Layer Style applied to Group instead of Layer fixes many problems

[shijan]

In PhotoLine Layer Style there is a Relative and Absolute mode which in some situations may confuse user:

Example 1:
- Apply Layer Style to vector layer.
- Transform (enlarge) that layer.
- Problem 1: Absolute mode don't works.
- Problem 2: Enlarged result will look blurry.
- Problem 3: If Fix vector layer with applied Layer Style, it will became raster layer.


Example 2:
- Put vector layer inside Group.
- Apply Layer Style to Group.
- Transform vector layer and keep group size unchanged. Now Relative and Absolute modes in Layer Style work as expected: "Relative" scales Style size according to scaled layer size, "Absolute" keeps Style size in pixels. Also enlarged layer style always looks sharp.



Another advantage of this method is that in Absolute Mode you can create large sized Style effects:
- Set Layer Style to Absolute Mode.
- Enlarge layer inside Group.
- Set Layer Style to maximum possible.
- Scale down layer inside Group.
- Layer Style remains same size as before scaling. But you can't touch layer style settings anymore, because if touched it will reset to new layer size and became small.


The main question here: why this Layer Styles system was made in so complicated way and why don't apply by default Layer Styles to some sort of invisible group container to make things more user friendly and logical?

[Hoogo]

- Problem 3: If Fix vector layer with applied Layer Style, it will became raster layer.

Try holding the Shift-key when you click on "fix". I had to learn about that just the way you do now

why this Layer Styles system was made in so complicated way and why don't apply by default Layer Styles to some sort of invisible group container to make things more user friendly and logical?

I see 2 general methods for creating effects and scale layers:
- First scale the layer, then add the effect.
- First add the effect, then scale the whole result.

Most of the time I won't care, I'm just happy that I have my effects and play until the result looks good. And there's always Shift+fix.
But sometimes I see the effect as 100% part of the pixels. When I scale a pixel layer, I want to keep the original pixels, and so I also want to keep the original effect.
Other example: The golden texts.The effects look good, now you need the text 300% bigger, but you also want to keep the original look. Effect on group would behave different, just as Shift+fix.

I can also think of technical reasons. Caching of the effect, or when I think of the past with my old 800MHz...

[shijan]

Yes, Shift+Fix is described in manual, but near impossible to guess this key modifier.
"7.5.27 Fix Layer
Fix Layer removes all special attributes of a layer and sets them into the layer. Special attributes are layer styles, rotations, scalings and so on.
Fix Layer tries to make the smallest changes possible. If there is - for example - a scaled and rotated vector layer, the scaling and the rotation will be calculated into the layer. The result will still be a vector layer. But if the vector layer owns a layer style (for example a shadow), the vector layer will be converted into an image layer containing this shadow. Similar is the effect if applied to a text layer: the scaling of a scaled text layer will be removed and the font size and the character width will be adjusted appropriately.
If you hold Shift while calling this function, the layer style will be ignored. Only an existing scaling or rotation will be calculated into the layer. The layer style is left untouched."

Unfortunately in some situations Shift+Fix can make things even more confusing. For example:
- Set Layer Style Glow Outside width to maximum size in Absolute Mode.
- Scale down layer.
- Layer style visually scaled as in Relative mode and looks small sized.
- Shift+Fix Layer
- Now Layer style changes and looks large sized, because it now use original Absolute size in pixels.

[Martin Huber]

- Transform (enlarge) that layer.
- Problem 1: Absolute mode don't works.
- Problem 2: Enlarged result will look blurry.

In the Layer Style panel, set "Relative To:" to "Page" and this won't happen.