Why aren't document windows floating in Photoshop Elements 9.0.3?

Thanks Lorena Saxe for supporting me in my hatred of the automatic tagging function shown by Elements 9.

And Wendy Williams, you now tell us that this annoying process has NOT been corrected in Elements 10 ! ! ! From the many, many negative comments, it is clear that a majority hates not having an option to switch it off permanently, yet the Adobe programmers have apparently persisted in using it.

I cannot for the life of me think when this function might be useful. What on earth were the Adobe programmers thinking? If some folk actually do want auto-tabbing, then so be it, but for heavens sake give those of us who hate it the option to remove it.

Wendy, you say that the "simple" answer is to Cascade the photographs and not to move one on top of another. Please don't brush aside a serious problem so flippantly. You obviously do not do much advanced work on Elements. What about preparing and testing before adding Layers? Or collaging pics side by side?. Or collaging many pics within one frame? Or comparing pics side by side to check exposures? Or taking selected bits out from one pic and carefully positioning inside an adjacent one? Or examining the pixel dimension and enlargement of two pics? Or . . . .
The list goes on.

The bottom line is that the tagging function INTERFERES SIGNIFICANTLY AND INFURIATINGLY with the editing process.

ADOBE HEAR OUR CALL!

Nielen

Wendy Williams said: "This is exactly the same behaviour as it was in PSE8. Continuing through in PSE9 and they still do it PSE10. If you don't want that to happen then stick with Cascade and don't move one on top of the other ... really its as simple as that."

I know, this is nuts, right? It should be this simple. But it is not. If you worked like I do, you'd fling your windows about willy-nilly looking for the one you want, focused on the details inside the windows, not the position of the windows. And when the windows tab, it makes you see red for an instant and say words your mother would wince at. This is one of those odd reasonable-people-turn-into-raging-maniacs issues - and I am one of the most raging. I hate this revert-to-tabbing things with a searing, unreasonable passion. Here is the option I want, I NEED:

Never Ever Ever Ever.... Ever Tab. Do Not Tab Even If You, PSE, Feel LIke you Will Burst Into Flames If You Don't. Just. Stop. Tabbing. Now. Stop It!

I wish I could keep my windows neatly cascaded. But I can't. If I could be that orderly, alas, I would probably like tabs. But there ya go.

Thanks for the info on PSE 10, Wendy! So sorry that this isn't changed, but maybe if we keep ranting, someone at Adobe will hear our wails...

- Lorena

Mr. Scaeher writes:"And Wendy Williams, you now tell us that this annoying process has NOT been corrected in Elements 10 ! ! !"
No, that's not what Wendy said. I think you read her post a little too speedily. Here's a quote from her post:"This [floating windows] is exactly the same behaviour as it was in PSE8. Continuing through in PSE9 and they still do it PSE10." What she is saying is that windows floated correctly in version 8 and it is fixed to do that in version 10. Version 9 also worked that way until Adobe issued a patch for a Wacom tablet problem.

Unfortunately, that sentence was preceded by this one:"However it does not stop you tabbing documents if you wish too ... but you do have to physically move one document on top of the other then position it so that they do tab."
So, I think you interpreted her second sentence to mean the windows won't automatically float, whereas she was referring to the automatic tabbing behavior when two windows are positioned in a certain way. I also agree that I extremely dislike tabbing, especially when it happens the way it does in Elements. Unfortunately, someone at Adobe could care less, apparently. :wacko:

She also stated that if you "follow the instruction then I can assure you that behaviour will cease." The instructions she referred to are to delete Elements 9 and all its supplementary files, especially its plist, and then re-install it. And, most importantly, do NOT apply the Wacom tablet patch.

Lorene Saxe: just as well we live somewhere at opposite ends of the Earth. If we were ever to meet as a team in the real world, I visualize us storming together into Adobe offices, throwing furniture around, pushing programers up against the wall, insisting on redress, and if still ignored, causing a frightening amount of mayhem that would reduce their offices to ruins.
(What a lovely thought; it even leaves me feeling a little calmer and a little more relaxed. See, I keep on telling everyone that I am a non-violent person).

I have come to realize that the tabbing problem has two components:
The ONE is caused by the installation of an Elements 9 update 9.0.3, which apparently loads pics into the Editor screen in a pre-tabbed state. (I don't have this update on my computer, so this issue is irrelevant to me). Anyway, it sounds as if the solution is easy - just remove the update.

The SECOND tabbing issue is an inherent shortcoming of Elements 9, and cannot be removed! Here the pics auto-tab if they are inadvertently pulled over each other, or even over the top-edge of the screen - whether one wants this to happen or not. (&*%$#@!).
According to Wendy Williams, this annoyance was introduce in 8, was carried through to 9, and is now unchanged in 10(!).

I will now have to try and train myself to work neater, try to keep multi-pics on-screen well separated, and to stay well away from the top-edge of the screen - which, while I am concentrating on my "masterpieces", is not always my first priority.

