Settings ignored in the wincmd.ini file

[Tyler]

Hi,

I have been editing the wincmd.ini file, trying to manually implement two settings under the [Configuration] heading:

MinLineHeight=-2
SpaceMovesDown=1

For some unknown reasons these settings are ignored. Of course, I saved the file and restarted TC. The settings are still there in the file, just as I defined them, but they produce no effect at all.
Am I missing something?
Is it just me, or does someone else also experience the same problem?

(I am using TC 8.52a 64 bit under Windows 10)

Thanks to anyone who can solve this riddle for me.

Bye

[Stefan2]

Which INI did you edited ? The right one?

For the actual used, see TC menu Help > About TC > INI-Files:





Or type 'notepad %commander_ini%' in TCs command line box.
 

[Tyler]

Which INI did you edited ? The right one?

For the actual used, see TC menu Help > About TC > INI-Files:

Or type 'notepad %commander_ini%' in TCs command line box.
 

Hi Stefan,

yes, I edited the right wincmd.ini file.
Moreover, I edited it through the "Change Settings Files Directly" command, under the Configuration menu. So there can be no mistake about the file.

[Stefan2]

Well done Tyler

For me it works on W7

[Configuration]
UseIniInProgramDir=7 ;7=nimm diese INI im TC-Programmordner
InplaceRenamePath=1 ;1=Pfad wechseln per Klick auf parent in der Pfadzeile
SpaceMovesDown=1 ;1=Auswahl per SPACE-Taste, dann springe eine Datei weiter nach unten
DirBrackets=0 ;0=no [..] around directory names
InplaceOkButton=0 ;2=Bestätigungsschaltfläche
...
...
......

Maybe its a W10 thingy? Have you searched the forum for Windows 10 issues ?

Otherwise it would be nice if a Win10 user can test this for us...



 

[Horst.Epp]

SpaceMovesDown=1 funktioniert unter Windows 10 ohne Probleme.
Getested mit TC 8.52 a x86 und x64

[Tyler]

SpaceMovesDown=1 funktioniert unter Windows 10 ohne Probleme.
Getested mit TC 8.52 a x86 und x64

So, what else could it be?

[Tyler]

SpaceMovesDown=1 funktioniert unter Windows 10 ohne Probleme.
Getested mit TC 8.52 a x86 und x64

So, what else could it be?

I found a partial answer to the problem, by temporarily renaming the wincmd.ini file and making TC create a new wincmd.ini file.
I have added those two settings to this newly-created minimal wincmd,ini file, and they work!
So, I guess there is some sort of problem in the old wincmd file, due to which those settings are not implemented.
The strange thing is that there is no error message and nothing abnormal (apart from those settings being ignored).
Also, I am sure that the two settings in question occur only once in the file.

[MVV]

Maybe you have two [Configuration] sections?

[petermad]

Maybe you have two [Configuration] sections?

Or maybe yo didn't put the two lines IN the [Configuration] section

[sqa_wizard]

One more guess:

Maybe the lines are written twice at the ini ... most likely TC uses the wrong one ...

[Tyler]

I solved the problem by rebuilding the wincmd file from the scratch.

Anyway, now I noticed that your suggestions were correct: for some reason unknown to me, there were two [Configuration] sections, although each setting appeared only once within the file. This must have been the reason.

Request feature: could the developer implement some checks to make sure that these silly mistakes are detected in the settings files? (and possibly fix them automatically). At least the check for the duplicate section headings.

Thanks

[FoxWolfie]

Anyway, now I noticed that your suggestions were correct: for some reason unknown to me, there were two [Configuration] sections, although each setting appeared only once within the file.

I can confirm that there are two [Configuration] sections in my .ini file. If I insert a line under the first [configuration] section, it is usually not honored. If I insert a setting under the second [configuration] section, it is honored. In both cases, I made sure that there were not duplicate copies of the line I inserted, that might contradict each other.

If I let TC create a new ini, it has only one [configuration] section. If I use the menu to go to Configuration -> Options, and make changes, I will randomly end up with two [configuration] sections again, even if I don't manually edit the ini file. I haven't narrowed it down to which changes cause the section label to become duplicated. It seems random.

I am using the TC 8.52a 32-bit version with Windows 7 Home Premium 64-bit. I just confirmed that the problem also exists in TC 8.50 32-bit as well. I no longer have an older copy than that to test.

If I copy everything from the second [configuration] section to the first [configuration] section, then delete the second section, and save the file, the entries are split back into two sections upon exiting and restarting TC.

Strangely, the UseIniInProgramDir=7 setting is only honored if it appears in the first [configuration] section, while most other entries are only honored if placed under the second [configuration] section. Manual editing of the .ini means putting a desired setting under both [configuration] sections, just to be sure it will work.

It's a rather strange bug that might never be noticed unless someone needs to manual edit their file.

[Horst.Epp]

I never had to start with a fresh wincmd.ini since more than 20 years.
I never had any sections duplicated.
I guess if someone edits the ini files directly it may happen by wrong usage of the used editor.

[Dalai]

I think the vast majority doesn't have any problem with duplicate sections in wincmd.ini. I know I didn't in the last 10 years, and I don't think I ever will. Furthermore, I don't think that TC would be able to do anything about multiple sections since TC just uses WinAPI functions that do the work; TC simply requests some key and that's it.

Regards
Dalai

[FoxWolfie]

I guess if someone edits the ini files directly it may happen by wrong usage of the used editor.

It is not caused by manual editing. Letting TC create a new .ini, and changing random items from within TC's menu options and restarting TC, is all it takes to eventually get the extra section. Sometimes it results in duplicate [Configuration] labels, and sometimes it doesn't, with no manual editing required. When it happens, one [Configuration] section is always at the beginning, so far, and the other ends up about 75 percent into the file, with many other sections between the two. I have never seen this in .ini files for other software, so I suspect there is more to it than which APIs are called.

The issue seems to be harmless once it happens, since any further configuration changes from the options menu are placed under one of the two [Configuration] sections, and it somehow knows which one is the right one. When manually editing, you have a fifty-fifty chance of putting the entry under the right [Configuration] section. If you guess wrong, it simply doesn't see the entry, and you put it under the other [Configuration] instead. I never normally edit manually, unless it's a rare setting that is not available under options.

If most people look inside the .ini, they'll probably see [Configuration] as the very first line, and assume that there are no additional [Configuration] sections. Do a search for [Configuration] anyway, and there's a good chance that you'll find an additional one later in the .ini file.

Another thing I noticed is that there are either zero, one, two or three blank lines before each section label, at random. In .ini files created by other software, there always seems to be exactly one blank line before each section label.

Though it seems fairly harmless, I can verify that the

MinLineHeight=-2
SpaceMovesDown=1

settings that the original poster mentioned do not work if they are under the first [Configuration] section, but they do work under the second [Configuration] section, later in the file.