Back in 2012 a couple folks asked for this feature so I'm just gonna quote @jpu here:
jpu Dec 1, 2012
I have found this feature useful in another file manager - the ability to lock the viewer pane to the currently selected file so that it remains unchanged regardless of which other file(s) I navigate to/click on.
It could be shown as a padlock icon with tooltip ‘Lock/unlock the current file in the viewer pane’
None of the developers replied so I guess it just was eventually forgotten.
I have a very long image of a file list that needed to be scrolled about as reference while working around in dual or commander view mode. Clicking and navigating around other files constantly changes/refreshes the viewer pane -- always loading the next file selected. It would be very useful to be able to temporarily 'lock' this pane. Of course, I've also tried the alternative workaround of just opening another standalone viewer pane window. However, I think that this is a very useful feature not just for navigating images or working around an image reference, but also for documents as well -- it takes a while to load individual previews of documents, and sometimes it's useful temporarily lock this pane rather than toggling it away just to be able to click on or navigate around another file or folder.
The lock on the folder tree confuses a lot of people who don't realise they've somehow turned it on. I'm a bit loathe to add yet another point of confusion to the UI. But it could be a done as a command that you would have to specifically create a button to make use of, if that would be sufficient?
Yeah, a part of me thought something along those lines. I don't even use the lock options for the tabs... though I do understand how half of them work.
A command button did come to mind but it would be likely located added and situated outside of the viewer pane, I suppose -- which is not perfect, but should be rather adequate for the occasional need. I just recently learned learned how to use scripts -- installed manually three just a day ago which was easier than I thought -- but I wouldn't really know how to create one myself. Unless someone else in the community or one of you developers could chime in to help...
Would a command or script for this function take a lot of time to figure out how to make, though? Hmmm... at the moment, I really have no absolute immediate use for it as I do have a workaround that's sufficient, but yeah a command could be very handy.
Thanks for the quick reply BTW, as I wasn't even expecting that.
While fiddling with the buttons I did see some list of available commands already -- those ones I don't have a clue what they could be used for though. So in a future update this particular toggle command can be added and used, right? So I'll just have to keep an eye for those news updates...
Thanks again. On a somewhat unrelated note: just woke up after having a brief existential crises -- two hours of thinking and your reply pops up -- thank god! Finally a break in the thought process -- really how can one reason against the idea of brief existence. Probably brought about subconsciously after the news of Stephen Hawking's death. Now I'm thinking I can't possibly read the entire Dopus manual in my lifetime! Oh, brother... LOL.
I have already used this feature several times. It comes in handy at every now and again. Sometimes it's just quicker this way than opening a separate image viewer that's set to 'always on top'.
I can't trust my eyes! It's there! FINALLY! I kept asking for that simple feature for almost TEN (!) years now. Many, many thanks! Believe it or not, this is such an important feature for me that it was the MAIN reason for upgrading to version 12.
