Add customizable "thumbnail size" in contact sheet settings

[KLE-France]

At Tools > Settings... > Browser/Thumbnail > Appearance, there is a function to set a "Custom thumbnail size". Because one can adjust both width and height, it can also adjust (and is really adjusting) the shape of the thumbnail's container*. This latter is set to a landscape rectangle by default, but users can adjust it to their liking.

This is good! I personally set the Custom thumbnail size to a square ratio. The resulting square container means that landscape-oriented images don't display larger than portrait-oriented images in the browser, giving both of them equal visual weight**. In sum, by doing that, my XNView browser becomes a modern-day equivalent of the light-table for yesteryear's film slides.

I suggest here adding such a function at Create > Contact sheet... > Settings.

Currently, in the Contact sheet dialog, users can adjust how many thumbnails there are per page and how much they are spaced, both of which affect the size of the image, but because there is no "Custom thumbnail" dialog, users can't change the shape of the container, and thus landscape-oriented images are "favored" over portrait-oriented ones, the former appearing larger than the latter. Thus, having a Custom thumbnail function in the Contact sheet settings would allow users to adjust things to their liking there as well.

Thanks for hearing me out!


* Thus, as an aside, I would also suggest rewording this function as "Custom thumbnail-cell size", "custom thumbnail-container size", or "Custom thumbnail-holder size".

** Du coup, c'est les images carrées qui en profitent, mais elles sont moins nombreuses.

[KLE-France]

I think I'm just talking with myself, but I did just have a better idea for this.

Instead of a custom-sized cell, it might be better to think in terms of a "force square cells" checkbox, that, no matter the shape of the actual space dictated by the division of the sheet in rows and columns, obliges the image to display at whichever is the least of height and width.

So, for example, imagine that you want to group five images. You set the sheet size to use the whole window (horizontal thus), then put in one row and five columns. This will display your five images side-by-side, but the size of these spaces will be taller than they are wide. Thus, in this case, a portrait-oriented image will display larger than a landscape-oriented image. BUT, with the "force square cells" box checked, the program would force the height of the vertical image to respect the width of the space. Result: all images (assuming a same aspect ratio) display as the same size (meaning the take up equal area, "real estate," on the screen (and sheet should you actually print the thing out).

That would surely be much easier for the viewer than calculating the exact size needed for a "custom thumbnail size."

Also, this idea could extend to to the view window, the compare function, the full screen view, and surely other things I'm not thinking of.