while it's easy to open up more than 1 document in Inkscape, so far it's been a painful experience for me. inkscape doesn't update open palettes when you bring a document to the front, so that when you click on that palette, you have the other document in view and it's all pretty miserable.

Do people simply not work with more than 1 inkscape document open at a time, or do you resign yourself to having your palettes docked? IS that the only way to keep things safe and clear?

lb

Hhhm, I remember when you asked about this the first time, and I suggested using docking.

I guess people do work with multiple docs open, who don't use docking. I actually prefer using the docked dialogs, but now that I experiment (with a not docked Fill and stroke dialog) I can see that there is more than one issue. I'm guessing there are bug reports about all of it, so let me look up Launchpad and see.....

Well surprisingly, I didn't not find any! It may be that I didn't use the proper search terms, so I will defer to ~suv on this issue. Should a new bug report be written? (or reports?) There seem to be several confusing issues! (Sorry for all the text, ~suv, but I don't know any other way to report what I find.)

Issues I notice with Inkscape 0.48.1 stable, Windows 7, 64-bit (and using undocked F/S dialog to test):

1 - The most annoying for me is that using the Windows taskbar to switch between 2 maximized windows, when dialogs are undocked, is backwards. If I click on documant A, document B is maximized, and vice versa. This does not happen when the dialogs are docked. When dialogs are docked, clicking on docA maximizes docA. And note to linebender, as long as I remember to click the other doc (docA to maximize docB, and vice versa), using the Windows taskbar to switch between docs, the proper dialog is open. So this may be a good workaround for you? (However, this only seems to hold if there are only 2 docs open. If more then 2 docs having undocked dialogs are open, all bets are off)

2 - When using the Windows taskbar to switch among more than 2 maximized windows (when dialogs are undocked) there is no way to predict which doc will actually be maximized.

3 - When using the Windows taskbar to switch among more than 2 maximized windows (when dialogs are undocked) there is no way to predict which dialogs will be displayed. I'm only using the F/S dialog for testing, so this means that if I maximize docA, the F/S dialogs for docA, docB and docD might be displayed. Or any combination, it seems not to be predictable. Although after a certain point of minimizing and maximizing, dialogs for ALL docs are restored with any doc that is maximized. (may Inkscape gods help us if we have more than one type of dialog opened, lol)

4 - When all docs are minimized (from top, right button), all F/S dialogs are still on the screen. (This may already be reported.)
5 - If an undocked dialog is minimized, the entire doc is minimized. (I believe this is already reported as well, but I couldn't find the report.)

Now for the so called Restored window size (not maximized). To test this, I closed all the open dialogs from my tests for maximized windows. Then I set the restored size and position, so that I have 4 docs, generally placed N, S, E and W on my screen. Then I opened undocked dialogs, and placed them above their doc, so that they also appear N, S, E and W. Then I test for dialog visibility using taskbar to activate a doc, and by clicking the canvas or titlebar to activate a doc.

6 - Still, when all docs are minimized, their open dialogs are visible on the screen (as with maximized windows).

7 - When using taskbar to activate a restored size window, usually the doc covers up its dialog. At first, the visibility of the dialog depends on the order in which the dialogs were open. So that if I open docD's dialog last, that dialog was on top. But after fudging around (restoring and minimizing docs), even docD opens on top of its dialog.

8 - When activating a restored size window by clicking on it, all the open dialogs remain on top of all the restored size windows.

9 - When activating a restored size window by clicking on it, sometimes it's brought to the top of all the docs, and sometimes it's not. And I can't figure out what determines whether it's brought to the top or not. I'll have to leave it to the pros to figure that out. I just know that it's not working properly.

10 - If all the restored windows are activated (not minimized) and I use the taskbar to try and bring one to the top, sometimes it brings it to the bottom instead. But then I notice that if I bring my browser window up (maximized from taskbar) and then minimize it again, the doc that I had tried to bring to the top, but instead sent to the bottom, is now on top like I originally intended. Somehow the maximizing and minimizing of the browser caused it to jump back to the top.

I don't understand any of this. I'm just reporting what I've noticed, with as much detail as possible (while trying not to annoy ~suv with too much text). There are many details I've not written, and instead I tried to focus on writing only the results. But I can provide them if necessary.

And so, I ask ~suv to decide whether new bug reports should be written.
Thanks ~suv

linebender wrote:while it's easy to open up more than 1 document in Inkscape, so far it's been a painful experience for me. inkscape doesn't update open palettes when you bring a document to the front, so that when you click on that palette, you have the other document in view and it's all pretty miserable.

Known issue: Bug #317439 in Inkscape: “Floating dialogs with multiple documents”

linebender wrote:Do people simply not work with more than 1 inkscape document open at a time, or do you resign yourself to having your palettes docked? IS that the only way to keep things safe and clear?

On Mac OS X (Leopard, Snow Leopard [1]) Spaces and floating dialogs of X11 applications don't mix well (switching spaces by clicking on the dock icons fails if e.g. inkscape has a floating dialog open). To avoid such issues with spaces (which tend to interrupt my workflow using different spaces for different tasks), I prefer docked dialogs in Inkscape and am looking forward to the next release of GIMP (2.8) which will include a single-window modus. (I'd even be happier if all of the dialogs in Inkscape could be docked and any remaining (focus) issues with the docked dialogs can get addressed in future versions)).

