Automatic Units and Rulers Photoshop

[nickbentley94]

Is it possible to automatically change the Units and Rulers preferences based on the workspace you're using when you open photoshop? 

ie. Automatically changing the units and rulers to pixels if you're working on a digital or web document, then changing to millimetres when working on print documents. 

At the moment this has to be changed manually. Which can be a headache when you're constantly switching between print and digital documents.

This feature is available in Indesign and Illustrator but not photoshop.

Cheers! 

[Stephen_A_Marsh]

I know that this is an idea/feature request, so I have voted.

Until such a feature is available, this could be scripted (an action could probably do it as well).

I am not aware of an event trigger that could be listened for when using the Window > Workspace menu items, so I'm not sure if it could be automated this way...

However a script could call the required workspace and then set the ruler units accordingly, however, it would have to be run from another menu such as File > Scripts or File > Automate etc.

[Stephen_A_Marsh]

Just to confirm...

Do you mean File > New (using document type presets, Internationl Paper, Web etc)?

Or do you mean Window > Workspace (Photography, Graphic and Web etc)?

[nickbentley94]

Hey Stephen, 

Yep it's when creating a new file! 

[Stephen_A_Marsh]

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@nickbentley94 wrote:

Hey Stephen, 

Yep it's when creating a new file! 

---

Ah, then ignore what I wrote about workspaces then! :]

[Stephen_A_Marsh]

What version do you use?

There might be way to do so via the Script Events Manager on a new doc... If the new doc resolution is 72ppi then set the ruler units to pixels, or if greater than 72ppi or another number such as 300ppi then set the ruler units to CM or MM or INCHES etc.

Edit: Something like this code (which is a bit simplistic, more conditional resolution thresholds could be added for greater flexibility) –

// INTENDED FOR USE WITH THE SCRIPT EVENTS MANAGER NEW DOCUMENT EVENT

#target photoshop

if (activeDocument.resolution < 300) {
    // Web ruler units
    app.preferences.rulerUnits = Units.PIXELS;
} else {
    // Print ruler units
    app.preferences.rulerUnits = Units.MM; // or CM or INCHES
}

https://prepression.blogspot.com/2017/11/downloading-and-installing-adobe-scripts.html

[davids84228917]

Good idea

[jane-e]

Automatically changing the units and rulers to pixels if you're working on a digital or web document, then changing to millimetres when working on print documents. 
By @nickbentley94

I could only vote for this idea if print documents defaulted to Picas as they do in InDesign or Points as they do in Illustrator. Gutenberg developed an amazing system and we still use most of his ideas today. Sorry, but I could never work in millimeters — or inches!

Jane