Window handling and workflow

[DarkClown]

Open Topics and suggestions - only related to window handling and workflow (checked with Beta 1.7.0.209)

1) When you drag & drop a file from the windows explorer on the AP Icon or framework please:

•    open it in an undocked new window (elsewise no second drag an drop is possible unless you float the first window)!
•    if possible in 1:1 Zoom (not enlarged to windows size as it is done right now)
•    please adapted windows size of undocked window to fit the original file

2) If you drang and drop a file from Explorer into an open AP document it gets added as a layer but since it does not get dropped centered and mostly outside the picture area of the first layer one can not find this newly added layer anywhere. It seems to be vanished somewhere outside the boundaries of the existing picture.

3) When you float one or all windows please make the floating window(s) fit the picture in the current zoom level (optimal windows size) - if it fits in the workspace.

4) If a window is larger than the original document (regardless if docked or floating) please automatically center the document within the new window (and disable the view tool in this window). If you resize a floating window smaller than the document: dock the document at the top left corner.

Maybe it makes sense to implement a general setting "Always center documents when smaller than window". If a document is smaller than the window there is no need to be able to move the document within the window. One could avoid accidentally "loosing" the document in "outer space" if it would always be centered in the docked window (if smaller than the window)

5) When you work with docked and floating windows in combination you can't bring the docked window to the front. This is a general problem. It could be solved by only allowing docked or floating windows mode but no mixture. Floating windows can be brought to the front.

6) All Zoom tools (e.g. 100% / 200% / actual size etc.) should as well center the document in the window.

7) It would be nice to arrange all floating windows optimized on the workspace (e.g. horizontal, vertical, tiled) with one click (menu command)

8) Also nice to have: additional information of document size (height/width in current units somewhere at the windowsframe of a document)

9) If I undock many documents why do they cascade at the top right(?) corner of my screen?

10) Drag and Drop of layers between documents should be possible

11) Would be nice to individually be able to save the workspace (setting of panels, content of toolbars, position of all panels and toolbars, docked or floating windows)

Bugs:
- AP crashes sometimes when you drag and drop from explorer or undock a window
- Resizing a window bby grabbing its frame causes a significant delay (the window frame follows some seconds later the movement of the mouse) - Seems like AP is so busy with permanently calculating the content of the window that the frame can't follow the mouse quick enough. The problem seems to be significantly less when you resize at the top left corner in comparison to the bottom right corner.

Most of the above refers to Affinity Designer as well!

Cheers, Timo

[Chris B]

2) I think the position the image is placed is relative to your mouse cursor. The top left corner of the image I'm placing is next to my cursor. 

9) I'm not sure but I've noticed if you have two monitors and float them, they can appear on the other monitor (in my case the main monitor) even if the app is on the secondary monitor. I'll log this as this is unexpected and undesired behaviour.

11) Requested so many times. I hope to see this implemented at some point.

The points I haven't responded to I feel are either feedback or suggestions. We can go through them and log what improvements we feel are appropriate. Thank you.

----

- I haven't been able to reproduce the first bug you've mentioned. Is there anything more specific I can try doing?

- We first saw the second bug you reported in Publisher but have reproduced it elsewhere. This should be fixed soon.

[DarkClown]

6 hours ago, Chris B said:

2) I think the position the image is placed is relative to your mouse cursor. The top left corner of the image I'm placing is next to my cursor.

True ... that seems to be the case ...

6 hours ago, Chris B said:

9) I'm not sure but I've noticed if you have two monitors and float them, they can appear on the other monitor (in my case the main monitor) even if the app is on the secondary monitor. I'll log this as this is unexpected and undesired behaviour.

Please, do so.

6 hours ago, Chris B said:

11) Requested so many times. I hope to see this implemented at some point.

Would be really good.

6 hours ago, Chris B said:

The points I haven't responded to I feel are either feedback or suggestions. We can go through them and log what improvements we feel are appropriate. Thank you.

Indeed ... mainly (from my perspective important) suggestions based on workflow and handling optimizing ... The current windows handling on a daily base is extremely time consuming and a real *pita* ... It feels like AP has never been designed for handling more than one document at a time nor handling floating documents. I don't consider my points as "bugs" but extremly annoying and time consuming. I need to work on pictures (that's what I'm getting paid for) and don't want to deal with handling issues of the SW all the time - taking up a significant amount of my precious time ...

6 hours ago, Chris B said:

----

- I haven't been able to reproduce the first bug you've mentioned. Is there anything more specific I can try doing?

- We first saw the second bug you reported in Publisher but have reproduced it elsewhere. This should be fixed soon. 

A wasn't able to reproduce the first bug consistently myself ... it just happened more than 3 times while working with the SW (I know, this is a crappy bug description and does not make debugging easier)
Hopefully the performance bug can be solved soon.

Thanks again for your feedback!
Cheer, Timo

[walt.farrell]

On 1/23/2019 at 8:06 AM, DarkClown said:

5) When you work with docked and floating windows in combination you can't bring the docked window to the front. This is a general problem. It could be solved by only allowing docked or floating windows mode but no mixture. Floating windows can be brought to the front.

That is in general a problem with floating items. Consider, for example, opening a new studio panel that is not docked to the panels on either the right or left side. It floats over something, and if you need to work on that thing you must manually move the floating object. The same applies for floating image windows, when you have docked ones. You need to move them out of the way, or minimize them, to get to the docked items behind them.