Two ideas after having used the programme for a while:
Templates, if you use a certain file as a jumping board quite often it would be nice if you could set it as a template you could select when opening a new seamly file. That way you don’t have to go into the original file and go “save as” etc.
A line function that automatically creates a line going both directions. It would make measuring things easier because very often I don’t know which way the line is going (and in what order to write the line formula)
Not practical. It would only end up making it harder to find variables in the table as there would be twice as many to search through.
If you are using the fx Editor to construct your formulas it should not be an issue which way a line is going… If for ex. you are wanting to add the length of a line you can just find the line in list.
Certainly we could add templates to Seamly2D. However at some point you have to name the new pattern. Typically an app may give a project a default name that you can change before you load a template… for ex: here’s my audio editor where I can start with a template, with the choice to name the new Song other than the default:
Ahhh. yes - if we did it this way. We basically have 2 choices… all of which require a “Save as”… just depends on when it’s saved. 1) Give a template a new default filename, and after editing saving will perform a Save as as the new file does not exist yet. 2) Basically copy (Save as) the template with a new name up front (which is what my DAW does).
In other words… loading a template will require making a copy - i.e. a Save as with a new name. It’s just matter do we want to do before or after making changes. Also keep in mind, that a pattern may have image files linked with it… which is some else to consider when loading a “template”.
Noted. In which case the template filename would have to be replaced with “untiltled”, as if it were a New pattern file. Of course when you go to save it will do a “Save as”.
I would think too it would be a good idea when saving a template, we make the file “read only” so we can prevent Seamly from overwriting templates.
Ideally, as long as templates are saved to the Templates folder, which is typically accessed via “Open Template”, this shouldn’t be an issue. In the (aggravating) blackbox environment of an Android/iOS app it wouldn’t be.
Create template:
Create file
File → Save As Template
Save dialog open to Templates Folder
Save Template
File from template:
File → Open Template
Open Dialog open to Templates folder
Open file
Edit file
File → Save
Save Dialog open to Patterns folder
Of course, I know some people are going to want to keep their templates in their Patterns folder, which is why locks may be advisable.
I don’t think there’s any problem where the templates are stored… like you imply that’s a user’s preference. It’s more a case of reading / writing as a template that’s more important to protect over writing templates. In other words File->Save As should not be able to write over an an existing template.
Yes. I’m wondering though if maybe we could add a < template > tag to the file schema? We would then know how to deal with a template file. If it’s a < template > file we would Open it as “unitiled”… if we try to SaveAs we check if it’s a < template > file and not allow overwrite. File → SaveAs would write a regular 2D file, where as File → SaveAs Template would write the < template > tag.
BTW… just another one of those nitpick things… I don’t know why the default filename “untitled” was used? It should be “unnamed”… files have names not titles. Books, movies, documents have titles.
New images in the Gnu Image Manipulation Program are also “untitled” whereas InkScape has “New Document”. I don’t know what’s with InkScape, “untitled” feels traditional at this point, it’s what all the programs I remember from the 90’s used. “unnamed” “untitled” Possibly because in the typical variable-width fonts, “untitled” takes less space. It also has more visual definition. Beyond that, the question seems to be a matter of debatable semantics.
Inkscape: New document 1, New documnet 2, etc…
LibreCad: Unnamed
VS Code: Untitled
Qcad: Untitled 1, Untitled 2, etc…
LibreOffice: Untitled
Krita: Not saved
Gemini Pattern Editor: NONAME
Studio One (DAW): [datestamped user name]
Qt Creator: [User supplied name before creating]
Several apps provide no default name at all
Exactly. Seems though that applications that tend towards text based documents use “untitled” as the document is 'Untitled". That’s what happens to language over time… the semantics get blurred. A perfect example that just came up in an YT auto channel I follow is the use of motor vs engine. A lot of people interchange the use, but there is a distinct difference between an engine and a motor. Someone argued it’s called an engine not a motor. An engine is gas (fuel) powered, while a motor is electric powered, and yet we have terms like “Motor City” or “motor oil” which are semanticaly incorrect. Few will say engine oil, yet people will say “I changed the oil in my engine”, not “I changed the oil in my motor.” What’s even stranger is nobody ever refers to an “electric engine”.
And don’t even get me going on concrete vs cement.
Inkscape: New document 1, New documnet 2, etc...
LibreCad: Unnamed
VS Code: Untitled
Qcad: Untitled 1, Untitled 2, etc...
LibreOffice: Untitled
Krita: Not saved
Gemini Pattern Editor: NONAME
Studio One (DAW): [datestamped user name]
Qt Creator: [User supplied name before creating]
Several apps provide no default name at all
Exactly. Seems though that applications that tend towards text based documents use “untitled” as the document is 'Untitled". That’s what happens to language over time… the semantics get blurred. A perfect example that just came up in an YT auto channel I follow is the use of motor vs engine. A lot of people interchange the use, but there is a distinct difference between an engine and a motor. Someone argued it’s called an engine not a motor. An engine is gas (fuel) powered, while a motor is electric powered, and yet we have terms like “Motor City” or “motor oil” which are semanticaly incorrect. Few will say engine oil, yet people will say “I changed the oil in my engine”, not “I changed the oil in my motor.” What’s even stranger is nobody ever refers to an “electric engine”.
And don’t even get me going on concrete vs cement.
