Preserve Current UI Layout When Opening Project

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

One of the bigger frustrations I have with AE comes up when I open a project created by someone else, and the AE UI converts to THAT person's layout. I can think of 0 instances in which that would be of any use.

I know I can go to Window->Workspace and call my saved layout back up, but why should I have to? Please change this behavior.

[FeedbackCommunityMember]

Came here to post this. It's not necessarily opening someone else's file, either--opening one of your own old files, where you'd used an earlier workspace layout, does the same thing. It would be great to have an option in prefs to toggle off the auto-loading of workspaces saved with files. Blender has this option, and it's great.

[JHVMW]

I 100 million percent agree. This is a constant frustration. I am always updating my workspaces as I get new tools or find new workflows. Even opening up old projects with old workspaces can take forever as it struggles to change the whole layout, then inevitably change it all back once I switch it to my workspace I want. There should be a setting to decide this. I would much rather have everything always open to my most up to date default workspace, whether it is an old project of mine or someone else's. Please give us that option.

[Creative Cloud27]

Yes, any option to avoid this would be grand.

[alphanine]

This need to happen like right now Adobe! I have a workspace customized for wide screen with tons of scripts, resetting that takes time to load or the scripts everytime! One time AE crashed while doing this! U need to add an option to turn on/off this importing other workspaces option, urgently!

[Lamaci]

For god sake just fix this! I'm working with 500 aeps per day and everytime i have to hit default workspace because its always opening different layout!!!!

[Graphics Four]

NUKE has the feature in preferences to open the file with the saved workspace, the default, or a specified workspace.

This has saved me when a workspace has issues or a render is throwing a stall. I open a blank project, set it to open a text-only layout (like the project window) and then save and open the file giving me problems.

I forget this is NUKE; then go digging through the AE preferences to remember it is not in AE.

IMO any app that has workspaces or saved layouts should have this capability from day one.

[Paris Giovanni]

Please do this

[Владимир5FC2]

truly important

[UCKG All]

Why has nothing been done about this? It's 2022 already

[JayLash]

Hello!

I would really love if we could have a couple of extra settings please.

I have a widescreen monitor which means i have a very bespoke layout to maximise the real estate of my screen.  Most of the files i pick up from other artists are just from a standard 16:9 layout.  Some files that I pick up just hang when I then switch them into my custom workspace, and i'm wasting countless minutes/hours a week doing this, as sometimes it actually takes AFX longer to switch the layout, than it does to open the file. 

Outside of my own setup, I'm sure every artist loves to customise things to their specific AFX needs, regardless of screen size.

So, I propose that there is an option via a dialogue box when opening AFX files, to ignore the previous users layout, when opening the file.  Obviously, keep things like the same open compositions, and focussed composition, along with things like render queue history, are a must.

There should also be an additional setting, that we can set in preferences to always ignore previous user's workspace permanantly.  Removing the dialogue prompt.  Additionally, it would make sense to have a check box on that prompt to 'don't remind me about this again'.

Maybe taking this a little futher, I for example, never have things like columns for layer time in/out, stretch etc enabled, I like to see as much as my timeline as possible.  So given my initial suggestion, I would expect any columns that the previous artist to have open, would dissapear.  Now, this might in some cases, be wise to have these appear.  Let's say a random layer has been stretch to something like 150%.  It could be that the original artist can force an override of this column.  This could then present another option on the open dialogue, something like, 'accept UI overrides' or something similar.

Thanks!

[grump]

I will add a 'Lock UI' button. 

[j.ssuarez]

I would add to Jaylash's post by saying that I can't see a situation where this behavior of opening someone else's AE file and have AE load their layout and window size benefits anyone in any shape or form, so I'm not even sure why this decision was made.

Along with the "auto focus" AE does where upon loading the app it will jump to the front of the screen above everything else, why is that a thing? same thing happens when AE finishes rendering, the whole window jumps in front of everything, and it's been like this for over 10 years.

These type of things should be focused grouped by working industry artists and I bet not a single one of them would say these are beneficial behaviors, at all

[iaa1]

I agree.  Another user preference should be layout (columns, order, width) of Project Panel

[Jon.M.]

Great, YES! Thank you.

[Todd_Morgan]

Would be nice to open another deigner's file but retain my workspace. Why carry the workspace from someone else?? Makes no sense. Please fix!

[Mike Choo]

Hiya!

I'd like to request an option to keep my existing workspace when opening a project. This is a quality of life / UX request.

I'd suggest a checkbox in Preferences for 'Keep current workspace when loading a project' (or whatever name is clearest).

Use case is opening other animators' files causes a change to their workspace, and as my standard workspace has quite a lot going on it's a small delay switching back, but adds up through the day.

Nice one!

[Warren Heaton]

I'd find it helpful if this matched enabling or disabling Premiere Pro's Window > Workspaces > Import Workspaces from Projects.

[Mike Choo]

@Warren Heaton That's what I was thinking of! I thought I'd seen it somewhere, but wrote it off as me being confused. Yes, the Premiere implementation is a great model to follow, nice one 🙂

[JohnColombo]

Hi all,

This feature is now available in After Effects (Beta). For more details, check out the the Beta forums: https://community.adobe.com/t5/after-effects-beta-discussions/feature-focus-preference-to-maintain-y... 

Cheers,

- John, After Effects Engineering Team