"Studio presets & co" export & import

[mink]

Hi to the community

1. I am looking for the place on the Mac where the presets of my studios (Publisher, Designer, Photo) are stored. Also I wonder if the StudioLink at Publisher in Designer / Photo mode can use the saved studio presets for the separate apps, too?
2. Is it possible to import / export the studio presets as you can do this with the shortcuts?
3. I am a little confused when it comes to the shortcuts-export/import and StudioLink: I have created a set of shortcuts in Designer, Photo and Publisher. Are the StudioLink-Shortcuts of Designer and Photo stored within the Publisher-export-file?  
4. Can one save the context-bar as a file? As it seams the custom layout is not saved within the studio preset.

It would be great if Serif would make all these presets somehow exportable so one can reuse it on all the computers one have / at the agency. It is to tricky to go the "Application Support" subfolder and grab these files (strangely there is no Folder for Designer there).

Thank you for any suggestion.

 

[walt.farrell]

2 hours ago, mink said:

I am looking for the place on the Mac where the presets of my studios (Publisher, Designer, Photo) are stored.

This FAQ shows where all the application settings are saved (which depends on your OS and where you purchased the application): https://forum.affinity.serif.com/index.php?/topic/98906-faq-what-exactly-do-the-clear-user-data-options-clear/ (or, at least, where the "user" directory is located).

The Studio Presets are in a different directory, in the same parent directory as the "user" directory, so once you find it, just go up one level. There you should find a directory named "Workspaces". In the Workspaces directory you'll find several directories. There's one for each Persona, and one named "Custom".

The Studio Presets are in the "Custom" directory.

So, for Photo, in the ...\Affinity\Photo\1.0\Workspaces\Custom (I'm on Windows) I have saved Studio Presets for the Photo Persona, and thus I have a Photo directory. It contains a directory for each of my Studio Presets for the Photo Persona. Each of those directories has the 3 files that define the workspace layout saved in that Studio Preset:

If I had saved Studio Presets for any of the other Personas, there would be additional directories, like that Custom\Photo directory.

In Designer it's the same way.

And in Publisher, too:

The Photo directory has the saved Studio Presets for the Photo Persoa, the Publisher directory has them for the Publisher Persona, and the Vector directory has them for the Designer Persona.

 

 

[Old Bruce]

2 hours ago, mink said:

I am looking for the place on the Mac where the presets of my studios (Publisher, Designer, Photo) are stored.

Depends where you bought them.

From the Mac App Store :

~/Library/Containers/com.seriflabs.affinitydesigner/Data/Library/Application Support/presets/com.seriflabs.Studio.Preset.Data2Draw-tab.Basic 01.preset

From Serif :

~/Library/Application Support/Affinity Publisher/presets/com.seriflabs.Studio.Preset.Data2Layout-tab.Basic 01.preset

Oddly though I don't necessarily see the ones I have made and use constantly.

[walt.farrell]

2 hours ago, mink said:

Also I wonder if the StudioLink at Publisher in Designer / Photo mode can use the saved studio presets for the separate apps, too?

Yes, I believe you could copy the files from Photo or Designer to the appropriate directories in Publisher.

However, that is probably not something that is officially supported, so I would make sure you have appropriate backups in place, and if anything goes wrong you should restore them.

2 hours ago, mink said:

2. Is it possible to import / export the studio presets as you can do this with the shortcuts?

No.

2 hours ago, mink said:

3. I am a little confused when it comes to the shortcuts-export/import and StudioLink: I have created a set of shortcuts in Designer, Photo and Publisher. Are the StudioLink-Shortcuts of Designer and Photo stored within the Publisher-export-file?  

When you export the keyboard shortcuts from an application, I think you get all of them for that application. Thus, for Designer, I think you'd get the keyboard shortcuts for the Designer, Pixel, and Export Personas. I've only done some brief experiements with this, though.

But if that's true, then in Publisher a saved keyboard shortcuts file would have the shortcuts for all 3 Personas (Publisher, Designer, Photo). That would also mean that you cannot use a keyboard shortcuts file from Photo (for example) to apply the same shortcuts to the Photo Persona in Publisher.

2 hours ago, mink said:

4 Can one save the context-bar as a file? As it seams the custom layout is not saved within the studio preset.

The contents of the Context Toolbar is determined by the Persona and Tool that you're using. You don't have any control over its contents at all, and you cannot save nor load it.

However, the Tools panel and the Toolbar contents seem to be saved as part of the Studio Presets. I have not done any experimentation with that, though.

[R C-R]

4 hours ago, Old Bruce said:

~/Library/Application Support/Affinity Publisher/presets/com.seriflabs.Studio.Preset.Data2Layout-tab.Basic 01.preset

Oddly though I don't necessarily see the ones I have made and use constantly.

There should be one file for each of the presets you made in the ~/Library/Application Support/Affinity Publisher/presets/ folder. Each of them should have the name you have assigned to them between the period after "tab" & the period before "preset" so for example you should have one with the name "Basic 01" you gave it.

Also, following "Data2" APub presets for the Publisher Persona should show "Layout" (as above), while any you have created for the Designer or Photo Persona should instead show in that position "Designer" or "Photo" respectively.

However, I just noticed that if I change the name of a preset in the Finder window showing that folder, then restart APub, sometimes it no longer appears in that folder in the Finder view. Changing the name via > Manage Presets within the app works fine, so I would not change any part of the file name in the Finder.

[mink]

14 hours ago, Old Bruce said:

Depends where you bought them.

