Some immediate thots on layers. As I have not tried them before.Just downloaded 17 Nov build and playing with layers in Win32 2000.
First thoughts are that the writing on the layer button is so small as to be almost illegible...and I'm using a 21 inch screen. When the little layer window opens there is a VERY small thingo above and to the left of the top layer. I cannot see what it is or does. It looks like (*001) and clicking it brings it up as a layer I think but the eyeball and padlock are then greyed out.
I added five layers and the order appears was 2, 4, 5, 3, 1 from the top down. What is the logic behind this? It is easy to change layer positions but a bit disconcerting to see the order as it sets itself up. Reminds me of what happens with patterns.
Flicking visibility and locking on and off for each layer is slow and awkward since only the active layer can be treated at one time. This makes changing the status of several windows a "clicky" business and will be a pain in the butt if say 50 layers were involved. I am more familiar with the CD, XaraX style where each layer has its own padlocks etc.
It was not a surprise to find I could not select objects when the layer was locked. It was a surprise to find that I could rubber-band them. Very cool. I like that touch. And the rubber banding works across layers whether locked or not. But is that the way it is meant to work?
I found it disconcerting to be able to draw on a locked layer.
Now to chase that mail that asked us to look at specific things...if I can refind it. vellum
First thoughts are that the writing on the layer button is so small as to be almost illegible...and I'm using a 21 inch screen.
It was discussed here before. I think just one file needs to be changed. Dig this up and submit a patch.
I added five layers and the order appears was 2, 4, 5, 3, 1 from the top down. What is the logic behind this?
I don't know. It's 5 - 4 - 3 - 2 - 1 for me.
Flicking visibility and locking on and off for each layer is slow and awkward since only the active layer can be treated at one time. This makes changing the status of several windows a "clicky" business and will be a pain in the butt if say 50 layers were involved. I am more familiar with the CD, XaraX style where each layer has its own padlocks etc.
Of course we'll have a layer dialog later where every layer will have its own buttons. This widget is just for quick changes.
It was not a surprise to find I could not select objects when the layer was locked. It was a surprise to find that I could rubber-band them. Very cool. I like that touch. And the rubber banding works across layers whether locked or not. But is that the way it is meant to work?
Fixed already, please use a more recent build.
I found it disconcerting to be able to draw on a locked layer.
This one not yet fixed. I doubt it will be before the release.
On Tue, Nov 23, 2004 at 03:17:48AM -0500, bulia byak wrote:
I found it disconcerting to be able to draw on a locked layer.
This one not yet fixed. I doubt it will be before the release.
And yet we decided to fix this. I just checked in the corresponding changes to all drawing and shape tools, text tool, and paste.
It seems strange to me that one can't paste but can cut/delete from locked layers: I'd have thought that one is usually more concerned about preventing destructive changes than additive changes.
As a developer, I understand that things are this way on the principle of "allowing changes to objects once one has gone to the trouble of selecting an insensitive object", as I myself wrote (albeit in a different context, e.g. on the understanding that insensitive meant merely not canvas-selectable rather than locked). What do people think about this now that we're interpreting insensitive as meaning "lock" ?
pjrm.
On Tue, 23 Nov 2004 23:43:34 +1100, Peter Moulder
What do people think about this now that we're interpreting insensitive as meaning "lock" ?
To my ears "insensitive" sounds more like a human's characteristic. But English is not my mother language, so feel free to ignore my POV in this context :)
Alexandre
It seems strange to me that one can't paste but can cut/delete from locked layers: I'd have thought that one is usually more concerned about preventing destructive changes than additive changes.
I would word this differently. What is made difficult is _accessing_ the locked layer. Both selecting and adding to are ways of accessing it, and they are now both equally disabled. Deleting objects from a layer, however, is a next step which only becomes possible after you access the layer. So, if you do find a way to access a locked layer (e.g. via XML editor), changing it in any way (deleting or adding) is equally easy. I don't see anything illogical here.
As a developer, I understand that things are this way on the principle of "allowing changes to objects once one has gone to the trouble of selecting an insensitive object", as I myself wrote (albeit in a different context, e.g. on the understanding that insensitive meant merely not canvas-selectable rather than locked). What do people think about this now that we're interpreting insensitive as meaning "lock" ?
I think "lock" is a good term here. A locked layer is like locked house; you can't normally enter it and move things around. However, the inhabitants of the house are not dead or petrified, they are just locked away from you :)
participants (4)
-
Alexandre Prokoudine -
bulia byak -
Peter Moulder -
vellum