Problem With Renaming Configuration files

[frew]

Hello,

I would like to know why when I make a copy of a TrackerV3 configuration file, and I rename it, that it does not do the same thing as my original ini file that I made the copy from?

Example: I have

1.ini

I make a copy of 1.ini to "Copy of 1.ini"

then I rename "Copy of 1.ini" to 2.ini

I open TrackerV3, load 2.ini and it seems like it should do exactly as 1.ini did, since it is an exact copy, but it does not.

I wonder why this is?

Sometimes I want to make copies of TrackerV3 config files that I create, and I wish to rename them, but if they then become unusable, I had better be sure to not do any renaming of config files.

Thank you for any ideas about this.

EDIT: Interestingly, if I rename 2.ini in example above, back to the original filename of 1.ini, then the config file works fine.

EDIT: Of course I could always just load 1.ini and save it as 2.ini if I needed a new name for the ini file, but I just thought I'd let you know that actual copy and rename of TrackerV3 config ini files makes these renamed ini files not work like the originals. Thank you.

Frew

[admin]

... I open TrackerV3, load 2.ini and it seems like it should do exactly as 1.ini did, since it is an exact copy, but it does not.

That's impossible. If it is an exact copy then it should work exactly the same. There must be some other reason...
Tip: in the title bar of the configuration dialog you see the name of the currently active ini-file.

[frew]

Okay,
Please do the test exactly as I described above and tell me what you think.

I am not criticizing TrackerV3, because I love it and it's a great tool.

But I do want to let you know of a problem I am exeriencing.

I create a very simple search of a folder on my desktop with 10 images in it...images labelled 1.jpg to 10.jpg.

I search "5" and one image, 5.jpg, shows up in TackerV3.

I save the configuration file as 1.ini

I load 1.ini and again 5.jpg shows up, very good.

I make copy of 1.ini by right clicking on it, drag, copy here.

I change name to 2.ini

Using WinMerge, indeed the files 1.ini and 2.ini are exactly the same.

I open TrackerV3, load 2.ini (which is now definitely exact copy of 1.ini except for new name, 2.ini) and not only image 5.jpg, but all 10 images show up.

It appears that TrackerV3 has therefore written something into the 2.ini file as 2.ini is being opened for the first time.

So my question is why is 2.ini changed upon opening it?

I can see if it has changed after I close it due to changed settings, and having "save settings on exit" checked, but the change occurs *as I open* 2.ini for the first time.

Please try this kind of test and let me know what you think.

The reality is that if I make an exact copy of an ini file saved from TrackerV3, then change the name of the ini file, even though it is exactly the same, except for it's name, it produces different results in TrackerV3.

Thank you very much for any other ideas about this.

EDIT: also, when I open exact copy for first time, things like fuzziness field in config dialog are empty...just wanted to let you know.

Frew

[admin]

It's easy:
- T4 does not change INI-files while loading them.
- T4 does change INI-files when you exit the app (if "save changes on exit" is checked).
- When you load an INI-file via "Load Configuration" the app exits (updating the current INI-file) and restarts.

All of this together should help to enlighten you about your issue.

[frew]

All I can say is there's is something else going on too...somehow...maybe it's an issue with using Windows 98 SE...because very unusual things are occuring.

Like when I save a config file, then I do a simple copy of the file and rename it, when I load the config unexpected things occur like search terms show up that I do not want, that were not in original ini main search term field...no matter if I use save on exit or not.

Oh well, I wish it were as simple as you've described, but there are some other variables here that I cannot figure out yet.

Bottom line is that when I make copy of ini and rename it and load it it produces different results that the original ini, wether I use save on exit or not.

Can you tell me the exact procedure I should use in order to

1. Create a config file (I can do this fine)

2. Make an exact copy of the ini file, but giving it a new name, with no spaces in name (I can do this fine)

3. Load the exact copy ini file in such a way where it will produce the exact same results as the original ini file

Unfortunately this process does not work for me and I cannot understand what I need to do in order to get it to work.

