26 Replies Latest reply: Feb 13, 2010 1:03 AM by Mylenium RSS

    Saving last screen layout for next edit session?

    n8turepix Community Member

      Before making a feature request, I wanted to find out if there's a way to do this.  When I'm editing, I often want

      to open a file in exactly the same place I left off, including the zoom level, part of the image being viewed, window sizes, etc.  Is there a way to do this easily?

       

      Thanks.

        • 1. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
          John Joslin Community Member

          It is possible to set Photoshop to remember the layout and position of the toolbox and panels for the next session and to save several such Workspaces but the program cannot remember information related to individual files, such as you mention, other than what is offered by Layer Comps.


          When an image file is saved, it cannot store the kind of information needed to accomplish what you are wanting.


          The file format itelf, not Photoshop would have to be modified.

          • 2. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
            Mylenium CommunityMVP

            Arguably PS could just save this in some custom XML data associated with the doc or even in XMP...

             

            Mylenium

            • 3. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
              John Joslin Community Member

              Even if it could would it be worth it?

              • 4. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                Mylenium CommunityMVP

                Yeah, of course. Would add more overhead to the monster that PS is already...

                 

                Mylenium

                • 5. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                  John Joslin Community Member

                  My dream is that Adobe releases a new version of Photoshop with NO new features – just fixes for all the problems in the current version.  

                  • 6. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                    TLL... Community Member

                    I'll drink to that 

                    • 7. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                      Mylenium CommunityMVP

                      My dream is that Adobe releases a new version of Photoshop with NO new features – just fixes for all the problems in the current version.  

                       

                      ... or less features. You know, many of the problems come from the fact that PS tries to do so much, but doesn't many things particularly well. Yet those features linger on and are ultimately a burden....

                       

                      Mylenium

                      • 8. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                        dec9 Community Member

                        You'll drink to anything......

                         

                         

                        But yes, I rather have the older problems fixed that has haunted the current versions.

                        • 9. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                          Reynolds (Mark) Community Member

                          N8turepix - you cant save document stacking and zoom levels. Its so easy to do this though, learn your shortcuts.

                          ... or less features. You know, many of the problems come from the fact that PS tries to do so much, but doesn't many things particularly well. Yet those features linger on and are ultimately a burden....

                          I profoundly disagree with that. There is nothing, believe me nothing, in Photoshop which there is no use for. Sometimes for example, there are much better and faster ways to work hidden away within older features. It always amazes me how narrow minded people are, in assuming that they are working in the best way when in fact they are wasting hours of their life every day, without bothering to learn the full and varied feature set.

                           

                          Photoshop is superficially very easy to learn and pick up, probably much more so than any other piece of graphics software.  Why is this the case? - it has a great interface, and always has. Unfortunately this great strength, has the side effect of allowing people the idea that they are more advanced as users than they actually are. It doesn't mean that it should be stripped down to the lowest common denominator, to accomodate them though. Hopefully

                          • 10. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                            John Joslin Community Member

                            I think you totally misunderstood what was said.


                            That goes for what I said at least.

                            • 11. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                              Mylenium CommunityMVP
                              There is nothing, believe me nothing, in Photoshop which there is no use for.

                               

                              Nobody argues that point but, as I wrote just yesterday on my blog:

                              It needs to stand true to it’s name and do still image manipulation like no other, not try to be a 3D program, web design tool, page layout program, vector drawing tool, video editor, analysis tool and so on. All of that can be done much better elsewhere, but not the pixel munching.

                               

                              You know, it's those half-baked features where PS falls flat on its face and really only embarasses itself. It pretends to have certain powers, but then can't deliver. Volumes from DICOM, anyone? Bad HTML code in Save for Web? Only processing 500 frames of video? If you get my meaning: By including these features, people are falsely lead into believing the program could act as some sort of universal hub to solve all their problems in one bold stroke and that, you and I know, isn't true. It lures people into bad workflows and does more damage than good in some areas. Likewise, all these features consume unecessary resources and performance, that many times even affect elementary features such as paint tools. You know, even today there are many unlucky users who have problems with OpenGL drawing simply because they have the wrong graphics card...

