Field Name Templates settings do not respect default text size

[Ron Burkey]

In the eeschema preferences, it's possible to set a default text size. It's also possible to use the Field Name Templates settings to define fields which will always be added to components placed on the schematic. However, these Field Name Templates do not respect the default text size setting. Nor is there any other way to set the text sizes for them. Instead, they are always sized at 50 mils. (Nor is there any way to specify the Italic or Bold settings these extra fields should have.)

The result is that while it's convenient to use the Field Name Templates to make sure the desired fields always exist, if you don't want these fields to be 50 mils with no italics or bold, it's necessary to edit EACH component manually in order to get the text size and/or italic/bold settings for them correct. Needless to say, that can be quite inconvenient.

Here is my version info:

Application: kicad
Version: 5.1.0-rc1-unknown-235f2c7~76~ubuntu16.04.1, release build
Libraries:
    wxWidgets 3.0.2
    libcurl/7.47.0 OpenSSL/1.0.2g zlib/1.2.11 libidn/1.32 librtmp/2.3
Platform: Linux 4.4.0-53-generic x86_64, 64 bit, Little endian, wxGTK
Build Info:
    wxWidgets: 3.0.2 (wchar_t,wx containers,compatible with 2.8) GTK+ 2.24
    Boost: 1.58.0
    OpenCASCADE Community Edition: 6.8.0
    Curl: 7.47.0
    Compiler: GCC 5.4.0 with C++ ABI 1009

Build settings:
    USE_WX_GRAPHICS_CONTEXT=OFF
    USE_WX_OVERLAY=OFF
    KICAD_SCRIPTING=ON
    KICAD_SCRIPTING_MODULES=ON
    KICAD_SCRIPTING_PYTHON3=OFF
    KICAD_SCRIPTING_WXPYTHON=ON
    KICAD_SCRIPTING_WXPYTHON_PHOENIX=OFF
    KICAD_SCRIPTING_ACTION_MENU=ON
    BUILD_GITHUB_PLUGIN=ON
    KICAD_USE_OCE=ON
    KICAD_USE_OCC=OFF
    KICAD_SPICE=ON

[Jeff Young (jeyjey)]

The "Default Text Size" is really the "Default Schematic Text Size" (as opposed to the "Default Symbol Field Text Size").

The default symbol field text sizes come from the library (ie: the designer specifies them).

I think the best thing to do here is to clarify the Preference setting, and then implement something along the lines of Pcbnew's Global Text and Graphics Properties dialog.

[Jeff Young (jeyjey)]

Preference property fixed under this bug #.

Global editor tracked under: https://bugs.launchpad.net/kicad/+bug/1801150.

[KiCad Janitor (kicad-janitor)]

Fixed in revision f11de08fa98b9c27bba95f51e5f97fc1a10d982b
https://git.launchpad.net/kicad/patch/?id=f11de08fa98b9c27bba95f51e5f97fc1a10d982b

[Jeff Young (jeyjey)]

@Ron, Global Edit Text and Graphics Properties is also now in. Let me know (in the linked bug report) if it meets your needs.

[Ron Burkey (rburkey)]

@Jeff, I can't see any difference at all in how the preferences work, but the Global Edit Text and Graphics Properties is pretty sweet, and largely takes care of my complaint, in so far as font sizes of symbol fields are concerned.

I also used it to change the width of all wires, just as an experiment. It took a _long_ time (I thought eeschema had locked up, and almost killed it), but it did work in the end. The scope I needed to use for that was rather confusing, though. Almost all of the other scope checkboxes relate entirely to text, and it took me quite a while to figure out that a few of them (like "wires & wire labels") relate to both text _and_ lines. Perhaps that could be clarified somehow.

A couple of things I wish it had, which would actually provide workarounds for some issues in other problem reports I've filed:

* Line styles (solid/dashed/dotted) for graphical lines
* The ability to work on just the current selection rather than on the entire sheet.