[OS X TeX] TeXShop prefs problem.

[Justin C. Walker]

Hi, Dick,

Thank you for the detailed explanation.

On Jun 3, 2016, at 11:44 , Richard Koch wrote:

> Justin,
> 
> Thanks for this error report. There was certainly a problem, fixed in version 3.62
> to be released very soon.
> 
> 
>> On Jun 2, 2016, at 4:28 PM, Justin C. Walker <justin at mac.com> wrote:
>> 
>> I just noticed this, while using the latest TeXShop on OS X, 10.11.5.
>> 
>> The console window keeps popping up, even with “no errors”.  I finally became sufficiently curious to open prefs, and found that the setting was “always open”; I changed it to “only on errors”, and went back to TeXing.  Again, up popped the window.
>> 
> 
> Some users are confused about what this preference should do. When you
> typeset, the console will always appear on screen.
> 
> If the Preference is set to “Console always appears”, then at the start of
> typesetting, the console will pop up on top of all other windows. If there
> is an error, it will still remain on top. But if there is no error, then the pdf window
> will be pulled in front of the console at the very end.
> 
> If the Preference is set to “Console appears on error”, then at the start
> of typesetting the console will be on screen, but perhaps partly hidden by the
> source and preview windows. It will not pop to the front if there is no
> error.  But if there is an
> error, then it WILL pop to the front. After typesetting is complete, the pdf
> will jump in front of the console. 
> 
> The error, which I believe has been in TeXShop from the beginning, is that
> when you first start TeXShop, the Preference setting will appear to be ALWAYS.
> Actually, it will be whatever was last set, but unfortunately the interface does not
> initialize the cluster of button settings the Console behavior when Preferences
> is displayed.

I have, from early on, been puzzled by the behavior of the console window, but what prompted this thread was (relatively) new behavior: always popping up and remaining on top, regardless.  This thread details my experiences, and I will revisit this a bit later to try to nail down what I see.

As for the setting of the console behavior, I don't see that the setting changes in the prefs.  Of course, I am just guessing (about which setting should change), but this is the list of settings dealing with "Console":
    ConsoleBehavior = 1;
    ConsoleWindowAlpha = "1.00";
    "NSWindow Frame Console" = "1982 811 517 376 0 0 2560 1578 ";
    "NSWindow Frame ConsoleWindow" = "734 53 504 452 0 0 1440 877 ";
    RedConsoleAfterError = NO;
These do not change before, during, or after a session where I open prefs, change console behavior, dismiss the prefs, and quit.

In any case, this is a very minor aspect of using TeXShop, which I think is a terrific app, with a terrific support network.  Thanks in particular for your hard work at it.

Justin

--
Justin C. Walker
Curmudgeon-at-large
Director
Institute for the Absorption of Federal Funds
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Not just a good idea:
  it's the law!
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