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Answered

How to hide Application Bar?

Forum|Forum|6 years ago
November 21, 2019
8 replies
11029 views

Does anyone know how to hide the "Application Bar" in InDesign CC 2020? It is useless to me and uses screen real estate. (This is not the Application Frame, which I have turned off. Nor is it the Control bar, which I have turned on.)

How to

Correct answer gray_0397

Changing this line in the XML file worked for me, you to be sure to change the workspace that your using and I needed to have Indesign closed when I changed it, otherwise Indesigned changed it back when I closed it.

Mike Witherell

Community Expert

My question related to turning off the macOS Application Frame and then the Application Bar: I then tried to turn on the Control panel; but it turned the Application Frame back on, too. Is it possible to turn off the Application Frame, then edit the xml file to turn off the Application Bar, but then also have the Control panel ON?

Mike Witherell

leo.r

Community Expert

I remember that a year or two ago I was able to edit that XML file to get rid of the Home Bar (which I believe is the official name of what is being referred to as Application Bar here.) I didn’t have issues with Control panel (and I never use the Application Frame.)

However, editing that XML file wasn’t a straightforward experience. It didn’t work as other users described; I had to manually look for various options, then find the right one via multiple trial-and-error attempts.

To me, it just wasn’t worth the trouble. In the recent versions, I just dragged the Home bar into a screen corner like before, where I never see it anyway.

It’s possible that you inadvertently changed something in the XML that restores the Application frame once you enable the Control panel. But, once again, I’m not sure that it’s worth the trouble to attempt to find out what that exact setting in the XML file is and what to do about it.

Mike Witherell

Community Expert

Thanks, Leo. Actually for me on macOS, I like to have the Application Frame turned on. I guess I’m not an old-school mac user. But so many people on the forum say they like it turned off, so I tried it off and was also experimenting with the Home/Application Bar set to not visible. I made the xml edit as described in the Correct Answer just to experiment. This led me to inconsistent behavior, and so I posted the previous post about it.

Mike Witherell

G

gray_0397Correct answer

Participant

Changing this line in the XML file worked for me, you to be sure to change the workspace that your using and I needed to have Indesign closed when I changed it, otherwise Indesigned changed it back when I closed it.

J

Julio28375274vct1

Participant

Hi, they've changed something again and that line of code doesn't exist anymore. If anyone knows where is it right now it will be helpful. Thanks.

I hope people from adobe stop adding new unrequested features and starts fixing what doesn't works.

[abuse removed by moderator]

100pk

Inspiring

Revisiting this post since it is still not solved. After the update to 19.2 and 19.3 the application frame returned. So I had to dig up where to change what in the workspace.xml. But when deciding to use InDesign in Applicationframe the applicationbar is always active and the xml ‘hide the application bar’ is set to false again.

It is functiuonality I dont want or need and also in the applicationframe mode it would save a lot of space…

P

Pickory

Legend

I wonder if this could be scripted. See ApplicationBarShown.

U

urban.space.man

Inspiring

I haven't tried it, but this dictionary says it's 'read only'.

https://www.indesignjs.de/extendscriptAPI/indesign-latest/#GeneralPreference.html

U

urban.space.man

Inspiring

Yes, it's annoying, especially since you can turn it off in Illustrator.

On a Mac, open the files "Start_CurrentWorkspace.xml" and "Essentials_CurrentWorkspace.xml" in this folder (may differ slightly depending on your version of InDesign):

/Users/[user]/Library/Preferences/Adobe InDesign/Version 17.0/en_GB/Workspaces/

Find this line:

<app-container-control-bar id="64" origin="1 44" size="595 37" is-closed="false"/>

And change it to:

<app-container-control-bar id="64" origin="1 44" size="595 37" is-closed="true"/>

Save the XML files, and restart InDesign.

graphic mac

Inspiring

Unfortunately, none of these lines of text exist (nor does the en_GB folder) in the latest version of InDesign on the Mac.

graphic mac

Inspiring

That specific line,

<app-container-control-bar id="64"

is not present in my 18.3 nor 18.4 version in any workspace xml neither...

What IS present is:

<tab-group active-palette="64" is-closed="false">
<palette id="64" is-closed="false"

@Frans v.d. Geest I also found that line, but changing "false" to "true" does nothing anyway.

paulflong

Inspiring

I think I figured out how to remove this bar, there may be another way but I couldn't find it.

1. Take a snapshot of where your pallets are located so you can remember how you like everything.

2. Go to window > workspace > advanced, you'll see the bar disappear. this leads me to believe there is a way to turn it off somehow other than this method.

3. Set up your pallets again and save the workspace as a new name (window > workspace > new workspace). *note, you have to move the pallets out of the advanced preset location to enable the ability to save a "new workspace"

100pk

Inspiring

Finally a solution, thanks; and why would Adobe think in al her wisdom that this is the best way to be able tot pull this off.

paulflong

Inspiring

glad to help.

M

mecdos

Inspiring

yes, i hate that stupid thing.

hammer0909

Community Expert

In InDesign 2020, they moved most of the items that were in the Application Bar to the bottom of the Tools panel. Reserving what's left of the Application Bar for the Home Screen. In previous versions of InDesign you could only turn off the Application Bar when you turned off the Application Frame. Unfortunately now, there are no controls to hide the Application bar which now seems to be primarily the Home bar.

R

Rick MeikleAuthor

Known Participant

Thanks. I figured as much, but it never hurts to ask in case I overlooked something. Not a very bright move on Adobe's part from my viewpoint.

rob day

Community Expert

You can turn off the Application Frame and then tear off the Application Bar from the upper left corner and then bury it in the lower left corner. A saved workspace will remember:

R

Rick MeikleAuthor

Known Participant

I should add that the best I could come up with was detaching it from the top, making it as narrow as possible, then tucking it away in the lower right corner of the screen so that only the left tip is visible.

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