using 1.7.0.4 , i save the left folder sheet settings( tab shows F:/test ), then i save the layout .
i restart , switch to my new layout ,the left sheet opens with C:/ i switch layout to default ,sheet is now C:/canon/ i switch to another layout ,now the left sheet is : C:/canon/printer this goes on until i run out of subdirs.
i have 5 xplorer windows open now , although i have chosen single window mode in settings.
I am probably doing something wrong , i have always found the folder and layout settings confusing , example : menu :Customize/Folder group/add current ;then you have to go to : menu : Actions /Save settings now or : Actions/folder setings/ save.
Then if i want to save a layout ,i go to :window/save layout ,is it saved now ? or do i still have to go to : Actions /Save settings now ?save on exit is off

Lin

fgagnon · Post by **fgagnon** » 2007 Aug 03, 18:04

Yes, lin, Layouts and Folder Groups can be confusing. :o

It may help to understand that Layouts and Folder Groups are different concepts.
Layouts define the size/shape/position of the x2 windows (and happen to remember the contents of the tabs in both panes from the last time the layout was saved).
Folder Groups define the set of folders in the active pane.

When things do not work, it often has to do with when settings actually get saved ... or not

.
It turns out that both the Save layout... and the Add Folder Group dialogs are misleading.
When you ok the names/descriptions for your new entity, x2 only creates a blank registry key to hold the settings.

The settings are not saved until you either do "Save settings now" or when you close xplorer2 (with Save settings on exit active).

Bottom line to guarantee that settings are kept is to always do an
Actions | Save settings now operation.

HTH

PS - I delayed responding to your post, lin, partly as a test to see if the subject question is as confusing to others as I think it is. The fact that nobody else replied to try and help indicates to me that you are not alone in your confusion. Usually there are several experienced users ready to jump in and help out. The general lack of response since the question was posted confirms my suspicions. [nikos please take note:] It seems obvious that some reworking of the program is in order to make things less misleading. (Although another paragraph in the User Manual might help to clarify things, I view that as less satisfactory than fixing the program nits.)

lin · Post by **lin** » 2007 Aug 05, 21:25

Fgagnon ,Nobody reacted so i thought i must be the only one struggling with this issue ,but your explanation makes sense ,no one was able to clearly and simply explain the many customize and "save" options ; xplorer is great but this realy needs some work .
Lin

fgagnon · Post by **fgagnon** » 2007 Aug 06, 02:10

Lin,

1. Thank you for being patient with my 'experiment'

2. In the end, have we helped you to:
a. better understand these features,
so you can ...
b. set up xplorer2 layouts the way you want,
and
c. define folder groups that are useful to you.

Please continue to provide feedback so we can improve xplorer2 and the explanations & documentation of its features, thereby improving the usability for all.

Cheers,
-fg-

lin · Post by **lin** » 2007 Aug 06, 13:55

fgagnon wrote:Lin,

1. Thank you for being patient with my 'experiment'

I always consider a reply (not coming from the program developer )
not something to take for granted but a courtesy .

2. In the end, have we helped you to:
a. better understand these features,
so you can ...
b. set up xplorer2 layouts the way you want,
and
c. define folder groups that are useful to you.

It helped some, if i get time i start from scratch again.

Please continue to provide feedback so we can improve xplorer2 and the explanations & documentation of its features, thereby improving the usability for all.
I will
Lin

Cheers,
-fg-

greenie · Post by **greenie** » 2007 Sep 04, 12:15

Thanks, this helps me finetune things a bit better, too.

Mr.Pleasant · Post by **Mr.Pleasant** » 2007 Sep 04, 20:39

Please, don't get me wrong, I don't want to push my point. But this thread had previously turned into a discussion about improving the menu, just right after I posted some very interesting :biggrin: point of view about the save-layout. Quite correctly, the thread was split, and the remainder can be read here: http://forum.zabkat.com/viewtopic.php?t=5362

Thanks, guys, for taking my point away (no hard feelings.... :crying: )

But still, I think that the save-layout feature is worth a closer look, so I hope you don't mind much if I quote myself from the other thread. Maybe there are some others who'd like to share their ideas about this. I'd still like to hear if it's just me who would like to use the feature, if I only knew how...

I do think [save layout] might be a powerful feature, but I don't use it, because I don't get to master it.
Because of its name I used to think it was something like the custom folder group, except that it is applicable to the complete application and not just for one pane. But it rather seems to be something like a second (or third/4th etc.) 'instance', 'session' or 'environment' of x2, that saves a great part of its settings in a separate place. From that point on, this instance evolves separate from the default instance.
But if 'evolving' is correct, then 'save layout' is wrong terminology. Both 'save' and 'layout' suggest fixation: some state to which you can return. This is not the case, unless you have switched off 'save settings on exit'. But this is not standard. And even if you've switched it off, it opens with the opened or focussed folder in the active pane of the layout from which you activate the other layout. So this part of the layout isn't saved in any case. I wonder if this behaviour is useful anyway: maybe someone knows of a way to use it properly.

For me to use 'save layout', I would either need some very strong examples of its use, so I can learn how to use it in a more productive way. The other possibility would be to work on its usability. I'm thinking of a way in which I'm told which instance (layout, or whatever you call it) of x2 is currently active. Like: the name of the current instance in the titlebar. Or a dropdown menu in a toolbar that makes it possible to switch instances, like you switch paragraph styles in a word processor. In that scenario, opened or focussed folders shouldn't be transferred to the other instance, and the terminology should change. I would choose something like 'create new instance' (or session/environment), instead of 'save layout'

fgagnon · Post by **fgagnon** » 2007 Sep 04, 22:33

Mr.Pleasant,
Unfortunately, the admin tools don't give the option to leave a copy of a post in the 1st thread when splitting, something I would like to have done.
Faced with an either/or decision, I judged that your post fit better in the other thread for continuity.
Thanks for copying the relevant parts back into this thread.

FrizzleFry · Post by **FrizzleFry** » 2007 Sep 05, 09:11

This is how I use different layouts:

My default layout uses 2 panes with several tabs in list mode with the option to display hidden files disabled.

Another layout I use a lot uses detailed mode with display hidden files enabled.

Another layout is a single pane in list mode with all toolbars disabled. I use this one to display a folder of shortcuts for my favorite tools.

Another layout is a single pane in detailed mode with several extra columns to display video dimensions and duration.

My most used alternate layouts are set up as buttons on a custom toolbar so I can easily launch then from the main window.

The point is that I could adjust my main window to display files differently but I find it more convenient to just launch a separate window with different settings.