hosoi_h

"I personally hate the Mac way to have no application frames..."

that is your opinion
if you spend your whole day in just one app - it is a 100% legitimate one.

on the other hand - if you use 2-3-4 apps in parallel, dragging and dropping objets from one to another, taking files from folders and dropping them on the artboard....
whatever you think is not important. window mode has been an industry standard for 30 years. same as cmd+C/cmd+V/cmd+X... space for hand, cmd+space for zoom, option [alt] button for modifiers....
if window mode was not an option in v1, i would not have bought it, switched my workflow from adobe to affinity etc...
now, updated to v2, strips me off a basic app functionality.
how to use dual screen setup without separated mode?
 
whatever....
 

Nope, it was a useful feature of the app, and it is important for me, now this it is removed. Do all users should use it? No. But for me, as one of the users/customers it was one of the main features in every day work. So, yes I want it back.

That may or may not be a legitimate request. I personally hate the Mac way to have no application frames and the ability to see other app palettes or windows behind the app in front and was really glad about Adobe introducing the application frames. But if it would be optional, I would have no problem with this.
I'm sorry to take your request here as a reason for another topic, but it is another example of this, that the tone here on the forum lately leaves a lot to be desired. At least a "please" would not have hurt the desire. "Give me back" reads like it was yours before and Serif stole it from you.
A great many users here are very demanding and formulate their criticism in a way as if Serif had personally insulted them with the appearance of V2.

Hi!
I have Photo and Designer v1, and a full set of v2. I"m a professional designer and I have been an Adobe user for about 18-20 years and still am. And in version 1 of your app there was an option to use it as  photoshop or illustrator without the background of the app. Adobe calls it "application frame", you call it "split mode". And in v2, you don't have that. You have "float view," but it doesn't make sense. In "float view" the toolbar constantly wants to jump to the file window, and the file window can be positioned above the "studio" panels, and that's very strange. I really think Designer v1 and its FX add-on aka Photo v1 is the best illustrator/photoshop alternative on the market. But not v2. Give me back the "separated mode" and fix the weird UI behavior.

Best wishes,
Your disappointed user.

Hello,
is it possible to implement separated mode? I know it was in v1 and not having it in v2 is a real problem, especially on macOS that thas a drag and drop nature. It would be ideal to remove the app background and having the files in separated windows. As of now I have to separate every single file and it heavily slow down the workflow, I'm sure I'm not the only one who would like this feature.
Thank you

Affinity V2 apps do not have a Separated Mode on macOS. If for some reason you need this specific functionality, please continue to use Affinity V1 apps.

Woke up this morning, bought the full suite, and 10 minutes later requested a refund. Pointless to have two huge monitors on my Mac and have to use the app like it was a giant iPad.
Nearly as disappointing, now the chronic annoyances I was waiting to be fixed will never be fixed because the version I'm stuck using will never be updated.

Maybe I didn't see the point of the one window app instead of the separate mode on macos. It steals desktop space pointlessly when you close the last image (see attachment) and at first glance, it's not clear to me how to work with 3 or 4 images at once for a montage. One image is in the program window and the others are outside the app window. This just doesn't fit. Please bring back the separate mode. Also some things do not work in APhoto v2. In version 1 I could drag an effect from one image to another. That doesn't work now. Also I can't move a layer from one image to another. Or is there a trick without having to copy and paste all the time?

Unfortunately, this makes the workflow very complicated. In my opinion it was not a good idea to leave out the separate mode. Because some self-evident things just don't work anymore. I bought the whole suite today and I am very disappointed by this limitation. Version 1 is no longer developed and I can not work in version 2 this way.

I am a music theory instructor using Affinity Designer to mark up assignments for students on a shared screen on Zoom. Separated Mode allowed me to only share the document window, not the entire workspace. My students don’t need to see my pens colours and layers, and with some of them on iPad screens it uses up valuable screen space for no added value to them.
It is a great product that many people use in many different ways. Design changes as significant as this should be optional rather than enforced.
Please return this feature, I will be only able to use V1 until separated mode returns.

