Bug: Run in new instance

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Alexo
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Bug: Run in new instance

Post by Alexo »

Version 14.0

Open a comparison of 2 files
Select "New Comparison"
Check "Run in new instance"
Click on "Empty files"
Bug: Current instance is closed

Also, after making changes to compared files, an attempt to open a new comparison will prompt to save/discard cancel.
This behaviour is incorrect since the user may want to keep the current comparison open.
The dialog should be displayed *after* the new comparison dialog, when the user clicks on "compare" or "empty files" and only if "Run in new instance" was not checked.
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Re: Bug: Run in new instance

Post by psguru »

Open a comparison of 2 files
Select "New Comparison"
Check "Run in new instance"
Click on "Empty files"
Bug: Current instance is closed
This is not new in 14.0. "Run in new instance" only applies to real comparison while "Empty files" is a shortcut for closing your compared files. It may not be very intuitive but probably not a common scenario.
Also, after making changes to compared files, an attempt to open a new comparison will prompt to save/discard cancel.
Also existing behavior. Changing this would be difficult.
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Re: Bug: Run in new instance

Post by Alexo »

Fair enough, but that is very misleading. Perhaps you should look into changing the labels to be more intuitive.

Please note that I did not say that those issues were unique in version 14, it is just that I encountered them that day. I am a heavy user of EDP and there are times where I encounter uncommon scenarios.

That said, please suggest how to go about the following scenarios:

First scenario:
The user is comparing two files, and wants to open a new comparison with empty files, while continuing working on the original comparison.
(In my case, those were configuration files from different versions and some elements were renamed and/or moved around, and I wanted to have another comparison in parallel with only parts of the files that I could modify without worrying about inadvertently breaking something with the original files)

Second scenario:
The user is comparing two files, and makes changes to one or both. The changes may or may not be saved (or may be partially saved). The user wants to open a new comparison but continue working on the existing one, without losing or committing the changes.

Now, I know that it is possible to just start another instance externally, but in different cases one can do so from within the program.
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Re: Bug: Run in new instance

Post by psguru »

Currently, as you said, the only way to deal with these use cases is to start a new instance externally. We'll look into these scenarios more closely a bit later, and perhaps will make dealing with them easier.
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Re: Bug: Run in new instance

Post by Alexo »

Thank you!
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Re: Bug: Run in new instance

Post by psguru »

The latest build of 14.0 Beta contains the requested changes. Please give it a try.
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Re: Bug: Run in new instance

Post by Alexo »

Works! Thank you!
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Re: Bug: Run in new instance

Post by psguru »

Thanks for confirming!
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Re: Bug: Run in new instance

Post by Alexo »

Unfortunately, there is still a problem.

Here is what I did:
1. Compared 2 folders from the file explorer
2. Clicked on a file to see the difference
3. Realized that the settings are incorrect and reopened the file comparison in a different session
-- this works correctly --
4. Closed the file comparison and got back to the folder comparison
5. Tried to reopen the folder comparison in that different session from step 3
6. When I selected that session, the dialog switched from "compare directories" to "compare files, with the files from step 3 pre-populated
7. Manually switched back to "compare directories", but the original folder names were not there

Expected behaviour:
When reopening a folder comparison in a different session, the dialog should stay in the "compare directories" mode, with the original folder names pre-populated.
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Re: Bug: Run in new instance

Post by psguru »

After your step 4 the session you used was saved in the file comparison mode and with no information about the original directory comparison. Hence in step 7 that session did not know about those directories. On the other hand, you should easily be able to enter/browse to the folders in question.
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Re: Bug: Run in new instance

Post by Alexo »

There should be a way to allow step 5 to override it.
Manually browsing to the directories is, of course, possible, but it involves extra steps.
After your step 4 the session you used was saved in the file comparison mode and with no information about the original directory comparison.
Given that every comparison from the file explorer opens in the default session, there should be a way to quickly switch to a different session using the same names, whether they are files or directories.

As things stand right now, if I open compare two folders and switch to a different session, the session is set to folder mode.
The next time I compare two files and switch to that session, I will have to enter the files manually.
Then, The next time I compare two folders again and switch to that session, I will have to enter the directories manually.
And so on ad nauseum.

This is not a good workflow.

Change suggestion:
Pre-populate both the file and directory fields with the currently active ones, but don't save them to the session unless the user actually opened the
session. I think this can be done with a UI-only change.
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Re: Bug: Run in new instance

Post by psguru »

There should be a way to allow step 5 to override it.
If you have different instances running different sessions, there's no way for them to know what's happening in the other.
Change suggestion:
Pre-populate both the file and directory fields with the currently active ones, but don't save them to the session unless the user actually opened the
session. I think this can be done with a UI-only change.
I'm at all not sure what you are suggesting (keeping in mind what I said above). Details please?
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Re: Bug: Run in new instance

Post by Alexo »

Let me try again. Hopefully, I'll explain better.

When I am comparing two files, then click on "New Comparison", I get this pop up dialog:

Capture.JPG
Capture.JPG (50.76 KiB) Viewed 4058 times

The "compare directories" tab has the two folders pre-populated to the current ones being compared, and if I select a different session, they will retail the same values, provided that the last comparison on the selected session was a directory comparison (even if those were different directories)

Capture1.JPG
Capture1.JPG (50.35 KiB) Viewed 4058 times

However, if I select a session that was used for a file comparison, I lose those entries:

Capture2.JPG
Capture2.JPG (52.09 KiB) Viewed 4058 times

(the forum only allows me to attach 3 images, continued in the following message...)
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Re: Bug: Run in new instance

Post by Alexo »

(continued...)

After selecting "compare directories", the pre-populated values are still gone:

Capture3.JPG
Capture3.JPG (52.12 KiB) Viewed 4058 times

And even going back to a session that worked just a moment ago does not bring them back:

Capture4.JPG
Capture4.JPG (49.77 KiB) Viewed 4058 times

A similar issue happens if I am comparing 2 files and try to switch to a session that was previously used to compare directories.


Note that at this point, there is only *one* instance of EDP running (verified using the task manager), and that instance should know what files/directories are being compared.


What I am asking for, is the ability to open the same two directories (or files) that are currently open, in a different session (because I fine-tuned the settings to work better with those entities) regardless of what that session was used for last without having to jump through hoops.

I hope I explained it better this time.

Thank you,
Alex
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Re: Bug: Run in new instance

Post by psguru »

You did, thanks for the details. Let me see if this if this is feasible and if it can be done in the next build of 14.0.
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