Missing the "Importance Tab" in 3.3.3...

[pchady]

Hi,

BC3 help refers to "The Importance Tab" of the session settings.

I can't believe it took me this long to find it..

I've got a window with a few tabs open, all folder compare sessions with lots of files in them, and I'm trying to find out where to manage the importance for these projects I'm working with.
hunting, hunting, hunting...
per the help, under "Rules vs File Formats" it says go to:
" Sessions > Session Settings and select the Importance tab."

But there is no such tab.

FINALLY, after >20 minutes, I opened up a file pair, and THEN opened sessions settings..
BEHOLD!! there is the tab!
So... this is only available when looking at files?

But WHY? Why can't I configure this GLOBAL property when I'm looking at a project, but instead I have to dig into a specific file first?
I was thrown for a long time hunting in OPTIONS, where this used to be..

ACK.
so.. I suggest you don't hide this so well.
In fact, why have a window like this be "context sensitive" at all?
It's not obvious that there is "any other context" to be thinking about...

Please understand.. I LOVE LOVE LOVE Beyond Compare..
I have it open on my desktop all day every day, usually with more than one comparisons.
It is an indispensable tool.
I've been a long time (is it 10 yrs yet?) user of BC2, and I've had BC3 co-installed for quite a while now.
But I haven't fully jumped ship, because there were some detailed things I knew really well in BC2 that I haven't fully figured out in BC3, and configuring the rules is one of those areas..

Pete

[Aaron]

Hello,

The key difference is that in BC2, only directory views were "sessions" that could be saved and reloaded for future comparison. In BC3, everything is potentially a Session. So the Text Compare Session Settings are different from the MP3 Compare Session Settings, etc.

Sorry it was a bit confusing. Improving this interface is something we are looking into.

Session Settings are not global, but only apply to the currently open session. You can "Also Update Defaults" from these dialogs, but the main place to update the defaults is on the Home screen, in the Saved Sessions list, the top folder is the "Edit Session Defaults" folder.

We have several videos we've made that may help. Some were made during the BC3 beta period to help transition users from BC2 to BC3, such as the "Where various options are set" video.
I'd also recommend the Basics video for a good overall video:
http://www.scootersoftware.com/moreinfo.php?zz=videos

[pchady]

Ah..

see, I pretty much have 3 to 8 folder comparison tabs open at any given time.
But they aren't always the same comparisons. They are frequently changing.

I have never really liked the "home" page and rarely used the session management features or bother savings sessions. As soon as I make one, it seems to go obsolete quickly.

Most often, I compare folders directly from windows explorer, so it bypasses the home screen and goes right to folder compare. (and probably uses "default session" settings, right?)

I have it set to save and load the whole workspace on exit and restart, so it just reopens any tabs I have when I restart.
So.. I generally don't see the home page anymore. 8-)

So I guess what I was expecting (without realizing it) is to be able to access the default session options even from within any session - because I'm always in a session...

If I was going to make a suggestion to consider then, I guess it would be to show an entry for the default options.

i.e. instead of tools/options (where this is implied to only apply to the current session)
how about:
TOOLS / CurrentSession Settings / Options
.../ File formats
TOOLS / Default settings / Options
.../ File formats
etc.


Thanks for listening,
Pete

[Aaron]

Thanks for the feedback. We appreciate hearing back from customers on how they are currently using the application. Improving this type of adhoc comparison is on our Customer Wishlist and I'll add your use case and notes to our entry on the subject.