                              it has a great interface, and always has

                               

                              Being stuck with a ton of modal panels and dialogs is a great interface? Well, then I wholeheartedly disagree. PS has one of the lamest UI paradigms I could imagine.

                               

                              Mylenium

                              • 12. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                                John Joslin Community Member

                                In trying to maintain its lead over the competition, Photoshop has lost its way, and unfortunately adding more to it is only going to make things worse.


                                It is actually time for a ground up rewrite.

                                • 13. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                                  Mylenium CommunityMVP

                                  In trying to maintain its lead over the competition, Photoshop has lost its way,

                                   

                                  All too true and oddly enough, totally unecessary. If it were the best image editor in the world, it would still lead, but in a more positive way.

                                   

                                  Mylenium

                                  • 14. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                                    Reynolds (Mark) Community Member
                                    try to be a 3D program, web design tool, page layout program, vector drawing tool, video editor, analysis tool and so on.

                                     

                                    Well as far as I see it, all of those functions are fairly obvious extensions of what you call "pixel munching". Many designers (web designers and graphic designers ) use Photoshop as their basic creative layout tool. Why? because its so easy to use, its interface creates no gaps in their understanding. And it can be used by anyone completely intuitively, with simple tools, in a huge variety of different ways. Vectors, and vector masking are used every day to work with raster objects, in professional level retouching. VIdeo - I don't want to buy After Effects to color correct a simple short video, and the TOOLS in Photoshop are much better implemented for this.

                                     

                                    Whilst agreeing that, at the moment, Photoshops implementation of its 3D features in terms of interface leaves a lot to be desired - to be able to import and work with 3D in photoshop is an obvious and much needed move forward. Its just Beta 2. Like I said - a purpose for everything.

                                    • 16. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                                      Reynolds (Mark) Community Member

                                      No idea what thats supposed to mean.

                                       

                                      Ok turning it round, how does Photoshop in its inteface and implementation prevent, or even slow you down, in doing what you want? What frustrations do you have? Exactly why do you think it is bloated? Are you just confused?

                                      If it were the best image editor in the world,

                                      … and where exactly is this imaginary better piece of Image Editing software? because if there is something out there that I'm not aware of I'd like to know about it

                                      • 17. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                                        D Fosse-QDEaQ1 Community Member

                                        Not really taking sides here, but I think the "bloat" is really more of an aesthetic problem than a functional one. As long as Photoshop is fast and responsive - and it is - I'm OK.

                                         

                                        In fact, my impression is that it's getting faster with every version.

                                        • 18. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                                          Mylenium CommunityMVP

                                          Ok turning it round, how does Photoshop in its inteface and implementation prevent, or even slow you down, in doing what you want?

                                           

                                          Layer --> Layer Styles --> Stroke --> Mode: Gradient Burst --> Edit Gradient --> Edit Gradient Stop Color

                                           

                                          That is 5 (!) modal panels on top of each other. Similarly clunky workflows can be observed in many other places.

                                           

                                          VIdeo - I don't want to buy After Effects to color correct a simple short video, and the TOOLS in Photoshop are much better implemented for this.

                                           

                                          C'mon, get real! Do you really think people would convert their footage back and forth and splice it up ins 500 frame chunks just for the not so distinct pleasure of running it through PS? 500 frames is not even a minute in PAL, much less NTSC. And no, PS color correction tools (nor its filters, nor 3D) are not really better - for video, anyway. You know, such minor things as temporal stabilization and all that.... Even some free VirtualDub plug-ins do that 20 times better. Sorry, you really don't know what you are talking about.

                                          Whilst agreeing that, at the moment, Photoshops implementation of its 3D features in terms of interface leaves a lot to be desired - to be able to import and work with 3D in photoshop is an obvious and much needed move forward. Its just Beta 2. Like I said - a purpose for everything.

                                           

                                          If you pick out the few threads here (whose low numbers alone could be indicative of the lack of use and popularity of 3D features) on this forum from users who have tried to actually use it, there is quantifyable disappointment about the lack of 3D paint performance or any number of oddities getting it to work at all. The awful UI and Adobe's crooked understanding of 3D terminology and features are just one more thing on top of that. And frankly, I've been doing 3D much longer than working with any Adobe program and I really think I have seen better performance and quality in some programs in the early 90s. Again, severe quality problems on all ends (dithering noise, value clamping, incorrect HDR to LDR conversion etc.) plus lack of performance and interoperability. So much for that. The whole point of a 3D implementation is lost, when it entails endless touch-ups afterwards to fix its shortcomings. 3D is all about easy reproducibility and PS' current model clearly doesn't do that. It merely serves as another way to fabricate some sort of pixels, but completely pushing aside and ignoring any benefits a more wholesome implementation would have.