"If for some reason you need this specific functionality, please continue to use Affinity V1 apps."
that is a bulls#@t answer
"separated mode" is a basic apple mac functionality since the beginning. after 30 years of using all my apps without background covering my view of desktop, folders and other windows/apps, please do not tell me you are that vain to call it "specific functionality" and instructing buying customers to downgrade.

As a Mac user, I had migrated from Aperture to Capture One Pro earlier in the year. Whilst RAW processing is awesome, unfortunately, C1’s image management is utterly woeful in comparison to Aperture – which I still feel is king when it comes to photo management (makes LR seem like 💩).
Having previously given up running Aperture on macOS Catalina, I have recently found that it can be patched to run on the very latest OS.
So, with Aperture running sweetly, I have reverted back to it for basic batch editing, photo and metadata management as well as brainstorming with its unique Lightable feature. 

If Apple had replaced Aperture with something usable then I can understand it – but, six years on, the replacement Photos app is still just as shit and useless as it ever was at the beginning. Heck, even iPhoto (simultaneously ditched with Aperture) was waaaaaay better. 
I had been searching constantly for six years to find a suitable Aperture alternative… to no avail. Nothing even comes close to Aperture’s photo management abilities, never mind its unique Lightable feature.
Like you, I doubt there’ll be an Affinity DAM any time soon (or ever) but, I am over the moon that I can still use Aperture. I still have the C1 safety net (C1 can import Aperture libraries) if I need it.
That said, I would dearly dearly dearly wish that there will be an Affinity DAM.

I'm a new user of Affinity Photo.
Coming from Photoshop there's two features I'm really missing in Separated Mode - either I haven't found them or I recommend they are added.
1. As a pref option, allow the application window to extend down below the main top toolbar - that can be sized to fill the screen. I often have other applications open and my desktop is quite busy with files, so an application window hides all this. It's a big deal. When not in Separated Mode the application window does it's job and hides all my other applications and the desktop - but I need to work in Separated Mode - and hide what's behind.
2. with multiple files open (again in Separated Mode) an option to scroll/pan all windows at once. So eg if I zoom in to 100% on two or more files, holding 'Space-bar' down and dragging will drag all the windows together in sync.

Im having a problem with tiny document windows on mac. 
All my new documents being created (in any affinity app) are initially displayed in a window circa 1000 by 700 pixels on screen, although I have an iMac 21.5 (1920x1080) and my main screen is an Apple Thunderbolt 27" Display (2500something)
I can't remember since when I had this, but maybe forever? I never bothered to mention it, as I was testing betas, but now, as I am beginning to dip my toes deeper into affinity-life these first-world-problems come up again...
 
It happens only in Separated Mode, which I'm using 99% of the time. Maybe it has something to do with my migration from a MacbookPro. I really want to avoid resetting my apps to factory-defaults, as there is no easy way to restore the previous settings if that does not help... <feature-request plug: please add saveable and loadable settings and panel positions>
Can somebody help me, ideally from the affinity-team with inside knowledge or somebody who has successfully fixed a similar problem?  

I don´t agree.
Its not (just) the color - its the Design - some of them are not clear enough, some of them too similar to others, and they are not available in different sizes..


kind regards
Fritz

Hey guys,
 
We desperately need some clarification. For the past two years it was mentioned several times here in these forums that you are working on a DAM. However, we haven’t really seen an update on that topic in the past weeks and months. And in your Twitter feed you mentioned a couple of times now that you are currently not developing a DAM. So which is true?
 
With the recent changes from Adobe with their Lightroom software and with Apple still not improving Photos really, it would be a great time to put a great DAM out there right now. Many, many photographers are looking for a new solution to this old and essential problem. Also, MacPhun just announced a DAM for their Luminar app. 
 
In any case, we just need to know if we should wait for a DAM to be released by you guys or if we should look for other alternatives. Thank you!

