Sad

Making your own components and patterns, organizing and using libraries.
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tlmp
Posts: 25
Joined: 17 May 2014, 21:27

Sad

#1 Post by tlmp » 29 Jan 2017, 05:26

The worst part about the diptrace program is that you can lose work that you did not intend to delete simply by chosing the wrong menu selection. Just now I wanted to create a new pattern, but when I start the PE, there is already a pattern on the screen. Why is this pattern on the screen - I did not select it, I do not need it, so why am I seeing it? So now I have a problem; how to first get rid of this pattern - how to get it off the screen so I can start creating the pattern that I desire to create. So how do I get it off the screen? If I choose NEW LIBRARY it starts a new library, but I don't want to start a new library - I want to create a new pattern. So now I have a new problem to solve. So because I dodn't know what to do, I choose a pattern out of my current library that is similar to the new pattern I want to create and I use pieces of that old pattern to create my new pattern. After I create my new pattern I have to give it a name, but the problem is that the old name of the old pattern that I destroyed is still in the box. So, I give it a name anyway and now the name of my old pattern is gone - and now I'm nervous that I can somehow over write my old pattern, that took me a very long time to create. So I go to the menu which gives me the choice to either ADD NEW or INSERT NEW to my pattern library. Well, whats the difference between inserting something and adding something - I have no idea! So, I roll the dice and chose ADD NEW. Bang, my new pattern that just took me an hour to create is gone from the screen - where did it go, I don't see the name of that pattern in my pattern list. Now I start to panic - where is my new pattern? Diptrace asks me if I want to save the changes to the library, but I don't know which changes DT means. If I chose YES, then it may over write my old pattern since I had to change the name - so I'm really nervous at this point!!! If I chose NO then it might not add my new pattern to the library and that pattern will be lost. Well, because I was confused I selected ADD NEW to Library thinking that DT would add my new pattern to the library and not over write my old pattern. Well, I was wrong. DT deleted the new pattern that took me a hour to create and thank God, It didn't over write my old pattern. So now I'm heartbroken and angry.

One thing is for sure and that is that it should never ever be possible to lose your hard work unless you specifically tell DT to delete it and then DT should first confirm that you want that work deleted. It should not be anyway possible to lose your work simply because you were confused by a menu selection - never ever! The menu should simply say; WOULD YOU LIKE TO ADD YOUR FANTASTIC NEW PATTERN - THE ONE THAT TOOK YOU A WHOLE HOUR OF WORK TO CREATE - TO YOUR CURRENT PATTERN LIBRARY?

Questions

1. Why is there a pattern already on the screen when I open the pattern editor?

2. How do I clear the screen without being afraid that DT will delete the old pattern thats on the screen?

3. Is it not possible to program DT so that the editors open with blank screens? Why do I have to start out fixing a problem before I can start createing my new pattern?

4. How do I save a new pattern to the current library and be able to see that new pattern show up immediately in the pattern list?

5. Why is it that when I give my new pattern a name, in the naming box at the top of the screen, that it over writes the old name of the old pattern? This is very frieghtening because then my old pattern - the one I used parts of to create my new pattern - is gone from the pattern list, and God only knows where it is.

Tomg
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Posts: 2028
Joined: 20 Jun 2015, 07:39

Re: Sad

#2 Post by Tomg » 29 Jan 2017, 08:20

tlmp wrote:Why is there a pattern already on the screen when I open the pattern editor?
Because the Pattern Editor has to default to something when it is first opened. It can't read your mind to find out that you would like to start with a new blank pattern rather than working with an existing one. You must select/highlight the pattern name to display it in the Design Area before you can make any changes to it.
tlmp wrote:How do I clear the screen without being afraid that DT will delete the old pattern thats on the screen?
Click on the Pattern Tools box in the Select Pattern panel on the left side of the screen. Selecting Insert New Pattern to "[library name]" Library will place a new blank pattern just above the currently selected/highlighted pattern. Selecting Add New Pattern to "[library name]" Library will place a new blank pattern at the bottom of the pattern list. Neither of these will affect any of the existing patterns. To work on one of the new blank patterns you must first select/highlight its name in the pattern list to display it in the Design Area. Whichever pattern is selected/highlighted in the pattern list is the one being displayed in the Design Area. When you resave the library, your old patterns will still be there, unchanged, along with any new patterns that you may have just added.
tlmp wrote:How do I save a new pattern to the current library and be able to see that new pattern show up immediately in the pattern list?
Resave the library by going to the Main Menu at the top of the screen and selecting Library > Save, or clicking on the Save Library icon, or using the hotkey combination Ctrl + S. If the pattern is in the pattern list when you resave the library, it will still be there after resaving.
tlmp wrote:Why is it that when I give my new pattern a name, in the naming box at the top of the screen, that it over writes the old name of the old pattern?
Because you are actually working on the original pattern; the one that's selected/highlighted in the pattern list. To create and work on a duplicate, select/highlight the pattern you wish to use as template, click on the Pattern Tools box in the Select Pattern panel on the left side of the screen and select Duplicate Patterns. A copy will appear in the pattern list just below the original pattern name. Here's the important part - before making any modifications, select/highlight the pattern name of the copy. Now you can modify the copy of the pattern to your liking and then change its name in the Pattern Properties dialog window. Because you are working on the copy and not the original, the original will remain unchanged. Don't forget to resave the library (Ctrl + S) when you're done.
Tom

tlmp
Posts: 25
Joined: 17 May 2014, 21:27

Re: Sad

#3 Post by tlmp » 29 Jan 2017, 10:00

Thank you for your reply Tomg but why did DT delete my work? I chose ADD NEW so why didn't DT add my work somewhere? DT should warn the user that they are about to lose their work but I got no warning at all. A better program would not have deleted my work.

farley
Posts: 157
Joined: 15 Sep 2011, 09:28

Re: Sad

#4 Post by farley » 30 Jan 2017, 03:57

If I'm understanding your issue correctly, DipTrace did not delete your work. What appears to have occurred is that you edited an existing pattern and then renamed it.
"ADD NEW" does not add what you're working on to the library, it creates a new blank part. Refer to Tom's answer to your question 2 for a more detailed answer.

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