where has the little preview window gone?

[Dune]

I found the blue button. Works in some ways, but I just found that I can't see anything if I want to check cloud cover. All black. The previous window perfectly showed clouds and camera.

[ndeewolfwood]

a dockable window (anywhere on the interface with a floating window option) and node pineable will be perfect to me.
By pineable i mean a node lock/unlock system.
Lock : display the current selected node.
unlock : display only a node locked by user and not the selected one.


   

[fleetwood]

It took me a while to see this method, but I now right click on the desired shader from the
node network window. Right clicking brings up this option "Open Preview in New Window".
I prefer the larger separate window anyway for more detail. As a completely separate window it stays open
as long as I want it.
I like the new behavior as it doesn't waste time rendering previews I don't need to see.

[Oshyan]

It took me a while to see this method, but I now right click on the desired shader from the
node network window. Right clicking brings up this option "Open Preview in New Window".
I prefer the larger separate window anyway for more detail. As a completely separate window it stays open
as long as I want it.
I like the new behavior as it doesn't waste time rendering previews I don't need to see.

This is essentially the intended workflow. But again it may not be ideal for everyone.

- Oshyan

[mhaze]

It does stay open but as soon as I click on anything else it goes behind the main window - if it would stay on top I would be happy.

[AndyWelder]

It does stay open but as soon as I click on anything else it goes behind the main window - if it would stay on top I would be happy.

After reading what people wrote here on this subject the workflow started to make sense to me so the last couple of days I adapted it. I found it best practice not to maximize the main window but to leave some space at one side and park those individual windows there so they can't hide behind the main window.
A second monitor for those windows would even be better but that has to wait till there's enough dough for a new graphics card.

[reck]

Right now this is probably the most irritating thing about Terragen for me.

Every time I make a change in Terragen the preview window goes behind the main Terragen interface. Obviously I can shrink the main application window down and have the preview window at one side but I'd have to make a choice between always running TG in a non-maximised state and leave wasted blank space when I'm not using preview windows or keep switching between maximising and windows states whenever I need to work with the shader window. It's only the shader window that causes problems, all other floating windows are ok.

I think the two choices right now is to bring back the little preview built into the main window and have it show the preview for the currently selected node, regardless of what tab is highlighted. Or my preferred choice is to change the floating shader preview window so it stays on top all the time, or at least have a "keep open" button. Even with the little preview window it's sometimes better to open a floating shader window.

Any chance of this tiny, little, quick-to-implement change appearing in the next update 

[Henry Blewer]

I use a television monitor as a second monitor. I put my preview windows and some other stuff there.

[dandelO]

Agree with Reck 100%. I miss that little window, it was very convenient, but just as nice, and maybe even better, would be to just have a 'stay on top' button for the new method that TG uses now, as some times the small preview wasn't large enough when fully stretched, good enough for a quick glance but I do prefer to use a new, resizeable preview window most of the time anyway. Yes, a stay on top button would be the best idea, I think, but if I'm double clicking a network node to open settings, I'd still like that little window to display, seems odd that only users of the tabbed areas have that option now, I never use the tabs and node-lists for much of anything, the only benefit to me in tab settings is for the quick access to the cloud layer top/bottom values, which I also think should show on the layer settings panel and I always wonder why they don't.

[jo]

Hi Reck,

It's only the shader window that causes problems, all other floating windows are ok.

It's not actually a floating window like the param floaters.

Any chance of this tiny, little, quick-to-implement change appearing in the next update

Yes, the alpha versions have had the preview window always staying on top for some time and it's very likely to stay for the next public release.

Regards,

Jo

[Zairyn Arsyn]

this gets on my nerves at times, luckily i have a second monitor, i just drag the small preview window to the second monitor, bur still the window hides behind the program UI before i get a chance to move it   

[Tangled-Universe]

For the future I think it would be great to be able to move elements of the UI and dock/undock them anywhere you like.

[reck]

I only have one monitor so dragging the shader preview windows to another monitor is not an option for me. It sounds like this a mute point anyway as Jo has confirmed that the preview window will stay on top from the next version, which is fantastic news.

Martin docking/undocking would be nice indeed, I suppose it's the next natural step in the ui so who knows we may see it in the future.

[mhaze]

Good news, can't wait