Lock/Unlock all layers

[bwansy]

It would be nice to have a button to lock and unlock all layers at once. This is especially useful when editing a drawing with many overlapping objects in many layers, then it's convenient to lock all layers but the one being edited.

[bwansy (bwansy-yahoo)]

In addition, hide/show all layers would be useful, too.

[snowdrop (snowdrop)]

Duplicate status of this being the same as https://bugs.launchpad.net/inkscape/+bug/181578 is wrong: They have very little to do with each other.

[su_v (suv-lp)]

Bug #378413 “layers enhancement” requests the same feature(s): hide/show all, reverse visibility and the same for lock/unlock.

Other related feature requests:
Bug #172046 “extended context menu for layer editor”
Bug #170709 “Focus Layer/Lock Other Layers”

Note that 'Show/Hide other layers' was added to the context menu of the layers dialog in Inkscape 0.47
<http://wiki.inkscape.org/wiki/index.php/Release_notes/0.47#Layers>

[John Smith (john-smithi)]

Committed as r11764.
Lock/Unlock all layers added as verbs and to the context menu of the layers dialog.

[John Smith (john-smithi)]

Hide/show all layers also committed in bug #378413.

[su_v (suv-lp)]

> status: Confirmed → Fix Committed

Originally requested but still missing (r11772):
«it's convenient to lock all layers but the one being edited.»

This feature only exists for show/hide, but not for lock/unlock. 'Lock all layers' is different and useful probably in fewer situations than to quickly isolate editing to the current layer.

Proposing to reopen this report.

[John Smith (john-smithi)]

Patch for "Lock other layers".

Slight complication is when using on a sub-layer would normally lock the parent layer (which in turn locks the sub-layer).
In this case should we lock the parent layer or not ?

BTW This slight bug affects "Show/Hide other layers" as well - since when the parent layer is hidden, the sub-layer also becomes hidden.

[David Merrick (miscellaneous)]

unless layers can have three states (locked, unlock, inherit-from-parent) then i imagine don't lock the parental line, just the highest-level children of unlocked items, not on that parental line? - d

[John Smith (john-smithi)]

Committed r11779 - "Lock other layers"
Ancestors of selected layer are also not locked.

[su_v (suv-lp)]

@John - any interest in tackling this related request?
Bug #177931 “layer usability improvement (layer-dialog)”

Now that we have several verbs for more fine-grained layer actions, it would not seem to be too difficult to implement a well-known feature from GIMP [1] to have mouse/tablet support for the 'solo' options (Show only current/Lock all except current)? Such a feature has been requested repeatedly on #inkscape (irc), too - mostly by users who use both GIMP and Inkscape in their workflows.

Proposal:
- 'Shift + LMB click' on 'Eye' calls verb 'LayerSolo'
- 'Shift + LMB click' on 'Lock' icon calls 'LayerLockOthers'

[1] See also:
<http://docs.gimp.org/2.8/en/gimp-image-combining.html#idp12549000>

[John Smith (john-smithi)]

Bug #177931 committed.

[su_v (suv-lp)]

@John - many thanks, you rock!!

A small question (from a user's point of view): currently 'shift-clicking' any 'Eye' (or 'Lock') symbol in the dialog switches the current (active) layer [1] and then toggles that new current layer, in this process loosing the current selection (with default preferences).
How difficult would it be to apply the 'Solo' feature to the layer the clicked button belongs to, without actually changing the current (active) layer (and thus also keeping the current selection)?
IMHO this would be more consistent with how a regular click works (AFAICT it's also how it works in GIMP 2.8), and e.g. would allow non-disruptive previewing of drawing details in other layers (toggle feature) without interrupting the current task (based on the current selection).

[1] Additional minor inconsistency (r11785): after newly opening the 'Layers' dialog, the first 'Shift+click' on a 'open eye' (or lock) icon doesn't switch the current (active) layer to the one the clicked icon belongs to, but instead applies 'LayerSolo' (or 'LayerLockOthers') to the current (active) layer instead.

[su_v (suv-lp)]

Sorry, above comment was pasted into wrong browser tab, should have gone into Bug #177931.

[su_v (suv-lp)]

On 10/10/2012 09:43, John Smith wrote:
> BTW This slight bug affects "Show/Hide other layers" as well - since
> when the parent layer is hidden, the sub-layer also becomes hidden.

Follow-up report filed:
Bug #1065933 “Better support for sub-layers in "Show/Hide other layers"”
<https://bugs.launchpad.net/inkscape/+bug/1065933>