Macro parameters not saved?!

[DarkClown]

Affinity Photo 2.1.1

Tiny issue here with macro parameters. I simply add an unsharp mask filter in a macro. Add the macro to my library. In the library make a right click on the new macro and select "Edit Macro". Now I change the parameters of the unsharp mask to new values. (re-checked that in the macro the new parameters are available by closing the macro and open the parameter settings again - all fine). Go to the library and execute the macro but still the old parameters are included. Go back to the macro and the old parameters are all back. Is there a hidden way one has to save the new parameters in a macro? Elsewise it seems like a bug.

Cheers, Timo

[j3rry]

 I think you need to add the modified macro back to the library first.
 

 

[R C-R]

You will need to save the altered macro as a new one if you want to reuse it after you close it.

[v_kyr]

3 hours ago, DarkClown said:

Tiny issue here with macro parameters. I simply add an unsharp mask filter in a macro. Add the macro to my library. In the library make a right click on the new macro and select "Edit Macro". Now I change the parameters of the unsharp mask to new values. (re-checked that in the macro the new parameters are available by closing the macro and open the parameter settings again - all fine). Go to the library and execute the macro but still the old parameters are included. Go back to the macro and the old parameters are all back. Is there a hidden way one has to save the new parameters in a macro? Elsewise it seems like a bug.

As the name "library" halfway implies, it's probably more a  persistent made data collection (datastructure) of macro elements here, so a collection which holds various separate macros. And as far as the old macro element when altered isn't really dynamically exchanged/replaced in that persistent library collection (...aka the old macro removed and replaced by the edited/new macro instead), the collection (library) hasn't changed yet and will execute the old included one. - Thus old macros will probably have to be manually removed first from the library and then the newer reworked one explicitely to be inserted (saved) again.

[R C-R]

4 minutes ago, v_kyr said:

- Thus old macros will probably have to be manually removed first from the library and then the newer reworked one explicitely to be inserted (saved) again.

Or you can just leave the old one & add the new one. But the important thing to understand is changes to macros are not saved back to that macro when it is closed, so you have to save it as new macro.

[walt.farrell]

4 hours ago, DarkClown said:

Is there a hidden way one has to save the new parameters in a macro?

When you're in the Library, and you Edit a macro, you switch to the Macro panel.

The way you save your macro (or changes) is to Add it to the Library again.

[R C-R]

6 minutes ago, walt.farrell said:

The way you save your macro (or changes) is to Add it to the Library again.

Note that unlike when saving a file, saving an altered macro does not overwrite any other macro, including any that might use the same name as an existing one. So to replace an existing macro with a new version you can't just save it with the same name or you will end up with 2 macros with identical names, the original & the altered versions.

To avoid confusion what I sometimes do is add a "1" or something to the new version when saving it, then delete the original, & (optionally) rename the new one removing the extra character.

[DarkClown]

Thanks for your explanation. Looks like you all experienced that problem already.

It sounds a bit like "it's not a bug - it's a feature" to me. Is it just me that feels like: that's really stupid? Of course you can do it this way - but does it make sense? The way it looks most of you power users seem to be happy with these "workarounds" ... has everybody already given up on improving Affinity ?

Or maybe it's just my twisted thinking 🙂 and everything is perfect? 🙂

 

[R C-R]

3 minutes ago, DarkClown said:

It sounds a bit like "it's not a bug - it's a feature" to me.

It's just something that has not (yet) been developed more than to a very rudimentary level. And sice they are working on adding real scripting capabilities to the app, it may never be improved very far from what we have now.

[DarkClown]

44 minutes ago, R C-R said:

It's just something that has not (yet) been developed more than to a very rudimentary level. And sice they are working on adding real scripting capabilities to the app, it may never be improved very far from what we have now.

That's true - if real scripting comes this functionality is most likely obsolet. Are there any further informations on the scripting topic? Node based programming?

[R C-R]

5 minutes ago, DarkClown said:

Are there any further informations on the scripting topic?

Just that they are still working on implementing it & there is no ETA or more details available about how it will work.

[v_kyr]

35 minutes ago, DarkClown said:

Are there any further informations on the scripting topic?

Nope, it's more like this ...

 

36 minutes ago, DarkClown said:

Node based programming?

LOL, dream on!

[v_kyr]

1 hour ago, DarkClown said:

It sounds a bit like "it's not a bug - it's a feature" to me. Is it just me that feels like: that's really stupid?

No, it is usability wise.

1 hour ago, DarkClown said:

Of course you can do it this way - but does it make sense?

IMO no as it lacks any better interoperation dynamics here, so to say pretty much the same as naming things extension wise the one "macro" and the other one "macros" here. All in all these macro capabilities are pretty limited and also suffer from any doc sizing related independent missing dynamics.

1 hour ago, DarkClown said:

The way it looks most of you power users seem to be happy with these "workarounds" ... has everybody already given up on improving Affinity ?

I doubt people are overall happy with that, but most have given up after several years passing through and seeing that either way nothing happens in this and other demanded regards. So, over time, you jage of it and accept the crap as it is, and instead live with those normally unnecessary workarounds.

Personally I stoped years ago using APh macros, as they don't offer what I would need and expected from those.

[DarkClown]

On 7/28/2023 at 7:08 PM, v_kyr said:

LOL, dream on!

I keep doing that for 8 years ...  🙂

[DarkClown]

On 7/28/2023 at 6:37 PM, R C-R said:

Just that they are still working on implementing it & there is no ETA or more details available about how it will work.

So just the usual marketing bs ... no surprise there ...
On the other hand we should not expect to much in this direction. I guess there's currently quite some pressure on serif. While other companies show significant new features (mainly in the area of AI integration) it feels like Affinity is stagnating. And despite some new and nice features in V2 it was more panting after industry standards. We are not talking innovations here. Hard times ...