[Pro] Actions going from V6 to V7...

Freeway
1

Hi,

New computer, now has new version of FW… FW7 installed

before I bring all my files over to the new computer, it was advised to install all the 3rd party actions that I had on old mac for my web page to the new one.

Am I going to be in trouble with these actions on my new mac with version 7?
So far 3 of 3 do not have V7 listed on the download page as updated.

Does this mean that every action that is not updated to V7 will not work and therefore all the elements of my site that use these actions will not work?

If so, should I just install the older 6.1?

Thanks for advise.
Happy holidays!!

Barry

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2

The only thing you can know definitively w/r/t Actions that do not list v7 compatibility is that the developer did not test it and mark it as compatible. It may work, and it may not. You can try it and see without fear, because Freeway 7 will make a copy of the lower-version file before it allows you to open it in the newer no-looking-back version (actually, all versions of Freeway since 2 do this). If you find that your Actions don’t behave the way you expect them to, you can simply revert to that older version of the file in the previous version of Freeway and all you’ve lost is a little time and any edits you made in 7.

Walter

On Apr 3, 2015, at 10:30 PM, Hoffkids email@hidden wrote:

Hi,

New computer, now has new version of FW… FW7 installed

before I bring all my files over to the new computer, it was advised to install all the 3rd party actions that I had on old mac for my web page to the new one.

Am I going to be in trouble with these actions on my new mac with version 7?
So far 3 of 3 do not have V7 listed on the download page as updated.

Does this mean that every action that is not updated to V7 will not work and therefore all the elements of my site that use these actions will not work?

If so, should I just install the older 6.1?

Thanks for advise.
Happy holidays!!

Barry

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3

Thank you Walt,
If let’s say 5 actions do not work in FW 7, in your opinion is it better to go back to 6.1, or keep V7 and wait for actions to be be updated and use V7, or find another action for my site suitable for 7 to replace it?

I guess in short I am asking, are the actions enough to keep someone (not making a responsive site right now) to go to the new version or should I just stay put?

Barry

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4

If you are not making a responsive site, there are only a few features different between 6 and 7. Responsive was the tent-pole feature for 7.

Walter

On Apr 4, 2015, at 9:07 AM, Hoffkids email@hidden wrote:

Thank you Walt,
If let’s say 5 actions do not work in FW 7, in your opinion is it better to go back to 6.1, or keep V7 and wait for actions to be be updated and use V7, or find another action for my site suitable for 7 to replace it?

I guess in short I am asking, are the actions enough to keep someone (not making a responsive site right now) to go to the new version or should I just stay put?

Barry

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5

Please ignore this question if it is silly,

in your opinion what are the chances that actions that worked in F6 will work in 7 if the developer did nothing? Does the making/coding of Fw7 often make the action unusable in the new version from your experience and based on what yo know about 7?

tx again,

Happy Easter!

barry

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6

If it worked in 6 by manipulating CSS, it will also work in 7, but only at the “default” breakpoint. Actions do not have access to the modifications that are made at the various breakpoints, so they cannot manipulate the CSS for those breakpoints. There is also a subtle change in how images are coded. Freeway < 7 wraps all images in a DIV, and any Action that relies on this structure (my own Accordion and Carousel do so, probably a few others I’m not thinking of) will need to be changed, or you will need to manually wrap the images within HTML boxes in your layout.

Walter

On Apr 4, 2015, at 9:21 AM, Hoffkids email@hidden wrote:

Please ignore this question if it is silly,

in your opinion what are the chances that actions that worked in F6 will work in 7 if the developer did nothing? Does the making/coding of Fw7 often make the action unusable in the new version from your experience and based on what yo know about 7?

tx again,

Happy Easter!

barry

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7

My concern for you Barry is that moving to 7 will bring up issues that your site is not ready to deal with.

If you start in 7 and accidentally invoke some of the responsive features of 7 that you are not ready for you will end up in a big mess.

If you have no intention of making your site responsive in the short term then there is no compelling reason to use 7.

You use so many actions for effects that for you to start having to make things work, potentially without them, that I would say hold off.

6 will maintain your site as long as the OS supports it - unless you want to go responsive.

I would suggest that you might want to experiment in 7 to make sections of your site responsive but you could do that in a separate FW document.

D

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8

Thanks guys,

Despite buying 7, I will re-install 6.1 on my new macbook and continue what is working so well.

Thanks for the feedback and hope all is well.

Barry

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9

I will re-install 6.1 on my new macbook

You can run both 6 and 7 side by side.

D

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10

so on new macbook is 7. I will install 6.1 on it as well, then open up my Hoffkids.freeway file in 7 and see how the actions respond?

I already re-installed all actions that were on old mac to new. Do I have to do that again or do they share the same Action folder in the library?

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11

The only caveat to this is that the two share a single Actions folder, so if you install any Actions that have a version for 6 and a different version for 7, you will have issues. I am not aware of any such Actions that are actually backwards-incompatible, but I do want to point this out as a hedge against your future confusion.

Walter

On Apr 4, 2015, at 10:48 AM, DeltaDave email@hidden wrote:

I will re-install 6.1 on my new macbook

You can run both 6 and 7 side by side.