@GabrielM
This is urgent matter actually. Not something you can postpone.(putting vertical text layout aside)
Typography is basic of basic thing on graphics apps.
Especially when you claim it as a "pro" app and promote it in East Asian languages.
Who use a publishing app that can't handle text properly?
Please do not ignore this, you are losing customers and reputation in East Asia.
 

Hi Timo
 
You make many good points so thank you for being constructive. Summing all this up, I absolutely agree that a DAM is essential for most users who like you, want that one stop approach where everything is at hand. Of course I see the benefits to that approach. I used this approach myself for many years with both Aperture and Lightroom. I am very familiar with all their excellent features. Some of these features are crucial for many users.
 
 
To conclude I just make the following points in relation to AP together with MAC OS:
 
AP & MAC OS combined can offer the vast majority of the features found in most DAMs including LR and Aperture: I agree that you do need to the capabilities of the MAC OS. But like any software (including LR) you need to know this too.  
Many people if they were aware of the power of AP combined with MAC OS would not need a DAM (Most features essential to them would be right there). I do not need a DAM.  
A DAM for me personally just adds a 'middle man' into my workflow and duplicates many of the features I already have; making things more complex.  
Like you though, I feel know need to convince anyone that this workflow works for me. My initial aim was to change your original misconception that the MAC OS was only capable "putting some stars and colour to a picture or reading the metadata from a file". As I made clear above "AP & MAC OS combined can offer the vast majority of the features found in most DAMs including LR and Aperture!"  
 
Having said all this, I really do look forward to the Affinity DAM. If developed correctly then I too may want to give it a go. For information though, I consider Apple Aperture to be the best DAM ever! :) If Serif purchased Aperture and developed an Affinity DAM it would be a great day!
 
For now though. I will stick with my OS combined with AP.
 
Regards
Wayne

https://vimeo.com/200783820
Some more preview
 
Cheers

-

Oh, this wish is over two years old... I really like the dark UI, especially when I work at the evening in low light situations. But I must also admit, that in bright daylight condition a light grey UI is far better and homogenic to the eyes. It would be really helpful if the gamma could be set to a much brighter UI, where the caption goes from white to black. This is just a color reversal snapshot, only to show how 'smooth' black text on light grey is. It should be easy to implement this feature. +1 from me too :)        

I do really like Photo and Designer and expect to keep them as my go-to apps but unless there is an option for a lighter UI in version 2, I don't expect to upgrade either one.  Instead I'll just muddle along with the final version of V1.  I'm hoping that's not a choice I have to make but I'm really, really tired of struggling with this dark, low-contrast interface.

I too have a lot of difficulty working with this interface. I often can't tell which icon is selected. The almost black on black is extremely difficult to distinguish. Instead of making the selection black, it would be better at 50% gray or some lighter value. Or make the background lighter so the black surround of the icon is more contrasted.

 

I tried changing the gamma of the user interface all the way to the right, but it is not enough.

 

Also, the text is difficult to read. Likewise, Apple's new designs are terrible. The little darker gray on gray is a poor choice. We should not have to strain to read or recognize text or which icon is selected. It's like trying to read a book with white type on almost white paper. I can't understand these unclear user interface choices. When Jony Ive took over interface design, it was bad news. These barely distinguishable interfaces are horrible.

I don't know of the other pro apps …
 
Well, see for yourself. These are screenshots from Motion 4 and Motion 5 respectively (the screen shot of Motion 4 was taken from the web, since I cannot use this version anymore). In the marketing lingo that was used when the latest version was announced you would read:
 
Redesigned dark interface puts the focus on your motion graphics
 
However, the folks at Apple seem to forget that the graphics that are supposed to pop-out of the window have to be created first, and honestly, the new interface is almost unusable under daylight conditions. Sure, the user interface of Motion 4 was extremely ugly, but it was usable. The screen layout was clear. On the new interface, you can hardly figure out the overall organization of the interface. It became a single black slate. Unbelievable.  :huh:

Yosemite style...mockup
 
Obviously less than half done but you get the idea :)