I do not like the idea of making copies of my ini files, changing the names at some point, and then having them not work as the original ini files do.

By the way, it appears here also that file/save config as does not save changes to config ini unless tools/config/save settings on exit is also checked.

I love this T4 tool very much, but I need to work out some of these saving config processes so that i can get the consistent results that I want. I know I just need to learn how to do it right, and then things will be fine.

Thank you very much for any other thoughts about this,

Frew

[admin]

Whatever "very unusual things are occuring", it has nothing to do with Windows 98 SE.

2. Make an exact copy of the ini file, but giving it a new name, with no spaces in name (I can do this fine)

Use "Save as" again to create another copy of the configuration under a different name.

I can just repeat: if the ini-files are the same, then the configuration must be the same. There's no other secret input anywhere.
It would help me if you could exactly and fully describe the way to reach at your unusual results.

By the way, it appears here also that file/save config as does not save changes to config ini unless tools/config/save settings on exit is also checked.

Again, I cannot reproduce this.

Generally, I should point out that saving and loading of configuration files is a pretty luxurious feature which is not necessary at all for most uses of TrackerV3. I myself use it only for one single occasion: when I make a new screenshot of the app and need the window of a certain pixel size; then I load "screenshot.ini" which I have previously created for that one purpose.
I know, however, that other users use it regularly and they report no problems since months. So, really, "very unusual things are occuring"...

EDIT: two other things you should bear in mind:
1. when you "save as" the current config, this ini-file becomes the current ini-file, and the original ini-file will not be updated (that's standard save-as-behavior).
2. when you enter a new search term into the Name field but do not use it in an actual search, it will not be remembered.

[frew]

when you enter a new search term into the Name field but do not use it in an actual search, it will not be remembered

That's what I found to be "unusual"...sorry, did not mean it as unusual in any negative way, it was just not what I expected.

So I need to do the search with the term, then save the config ini after doing the search, rather than just typing in the search terms and immediately saving ini for later use. Thank you for clarifying that. I was not always doing the search, but rather just typing in search phrase and doing an immediate save as config file. I think this may be what was confusing me.

Although, I do a quick test now, and type in, for example 12345 in search field, then immediately file/save config as, without actually doing the search, then I load this saved config ini and the 12345 in search filed is saved, even though I did not actually search the term 12345.

Also, when tools/save settings on exit is not checked, the above 12345 config ini did not save the 12345 in search filed even when I used file/save config as....so on my end, in order to save config ini, both save settings as, and file/save config as must be used in order to save config file properly...but on your end, as you mentioned, this cannot be reproduced.

Sorry if I am being overly tedious about this, but I wanted to get a process that works smoothly and consistently for me.

I'll keep working with it and find a way to use the config files in a way that works for me.

Thank you very much for this wonderful program.

It's a great tool, I just need to work with it more to fully use it's great features.

Frew

[admin]

when you enter a new search term into the Name field but do not use it in an actual search, it will not be remembered

I changed this because it's obviously counter-intuitive (or "unusual").

Although, I do a quick test now, and type in, for example 12345 in search field, then immediately file/save config as, without actually doing the search, then I load this saved config ini and the 12345 in search filed is saved, even though I did not actually search the term 12345.

That's true only if you are in find mode because then the field is not saved to the ini but to the tab's find template. On the surface this is inconsistent, so here's another reason to do what I've just done (see above).

Don't hesitate to point out other inconsistencies or unusual behaviors...

[frew]

Okay,

Thank you very much for your help.

Frew

[frew]

I need help with config files.

My config files are being destroyed, made unusable, opening with some kind of default start at desktop.

I don't know what to do about this.

sorry I go on and on about this but I would love to use config files, but it's not working for me.

It seems like it should be simple...create a nice complex setup where T4 is doing just what I want it to do, save as config file, then load it a few days later and have it start me up right where I left off....but instead when I load my saved config file something has destroyed my nice setup and brings me to start at some default desktop starting position.

I don't know how much more time I can spend trying to figure this out.