And yes, I make heavy use of opening multiple windows/documents from within Inkscape!

Note (added later): since AFAIK linebender uses a Mac, I'm focusing on issues with Mac OS X/X11 here. I don't have access to Windows to test and comment on the list of issues by brynn - there are many Windows-specific reports filed about desktop integration and problems with dialogs, the taskbar and minimizing on Windows (as far as I know).

[1] I don't know about OS X Lion - personally still on Leopard without the new features 'Mission Control' and 'Launchpad'.

Ah, I searched for "undocked". I didn't know they were called "floating" dialogs.
Thanks ~suv

The best answer is dont have 2 windows open as it can cause problems with panels that dock or dont dock and can drive you insane at the same time. The dialogues(editing ect.) can be selected not to undock in the preferences. I problem I have experienced is that it some times doesn't resize the dialogues properly. In 0.48.2 the docked dialogues work well except items such as object properties and other undocked dialogues. Because if you minimise some of the undocked dialogues, it then minimises the whole programme.

Omgoodness, I don't know what I'd do if I couldn't have more than one Inkscape document open at a time! Fortunately for me, I prefer the docked dialogs. But I think that many Inkscape users want, if not need to have multiple docs open at once.

The good news is that inkscape is constantly under development, and that problems do get solved

brynn wrote:Omgoodness, I don't know what I'd do if I couldn't have more than one Inkscape document open at a time! Fortunately for me, I prefer the docked dialogs. But I think that many Inkscape users want, if not need to have multiple docs open at once.

true dat, brynn...it is a real-world necessity to have multiple docs open at once and I am sure that the developers of Inkscape will address this issue.

any word on when the next release will be out...0.49?


lb

~suv wrote: Spaces and floating dialogs of X11 applications don't mix well (switching spaces by clicking on the dock icons fails if e.g. inkscape has a floating dialog open).[/size]

I am on Lion myself...10.7.1 to be specific. Inkscape/X11 appear to be playing nicely with Mission Control desktops. what's especially nice is that, if you click on the Inkscape icon in the dock, the desktop holding inkscape slides in, which is in welcome contrast to the Tab-CMD cycling through applications, wherein you must select X11 if you expect to see Inkscape.

and, though I don't have an actual drawing in progress, I do have inkscape's window open and 1 floating palette (layers) and have no problem getting to that "space."

I am liking spaces or desktops or whatever the heck they're called now, but wish the num-keypad would work with it, and wish there were an option to nix the sliding and whooshing.

takes time which, IMHO, could be better used to just take me to the desktop instantly. I don't need a freakin hollywood extravaganza!

HTH

lbender

linebender wrote:

~suv wrote: Spaces and floating dialogs of X11 applications don't mix well (switching spaces by clicking on the dock icons fails if e.g. inkscape has a floating dialog open).[/size]

I am on Lion myself...10.7.1 to be specific. Inkscape/X11 appear to be playing nicely with Mission Control desktops. what's especially nice is that, if you click on the Inkscape icon in the dock, the desktop holding inkscape slides in, which is in welcome contrast to the Tab-CMD cycling through applications, wherein you must select X11 if you expect to see Inkscape

Thanks for sharing this experience - good to know that there are improvements in the GUI of Lion after all :)

(/me is using a legacy version of Mac OS X (by now) - 10.5.8 Leopard - with a rather old version of X11/Xquartz (2.4.0) installed, and is not yet convinced of the new paradigm to adapt desktop GUIs to solutions developed for mobile interfaces (iOS on iPhone&iPad))

~suv wrote:(/me is using a legacy version of Mac OS X (by now) - 10.5.8 Leopard - with a rather old version of X11/Xquartz (2.4.0) installed, and is not yet convinced of the new paradigm to adapt desktop GUIs to solutions developed for mobile interfaces (iOS on iPhone&iPad))

You aren't alone in that, friend. Matter of fact, I think it's just plain kwazy to try to impose an iPad paradigm onto desktop users, although I do see great benefits to certain things...they just need to be done in a desktop/Mac way.

IOW, my 8-core xeon in no way is simply a great big iPhone...I don't operate it with my thumbs! jeepers...

if they can mature launchpad to include all manner of things like files and folders and be easier to customize that'd be good. the idea that removing an icon also removes an app store-dowloaded program is stupid, IMHO. There is already one doo-dad that I know of to offer some customization to launchpad, and there's enough squawking and grumbling out there that I am confident we'll see better-thought-out mission control/launchpad features down the road.

one thing you can say about launchpad...if it IS meant as a replacement for the Dock, at least the little bugger gets the heck out of the way when you're done with it! that dock has been a rock in my shoe since the Public Beta of OS X...like having toilet paper stuck to your shoe you just can't get rid of it!

lbender

linebender wrote:...any word on when the next release will be out...0.49?

You can probably find out an estimate at Inkscape.org or the wiki. But I think I read that there's gonna be a 0.48.3 before 0.49. However, I could have dreamed it, lol