Affinity Publisher Background Colour

[David Bryant]

AFFINITY PUBLISHER (Beta)

Having downloaded  Affinity Publisher Beta (AFBeta) and tried it out, I find that for me there is a serious problem over the choice of using a default black background with all the tool bars, and controls for this software. One of the big issues with this is it makes it more difficult to see these than if it the default setup was onto a white background as it is in Pageplus. As an example when you drive at night it is always more difficult than during daytime and so the greys are not so easily distinguishable as they would be during daylight hours. On AFBeta it was quite difficult for example to highlight the Help tab and many others. Using AFBeta is a bit like driving in the dark. The useful tutorials also unfortunately chose to work with a black default colour for the page,

A good majority of software programs work with a light or pale background, eg MS Word, Excel, Access and Outlook , AutoCAD, Dymo Printer, and  Acrobat Reader for example. Others such as Internet browsers Google, Yahoo etc work broadly in a similar way. All these and the Pageplus program are so much easier visually to use. Using Affinity Publisher Beta I find it much more difficult to pick out the greys from the black background. As the population ages also and eye problems become more prevalent this can surely only aggravate the situation with using a black background for software. I can see the advantages and improvements offered by AFBeta, but for me I will probably stick with Pageplus as long as practically possible before I upgrade to Affinity. It is probably too late to ask for an option where the default setup is a light background like Pageplus, but it would be so much easier to use if there was this option.

David Bryant

[somewhereinusa]

I too have problems with the dark program, what you asked for is there.  Go to Edit--Preferences--User interface-- click light color.  You can even change that using the sliders. 

I agree with the tutorials being on the dark background. I have trouble following because of the color. 

[fde101]

1 hour ago, David Bryant said:

A good majority of software programs work with a light or pale background

Professional applications that deal with color accuracy usually have a dark neutral gray interface because it helps to minimize the influence of the surrounding UI on your perception of the colors in the document.  It can also help to reduce eyestrain when working for long periods of time because there is less light from the monitor bombarding your eyes all day.  Final Cut Pro and DaVinci Resolve for examples.

I don't think I would have taken the Affinity programs nearly as seriously as professional tools if they defaulted to a UI that was not sufficiently dark, or was anything other than a neutral gray.

[Steps]

I miss something in the middle between the dark and light theme or an improved dark theme.

Now it's really to dark and unfortunately also has low contrast what you notice especially in the tutorial videos.

But I understand @fde101s explaination, so a new gray theme could help.

 

 

[walt.farrell]

2 hours ago, Steps said:

I miss something in the middle between the dark and light theme or an improved dark theme.

Now it's really to dark and unfortunately also has low contrast what you notice especially in the tutorial videos.

Have you tried adjusting the UI Gamma in the Preferences? (Note: This may work best with a file open.)

[Steps]

19 minutes ago, walt.farrell said:

Have you tried adjusting the UI Gamma in the Preferences? (Note: This may work best with a file open.)

Yes, did so, but I was not able to achieve what I wanted this way. So I stick with the light theme.

[David Bryant]

Thankyou for the suggestion of Selecting Preferences where | found you could select the User Interface to Dark or Light. I selected 'Light' and the problem seems to have been solved.