From the Mac App Store :

~/Library/Containers/com.seriflabs.affinitydesigner/Data/Library/Application Support/presets/com.seriflabs.Studio.Preset.Data2Draw-tab.Basic 01.preset

From Serif :

~/Library/Application Support/Affinity Publisher/presets/com.seriflabs.Studio.Preset.Data2Layout-tab.Basic 01.preset

Oddly though I don't necessarily see the ones I have made and use constantly.

Thank you. That is a good point. I wasn't thinking about that. Yes, I bought ADes and Aph in the AppStore, Apub at the SerifStore. 
//Library/Containers/com.seriflabs.affinity(photo or designer)/Data/Library/Application Support/presets

Don't you agree as well, there should be a simple way to export and import these files from within the preferences panel in the apps? Would be super helpfull.

[mink]

Thank you @R C-R  @walt.farrell @Old Bruce for your answers.

I will reset my apps this weekend and experiment with the settings to see if the saved prefernces apply within publisher and across the ALink.
 

[albertkinng]

I replace my presets, and they don't show up, I create a test preset to see if I was in the correct folder and the new presets show up with the ones I add but the ones I added doesn't show up in the app. Any advice? Too many setups to do that one by one again. 

[walt.farrell]

10 hours ago, albertkinng said:

I replace my presets,

The term "preset" is used for many different purposes. What kind of preset are you talking about? Where do you access it?

[R C-R]

16 hours ago, albertkinng said:

... but the ones I added doesn't show up in the app.

The third one it should be available on the View > Studio Presets menu only if you are in the APub Photo Persona. Likewise, the second one should be available only in the Publisher Persona & the first one only in the Draw Designer Persona.

Edited March 23, 2022 by R C-R
Fixed persona name error -- thanks Walt!

[walt.farrell]

56 minutes ago, R C-R said:

the first one only in the Draw Persona.

Which app has a Draw Persona?

[R C-R]

1 minute ago, walt.farrell said:

Which app has a Draw Persona?

Sorry for the confusion. I meant the APub Designer Persona, the one for which the preset name includes "Data2Draw-tab" in the file name.

[albertkinng]

@walt.farrell I recently move to another Mac, I wanted to move my view presets from the old Mac to the new one. I create a test preset to see where they are stored and when I find my view presets I duplicate them and put them in the same folder on the new Mac where the test view preset was, and they don't show up in the app, the only one showing up is the one I create as a test. Any solution will be appreciated.

[R C-R]

Which Mac is your screenshot from? It is showing 3 presets but it is not clear which one (of them?) is not showing up in the app on the Mac you moved to.

Also, just to cover all the bases, have you restarted the app or the Mac you moved to after adding the duplicated presets to the presets folder?

[albertkinng]

On 3/24/2022 at 2:49 PM, R C-R said:

have you restarted the app or the Mac you moved to after adding the duplicated presets to the presets' folder?

Yes. Here's a video. The Mac that was recorded is the new one. I'm using the file from the old one. That's what I want to do, be able to use the file from the old Mac. Same app version. The only difference is The old Mac is running Big Sur and the new one is running Monterey.

[walt.farrell]

I don't understand what that video was showing. It looked like you copied the profile, and then started Designer, and you had both profiles available. 

Isn't that what you wanted?

[Old Bruce]

Try hitting Reset Studio and then choosing the 'new' preset.

[albertkinng]

@walt.farrellNo Walt, I am able to put the new files but as you can see in the video the app doesn't show the file. It's still showing the old file in the app.

[albertkinng]

1 hour ago, Old Bruce said:

Try hitting Reset Studio and then choosing the 'new' preset.

It didn't work. It just shows the one I created with the app. The one I add to the folder is not showing up.

[Old Bruce]

Watching the movie a few times I notice you are using the Command + Delete keyboard shortcut. All that does is move files to the trash.

[albertkinng]

3 minutes ago, Old Bruce said:

Watching the movie a few times I notice you are using the Command + Delete keyboard shortcut. All that does is move files to the trash.

The files are there. Yes, I move old files to the trash. The ones I'm using, they still there. 

[walt.farrell]

1 hour ago, albertkinng said:

am able to put the new files but as you can see in the video the app doesn't show the file

What I saw: You had two files in the folder, and you opened Designer, and it showed both studio presets that were in the folder.

So I'm either confused about what you want, or about what the video showed.

 

 

[R C-R]

5 minutes ago, walt.farrell said:

What I saw: You had two files in the folder, and you opened Designer, and it showed both studio presets that were in the folder.

And then you deleted one of them, but the other one remained there. So like has been said, it seems to be working as expected. If you just do not delete the preset, what problem do you have?

[albertkinng]

OK, The video might be confusing. Forget the video. Here is what I did:

1. I opened the Presets folder for Designer in my new computer.

2. I put there the Preset file from my old computer. 

3. I opened Designer in my new computer and the Preset didn't show up.

4. I reset the Studio Setup, Restart the computer and launch the Designer app

5. The Preset is not showing up.

6. I verified if the file is there, and it was.

7. I create a new preset with the Designer app.

8. I restart the computer, launch the app and the only preset showing up is the one created within the app.

9. I open the Preset folder and see that the new preset file is there and also the one I drop there from my old computer.

10. Both are in the Preset folder, just one is showing up.

 

Affinity Designer is not showing up the file I manually placed inside the Preset folder.

Hope you can understand now.

[walt.farrell]

1 minute ago, albertkinng said:

Affinity Designer is not showing up the file I manually placed inside the Preset folder.

That should indicate that you are using the wrong folder.

Please show us the full folder names and paths that you placed it in (new computer, step 2) and the full folder name/path that you used on your old computer to copy them.