My New Favorite Layout: Customizing the Workspace in v8

[Virginia Blakelock 0]

Examples of customized v8 layouts:

1: Layout with tag type label accents. Preference settings include minimum and maximum font size v8 Tahoma; vertical lines, horizontal lines, empty row lines. Toolbar uses small buttons. Windows 7 Classic theme.



2. Two monitor layout. Drag the layout to the second monitor, position the TMG windows and save the layout with a new name.



3. Project accent based on surname flags (top ten names in Distribution of People report). Screenshots are of the Detail, Family and Tree views; the Project Explorer, and the Expanded Picklist.





4. A Custom Toolbar can save space in a layout and make frequently used tools quickly available. There are over 40 items on my toolbar, including tags for each census year, backup and maintenance options, links to other projects - and particularly handy when tweaking report or chart options: Run last Report.. The custom toolbar can be docked at the top, bottom or side or floating in the layout. There is a walk-through video of my custom toolbar here, and as docked in the layout below:



For more examples of TMG layouts, see the legendary thread 'My New Favorite Layout' here. We've come a long way in TMG since Teresa started that discussion six years ago - but there are still some interesting and creative ideas to be found in that popular and long-running thread.

See Terry's article here for tips on customizing the workspace, including setting the v8 tag type label colors.

Virginia

[Roy Sprunger 0]

 

4. A Custom Toolbar can save space in a layout and make frequently used tools quickly available. There are over 40 items on my toolbar, including tags for each census year, backup and maintenance options, links to other projects - and particularly handy when tweaking report or chart options: Run last Report.. The custom toolbar can be docked at the top, bottom or side or floating in the layout. There is a walk-through video of my custom toolbar here, and as docked in the layout below:

 

Virginia,

 

When you upgraded, did you Restore your custom toolbar or have to create a new one? I have 17 buttons on my ver. 7 custom toolbar and did make sure it was selected in the wizard during the Restore process, however, it was not restored. Will I have to recreate it or is there a way to copy over the right information?

[Virginia Blakelock 0]

Roy -

 

When you backup your project you have the option to backup your custom toolbars and also the icons for custom toolbars. Since you wisely kept your v7 files, it is a simple matter now to copy your custom toolbar from your v7 User Program Data File folder to the equivalent folder in v8. The toolbars have the extension .tbr. In v8, go to Help on the top menu and click on Access Folders for a neat feature allowing you to locate those folders quickly.

 

The Help topic Data File Storage explains the Shared Program, User Program and User Data file folders and their contents. I went into a bit more detail about each file and their extensions in my article 'TMG v7 Data File Storage' which you can download here. It also applies to v8. The article also includes a list of the filters included in the Sample project, including an explanation of their extensions. Those filters can be copied to other projects.

 

Virginia

[Roy Sprunger 0]

Thanks, Virginia!

 

Your tip and file really helped. The toolbars were copied okay. I had three of them, but apparently my last save was to the default filename custom.tbr. It appears Ver. 8 read that and assumed it was a new toolbar. I selected another and found I had lost only one new button, which is easily recreated.

 

I added your file to my library of valuable tips for using TMG.

[Virginia Blakelock 0]

Roy -

 

If that new button was saved in the v7 Shared Program Data Files folder with the other buttons, you could find it there and copy it over to v8.

 

Sounds like you are up and running. You probably saw my custom toolbar - close to 50 items in a small space and saving me lots of time - like the 'Run Last Report' button when experimenting with report options.

 

Virginia

[Virginia Blakelock 0]

Attached is a screenshot of my TMG v8.08 layout on a Win8.1 laptop. My custom toolbar is at the top - and the Easy Search toolbar - which I had trouble docking to the side in Win8.1 - at the bottom.

 

 

Virginia