Is there a way to move all the CorelDraw folders shown under Tools -> Options -> Global -> File Locations tab (see screen shot) to another location without manually editing each one of the 22 folders individually (or at least all that start with c:\users\<username>\documents\Corel)? If so, how?
Related: is there a way to stop Corel from recreating those folders in my Documents folder, even if they are not used (I prefer to limit the number of root folders in my Documents folder so they all fit in the Windows file dialog without scrolling)?
To repeat this across multiple PC's, are these file locations stored in a file or the registry somewhere I can export and apply the updates to other PC's with CDGS installed to quickly perform the same move across all systems? If so, how?
Secondarily (but less important), does Corel use those folders for temp files while working, config data that should be copied across all my PC's, static data like fonts and clipart, or something else? I don't need to know, but am curious to understand what these folders are used for and it may affect where I decide to put them.
Full disclosure, I had posted a similar question before, but likely worded it poorly because I just got a bunch of unhelpful opinions and arguments instead of an answer to the question (to be fair, I started it by including my own opinion in my question): https://community.coreldraw.com/talk/coreldraw-graphics-suite-2021/f/coreldraw-graphics-suite-2021-for-windows/66338/what-does-corel-do-with-all-the-folders-created-in-documents-any-way-to-move-all-at-once.
GraniteStateColin said:To repeat this across multiple PC's, are these file locations stored in a file or the registry somewhere
I don't know if these are exclusively stored in the registry, but I do see them in the registry. As an example, for CorelDRAW 2018:
Computer\HKEY_CURRENT_USER\SOFTWARE\Corel\CorelDRAW\20.0\Box Preferences\File Locations.
@Eskimo, that's perfect. Thank you!!
That is exactly the correct list. It has the identical set of 22 folders that can be set through the Tools menu. In hindsight, I suppose I should have just searched the registry for those pathnames. :-)
So to anyone else looking to move all the Corel folders out of Documents with a single operation, instead of manually altering each of the 22 folders (21 in C:\Users\<username>\Documents\Corel\Corel Content\ and 1 in C:\Users\Colin\OneDrive\Documents\Working Files\), you can do the following:
Of course, if you're just trying to move this off your C:\ drive, which I suspect is another fairly common preference, you need only change the C: to D: (or whatever drive letter you're using) in your search and replace.
If you run CDGS on multiple computers, assuming you have the same directory structure on all of them, you can now just copy and run the same .REG file on every computer. Note that if you upgrade to a new version of CorelDraw, the version number in the Registry pathname will need to change. In that case, to be safe, probably best to repeat the above steps, rather than try modifying your file, because a new version could also include new folders.
One caveat on this: I see that Corel still recreates the Corel folder in Documents (but fortunately not the "Working Files" folder). It has remained empty in my usage, vs. the 1+ GB of fonts and other files that it installed originally and moved to the new location. Worse, if you have a default "Documents" configuration, meaning your Documents folder is on OneDrive, it appears that Corel sets this to be a shared folder. I'll continue to investigate this, but it appears that while the above does indeed move the files, Corel still maintains a folder in Users\<username>\Documents\Corel, and assigns permissions and sharing without user permission. I suspect this is harmless, but it's annoying.
Please post any other irregularities you find?
It adds these 4 folders back every time I start CorelDRAW or Corel PhotoPaint:
They remain empty folders, so if your only concern is unwanted files adding MB to your Documents folder, this is not really a problem. However, all 4 of these folders are included in the specific list of folders that are remappable, so this certainly appears to be a bug:
Really, the simple fact that Corel puts these in the Documents folder in the first place is a defect. That's a violation of Windows development guidelines and should preclude Corel claiming it's a Windows application. If you're going to run on Windows (or Mac for Mac apps), you need to follow the functional requirements of the OS. Mobile app developers have never had the luxury of fighting these, because the app store owners will just remove them from the store if they don't adhere to the guidelines, but some PC and Mac developers are more cavalier and less considerate of damage to the broader ecosystem. David Milisock here seems happy to defend this practice, blaming users instead of Corel for these problems.
I do what works, the systems I run when running billable work generate at least $100 an hour and a great deal more depending on the task.
I don't give a rats a$$ about operational folders or file size. If I worried about that crap instead of making money and payroll I'd get therapy.
Why Corel did it who knows? Who cares?
Over thirty years in business has taught me that it's simply more cost effective and profitable to buy horse power, lots of storage, avoid anemic processes and don't be anal about crap that doesn't matter, because it wastes your time and costs money.
I'm sure you feel good that you've (at least in you mind) established some error, but really after all the wasted time and cost, nothing has changed.
Was it your money you wasted?
David, I have nothing but respect for your CDGS knowledge and also that you have a good entrepreneurial use for it: the best professional software helps professionals make money.
The problem with your prior posts has nothing to do with that. I asked a question, and instead of answering it, you lectured me on how to use Windows, something I am quite sure I know more about best practices than you (just as you know them better for CDGS than I). If you don't have an actionable or constructive response to a user question, just don't post.
Separate from that, to your comment, "Who cares?" if I were Corel (and running a company that creates software that helps creative people generate revenue, I would say there is a parallel), I would WANT USERS TO REPORT PROBLEMS so that I could have our developers fix them. Seeking out our customers' pain points with our software so we can improve it is one of our highest priorities.
