Auto save in PanX

How do i turn off auto save in Pan X? Many times I experiment with a procedure then close the database without saving, Pan X retains the changes and I prefer the choice to save or not.

Leo

Like other modern Mac applications, auto-save is fully baked in.

I think there is a way to turn it off with the command line, but I’m not sure what it is (this is not a Panorama specific option, but a macOS option). I wouldn’t recommend turning it off, though. Keep in mind that the Revert command brings up a Time Machine like dialog that allows you to go back to a previous version (again, this is a standard macOS feature that Panorama X now fully supports).

The Time Machine copy may be just moments old and doesn’t necesarily revert to the point you’d like to return to.

I’ve learned that before working on a file, I make a copy. Then as I work I make new copies every few minutes. It has been a life saver many times.

It’s not actually “the Time Machine copy” — it is in fact every saved version of your document. So you don’t have to be afraid to miss any saved state of your database.

Time Machine does have numerous versions, but Revert goes back to just the latest with no ability to choose which one you actually want. To get others, you have to go through the Time Machine interface, which is why I just keep saving desktop copies. It’s a whole lot easier to jump back an iteration or two that way.

Getting back to the original problem… how is auto save turned off? And if it can’t be… why not?

Over the many years I’ve used Panorama I find myself numerous times doing little tweaks here and there just for a test. If it doesn’t work I don’t save and I’m back where I was without having to remember everything I did. I think it should be left to the user to decide if they want to save automatically or manually.

Leo, I think Jim has made the point many times that one of his primary goals with the new rewrite of Panorama was to make it completely compliant with all the Apple OSX standards. Since the auto-save feature is the new standard in recent OSX versions and is part of the system, it stands to reason that it would also be part of Panorama X.

Supposedly there is a way via the Terminal to turn off the auto-save on individual applications.

The command line would be:

defaults write  com.provue.PanoramaX ApplePersistence -bool no

I have not done this so I can’t say if it works or not. I am personally ambivalent on the issue with times I curse it and times it has been beneficial by saving work I had done before a crash. I have gotten into the habit of using Save As… to save the file under another name before experimenting. This way if everything works properly I can then Save As… again under the original name to keep the changes or simply close the file if I don’t want to keep the changes.

Note: for those who don’t know, if you hold down the Option key while selecting from the File menu the Save As… menu item becomes available.

Command line in terminal works like a charm, thanks. I’m now a happy camper!

Just another reason to allow Auto Save as an option… Many times I, and I’m sure others, go to a database and do a count or group up to get some info we don’t need on a regular basis. A quick grouping and addition gets the info I want but then may not need ever again. Why would I want the file saved where I then have to go in and remove the summaries and sorting?

Don’t forget that Panorama X has unlimited Undo. In the example you cite two Command-Z’s will get you back to where you started.