Switching Browser / Viewer

[algol1]

Hello,

I am new to the forum but have searched the FAQ and also topics without finding a solution - so please forgive me, if this turns out to be a silly question or has been answered before.

I have tried XnView for some months now and find it to be an excellent viewer wouldn't there be one particular, most annoying behavior I couldn't get rid of so far.

I have configured xnwiew to start with maximized window in browser-mode when opening from desktop. When double-clicking on a filename with a picture-extension from my file manager (like win-explorer) I prefer to open XnView that picture in full-screen-mode with maximized fit to my screen. To switch from there to browser-view I can either double-click or press Enter or do a middle-mouse-click, according to the corresponding configuration-settings in the Options-dialogue.

Now, what drives me almost crazy is this: If a picture is smaller than the full screen - most of them are - it will appear as either fit to width or to height and also in normal viewer/edit-mode the window-frame around the picture will adopt to that area of the last picture displayed.

But unfortunately, when now changing into browser-mode, the "maximized" browser-window then will also be restricted to the screen-area of that last picture displayed. To now switch to a truly maximized (full-screen) browser-view there seems to be no other way than first clicking on the "restore down" button next to the red closing-button in the upper right corner of the window - and then on the "maximize" button again. In other words, after initially switching to full-screen browser, the full-screen browser-window doesn't actually appear full-screen but rather is limited to the area which has been occupied by the previously displayed single-image before.

What I need to do is finding a method to directly switch from full-screen viewing of a single-image scaled to fit the height/width of my screen to a full-screen browsing-mode that would utilize the complete screen-area, regardless of the format/size of the single last image previously viewed.

I can hardly imagine that this would be an unknown bug in a program that popular, so perhaps I only got some essential setting wrong and so far have been unable to find out which. Any help from experienced users would therefore be greatly appreciated.

greetings
algol1

[algol1]

Just a quick follow-up:

I have upgraded to XnView 2.13 and I am using it on a WinXP32-SP3 system as well as on a Win7-Ultimate64 machine.

greetigs
algol1

[xnview]

Do you have changed "Auto image size"

[algol1]

Thanks for the quick response.

Auto-Image-size is currently set to "fit to desktop,all". As far as I recall I have experimented with all those different settings and it made no difference. All settings resulting in images fit to the whole screen with original aspect-ratio had the same effect.

I have observed that the change between Fullscreen-viewer and FS-browser seems to work correct, as long as one doesn't change to Viewer/editor in between. Also the setting for the middle mouse-button only sometimes works and sometimes doesn't. (I use a Logitech Performance mouse where the middle button is detected plainly as middle button), so separating the options for B/V-fullscreen and browser/viewer isn't a good idea either.

The moment I set the switching option to circle through browser/fullscreen/viewer for any button the browser seems to immediately shrink to the window-size last used by the viewer, although browser and viewer window should be completely independent from each other. I've tried every setting that could possibly affect this from my understanding by now-without success. From my point of view the browser only makes sense when using the complete screen-area.

greetings
algol1

[xnview]

You have a picture (smaller than screen) in view mode, this picture fit the screen (width or height).
you switch to the browser, and what do you would like to have?

[algol1]

I have a picture of any size, larger or smaller, fit to the screen (width or height).

Once I switch to the browser I want the browser window to come up full screen at all times (at least when the browser window is displayed as a maximized window, that is the Windows-button next to the red closing-x is displayed as "Restore Down") and in no way restricted to the area occupied by the last seen (scaled) viewer image.

The longer I think about this, the more am I convinced that this is -sorry - a real bug. Because any Windows-window can only either be scaled with a window frame (then the button next to the red closing-x has to be "Maximize") or it has to be genuinely fullscreen with the window frame encompassing the entire screen area (with the Windows-button next to the red closing-x displayed as "Restore Down").

A pseudo-fullscreen-window like that of XnView-browser that is declared as "Maximized" but in reality is restricted to some unpredictable portion of the screen, depending on the previous viewer-window, simply is not allowed - nor is it desirable. Just my 2 cents on that topic.

greetings
algol1

[algol1]

Here is a graphical representation of what I'm talking about:

http://ge.tt/8b2lWLA1?c

Example-1:
scaled image in viewer

right-1:
Fullscreen browser with various images as it should be

wrong-1:
Pseudo-fullscreen browser (having switched to after viewing "example-1" in Viewer) with "pseudo-maximized" window as displayed by XnView; window restricted to previous viewer-image-area, all but 2 thumbnails in browser cut off, we see a window with "Restore Down" button visible next to red closing-x which is only allowed in true fullscreen-windows but "illegal" in scaled, part-screen windows.

greetings
algol1

[xnview]

Do you have tried to enable 'Interface>Use different position/size' ?

[algol1]

Yes, I have. The box "use different positions" is checked / set enabled.

Seems to make no difference though, if it is unchecked/off.

greetings
algol1

[xnview]

when activated, browser and viewer have not different size?
You use double click or enter to switch between viewer/browser?

[algol1]

when activated, browser and viewer have not different size?
You use double click or enter to switch between viewer/browser?

At the moment I use neither but the "middle-mouse-button" instead, as I seek to avoid that situation which reveals the problem described.

I have tried using both Enter and double-click for switching, though. Makes no difference.

As for your initial question - it depends. When you start with the browser fullscreen and then switch to viewer, the windows will have different size as the viewer window will now be scaled, according to the image displayed, to fit either screen-height or -width.

When switching back from viewer to browser, regardless by what method (mouse or enter), the failure will now occur, as the browser-window will now be restricted to the exact same area, the viewer-window had occupied before. This is exactly what I'm telling you since the beginning of this thread.

greetings
algol1

[xnview]

could you send me your xnview.ini

[algol1]

On its way via PM.

I had to paste its content into the message-field as text though, for I could find no way to attach a file to the PM.

greetings
algol1

[xnview]

Please remove ViewMaxi=1 from your .ini

[algol1]

Please remove ViewMaxi=1 from your .ini

You've got to be kidding.

When I edited xnview.ini manually and deleted this entry I started XnView with high hopes - and - and (drums..) - the browser window showed messed up exactly the same way as it had been before. But the "best" (actually worst, that is) was yet to come. On renewed inspection of xnview.ini the "ViewMaxi=1" setting was still there. Well, not "still" there, b/c on closer inspection it actually had been auto-re-created by XnView on start. So I then set it explicitly to "ViewMaxi=0".

Another start of a random picture with XnView - and the same messed-up browser-window as always. Needless to say, the auto-re-created setting of "ViewMaxi=1" re-appeared in the ini as well. Now, that's what I would call a resilient parameter.

So, in the future, if you suggest to get rid of a certain parameter again, you might want to also reveal the secret of how this could be done at the same time.

This somewhat reminds me of software written by the evil "StarTrek-Enterprise-BORG-villains" as they used to implement so called "autonomous regeneration sequencers" to counteract resistance and alteration of their malignant routines.

greetings
algol1