I have a huge (40gb) runtime folder running Poser 4 Pro and the Pboost library manager. The first problem was Pboost telling me I couldn't swap files as another program was using them (even though only Poser was running)so I couldn't access any folders.

After many failed attempts to correct this I abandoned hope for a while. Next problem was all my pics in my folders have turned into small grey lines, previous advice was that I had hit the 256 folder limit, so I started deleting unused folders (got rid of about 70!) no joy.

A friend brought over his Poser 5 to see if that worked and it's exactly the same (with nothing else added to the runtime folder). the only things I can get to briefly display an icon are the Original Poser folders (like basic hands) but if I then try another folder nothing will display again.

I have re-installed Poser and Pro back on top to no avail, I'm trying to avoid having to re-install everything from scratch (ouch). I have included a pic of the file attributes as with the Poser 5 experiment I'm thinking it's a file attribute problem.

Hope someone can help I'm going nuts!

Thanks again,

Alan.

Helpdesk basics: reboot:) File attributes have nothing to do with this, I am almost certain. Try adding a new folder, or a figure from poser to the library. Did you not by accident change the icon sizes to some horrible minimum? Hope this helps

Thanks for the reply preacher, Sadly I have re-booted hundreds of times as this has been like this for months! I have re-installed several products again but it makes no difference. I wouldn't know how to change the icon sizes to be honest, I have looked in the folders and they all seem to show 91x91 is that healthy? Cheers.

It sounds like a problem with pboost, have you tried reinstalling that?

I don't know what "pboost" is, but if it's working from inside Poser, have you tried resetting Poser to open to factory specs? If you have it set to open to previous settings, maybe your library is there, but Poser is resetting it to the way it was when it wasn't there?

Lordal: It looks like you've upgraded Poser, and since the RSR is no longer officially used by Poser, its icon wasn't updated. The CR2 is, so it got a new icon. PNG is a standard image format, which your computer seems to have associated with a Macromedia product you have installed. Nothing out of the ordinary.

Quote - a Macromedia product

OMG! Their software are like parasites. Install one and it totally takes control of file extensions. I installed Fireworks a couple of years ago and it totally took over my graphic file extensions. Instead of opening up a .jpg in IE like I always had, now it launchged a program....Macromedia Fireworks, each time I wanted to view a .jpg or .gif, and ALL of the icons were the same. I could no longer visually tell what file was what type at a glance. I had to view the extensions. I tried to change the association back to IE, but when I did, the icons were not the usual Windows default icons like they used to be. I uninstalled Fireworks, and lost my file associations, and even then when I reassociated them with IE, the icons still didn't go back to the Windows default ones like before. I posted on the Macromedia board for Fireworks and asked about this, and it seems that it was the way Macromedia did it's programming. There was no way to pick your own association preferences upon installation or even after ward. Someone provided me with a link to a fix for the "take over". I'll never install that program ever again!

Attached Link: http://www.hogsoft.com/indexf.htm

You've mentioned problems with PBoost. You should visit the PBooost forum and see what Hogwarden has to say.

Message edited on: 08/12/2005 21:39

" Pboost telling me I couldn't swap files as another program was using them (even though only Poser was running)so I couldn't access any folders. " What Pboost is telling you that there is a bad file reference. Usaully the texture path, Pboost is very sensitive to correct path structure. You can have one file that may have textureMap ":gold.jpg lock you out. Suggest getting CRPro , from Hogsoft, and using it to correct all the references. Second suggestion is to get P3Do Explorer from http://www.senosoft.com, if you don't have it, it's a visual windows explorer. It should display the png and rsr if they are there. Suggestion three, after you've cleaned up your runtime, including what you have in the Pboost banks, always run CRPro against anything you have just installed.

