Main menu - View - Layouts


A layout contains everything that is displayed by FreeCommander at a time. Among others positioning and contents of the panels (including active folders, view type, sorting, tabs, ...), additional panels like system tree, favorites tree, quick view panel.



If the cursor if over the main menu item "View → Layouts" the following sub menu is opened:


If the layouts button should be displayed in an actions toolbar as shown above, the internal pop up menu "$FcPopup_Layouts" has to be defined as follows:


Layouts edit...

After activating the menu item "View Layouts Layouts edit..." or the shortcut "Ctrl+G" the dialog "Layouts edit" is opened.


Editing the list of layouts

The following buttons are available for editing the list of layouts:

  • :        add a new row (layout)
  • :        edit the name of the highlighted layout
  • :        delete the highlighted layout
  • :        move the highlighted row up
  • :        move the highlighted row down
  • :        imports a color scheme, chosen in a dialog, to the highlighted layout
  • :        exports the color scheme of the highlighted layout to a color scheme named in a dialog

If open layout

Under "If open layout" the behavior of the tabs can be defined (by clicking the row of an opening option), if the highlighted layout is opened.

  • Close all current tabs
    All tabs that where shown before the activation of the highlighted layout are closed - the tabs of the opened layout are activated
  • Close not locked tabs
    Only all not locked tabs that where shown before the activation of the highlighted layout are closed - the tabs of the opened layout are activated
  • Keep all tabs
    All tabs that where shown before the activation of the highlighted layout stay open - the tabs of the opened layout are activated
  • Keep all tab; ignore layout tabs
    All tabs that where shown before the activation of the highlighted layout stay open - the tabs of the opened layout are not opened
  • Set color scheme only
    Only the color scheme of the layout is activated, tabs are not changed
  • Ignore window size and position
    If "Ignore window size and position" is checked, these settings are unchanged


Quick filter bar

This quick filter allows to filter the list of layouts. It does not influence the quick filters in the file panels.


Button

After activating the "Apply" button, the highlighted layouts is activated.


Save current layout...

After activating the menu item "View Layouts save current layout..." all current (layout relevant) settings can be saved in a new layout. The "Save current layout" dialog is opened, where the name of the new layout can be defined.


  • Save color scheme
    If this option is checked, the current color scheme is saved with the new layout. This makes sense, if two different layouts should be easily distinguishable. Color schemes can be defined in the main menu item "View Color schemes".
  • Overwrite without query
    If this option is checked, an existing layout with this name is overwritten without query.

Layout restore

Before a layout is activated, all current (layout relevant) settings are saved to a temporary layout.

After activating the menu item "View Layouts layout restore" the temporary layout that was stored before the opening of the current layout is applied again.

Auto save current layout

Clicking the menu item "View Layouts Auto save current layout" activates/deactivates this setting. After activating this setting the menu item is checked and a layout can be selected. The selected layout subsequently will be marked and activated. On closing FreeCommander all actual settings of relevance to the layout are saved to this layout.

If FreeCommander was started with the command line parameters "/layout" or "/aslayout" or in the "auto save" mode (the program was closed when the setting "Auto save current layout" was checked), all settings of relevance to the start folder are ignored.

Selection of Layouts

The sub menu "Layouts" lists all defined layouts below the menu items described above. Clicking the name of a layout activates it.