Open with preview
Purpose
Shows the files of a folder as tiles with a preview image before you load one of them. All three of the program's own file types are covered: drawings .cad2d, standard parts .json and blocks .ldblk.
The preview image is computed when the dialog opens; the program writes nothing into the files. Drawings and blocks are drawn like the standard-part icons — elements as strokes, dimensions and texts indicated; standard parts bring their own image. New in program version v3.0.41.
Access
- File menu: entry 🖼 Open with preview… — in addition to the ordinary Open.
The dialog can be moved by its title bar; the ✕ at the top right closes it.
Choosing files
- 📂 Choose folder… reads a whole folder including its subfolders.
- 🗎 Choose files… takes individual files (multiple selection).
Both go through the browser's ordinary file dialog so that this works in every browser. One peculiarity follows from that: the folder has to be chosen again in every session — browsers do not remember folders. The computed images, by contrast, are kept (see Cache).
If the selection holds none of the three file types, the status line of the dialog reports No matching files (.cad2d, .json, .ldblk) found.
Folder, search and sorting
Folder list: the drop-down next to the buttons lists all folders and every subfolder that occurs. This hides a subtree without reading everything again.
Search field Search files…: filters while typing by file name and folder; several words must all occur. Without a match it reads No file matches the search.
also drawing info (factory on, since program version v3.0.42): the search additionally covers the drawing information — no., title, rev., scale, paper, author, keywords and notes. If the hit is there, the tile names the field as a footnote, for instance Hit: Keywords. The entries are picked up during the same read and cost no measurable time.
Sorting: File name, Drawing no. or Date (newest first). Files without a drawing number come last when sorting by number.
The tile
Each tile shows, from top to bottom:
| Line | Content |
|---|---|
| Image | the computed preview; a 🗎 stands for a file without an image |
| Name | the file name; the tooltip shows it in full |
| No. · Title | from the drawing info, if present |
| Folder | the subfolder within the selection |
| Type · Date · Size | Drawing, Standard part or Block, modification date and file size |
If a file is damaged or comes from a foreign application, ⚠ not readable appears instead of the image.
What a click does
| Type | Click on the tile |
|---|---|
| Drawing .cad2d | opens it — Click: open drawing. If changes are unsaved, the browser first asks Discard unsaved changes?. |
| Standard part .json | attaches it to the mouse — Click: attach standard part to the mouse (standard parts). |
| Block .ldblk | loads it into the drawing — Click: load block. |
After a drawing has been opened its file name appears in the title bar of the program (since program version v3.0.44), and the status bar reports Opened: name (n elements). The program does not remember a file target: Save asks for the location, as it does after an import.
Cache and Re-read
The computed images are stored in the browser (not in your files). The key is path, size and modification date — if the file changes, the image is computed anew. The status line of the dialog says where the images come from: 3 files · 0 from the cache · 3 newly rendered; while computing, 3 files, 2 images rendered….
⟳ Re-read reads the chosen files from disk again and recomputes every image without the cache. That helps when you have changed a file outside the program.
If a file was changed since the selection or new ones were added, the status line reports 1 file(s) were changed or removed since the selection — please choose the folder again. The browser only releases the files that existed when you chose them; Re-read cannot change that.
Related topics
- Open — the ordinary way without a preview
- Files — formats, saving and import at a glance
- Drawing info — where no., title and keywords come from