most appropriate utility script location to use

sriesch

I have some utility scripts that exist in multiple locations. Does anybody know which of these locations I should map, and/or which I should use as the preferred file location? I have forgotten the details, however I have had some issues in the past transferring my database between a Windows 7 and a Windows XP computer, and I'd like to get these straightened out so it always works on both and I don't have this content constantly getting orphaned.

Looks like the files in question that are in 2 or 3 locations are:
Add Levels of Detail.dse
Morphforms to Transforms.dse
PowerLoader Developer.dse
SnapParent.dsb

From the screenshot, note that I don't intentionally install into any of these locations, so unless they get mapped by default during DS installation, normally none would have been mapped as content folders.

SpottedKitty

Scripts are content are scripts. You should already have a "Scripts" folder in your main content location; just copy or move the scripts you're showing in that screenshot into this "Scripts" folder.

Incidentally, what you must never do is map the current locations of those files as content locations — all it does is confuse the issue, and if any of these folders are inside an existing mapped content location, then (a) you already have access to those scripts anyway, and (b) mapped folders inside mapped folders must not be done — they will cause problems eventually, if not immediately. Oh, and (c) if you have more than one of a script, it's way too easy to have different versions of the script, with no easy way to tell which is which. Keep the most recent version, delete the rest.

sriesch

SpottedKitty, I want to make sure I'm following you correctly, so just to clarify: you are saying that when DAZ provides multiple copies of these scripts, that was accidental and they only intended to provide a single copy (and I also needn't worry about any of these being different scripts sharing the same name that do different things), and I should always delete the older duplicates immediately after they are installed by ? If so, do you know what install them (since I would then have to recompare these file dates every time the installer is updated in case one of the older scripts suddenly becomes the newest due to a product update).

(a) and (b) Understood, I found that one out the hard way in the past. I do not believe that is an issue in this case, I shouldn't have any nested mapped folders as I intentionally avoid that, provided I didn't accidentally do something somewhere.

I don't have a single "main" content location, I actually have one for (nearly) each product. (so, many "main" content locations, none of which are anywhere near any part of the three paths in the screenshot.) I do not know what product/application/plugin any of these scripts came from, since they installed into the locations you see in the screenshot by default at unknown points in the past and not to any of my multiple "main" content locations. I could create another content location to copy the single most-recent-dated version of this file into, but it would make sense to just map the location that file is already in just once, rather than having to move the file every time I reinstall. I incorrectly implied that I wanted to map the complete path seen in the screenshot, which I know I do not want to do. However, I WAS assuming that I would be mapping PARTWAY into one or more of those paths, although actually I don't know exactly where (perhaps "C:\Documents and Settings/Sean Riesch/My Documents/DAZ 3D/Studio/My Library", "C:\Users/Sean Riesch/Documents/DAZ 3D/Studio/My Library", and no clue about the third mapping in the screenshot though.) Is that still kosher?

SpottedKitty

Hmm... well, some people do it that way and manage not to lose track of things; it's just that I've always installed all content into the one mapped content location, which in my case is the default D|S setting when you first install the program. I have way too much content to even consider trying the other way.

The thing is, one of your existing mapped locations should already be that default, and all those scripts should have been installed into it. In fact, they must have been, or else you wouldn't see them at all in that screenshot. As for where they all came from, I think they're all installed by default by D|S itself, in the /Scripts/Utilities/ folder in your default Content Library tab. Any of those scripts that turn up in other locations... I really have no idea, they shouldn't be there. I think.

You also asked about how deep into those paths you should go when adding a new one; in the two examples, you should stop at /My Library/ — once you get that far, D|S knows how to find everything in that folder.

fixmypcmike

The reason you have multiple versions is that WinXP used the "Documents and Settings" folder hierarchy, while Vista and up use "Users". So you have Documents and Settings with the scripts that are installed with DS3 and DS4 from when you were using XP, while Users has the scripts from when you installed DS4 on Win7/8/Vista. So the ones in Users are probably the most up-to-date ones, if they've changed over time.

sriesch

Ok, that makes sense. I've just manually tried verifying each of these locations on each PC (or the location they point to, in the case of Windows 7), and see that in fact I only have one set of files on each of the two PCs out of those three choices even though it looks as though I would have 3 choices. (one folder used in Windows 7, one in XP, the third not used by either.) So it appears that it will be impossible to set things up so that no manual changes will be required. Either I have to map both locations and manually select a different location after transfer between OSs, or take SpottedKitty's suggestion of copying/moving the files (I see other files nearby too) to yet another fixed mapped location whenever DS is installed/reinstalled.

Thanks for the clarification!