" Aligned " button removal

[al lewek]

On PSE 11, when I use the clone tool, I constantly have to uncheck the button marked " aligned " to have freedom in using the clone tool. It's very annoyning & time consuming to repeatedly turn it off. Is there a preset to keep this " off "? Why is it there in the first place? Any help will be very much appreciated. Al Lewek

[Byron Gale]

Al,

In my installation of PSE2, the Aligned option for my Clone Stamp Tool is "sticky"... that is to say that it retains the state last used, even when PSE is closed and re-opened.

As far as why Aligned is there in the first place, I suspect because it useful in a pantographic sort of way. I benefit from using it.

Byron

[al lewek]

Byron & Dick - Thanks for the replies with your explainations, I under stand it's use better now - but - how can I turn it off ? ( ie . not have it set as a default preset )? I would rather turn it on when needed. Appreciate your info. Thanks again in advance. Al

[Beth Haney]

Al, the align feature is "sticky" on mine, too. Are you sure there's not something else going on, because I'm quite sure it should be defaulting to the last setting. The exception would be if you had deleted the Preference folder and all customized settings were cleared. As a matter of fact, have you tried deleting the Preference folder to see if you get the "sticky" feature? Maybe this is just another of those mysterious corruptions. I haven't had much trouble on PSE 2, but while I was using PSE 1, I often suspected the Clone tool as the culprit in creating problems in a number of tools.

[Jodi Frye]

Appears sticky in PE1 as well although never really thought about it t'il now. In PE1 the option is just above the screen .....check or uncheck...hmmmmm, I'm thinking that did not change in the upgrade.

[Beth Haney]

Al, now that I think about it - have you tried just resetting the Clone tool? Select it, click on the icon of it at the far left of the Option Bar, and choose Reset. It really SHOULD stay the way it was when you last used it and not return to "aligned" each time.

[al lewek]

Beth & jodi - thanks for the replies. Unfortunately, when you click the RESET button at the icon on the far left side of the option bar, it reset the Aligned button back to ON rather than off - must be a built in default - I'll just have to learn to live with it! Many thanks for you input. Al

[Beth Haney]

Have you tried deleting the Preference folder? There is something not right, because, yes, after a reset it WOULD have gone back to aligned. That's default. However, once you turn off "aligned" the next time you use the Clone tool, it should stay off for that tool until you manually change it again. Regardless of what image you're working on. I just checked! And that's how it works on my PSE 2 on the Mac, and Jodi uses PSE 1 on a Win, so between the two of us we've got this pretty well covered. If you still have deleted the Preference folder, try that.

[Bert Bigelow]

Beth and Al,
I have also experienced the "Aligned" function staying on as the default setting when the Clone tool is opened, even after clearing it in the previous usage. I haven't tried deleting preferences, though. That may fix it. My usage of the Clone tool has evolved, though. Now I usually prefer to have the Aligned box checked. If you're cleaning dust specs in a sky area, for example, where the color changes gradually, you don't have to keep resampling with the Alt key (PC) if Aligned is set. The sample moves with you. My Son-in-Law, who is a professional graphic designer uses it that way, and showed me how handy it is.
The key to using the Clone tool is to know where your sample is coming from. If Aligned is off, it's a fixed sample. If it's on, then the sample moves with your cursor and maintains a constant relative position. Depends on what you're doing, but either one can be useful.
Bert