FreeCad, can I set the default directory for my user files? Linux

WobblyHand said:
Using the bash file did result in the File Open directory being in the right place. Some other things have clearly messed up, as the default workbench has been replaced with start. Doesn't know where recent files are either. Preferences have been all reset. Background back to gradient mode. Doesn't know about the macros I had loaded. No record of loaded workbenches. Foo. So using

did more than just change where my CAD files are, it changed the location of the config files, which probably were auto regenerated to their defaults.

Reverting. Launched using CLI with just
Code: 
$ freecad
. Everything is correct, save for the File Open Save location. Workbenches, macros, recent files are intact. At least I haven't lost those settings. Well, back to where I was. Thankful for that.
Click to expand...

Okay then!

You just need to copy your old settings to the new location.

mv <new-location>/.FreeCAD .FreeCAD-temp
cp -r .FreeCAD <new-locations>/

That simple.
 
Need to make sure which is which! But that should work. It seems the original base .FreeCAD is in /home/me. My new .FreeCAD directory created from the bash script, ended up in /home/me/Documents/freecad. Kind of convoluted, but, it works.

So practicing here...
cd ~
mv /home/me/Documents/freecad/.FreeCAD .FreeCAD-temp
cp -r .FreeCAD /home/me/Documents/freecad/

Yes! That works. freecad directory in the right place, macros and workbenches intact.
Awesome! Thanks everyone! Thanks @RandyWilson
 
The next step will be to get your xsession to pick up the new path next time you start up. Unfortunately I'm not up on how Ubuntu starts Xwindows. Hell, having just switched from 25 years of Redhat based systems to Arch, I'm not even sure how this system starts Xwindows.
 
RandyWilson said:
The next step will be to get your xsession to pick up the new path next time you start up. Unfortunately I'm not up on how Ubuntu starts Xwindows. Hell, having just switched from 25 years of Redhat based systems to Arch, I'm not even sure how this system starts Xwindows.
Click to expand...
Beats me. I used to understand this, but not so much anymore. After all the changes that rippled down from the last couple of releases, I don't have a good feeling for where anything is anymore. Looking things up just gets old stale documentation and tutorials that no longer work. One of the more frustrating things about linux. Wish I knew where to look things up these days and get relevant information. Modern search engines have been defanged (to produce more revenue) and don't seem to be as good as they used to be.
 
Figuring out where things live in these various distros can be a challenge at times. That also can change as they evolve (devolve?) when new releases come out..
 
I'm at work right now, meaning I'm down the hall two rooms away from my machines sitting in front of this POS(!!!!) Windows 10 box. Don't get me started.... Anyway, it seems that Bing has this neat feature where when you type in Xwindows, it decides you really mean Windows 10.
 
We seriously over-thunked this. Though we did learn about the subtleties of the .FreeCAD directory. How this works exactly will depend on your desktop, Gnome or Plasma. But right click the launcher, select Properties, and you should be able to call out the base directory in there somewhere.


1642034414925.png
 
Hmm, live and learn. Don't know where the launcher is hidden, as it's not on the desktop. I'll have to poke around a bit.

Found it. Seems to work after fiddling.

Also have a bash script that works. I'm good now.
 
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The presence/absence/accessibility of the launcher seems to be related to the particular Xwindows manager in use. I have Ubuntu 20.04 LTS with the Xfe window manager and it's easy to get to with a right-click on the desktop. I went with Xfe because it's supposed to be a relatively lightweight manager (in terms of processor load) but still offers a good user experience.
 
@RandyWilson - where is that setting page? I don't see it in FC 0.19. The only thing I saw in the UI was that the ENV variable value shows up in the Parameter Editor.
 
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