Revert feature?

[ladlon]

Is there any reason that Affinity software doesn't have the traditional Revert menu item (File)?

I suspect somone will probably say 'Just use the Open Recent menu item', but that won't work, as it won't let you load something that is already loaded.  So, at this point, you have to close the project and then load the most recent project file.  Not a huge issue, but why not just have the Revert menu item like other programs?

[fde101]

You can back up through the undo history using the History panel.

Thinking about it, it would be kind of nice if the panel had an icon next to the step where the document was last saved...

[ladlon]

True enough... although, why not also have the Revert menu item?  It's weird how Affinity is leaving out things like this, seemingly for no reason or benefit.

The history thing would work, but a Revert menu item (or button or whatever) would be even easier.

Interesting idea you have about the 'marker' in the list, where the last save occurred.  That actually would provide even more benefit than a Revert menu item, as it would show you what all changed since your last save.  Good idea!

[Pšenda]

 

 

[Pntrguy]

As an Affinity Photo user, I agree it would be great to have an actual Revert feature, either as a menu item or easily accessible in some other way. Putting a "saved" marker in the History would be good but  still wouldn't be enough in my opinion. If one wanted to go back in the History prior to the marker to try some edits, then changed his/her mind and wanted to revert to the saved version, wouldn't the marker be gone at that point, and the person would have to settle for closing and reopening the document? Maybe there's something I'm missing with that scenario. But it seems like a Revert option would be the way to go in certain cases.

[ladlon]

Yep...  I think the history thing is actually a great idea/feature... but certainly there should be no harm in ALSO having the standard Revert menu option as well.  A quick and easy 'reset' for when you suddenly realize something has gone terribly wrong.  Certainly, the history list could be used (and one could argue it gives more control.... sure enough)... but, on the other hand, the classic Revert is quick and familiar, too.

[Old Bruce]

You should check out the Snapshots panel. Available in Photo and Designer.

[Pntrguy]

1 hour ago, Old Bruce said:

You should check out the Snapshots panel. Available in Photo and Designer.

Thanks, Old Bruce! That's a great panel I didn't know about. While I still think a Revert feature might be helpful in its own right, Snapshots allows way more flexibility and stages to be able to "revert" to at any time, even after the document's been closed and reopened! Powerful stuff. I'd still be happy to see a Revert feature come into play, but definitely not at the expense of Snapshots! Thanks for pointing it out. Amazing.

[ladlon]

Agreed, but these kinds of features are great for when you INTENTIONALLY want to go back to a particular point (...and, intentionally create that snapshot at that point).  All good...

But, the benefit of the Revert feature is that you didn't have to set a snapshot (in anticipation, perhaps, of things going wrong with the upcoming actions you planned).  You just go back to the previously saved (and therefore 'safe') version... rather than actively creating snapshots before the disaster.  (...Unless I'm missing something here)

Again, the history features ARE great... No arguement there.  It would just be nice to have the traditional Revert feature... as sometimes, when you are deep into your project, and on a roll, you may forget to create snapshots.  Granted, you can scroll through the history, and (hopefully) find the point where things went wrong... but that's not always going to be obvious... and even if it were a simple matter of scrolling up to the very top (...with the assumption that the history starts after the last save?), then it could still be argued that hitting 'Revert' is still easier.

Have both, since the history/snapshot systems ARE definitely very usesful, and certainly powerful tools.

[Pntrguy]

Yes, as ladlon explained very well, a Revert feature would indeed have a welcome place in the software, even with the History and Snapshots still in full swing.

[prophet]

+1 for Revert

[Ron P.]

So does this PS Revert menu command throw away, so to speak, all the changes, adjustments, filters, everything you've done, restores it back to like it was when you first opened it?

IF so, then in AP,  creating a duplicate of your Background Layer, when you first open it, and then hiding it, so it does not affect anything you're working on, would get the same results, if you delete all layers above it. You're back to square one, the file just when you opened it. I mention it, because a lot of the tutorials I've watched for AP, the tutor makes it point to do that, so if things get messed up, they can easily start all over from scratch, ie; revert.

[Alfred]

56 minutes ago, Ron P. said:

So does this PS Revert menu command throw away, so to speak, all the changes, adjustments, filters, everything you've done, restores it back to like it was when you first opened it?