Finally, as the kindest analogy I can offer, I came to the doctor's office (this forum) with a sprained ankle (pain caused by CDR), because I tripped on the broken sidewalk (CDR is not functioning properly per the requirements of all Windows applications), and instead of treating the leg (answering my question), you lectured me on how I should never walk on the sidewalk and that I should instead only travel by taxi for no reason other than that's how you prefer to get around (you told me not to use the Documents folder the way it's intended to be used and to instead change Windows around defects in CDGS).
Even if there's an element of validity to the doctor's opinion, it's utterly useless, and because the patient was not doing anything wrong (walking on a sidewalk is a perfectly appropriate function), the doctor's opinion is out of line.
Answers to questions from an expert like you are great and much appreciated (and you have helped me in other cases, for which I thank you). Lecturing other users in areas where you don't know what you're talking about is not.
The reality is that as a profession the graphics industry has been in a tail spin for 25 years. I made more money per year in 1975 than most designers make today.
Why? In most cases it's because they focus on crap. I've had to fire 4 designers because they couldn't control their obsession with writing macros, (wasting my money 99.9% of the time), they concentrate their energy on what should be rather than what is.
What is the only reality is productive billing hours. We have one poster here upset that he has to sign in for software that he thinks he owns. Babbling with me he's wasted a few hundred dollars of billable time, you've done the some on some silly obsession on how something should work. It's my time, I own the company and surveying the average lack of discipline in the industry makes me a better consultant so I keep telling clients to reduce work force as much as possible.
Using software to provide services to clients is about providing health insurance and payroll to employees. Having employees that waste time forces employers to reduce their benefits, their pay or to remove them to maintain standards of quality to clients, pay and benifits to all employees.
I have clients that had to fire employees because they couldn't control their obsession with customization of the work space. Which is a bain to controlling IT support costs in technical industries with multiple disciplines.
I continually see the slide in the industry, luckily for me I no longer need the money.
If you think reporting what you see as a problem is going to improve the way corporate programs, then you're missing the details. They program they way they do based on cost and needs.
In plain words they provided services that designers ask for as cheaply as they could. They don't care about you preconceived notions anymore than they care about the user having to sign.
Yes Corel has made programming changes, for example 27 years ago EPS support, later improved PDF support and later N color transparency support with professional color management, but only because it benefitted them and only as cheaply as possible.
David, from your reply here, it seems you're implying that Corel pays you to post your replies? I had assumed that you were just generously trying to "pay it forward" to help fellow users. Are you being paid to post here?
If you are being paid, then I can understand why you would bother to respond just to express your opinion -- you're getting paid to talk, regardless of the merits or helpfulness of your post. On the other hand, that would also make your post a bit unethical, because it contributed nothing in the way of helping me understand the problem, so taking money for that seems inappropriate.
To your specific statements here, what you describe may very well apply to your business (you know it best), but not to all businesses. "Billable hours" are only relevant for service businesses. For companies that make products (including Corel), customer service may be a paid service, but at least a basic tier of customer support is usually provided at no additional charge. In that case, the goal is to quickly solve customer problems, with the incentives being fast (because the time is not billable) and a happy customer so the customer buys more in the future.
In our case, CDGS is neither: it's a tool we use to create and update internal and customer facing documents. We also use it for internal communication early-stage product mock-ups. It's far less important in our daily work than MS Office or the specialty tools we use for product development. We use it over Adobe, because it's plenty powerful (we use those macros you don't like, which save us a huge amount of time for repeat functions) and cheaper by buying every other version vs. Adobe's very expensive subscriptions.
I have never challenged that your answers are right for you. I have never suggested that you should use your computers differently. I respect that your methods work for you. The problem is you seem to think your methods apply to everyone, which is both arrogant and ignorant. Your methods, for example, would cause me to waste time and lose money. And if we treated our staff or customers as you say you do, it would have a direct negative impact on our top-line revenue and bottom line profits.
Stick to tech support on this forum. You are unquestionably knowledgeable about how to use CDGS and can be quite helpful in that regard (you have helped me in other areas, for which I am grateful). But you are clearly unfamiliar with the diverse business and financial needs and various valid computer configurations others have, so for your sake, I recommend you keep your opinions in those areas to yourself.
Corel paying, what a joke!
I made my Core support money by supporting users as long as I got all their print, signs and web graphics businesses. Now most moved away from Corel but my standards for service and quality has a hook in them.
I'm posting to teach people about not only the software but business. The graphics industry is evolving and not in a good way, the industry is saturated with poorly trained users, business people who give away design services and quite frankly a mass amount of users the need to understand it's a business. Graphics used to be a great profession and it can be if users get their heads on straight.
Yes it's complicated, there's a significant amount of complex communication, high level organizational requirements to produce someone's concept of art in what ever form it is intended, the the government requirements. I went from a small shop with average billing of $150 per job, learned CorelDRAW and within 5 years it jumped to over $5,000. Now 25 years later my billings can be embarrassingly high.
If users don't wake up and learn business and art they may as well look to working at fast food joints, the salaries the same.
On the other hand of you want to send you kids to college, live comfortably and retire even more comfortably (in my area) you had better figure out how to generate a 6 figure income.
Sorry for misunderstanding that you were getting paid for your post. Thanks for your time helping users here. My other comments stand, though, that your business model is yours. Do not seek to push it on others. Obviously, CDGS is not used only by people/design firms like yours who is creating content for clients. A lot of us just use it as one tool among many for our internal work (just like Word, Excel, Outlook, our accounting software, etc.), where design is not our business, but it is an important facet to our work. Sometimes we use external designers and firms like yourself just like we use accountants, lawyers, and other external experts in their respective fields.