                                           

                                          Mylenium

                                          • 19. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                                            John Joslin Community Member

                                            Well said!


                                            I was educated to use the right tool for the right job, hence my ownership of:


                                            a pixel editing program,

                                            a vector drawing program,

                                            a layout program,

                                            a web authoring program,

                                            a 3D program,

                                            and a video editing program.


                                            Each of these has been perfected to do its job best.


                                            Any attempt to get around this need for a full set of tools with Adobe's attempt to turn Photoshop into a Swiss Army Knife is doomed to failure.

                                            • 20. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                                              Reynolds (Mark) Community Member

                                               

                                              Layer --> Layer Styles --> Stroke --> Mode: Gradient Burst --> Edit Gradient --> Edit Gradient Stop Color

                                               

                                              That is 5 (!) modal panels on top of each other. Similarly clunky workflows can be observed in many other places.

                                               

                                              Well you've chosen the two most obvious examples. Certainly if I were to try and choose one thing that could be impoved, it would be gradient editing, and the embedded dialogs. So get your point there. The Styles dialog I agree is a liitle badly designed (PS6). But still they are by no means difficult to use, and offer many other extremely quick ways to edit them including customisable shortcuts and Actions. Options and other ways to get things to work, thats what its all about .

                                               

                                              I am also familiar with After Effects, Cinema 4D and Maya. Now if you want to complain about a really impenetrable interface, with huge content uncategorized, modal and unintuitive- much better to choose Maya for this accollade than Photoshop. Indeed compared to Photoshop all three of these applications, maybe After Effects excepted only very recently, honestly have interfaces that remind you of 1950's telephone exchanges. 

                                               

                                              Maybe it comes down to what you are used to, being the most appealing

                                               

                                              In fact, my impression is that it's getting faster with every version.

                                              Yes, it is getting faster with each release.

                                              • 21. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                                                John Joslin Community Member

                                                In fact, my impression is that it's getting faster with every version.

                                                 

                                                So are computers!


                                                But I am impressed with the loading time of CS4 64-bit.

                                                • 22. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                                                  Reynolds (Mark) Community Member

                                                  Its getting faster because with each release they are optimising things. Loading time is incredibly fast in CS4, I've no idea how they achieved this. On my mac Photoshop CS4 starts up in less than 3 seconds. Indesign CS4 on the other hand  starts up in about 25 to 30 seconds. Bizzarre.

                                                  • 23. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                                                    dec9 Community Member

                                                    For what this is worth: On my PC When PS CS4 is clicked to run, Task Manager shows the the first 3 cores only nudging up slightly. However, the 4th core spikes to 80 percent then goes right down. The time I click ok on UAC and CS4 fires up is less then 3 seconds.

                                                     

                                                    Anyways, that is my experiment for the day.

                                                    • 24. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                                                      Zeno Bokor CommunityMVP

                                                      Lets not forget SuperFetch from Vista/7 which helps speed up the application startup times enormously and also makes comparing startup times very difficult.

                                                      • 25. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                                                        D Fosse-QDEaQ1 Community Member

                                                        I have ID up and running in 7 first launch, and AI in 5,5.

                                                         

                                                        But of course that's because of what Scott Byer refers to as Vista's "aggressive cache":

                                                        caching.png

                                                        Straight up from boot I suspect the timings are similar to Mark's. Photoshop still beats both of them by an order of magnitude.

                                                         

                                                        Edit: yup, that's it, Zeno.

                                                        • 26. Re: Saving last screen layout for next edit session?
                                                          Mylenium CommunityMVP

                                                          Skewed perception... Getting all derailed about loading times is pretty pointless when comparing different processors. Sure, it blips fast on a Nehalem Xeon/ Core7i etc., but it loads just as slow as most other programs on "conventional" processors.

                                                           

                                                          Mylenium