While I realize you can cram everything into one database in DT, I in fact have 2 or 3 distinct databases that I occasionally switch between. Mostly, however, I spend a good chunk of time (days) in one database. While it’s not hard to switch back and forth a GREAT extra to speed my workflow would be the ability to set the “Default Database” preference to “Last Opened”, so that when I next run DT it opens by default not a specific database but the one I was last using when I closed DT.
Minor feature yes, but really a great helo for me in my work.
I tried these … I have “Open windows that were last opened on quit” but I think this refers to windows WITHIN the database when it was last opened, not WHICH database is opened the next time you start DT.
Checking the middle option as sjk suggests will indeed open whatever database(s) were open when you last quit DTPO, as well as any document windows that you had open at quit.
I just tried this out myself to verify before answering.
Yesterday I tested various combinations of opening/closing databases/windows and relaunching, looking for patterns of (mis)behavior while also hoping to find consistent ways to work around the missing “Open in New Window” functionality. Thought I had some of it figured out but today it’s really baffling me. One snafu is that double-clicking a .dtBase2 package has developed a bad habit of briefly opening a global Inbox window, then reusing that window for the other db. If I then select global Inbox in the sidebar and use File > New Window > it’ll open that db in a new window with the desired size/location. Next, I quit DTPO with the two windows (for Inbox and db), then double-click db.dtBase2 – it’s back to the “reuse Inbox window for db” behavior. Instead, If I relaunch DTPO directly (e.g. clicking its Dock icon) then only the Inbox window opens.
So, I’ve lost hope trying to predict what’ll happen (for me, drtimhill, or anyone else) when the “Open windows that were last opened on quit” Startup option is used. Frankly, for me v2’s multi-window/db handling remains a frustrating mess that seems to be getting worse.
DT can only open one DB at a time … regardless of open windows, opening a new DB closes the current one.
If “Default Database” in preferences is filled, this database is always the one that is opened upon startup, regardless of the DB used when DT was last closed.
If “Default Database” is empty, NO database is opened on startup, again regardless of what (if anything) was open when DT was last closed.
I’ve been unable to get DT to reopen the same database that was open when the application quit, regardless of any of the settings in preferences.
That’s not the case here, though it prefers to reuse the current window when opening/switching databases. Check under OPEN DATABASES in the global sidebar to see which ones are currently open but don’t necessarily have open windows associated with them.
That’s what I’d expect, unchanged from the v1 behavior.
That seems to be what happens here now when launching the app directly, though it didn’t used to be the way. Launching by opening a specific open database will open that db, reusing the Inbox window. I still don’t comprehend what it’s supposed to do in all cases depending on which dbs/windows were open/closed when quitting.
The second sentence of my previous paragraph describes one way I can reliably do it, though not with the desired window size/location.
Just noticed that DTPO’s Startup pref. was accidentally changed to from “Open windows that were open on quit” to “Open new window”. Likely happened while I was making the screencapture posted in my first reply. That pref, and at least some of my sanity, has been restored.
D’oh! That explains item 1 in your other reply.
And double-check which preference(s) are actually set.
