Flare v11 (and earlier) - Editor pet peeves

[sdcinvan]

Hello all,

Before I submit to MadCap, I though I would share these pet peeves to find out who agrees (or if I have misunderstood)...

Two issues that I would like to see improved in the future:

Switching between the XML editor and Text Editor
> There is no cursor (line) synchronization when switching between the editors (I don't use the split screen because of the reduced editing space). Whenever switching from the XML editor to the Text editor, the default position is always the end of the document.

> Copy or activity buffer is not shared between editors! (i.e. if you add or delete content in one editor, then switch to the other and/or switch back, actions cannot be repeated and there is no undo for the last action). This is a pretty basic editor requirement that is missing!

> Related to the previous but is important enough to repeat! The undo buffer should not be lost whenever switching between editors.

> Flare should support dual monitors and allow the XML editor and Text editor to be dragged to separate monitors.


Thanks,
Shawn

[NorthEast]

I think it tries to synchronise the cursor position; it tends to work ok when you're in text, but it's quite easy to get them out of sync when you move outside/between tags.

The biggest concern I've found is that sometimes you can actually lose data when swapping between editors; i.e. I've made changes in text editor, saved the document in XML editor, and found that the changes were not actually saved.

[dorcutt]

Yes, saving between editor versions is odd/awful, and does not inspire trust for sure. The line synchronization could also definitely be better, though like Dave, I've found making sure you have actual text highlighted helps hugely.

The related issue that bothers me the most is the lack of "Text" and "XML" tabs after searching in the source-code. It is a constant and completely unnecessary hassle.

[sdcinvan]

Thanks for your comments.

I am surprised that no one mentioned the lost ability to undo an action after switching between editors. That might be my biggest complaint.

Cursor position synchronization has never worked for me when switching from the XML to the Text editor; even when an object is marked. However, synchronization does seem to work when going in the opposite direction. Why only one way?

[sdcinvan]

...
The biggest concern I've found is that sometimes you can actually lose data when swapping between editors; i.e. I've made changes in text editor, saved the document in XML editor, and found that the changes were not actually saved.

I don't think I have ever noticed this problem. Is this a replicable problem or a completely random occurrence?

[sdcinvan]

...
The related issue that bothers me the most is the lack of "Text" and "XML" tabs after searching in the source-code. It is a constant and completely unnecessary hassle.

I remember that one and submitted both bug reports and feature requests! But I thought that [very annoying] problem was fixed in v11?

[UPDATE]

Appears that it isn't fixed. Here is an illustration of the issue and a work-around...

Search_source_code_missing tabs.jpg

[dorcutt]

Huh, I usually use the Ctrl-F2 keyboard shortcut. I didn't know that button was also there, thanks.

When you switch between the Text and the XML view, it also always requires you to save, even if you didn't make any changes. I believe this changes the update date, which seems like a big deal for date variables and translation service issues.

[sdcinvan]

Huh, I usually use the Ctrl-F2 keyboard shortcut. I didn't know that button was also there, thanks.

You're welcome.

When you switch between the Text and the XML view, it also always requires you to save, even if you didn't make any changes. I believe this changes the update date, which seems like a big deal for date variables and translation service issues.

YES!! Isn't that just nutty?
I once had an argument with MadCap support over this. I was trying to understand why the editor thought that my topic needed to be saved when no changes were made. The cs agent didn't understand that this actually happens! I never got a bug report # on this one.