Stewart Allen wrote:
> > I just don't ever seem to have to "Set Insert".
> > What is the exact sequence of events that I haven't realized, that shows
> > some use of "Set Insert"?
>
> The default behaviour when you select a frame is for it to become
> the insertion point. Other widgets such as buttons select their
> parent as the insertion point. The only time you would use "set
> insert" is if you want a button or other widget as a container.
>
> Frames, Canvases and Toplevels by default set themselves as insertion
> points. All others select their parents.
This is the behaviour that I see, and it makes perfect sense. So, it
would seem the rare case that one would actually use the "Set Insert"
item.
Now, here's one thing that I find confusing, and it may be new to v1.08.
I removed 1.07 so I haven't been able to confirm that this changed.
As the focus follows the mouse from one toplevel window to another, the
"Widget" name (and the "Alias") in the "Widget Info" window changes
accordingly to the toplevel of the window that the mouse is in, but the
"Insert" field doesn't change until you click in another toplevel
window.
OK. Now, when you click on a widget in the toolbar, it honours the
"Insert" in the Widget Info window, and it goes into the that window, IE
the one that you last clicked on, not the one that the mouse happened to
pass through on the way to the toolbar.
BUT, watch this: Click in one top level. pass the mouse through another.
The Widget Info window shows the toplevel of the window that the mouse
just passed through. Go to Options/SetAlias and click. The alias that
you define gets tied to the toplevel "Widget" name in the Widget Info
window, not the "sticky" Insert widget. If you press Alt-A, then pass
through another window on the way to the alias editor window, the Widget
Info widget name changes but in this case the alias that you enter goes
to the widget where you pressed Alt-A!
Now I see that the "Geometry Info" and "Attribute Editor" also change to
the
toplevel of the window that has the mouse focus too.
All this is awkward and inconsistant, I'd say. The result is that you
have to be very careful as you move the mouse from one place to another,
otherwise, when you get there, you'll be operating on the wrong widget.
In particlar: click on a widget, and try to
- set the alias
- edit geometry info
- edit attributes
In all these cases, you're hosed if the mouse passes through another
toplevel window on the way to the menubar or editor window.
I believe this all explains how I have (a few times) found that my saved
applications have the same alias for two different toplevels. Once I
found that the widget array had an alias, but it's reverse was missing
(or vice versa). I haven't been able to duplicate this last one,
however.
I'm not sure what to suggest. I thought that in 1.07 everything was
"sticky". This is certainly easy to comprehend and performs better.
I don't see a whole lot of benefit in these windows following the focus
and switching to the toplevel in focus. Perhaps a better way is having
everything sticky, but adding a "Select" button to the "Toplevel
Windows" window. Clicking "Select" would make all the changes that the
focus model does now. In fact, this already exists! It's the "Select
Toplevel" item on the right mouse button pop-up menu. So, what's this
focus policy all about, anyway?!?!
--
...RickM...
