I find it very restricting to have any custom change to a toolbar be replicated in all other toolbars on any similar window. In other words if I make some custom changes to the icons in a datasheet toolbar then all other datasheets of open files will also be changed. The same is true if you customize a form’s toolbar then every form in all the open databases will have the change imposed upon them as well. Seldom would you want to make these changes universally but usually on a single form. Add onto this that custom changes will be removed if you open the saved database while another Panorama X database is open with no custom settings in the toolbar. If the custom toolbar file is opened first then subsequent files will adopt the custom settings when they are opened. To be usable each form should maintain their custom settings independent of each other. Just saying…
But, I can see where there’s a lot of desirability in making the changes once and having them applied universally versus having to set them in every window, especially if you want a standard set. There’s a valid reason for both sides of the argument.
That would certainly be true if you only had one project open at a time. It is too easy to have your custom settings over turned without even knowing it if a different file is opened with the opposite settings and you happen to have an auto save happen. Just seems might iffy to me.
Gary, I actually agree with you. The problem is that the tools are implemented using an Apple framework called NSToolBar, and it ties tool configuration to the window type, not to individual windows (Apple’s code, of course, knows nothing about Panorama forms). I’m sure I could re-implement this code in Panorama, but that would add a lot of complexity, not only to Panorama’s code, but also I think to the user interface (which I think is Jim Cook’s point). So this is something that may be revisited in the future, once Panorama X settles down.
I suspected something like this would be the case since I doubted you would have intentionally set it up this way. This also would pretty much negate the usefulness of another request I was thinking of making regarding the toolbar and that was to somehow implement the ability of adding your own custom tool or two to an existing toolbar. I figured that would be a long shot anyway.
I use Rapidweaver app for web page design. They have Master Style and Custom style for Themes, where you uncheck Master Style and do your own custom set up. I wonder if something like that would work for Pan X, ie. Master Toolbar and if you want to customize a form page, have the ability to uncheck Master Toolbar and apply a Custom toolbar.