Default Style Overwrites at Some Point

[sbe]

I have redefined the default-style so many times. But Affinity wants to be smarter than me → I do not want that. I never want Affinity to apply any last style automatically. That almost always goes wrong. Or even worse, you often don't notice it when then suddenly the font is 2% compressed just because I set that at some point.

Please, let us decide for ourselves what the default style is. If I set something via "Menu→Edit→Defaults", it should always be that way, not until I overwrite it myself. For this reason, because there is that option to set a default style, I assume that it is a bug.

This automatic style overwrite could be related to the pen tool:

[Old Bruce]

You can hit the little reset defaults button on the toolbar to go back to the defaults once you are finished with the new/different fills and strokes.

[sbe]

Yeah, you are right. But I don't want that to happen first, that I have to press it. I want such an option that this button is active by default, so that my default settings are always taken.

Besides, if I realize too late that there was some setting stored in the object, then my entire design changes after pressing the button (of course):

[Old Bruce]

Some times I want to draw three green shapes each with a two point thick stroke, followed by two yellow shapes. I do not want to have to go and reset the fill to green and the stroke to 2 points. and then do the same when I am drawing in yellow. That is five sets of setting up, could be many many more.

I have to vote no for your method, it would cost me too much time.

[sbe]

But if you want to draw three identical shapes, isn't it much easier to simply duplicate the shapes (Alt/Option-Drag)😉 

I find it confusing that at a later point in time when you draw a new shape, you don't even remember what you've set and sometimes you don't notice until it's much too late that there's a fine white line around all the new shapes that you didn't want.

I also wonder why Affinity thinks when I convert an image into a picture frame, I want it to look the same as a previously drawn shape, makes no sense.

[Old Bruce]

18 hours ago, sbe said:

But if you want to draw three identical shapes,

Not identical, three shapes.

[sbe]

Ok, got you. In this case I always do it like this, I create all the different shapes and then I just select all of them and change the appearance at the same time.

But yeah I know, everyone has a different workflow 👍

For me, this semi-smart artificial intelligence of Affinity is rather confusing than helpful (as long as I don't understand when and why it overwrites the default-preset). I'm really frustrated that afpub seems to randomly overwrite my default style. Why can I set a default style if it is automatically overwritten by afpub anyway?

[thomaso]

6 hours ago, sbe said:

In this case I always do it like this, I create all the different shapes and then I just select all of them and change the appearance at the same time.

A. If you do it like this – create first all items + style them after creation – then the auto-style issue doesn't occur.

B. Whereas your initial video shows a different workflow order: you 1st create object 1 (stroke), then 2nd style it (arrow) and then 3rd create object 2 (rectangle).

C. To avoid this auto-style* feature just click the "Revert Defaults" button BEFORE creating a new object. With no creation tool selected (but e.g. Move Tool/black arrow cursor) you achieve a reset of more properties.

* I agree the defaults UI may confuse but its automatism is an obviously helpful time saver if you want its benefit. Maybe this 4 'rules' posted by @anon2 can shed more light on its use. (Or the entire thread to notice common misunderstandings/~misuse):