No, it restores it to the way it was when you last opened it (i.e. its last saved state). So if you load an image, apply some filters and adjustments, save the image and then do some further work on it, ‘Revert’ will take you back to where you were after the first bunch of filters and adjustments. In other words, the outcome is exactly the same as if you close the document without saving, and then reopen the last saved version.

[Ron P.]

21 hours ago, Alfred said:

No, it restores it to the way it was when you last opened it (i.e. its last saved state). So if you load an image, apply some filters and adjustments, save the image and then do some further work on it, ‘Revert’ will take you back to where you were after the first bunch of filters and adjustments. In other words, the outcome is exactly the same as if you close the document without saving, and then reopen the last saved version.

Ok, I can see where that would be useful.

Thanks Alfred.

[Andi McClure]

Hello, an update, I would like to provide an additional reason why a revert feature could be needed. Sometimes a file that you are editing changes on disk while Affinity Photo is editing it, and you want to reset to the version on disk. Currently to do this you must close the entire file and then re-open it.

This could happen if for example images are generated by a script that then get touched up in Affinity Photo. This is what I am doing right now and the lack of a "revert" is definitely hurting me.

[Suomy]

On 8/24/2020 at 10:34 PM, Alfred said:

In other words, the outcome is exactly the same as if you close the document without saving, and then reopen the last saved version.

Except, I think in Creative Suite, Revert is considered a separate menu command that gets added to the history. And you can undo to a point back before you loaded the original document state. Right?

It would be simple enough to leverage the snapshots system for a feature that gets close. Just provide an option to create a snapshot on document open, and discard it if the document isn't changed when it is closed. 

Edited February 5, 2022 by Suomy

[GarryP]

I am of the same opinion as some others that while the History Panel and Snapshots are good ways to ‘revert’ changes, neither is as quick as a ‘simple revert menu option’. This is useful for learning and experimentation purposes – just take me back to where I started.

This discussion has led me to the idea that, if it were implemented, we would need two different ‘Revert’ functions:
1. “Revert as Was” - Discard all the changes I have made to the file I opened and return it to how it was when I opened it, possibly warning the user if the file on storage has changed since it was opened (the same as going to the History Panel and sliding the slider all the way to the left, but without the warning).
2. “Revert to File” - Reload the file from storage, if it still exists, but warn the user beforehand if it has changed since opening so they have the option to say what they want to do (the same as closing the file and opening it again, but without the warning).

These two things might normally do the same thing but, under some circumstances, they would do different things.
For example, if, as has been mentioned above, an ‘external process’ changed the file after the user opened it, would the user want to be working on the file as it was previously opened or the file as it is now on storage?

[walt.farrell]

1 hour ago, GarryP said:

1. “Revert as Was” - Discard all the changes I have made to the file I opened and return it to how it was when I opened it,

Suppose you Opened a file, then did a Save As under a new name. At that point you're no longer working in the original file but a new one. Would "Revert as Was" put you back into the original file, or just drop the changes since the Save As was performed?

[GarryP]

Good question.
I would probably say that the changes should be discarded back to the time of the Save As as the user, from that point, is working on a new file, essentially, but maybe other people have different ideas.
If anything, this proves that “Revert” isn’t as simple as it first sounds.

[fde101]

On 5/26/2020 at 3:58 PM, Pntrguy said:

If one wanted to go back in the History prior to the marker to try some edits, then changed his/her mind and wanted to revert to the saved version, wouldn't the marker be gone at that point, and the person would have to settle for closing and reopening the document?

No, because the history is branching - the complication would be digging through the branches to find it, made worse by the way the branches are presented to the user in the panel (instead of a hierarchical list, they put an indicator at levels where other branches are available and you need to cycle through them, so you might need to cycle through several layers multiple times until you find the one with what you are looking for).

 

23 hours ago, GarryP said:

Good question.
I would probably say that the changes should be discarded back to the time of the Save As as the user, from that point, is working on a new file, essentially, but maybe other people have different ideas.
If anything, this proves that “Revert” isn’t as simple as it first sounds.

Personally, I think if a "last saved" marker were added to the history, the "Revert" command should simply jump to that step in the history panel.  If the user makes changes from there, it simply becomes another branch in the history information, so nothing is lost.

[AdamRatai]

I will back this thread from the dead. In Photo 2 there is still not "revert" available, but as you can link image from disk, there is no need to. If you make constant changes to picture outside Affinity Photo (for example rerender it constantly) if you place it linked in a Photo (File/Place, with File/Placement Policy/Linked) it will be updated automatically.  Even better then revert.