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Hobbes0022
Known Participant
November 3, 2020
Answered

FrameMaker 2020: can't get rid of welcome screen

  • November 3, 2020
  • 3 replies
  • 3155 views

I don't like visual noise, so I want to disable the welcome screen. I found this post which outlines an addition to the maker.ini file to disable the welcome screen.

 

But it doesn't seem to be working: every time I open FrameMaker, the Welcome Screen is displayed. Even when I double-click a .fm file to open Frame, an extra tab is added for the welcome screen.

 

Preferences->Global->General contains a setting "show tabbed welcome screen". I've unchecked this, but the next time I start Frame this preference is checked again.

 

I cannot emphasize this enough: I don't use the welcome screen. I don't want to see the welcome screen.

FM version 16.0.0.754

      Correct answer Stefan Gentz

      Why do you not want to see the welcome screen? It provides a lot of functionality, some of them not being available otherwise (like "Restore Last Session") or showing if a FrameMaker Update is available. 

       

      The "ShowTabbedWelcomeScreen" flag in the maker.ini only controls, if the Welcome Screen also shows up as a file tab if a document is open.

       

      If you want to completely hide the welcome screen, do the following:

      1. Close FrameMaker, and then open the maker.ini located in your user profile:
        %appdata%\Adobe\FrameMaker\16\maker.ini
      2. Add DontShowWelcomeScreen=On in the [Preferences] section.
      3. Save the maker.ini file.
      4. Restart FrameMaker.

      FrameMaker will not show the Welcome screen now.

       

      Note, that FrameMaker saves all current session settings in the user maker.ini when you close FrameMaker. Therefore, make sure to edit it after you have closed FrameMaker. 

      3 replies

      L
      lesliec14995818
      Participant
      August 5, 2025

      The easiest way by far and you don't need admin rights; open framemaker, go to the Edit tab and click on Preferences. Uncheck the Show Tabbed welcome screen. Close the preference screen and now open your FM files or books.

      NO welcome screen! Easy peasy.

        A
        amol_9723
        Participant
        August 5, 2025

        It is very helpful for bypassing admin process 

        S
        Community Manager
        Stefan GentzCommunity ManagerCorrect answer
        Community Manager
        November 3, 2020

        Why do you not want to see the welcome screen? It provides a lot of functionality, some of them not being available otherwise (like "Restore Last Session") or showing if a FrameMaker Update is available. 

         

        The "ShowTabbedWelcomeScreen" flag in the maker.ini only controls, if the Welcome Screen also shows up as a file tab if a document is open.

         

        If you want to completely hide the welcome screen, do the following:

        1. Close FrameMaker, and then open the maker.ini located in your user profile:
          %appdata%\Adobe\FrameMaker\16\maker.ini
        2. Add DontShowWelcomeScreen=On in the [Preferences] section.
        3. Save the maker.ini file.
        4. Restart FrameMaker.

        FrameMaker will not show the Welcome screen now.

         

        Note, that FrameMaker saves all current session settings in the user maker.ini when you close FrameMaker. Therefore, make sure to edit it after you have closed FrameMaker. 

          H
          Hobbes0022Author
          Known Participant
          November 4, 2020

          As I said, I don't like visual noise. The Welcome screen is a pile of disparate items, making it hard to distinguish useful information from clutter. It's full of stuff I don't need. Most of it is just duplication from the menus (where they're out of sight until I decide I need them).

          •  Restore last session is in the File menu.
          • Recent files are in the File menu.
          • I don't need repeats of Open/Connect to repository/connect to url/Create new file either.
          • I get update reminders from the Adobe Cloud app, no need to manually check this.
          • Product feedback should be in the Help menu.
          • Webinars etc. I can find on the Adobe website if I need to. I've been using FrameMaker since 1997, so I don't feel that need very often.

           

          Basically, the Welcome screen feels like a giant billboard ad rather than a useful part of the interface.

           

          I've edited both maker.ini files again, DontShowWelcomeScreen=On is in both files.When I start FM, the welcome screen is not visible, but I still got a welcome screen tab as soon as I opened a file.

          In the global maker.ini, there's a ShowTabbedWelcomeScreen preference which was set to On, despite me unchecking this preference in the Preferences dialog.

          I set this to Off, and now I can open a file without the welcome screen opening as well.

            S
            Community Manager
            Stefan GentzCommunity Manager
            Community Manager
            November 4, 2020

            Thanks for your candid feedback.

             

            "In the global maker.ini, there's a ShowTabbedWelcomeScreen preference which was set to On, despite me unchecking this preference in the Preferences dialog."

             

            The maker.ini in the installation folder is the initial configuration and a fallback file in case the user profile gets corrupted. It should never be modified and not even FrameMaker itself makes any changes there. Also, note that any changes made there would be overwritten with an update.

             

            Any user-based configuration changes go into the maker.ini in the user profile. As mentioned in a reply earlier, the user's maker.ini is located here: %appdata%\Adobe\FrameMaker\16\maker.ini

            You should only make changes in the maker.ini in this one.

             

            Let me know if you have any more questions regarding this.

              Jeff_Coatsworth
              Community Expert
              Jeff_CoatsworthCommunity Expert
              Community Expert
              November 3, 2020

              Check both maker.ini files to see if the entry is present in both - the User profile one should override the Program Files one if the line is present in both.
              But the fact that your preferences aren't being saved indicates that you may have a rights issue to be able to write the changes. Check your access & make sure you have full admin rights. 

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