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FAQ

Frequently asked questions about PanelPro and their answers

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JMRI: PanelPro Frequently Asked Questions

How do I save my work?

There are several ways to save your panel. This is because the program has to store both configuration (turnouts, sensors, etc) and layout (the details of your specific panel) information.

Usually, the easiest way is to use just one file to contain everything. For example, you can store your panel(s) in a file called "MainPanel.xml" (or something like that), and set the preferences to load that file. Then, all you have to do is save that file again whenever you change something. One caution: Make sure that you still have the panel open when you save the file! If you close it, then save the file, it will of course write a version of the file that doesn't show the panel. And save this file from the "Panels" menu, using the "Store Panels ..." item.

This works because panels are stored with all the configuration information at that same time (which guarantees they'll work when reloaded)

Can I store just the configuration information?

 You can store just the "configuration" information in a file, which you can save without worrying about whether your panel(s) are open, etc. If you do this, you can also save your panels to their own, separate files.

To do this:

  • Go to one of the table tools (e.g. Route Table) and pick "Store configuration..." from the "File" menu.
  • This will let you select a file name; make sure it is _NOT_ the same as the panel file name. (e.g. use "MyConfig.xml" instead of "MyPanel.xml")
  • Remember that name and location, then store.
This puts config info, but not panels, in the file.

Now, to ensure this configuration information automatically loads when the program starts:

  • Open the preferences panel,
  • check the box for "show advanced preferences", and wait a second for them to appear.
  • Scroll down to "Load panel file at startup", click "Add",
  • and select the file in which you have stored the configuration.
  • Click "Save" on the preferences pane to make sure this is stored.
  • Quit the program and restart it to test.

Where should I put my custom icons and other files?

The best place to put your own files is in the program's preferences directory. (DecoderPro uses the same directory) You should put any locally-modified versions of files here so they don't get overwritten by a new version of the program. Any files that the program writes to contain local information, e.g. roster entries, are also written here.

The location of this varies by computer type.

  • On a Linux machine, look for a .jmri directory in your home directory.
  • On a Macintosh, look in the Preferences folder of the current System Folder if running MacOS 8 or 9, or the Library/Preferences folder in your user directory on MacOS X.
  • On Windows, this can be in a number of places depending on which Windows version you're running and whether you have multiple users configured; Search for a "JMRI" directory to find it.
Make sure you find the preferences, and not the original application package. They are kept separate to simplify updating the program version. You'll know you've found the right place if you see the preferences files that store your applications settings: PanelProConfig2.xml. You can also search for this file to find this directory

Screen shot of file tree If you have created icons that you want to be able from the panel editor, put them in a directory called "resources" in the preferences directory. They'll then show up in the "files" part of the selection box when you press a "Change icon..." button on the panel editor.

For example, if the preferences directory contains the files shown below, you'll get the file display shown at the right. 

> ls resources/
decoderpro.gif  green.gif  icons  red.gif  tester.gif
> ls resources/icons/
something  tester.gif
> ls resources/icons/something/
tester.gif

It's also possible to put your files in the resources directory within the JMRI distribution directory that you get when you install the program. This is not recommended, because files there will likely be overwritten when you install a future version. (A newer version of a file, perhaps to fix a problem, will overwrite your copy; the replacement is based on the file's date)