But never-mind all the above details - the bottom line is that tabbing, in whatever form, is highly controversial. All we ask, is that AN OPTION TO CANCEL THE TABBING PERMANENTLY is include in Elements. Jees, is that too much too ask?

I'm going outside to break bottles - that always reduces my stress levels.
Nielen

OK lets put this into perspective ... it really isn't a world war issue !

There are several things that I don't like in Elements but others love them. So they use them and I don't ... its really as simple as that. Adobe introduced this (not sure if it was PSE7 or PSE8 ... being a Mac userI didn't have PSE7)

However if you feel so strongly that Adobe should be removing this tabbing feature (which a lot of folks actually do like ... see feedback on the various forums) then why not send in a feature request ...

https://www.adobe.com/cfusion/mmform/...

See that as your storming of the Adobe offices

Wendy

Hi Wendy Williams
I'm grateful to you for putting the Elements automatic-tabbing into perspective. Yes, I agree with you - it is not quite a world-war issue. (But tabbing does nevertheless annoyingly interfere with the editing of photographs (!).

As I said above, I now realize that there are two components to Tabbing: first, the 9.0.3 update issue, and second, the tabbing that auto-defaults in the Elements editor-screen.
When I originally added my voice under the heading: "Why aren't document windows floating in Elements 9.0.3" I didn't understand the distinction: most replies were dealing with the first, while I was upset about the second. If my ignorance caused some of the confusion - sorry.

I will certainly follow up with the web-link you provide. Thanks
I will NOT ask that the default tabbing be removed from Elements (let those who like it, use it - although I cannot for the life of me imagine what benefit it provides on a dynamic, continually active, editing-screen). What I will ask for is that an OPTION BE PROVIDED to prevent auto-tabbing from forcing itself on those who do not want to use it.

sincerely
Nielen

@Wendy, John Sankey & DuckBill
Can you please contact me at xairbusdriver AT comcast.net?

Can I remove the 9.0.3 update or do I have to uninstall and re-install. I have been going crazy putting my images in floating windows only to have them keep going back to tabbed and then re-floating them. Arghhh!!

Hi Peggy ...

Its really easy to uninstall and then do a re-install. Just remember to deactivate PSE9 and then use the uninstaller to do the uninstall.

Do let us know how you go on with it :)

Wendy

My computer is a Mac if this makes a difference. I uninstalled both PSE9 and the Organizer using AppCleaner. I still have a folder called Adobe which has Adobe Help.app, and 2 folders called AdobePatchFiles and Flash Player.

The PatchFiles is what was concerning me. Could that have anything to do with the 9.0.3 patch?

Should I trash these as well?

I ran out of patience and deleted everything on my HD that referred to Adobe (Applications, libraries and everything else) then re-installed PSE9. :-( Now I can't get the images to float at all. Guess I will just have to learn to work with them tabbed.

First, you need to check the "Allow floating documents..." item in the Preferences->General section. Then, you must still select the "Float documents..." choice in the "Window"->"Images" menu.

I highly DO NOT recommend using a third-party app to uninstall items on a Mac, they are simply not needed for simple app installs (Drag 'n Drop) and never know what exactly to delete in more complicated installs, like Adobe's. Thus, they usually leave stuff in many places that can make re-installing difficult and error prone.

Again, once you re-install Elements 9, DO NOT install the 9.0.3 patch that was to fix a problem with some Wacom tablets. If you don't have one of these tablets, you don't need the patch. Unfortunately, many of us didn't understand that and it broke the floating functions Preference settings effectiveness.

The tabbing behavior is part of the feature set introduced in Photoshop and Elements. It is not caused by the patch. And, unfortunately, there is no option to turn it OFF/ON. The only solution is to avoid dragging an image too near the top of the Edit window and/or the Title Bar of any other image. Even upgrading to Elements 10 does not change the tabbing behavior.

I'm getting two different email "following" messages from this same thread (apparently, anyway.

One group includes all the ones between my reply just above and my last one 14 days ago.

Another group contains replies from Brett N., Dan Smith (3) and Wendy Williams. Yet the link takes me directly to this thread where I can see none of their posts.

Does this have anything to do with the difference between the five "Promoted Responses" (which I don't see marked anywhere) and the 110 (111 now?) other responses? I'd like to reply to Dan, but I don't even see any of his posts on this page...where the link in the email take me. :wacko:

Jim ...

Whilst on the Mac you can drag and drop most applications into the trash Elements is a little different.

First you need to deactivate it and then you need to use the Adobe uninstaller which is in the Elements software folder. Older versions of Elements were fine trashing them but the later ones need to be uninstalled ... yes I know its a pain but they changed things.

As far as your problem with finding the post goes ... click on the link at the bottom of the email "Go look at this reply"

The reason is that people can comment on an individual message within the thread so it may be out of order.

Wendy

Peggy ...

The uninstaller you should have used is the Adobe one ... not a third party one.

Just follow Jim's instructions to get the windows to float :)

Wendy