What's the simple method to get config files to do what they are supposed to do? It cannot be that hard....why is it not working for me I wonder?

I am not criticizing T4 at all, I just want to be able to open wonderful setups that I create, and not have them open as something that I did not create when I load them.

I've tried every combination of save on exit, do not save on exit etc.

Is nobody else experiencing difficulties with this?

I ceate a nice setup where I have T4 search my whole hard drive for all wav files excluding a list of about 35 folders...that's a lot of folders to have to browse through and put in exclude list...so I don't want to do that each time so I save it as a config file.

Later I open the config file and T4 starts at default desktop, not opening with my nice setup as I load my config ini file, and my nice config file is gone, changed, and I have to do this elaborate setup all over again.

What do I have to do in order to get this process to work for me?

Would tabs be a better way to go?

All I want is to be able to create sophisticated search setups, and to have them consistently work for me so I do not have to keep re-creating my elaborate search setups....but thus far T4 works very wonderfully for me except for me being able to create and save and reuse sophisticated search setups.

Thank you very much for any help with this.

Frew

[admin]

Hey, could it be you're using spaces in the INI-file names??? I think I accidentally removed the line where it says that spaces are forbidden!

[frew]

I never use spaces in the names, according to notes in your helpfile.

But way early on when I first started to explore ini files, I did notice any spaces in names would not work....they would appear to save, but would not actually work.

Perhaps an error message would be helpful if one attmpted to save a config file with spaces in names though...just a thought.

Do you think I should be utilizing tabs rather than trying to get these config files to work consistently for me...in order to achieve the kinds of saved elaborate search configurations I want as described above?

Or is ini files the way to go for saving (and then days later being able to quickly and easily and reliably access) sophisticated search configuration setups in T4?

Thank you very much for any other ideas about this.

Frew

[RalphM]

Do you think I should be utilizing tabs rather than trying to get these config files to work consistently for me...in order to achieve the kinds of saved elaborate search configurations I want as described above?

Creating reusable search configurations was the first feature that made me work with TV3 - and once again Donald, you did and are doing a great job.
For me the tabs work great for search configs. I create a find template for each search job, a finding tab, which loads that template and runs it automatically - I didn't encounter any problems anymore since lets say the the past 20 or so betas of TV3. I can't recall when, but after one of the beta installations I had some errors in the ini and tab config files and had to re-create them, but since then - really great stuff.
Though I never had a search with more than 5 - 6 exclude folders, but I don't think that's a problem either.

Maybe just start with a clean new installation of TV3 in another folder.

[frew]

Thank you very much for these ideas Ralph.

Yes, when I saw configuration saving and loading, I thought, very nice, now I can create complex setups and run them instantly. I'm sure this is possible, but I have not yet figured out how to do it in a way that works simply and consistently for me yet with config ini files.

But your idea to just use instead the tabs and find templates seems like a great idea to get the result I want...ie to get to find setups that I have constructed and that I can load, and that I think are not subject to being updated unless I specifically update them manually.

I understand the find templates and can get these to save and load fine, but could you please explain how to get a tab to cause a find template to run automatically as you have mentioned:

a finding tab, which loads that template and runs it automatically

I'm not sure how to do that.

Thank you very much for your help and ideas about this.

frew

[RalphM]

I understand the find templates and can get these to save and load fine, but could you please explain how to get a tab to cause a find template to run automatically as you have mentioned:

a finding tab, which loads that template and runs it automatically

I'm not sure how to do that.

Here you go:

1. Config your search in find files pane
2. Save it as a find template, with a helpful name and the option "Run search at once" checked
3. Create a new tab
4. Load the find template created before in that tab (option "Run search at once" still checked, I'm not sure, whether this is stored with the template or set when loading the template)
5. Name the tab appropriately
6. Set the tab home (Context menu Set home)

Now, whenever that tab gets the focus, your search runs - awesome isn't it?
(Remember: You can still change the look of this tab, but "Go home" brings you back to where you wanna be again.)

Have fun with it