D

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12

Barry,

If it’s of any help, I’m running FW 5.5 & FW 7 side by side and I’ve had no issues. I’m building new sites (usually responsively) in FW 7, but when I need to make changes to an old site, I launch FW 5.5. I would like to migrate everything over to FW 7 because I’ve gotten used to it and like it. But, that is not realistic for old sites that clients don’t want to substantially change.

What Walter points out about the Actions Folder is true and potentially terrifying. But, I’ve not run into any troubles. I sleep better at night knowing I have lots of backups!

Enjoy your new Macbook!

Doty

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13

Thanks Doty- 2 questions.

Have you noticed f actions that worked n 5.5 or 6.1 not working in 7?

Also, how will freeway know which version of the same .Freeway file to open in?

Thanks!

Barry

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14

Barry - some notes what I got in mind:

####Actions:

Not knowing much about them, cause I don’t use the most. For sure, RelativePage Layout stuff won’t work in 7 anymore. Critical was Clearfix and BoxSizing action - two I’m pretty sure you never heard of. Those have been fixed.

####Multiple FW versions

Currently, I’ve got three versions installed (5.5, 6 and 7). While 5.5 isn’t a problem at all (an own action folder), 6+7 are sharing one action folder.

Freeway doesn’t know which version a file has been created. So Freeway always opens with the latest version installed.

####My daily practice

The most important message: Never change a winning team!

I keep the files alongside its created FW-version. It’ll mean, that I make an entire duplicate of a “current” project (project5.5, project6) before I open them in a new world. This allows me to develop the ups and downs before running into a critical point of no return. Freeway always creates a duplicate once opened in a newer version. This is not enough for me.

####Should I really step to 7?

If you plan, making your page flexible - sure. If not, the update is more a question of:

Not missing the boat!

####Prospects

Looking at your current layout (and I know it well for years), chances are not really high turning it into a flexible one. This has mainly two reasons:

You declared it having fixed widths and heights - from the technical standpoint as well as from the designer’s one.

Stepping into a new world always requires sharpening your tools. The embosomed drop and drag method is unfortunately a relict of the past. This is the most critical step.

So I would (and even if it sounds overwhelming) sit down and take the inventory. Structure it new and have a look how pages today look like. And even if you not consider making your project responsive, keep an eye on.

I could write much more indeed, the final step and decision is yours. Hope it helped you making it.

Cheers

Thomas

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15

You can (of course) just drag and drop a site file onto the preferred
version of Freeway, so it can be useful to put both Freeway app icons in
your Dock.

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16

That’s (indeed) true. But:

The daily practice on multiple versions is a lil bit more quirky. The file, carefully opened in its dedicated version, will be opened as well by the next launch of a newer/older FW.

Naturally - the new version will inform you:

“opened for the first time … blabla … backup file created” and vice versa:

and the old:

“can’t be opened with this version … created in a newer one!” stuff.

That’s the reason for a proper duplicate - which is off any kinda trouble.

Cheers

Thomas

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17

I made a different icon for v7 so that 6 and 7 are distinguishable in my dock.

Here is a downloadable copy

Also, before quitting either version I close all files as each version remembers the last-opened file of the other. It’s a little tricky, but manageable at the moment.

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18

Barry,

This has already been referenced above, but I will restate in a slightly different way. My personal practice is to leave the FW 7 icon in the doc as that is what I use most often. When I need to work on a FW 5 project, I open the application first (so now I have both FW icons in the doc-Ernie’s different icon is genius!). From there I just drag the document file to the appropriate verson of freeway I want to use.

The actions that Thomas mentioned above are the usual suspects. There are certain actions that I know not to use with their prospective FW versions. Basically, when I start a new FW7 document, I start with a clean slate and make the actions “earn their way” into the new file. Work deliberately, save often, and test actions one at a time. I would not recommend just importing an older document into FW7 unless you set aside plenty of time to work out the inevitable issues that will arrise.

FW7 is a new “kettle of fish” as David says, but the responsive features are very much worth the learning curve!

Doty

Thanks Doty- 2 questions.

Have you noticed f actions that worked n 5.5 or 6.1 not working in 7?

Also, how will freeway know which version of the same .Freeway file to open in?

Thanks!

Barry

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19

Walt and others,

Can I just go to the folder on my old mac with all my actions. put on external drive, and copy and paste into the same actions folder on my new mac?

Is this the same as trying to hunt each one down and download?

Barry

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20

Yes, but I would recommend that you add the Actions back as you go, rather than putting them all in play at once. First, Actions are like spice. Too many will ruin the dish. (I say this as an amateur chef and as an Action author.) Second, as you grow your skills with Web design and Freeway, you will find new ways to do old tricks, or grow weary of old tricks, and you may find yourself using far fewer of these Actions as you go. The key to this is to ask yourself – am I doing this to make something that looks cool, or to make something that is useful and does something that the user cannot do without?

I cannot say this strongly enough, as someone who has seen some of your efforts in this space: Less is More.

Walter

On Apr 11, 2015, at 11:46 PM, Hoffkids email@hidden wrote:

Walt and others,

Can I just go to the folder on my old mac with all my actions. put on external drive, and copy and paste into the same actions folder on my new mac?

Is this the same as trying to hunt each one down and download?

Barry

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