I've searched the help file that was installed with DOpus, but I could not, easily, find how to get my dual (default) listers back. I started to delete all the config files that were changed tonight when I exited DOpus, and that didn't do a think. I now that everyone in this forum thinks I'm DUMB, but is there a QUICK way to get everything to the default settings when you first installed DOpus, including the default DUAL LISTERS? My next step it to delete all the configs in my Users/David Stevens/AppData/Roaming/GPSoftware/ directory.
BTW, as I was typing this, I was messing around, and got the dual listers back. But let's say I decided to PLAY around with DOpus with the Preferences, and I really screw things up, and I'm unable to get DOpus back to the way when I first installed it, how can I get it back? I would think that there would be a QUICK way to set everything back. That's the only and main reason why I don't PLAY around with the Preferences and Config files. I know Leo is going to EASILY show me in the HELP [F1] file, where it states how you can do it. I've looked, but I don't know what key word(s) that would bring up with what I want to do. I would appreciate it very much if someone could tell me how to do it?
Thank You.
If there's a better way, I don't know what it is, but if you really want EVERYTHING reset to default, I think you can uninstall then reinstall.
When/if you get everything reset, use Settings -> Backup and Restore... to backup that default configuration so in the future you can restore it. Create a backup every so often. Then you can PLAY around as much as you like.
I save off a copy of the default settings very time I do a fresh install of a new major version of Opus. Of course 'default' settings are also relative to the choices you make during installation. My last defaults are using all the default install options, happy to share if you think it'd be useful. I don't think there are any user / profile specific things in an Opus config backup so it should be fine to import to someone else's system.
But it's just as well to just un-install/re-install like Bob said as well...
Like steje, I also save a clean configuration every time a major release is published and it's very handy to be able to restore an unmodified configuration when testing something that seems to be wrong since it's always possible that the problem is a consequence of my customisations.
It has often struck me that a useful addition to the default Backup and Restore Menu would be a Custom/Default configuration toggle. One option to save current (custom) and restore default, and another to restore the saved custom.
Yeah, same reasons for saving off the defaults here AB!
Just realized though... you could probably get essentially the same default state by deleting EVERYTHING in the /dopuslocaldata and /dopusdata folders (except the dopus.cert file), then fully exiting and restarting Opus.
EDIT NOTE: naturally, save a backup of your current config BEFORE DELETING STUFF in case there's anything in there you actually want to keep!
Steje, because I do a lot of customisation I have actually created a couple of save/restore default config buttons and saved these as DCF files on my desktop, but it would be neater and cleaner to have the option baked into the default Opus settings control panel.
[quote="steje"]Yeah, same reasons for saving off the defaults here AB!
Just realized though... you could probably get essentially the same default state by deleting EVERYTHING in the /dopuslocaldata and /dopusdata folders (except the dopus.cert file), then fully exiting and restarting Opus.[/quote]
How about renaming the /dopuslocaldata and /dopusdata folders? Less dramatic the the nuclear option, even with the settings saved.
Won't Opus recreate them on start up?
I have to do this from time to time when the BBC's iPlayer throws a wobbly. Then I can move stuff back into the new folder structure a bit at a time.
But the idea of having a "reset" button does make a lot of sense.
CAUTION: NOBODY FROM GPSOFT HAS ENDORSED THIS, IT IS AN IDEA ONLY - SO BACKUP YOUR CURRENT CONFIG AND ACCEPT THE POSSIBILITY OF NEEDING TO DO A PROPER RE-INSTALL
<?xml version="1.0"?>
<button backcol="none" display="both" textcol="none">
<label>Delete Opus Configuration</label>
<icon1>#prefs</icon1>
<function type="normal">
<instruction>delete force quiet /dopuslocaldata\*</instruction>
<instruction>delete force quiet /dopusdata\~(dopus.cert)</instruction>
<instruction>close program=confirm</instruction>
</function>
</button>
CAUTION: NOBODY FROM GPSOFT HAS ENDORSED THIS, IT IS AN IDEA ONLY - SO BACKUP YOUR CURRENT CONFIG AND ACCEPT THE POSSIBILITY OF NEEDING TO DO A PROPER RE-INSTALL
...though, from a test, it looks like you actually still need to re-enter your license certificate - so maybe it doesn't make sense to NOT delete the dopus.cert file - OR - perhaps there's some other file to also NOT delete.
Deleting the config folders wouldn't give you a completely vanilla config since there are a few toolbars and bits & pieces that the installer puts there itself. There's also the possibility that Opus has config data in memory that it has not saved yet, and it will then save it when you exit such that when you re-launch it that saved config is still there, instead of the empty dir.
I guess it'll kind-of work most of the time, though. OTOH, how often do you need to completely reset the configuration that you actually care about spending a couple of minutes uninstalling & reinstalling? (Assuming you keep your installers like I do.)
BTW, if you're expecting to find dopus.cert below /dopusdata, you're presumably looking at a machine with Opus in shared-config mode, which isn't the default. dopus.cert is normally under /dopusglobaldata (which is merged with /dopusdata but only in shared-config mode, not in the normal private-config mode).
There are some things under /dopusglobaldata that you'd want to delete to get a properly default config (like the globalprefs file), but also some things you would want to keep (like the icon sets).
TBH, I think you're much better off just uninstalling & reinstalling if you want a default config. Trying to save 5 minutes by not doing that will just risk wasting much more time if something goes wrong, especially if you don't realise what's gone wrong or what's missing for a long time.
[quote="leo"]
TBH, I think you're much better off just uninstalling & reinstalling if you want a default config. Trying to save 5 minutes by not doing that will just risk wasting much more time if something goes wrong, especially if you don't realise what's gone wrong or what's missing for a long time.[/quote]
I don't think I disagree with this in the context in which it was said, but surely if one has planned ahead and backed up the default config, then restoring it is a good option that's faster and more convenient that uninstalling & reinstalling unless I'm overlooking something here also.
Good point about the possibility of there being config data in memory... you could probably get past that by exiting and restarting Opus once before deleting the conf files - but yeah, an un-install/re-install just makes sense if you don't have a "default config backup".
I "do"... and usually only resort to it if I suspect a problem I'm having might be related to my customizations - so I'll often re-test an issue against a default config like AB described.
@Bob: you can easily create a button that drops you back to any config backup... mine is:
recent clear
prefs backuprestore restore=all,replace from "/prefs\archive\opus\v10\v10 defaults.ocb"
...and another button that does similar for my latest "golden" config that I regularly reload and constantly update as I verify I'm happy with my changes. I'm totally happy between the two buttons. Having the separate DCF file outside of Opus like AB mentioned can be helpful in getting back to your normal config ~easily after rolling back to the defaults - since with the defaults you obviously wouldn't have the customized button to reload your normal (golden) config anymore.
Based on Leo's information - I guess the one value I could see in having a one-button 'reset all to defaults' built directly into Opus would be that you'd avoid the potential that you don't end up with a truly vanilla config like he pointed out with the delete hack approach I mentioned above... And I guess beyond that, if a newer Opus release were indeed to include updated default settings, you'd also presumably have easy access to those updated defaults with such a built-in method that you otherwise would have access to unless you did in fact un-install/re-install and then save off the updated default config backup. I did update my 'defaults' backup just recently with the 10.5 release, but I don't think we'd normally really even "know" if a new release has actually changed some of the defaults... so a built-in method would cover that.
But again - I'm content with my current methods and would rather see real feature enhancements and bug fixes be prioritized over a built-in method to do something we can already come up with our own given Opus' customization features... . But that's "me"...
(Assuming you keep your installers like I do.)