defining unimportant text not working

[thexmlguy]

I've read this post many times and done exactly as it says.
But I can't get it to ignore a specific text block. actually quite simple text string.

is this incorrect?

https://www.scootersoftware.com/supp..._unimportantv3

It doesn't ignore anything I define as unimportant.

[Aaron]

Hello,

That KB article is correct and accurate, but if you miss any step then it'd still show as Important. The key is both the correct grammar definition, and then marking the definition as Unimportant. If you click your blinking cursor into the text block (not select, but single click into) the bottom status bar will show the currently detected grammar element name the cursor resides in. Is it the custom one you've defined or something else?

If it's not the custom name, you'll need to re-verify that the file is using the current format, and that the definition of the grammar element is correct. The status bar should show the name.

Once the text is the correct element, then you can set this element as Unimportant in the Text Compare's Session menu -> Session Settings, Importance tab. Unchecked items are unimportant, so uncheck your custom element name here.

If you are still having trouble, please post sample files or a full screen screenshot. For further help, you can email us at [email protected] with:
- a link back to this forum thread
- a pair of sample files
- your current BCSupport.zip from the Help menu -> Support; Export
- a full screen screenshot showing the problem with these sample files.
- details for which text block are you trying to ignore?

We should be able to recreate your screen and what you are seeing with this, and offer additional advice.

[uidd]

I'm on BC v3. It took me quite a while to figure out how to set something as unimportant in Text Compare. I expected to find it all in the File Format grammar settings.

* It makes more sense to me to have Importance per file format, because just like grammar it's tightly coupled to the format, not session. A session might override it, though.

* Text Compare's session defaults are configurable only from the Home tab, I think? I expected to find it under Settings, or maybe Tools. I never use the Home tab, as superficially it only looks like a sort of start page. Took me a while to figure out there are global settings accessible only from there.

* The session's Importance tab is visible only when opening Session Settings while inside a Text Compare. I hadn't realized before session settings are per mode. In my mind a "session" was all tabs in a window, especially since Text Compare is a sort of ephemeral activity I do repeatedly from a Folder Compare.

[Aaron]

Hello,

We have a KB article that goes into detail on defining unimportance here:
http://www.scootersoftware.com/suppo..._unimportantv3

Thanks for the feedback. Given how different formats can be loaded on the left and right and have different grammar concepts, the concept is considered universal (C++ String and Java String are both Strings). Strings on a whole are then Important or Unimportant. Also, aligned text of different grammars would also be a difference. To 'couple' the importance, you could define a New Grammar, such as "C++ String" as the element name, and define a specific Importance to this type of string instead of the regular "String" element.

There are editable here, but also in any Text Compare, if you update that view's Session Settings, at the bottom of that dialog is a dropdown "Use for this view only" which can be updated to "also update session defaults".

This is a difference in terminology. Each tab is a session. A collection of tabs in a window is the window. A collection of windows and tabs (anything open) can be saved as a Workspace. Loading a Workspace closes all open windows/tabs and replaces them with the saved Windows/tabs and position/size. To load several tabs/sessions at once, you can also move saved sessions on the Home screen into a folder, and you can right-click that folder and open all in new tabs to open several saved sessions as tabs all at once. Any new window/tab starts at the Home screen, so the workflow would be to launch the New Window, then right-click the folder and load it with sessions.

[uidd]

Thanks Aaron.

I figured out all that. I just think some is counterintuitive.

[dsumera]

Hi! It's also not working for me but I have a slightly different issue - the file format I added isn't appearing under Session Settings > Importance. I have tried closing and opening the app multiple times, deleting the file format and creating a new one, but it never shows up. Any assistance is appreciated!

[Aaron]

Hello,

First, create the file format in the Tools menu -> File Formats dialog, and make sure it has a file mask associated. You can look at the other formats for examples, but it should be something like *.ext. What extension are your files?

Next, when opening a pair of files in the appropriate session type (I assume the Text Compare?), the topmost extension match in the File Formats dialog is what determines which format is picked on load. If your new format has the correct extension, it should be picked automatically for your files, and appear in the top status bar above the left and right panes of those file extensions.

You can also manually override which format is used by clicking that status bar File Format name and picking a different one, or by using the Text Compare's Session menu -> Session Settings, Formats tab. (note, the Session Settings are context specific, so you have to be in a Text Compare looking at the files to alter the session settings for that view).

Once the format is used, you then have to define the grammars. This is also done in the Tools menu -> File Formats dialog, select your format and create the grammars to match the concepts in that file type.

Once the grammars are made, you can then see those custom grammar element names appear in the Importance tab of the Text Compare's Session menu -> Session Settings. Checked grammar element names are important grammars, while unchecked are unimportant grammars.

[dsumera]

Thanks Aaron, that worked! It turns out I had to add it to the existing MS Word Documents file format instead of creating a new file format.