"None of the Macromedia software I've had has ever messed up my Poser installation." I haven't had problems with Macromedia software either. I can select any app I want to open any graphic format supported. Even years ago with older Operating systems and older versions, I never had it take over . Strange....first time I've even heard of that happening. I love Macromedia products. Tom

Hi folks, thank you all very much for the replies. I have re-installed Pboost several times and spoke to Howard at Hogwarden many times, he was really helpful and patient but sadly nothing we tried could get it to work, I didn't get a reply to the last message I sent to them months ago, thats when I abandoned hope! I have tried setting Poser to factory default but no joy. When I first noticed that my .png files were associated with Fireworks I also uninstalled my Macromedia progs but again to no avail, I have re-installed them again last night to see if anything happened but no luck, the .pngs can be seen in a browser can Fireworks be using some kind of minimise thumbnail command? I tried using Correct reference on Howards advice at the time (not pro though) after 8 hours it was still chugging away and it seemed that you had to correct any files it found manually (and there were many!)Does the pro version auto-correct things? Still going to have to sort out the Pboost problem if I ever get to see my icons again.... The thing thats making me think more towards the file extension/association theory, is the brand new Poser 5 experiment. Pboost is not involved there, the folders are default so it can't be a folder limition problem, it turns up in factory default and yet I still get the grey lines so it must be outside interference wouldn't you say? I appreciate your time trying to help :-) Alan.

Have you looked at what the png is associated to open with? Look in the Windows Explorer, Tools, Folder Options, File Types. I use the free Irfan viewer so mine is associated with it.

nickedshield I have tried associating it with photoshop, ulead viewer, corel draw, downloaded Irfan viewer and associated it with that but still no joy :-( I can see the thumbs in everything but Poser.

Another suggestion: You said you uninstalled Macromedia software, I would go into the registry and make sure all of the Keys are deleted. Just using the Uninstall function in Windows does not remove all of the keys even though it said it did. It's one of the first things I check when I uninstall. I'm assuming you've run Scan disk to see if anything is corrupt.

One more thing: it shouldn't matter what program is associated with opening PNGs; Poser should be able to display them in the libraries regardless. I have all image files associated with Paint Shop Pro, yet I can still see my library thumbnails just fine.

Hi folks, Yes I have run regcleaner, defragged, scandisked(?)anti virus and pest patrolled and nothing is out of the ordinary. I'm convinced this started when I first uninstalled Macromedia Fireworks though, but can't find any positive link or cure. I know it shouldn't matter what the png's are associated with but I'm lost for any other explanation. I have a bad feeling about this... :-)

Are you on a network? I seem to recall Poser(version 5 I think) having problems when installing it with the network active. IIRC the Network had to be disabled until the installation and all patches were installed. Tom

Have you tried starting Poser from the Safe Mode? I know resolution and everything will be lousy but the object is to see if anything will show on screen. If it does, that might help to give you a clue as to what is loading during the normal start up that's causing problems. You sound faily savvy so you might be familiar with the msconfig command and how it works.

Thanks for the replies again! It's a stand alone machine though it has a network card for broadband, but it has worked ok for a couple of years in that setup so I wouldn't think that would be a problem? Twas a thought to try safe mode, but again it still fails to show anything but grey lines for thumbs. Going back through my thoughts I have remembered that when I tried re-installing my original Poser 4 under my current installation (as it were) all the thumbs displayed for the older files but it didn't recogonise anything vaguely new, as in not even the grey man missing image or grey lines so 3/4 of my runtime folders were being ignored. I would imagine that it wouldn't be able to cope with the new files before the patch and upgrade to pro pack and of course when I put those on I end up with my current situation. Dont know if that helps? Also had a look in the poser.ini file but couln't see anything relating to thumbs in there.

Very strange. Have you tried a system resore to a point in time before this all happened? This would drive me nuts. Tom

Hi Tom, Aye I tried system restores back in the olden days when it first happened. I think I'm way beyond nuts now... :-) It's not that I'm any good with Poser, but I have so much stuff and I told my nephew I'd try and do him some cover art for his rock band and would have been handy for the web site I'm having done etc, sniff... It looks like I'm creeping towards a total re-install, oh lord!

Total re-install of Windows?(reformat) or total re-install of Poser? Might be worth buying an external(or addidtional) Hard Drive to back up your stuff. They are pretty in-expensive these days and easy to set up. Best of luck...I wish we could have helped resolve it for you. Tom