Token Bar Redesign Bug Thread

Stephanie B. said:

Hi, everyone!

This morning we pushed out code that makes the token bar placement configurable. You can read about it in the release notes here.

The token bar placement is now configurable. On the token settings dialog box, there is now a "Bar Position" setting, where you can select Above, Top Overlapping, Bottom Overlapping, and Below. Please note that you can change the location of the status icons for your game if they're in the way of the token bars.

Great! ( Love that you turned it into a toggle )

Ed S. said:

You are talking about a different thing.

What am stating is that when the global game settings changes for the tokens are applied in the settings tab, they are not applying to the default tokens in the journal. So if I turn off the numbers in my game and apply the changes all the tokens on the tabletop have their number turned off but if I pull a new goblin from the journal onto the table top, boom it still has the numbers! That's because those settings haven't been applied like they should be.

Michael said:

The default tokens have never automatically updated to match the ones added to a table top, it's all there in this wiki link that Keith provided earlier.

Oh right! Sounds like an offshoot of the same problem though. Because the default token for the Goblin you pulled out has the numbers enabled then the setting that applies the changes to tokens (presumably it only works on one that're on the table, not attached to handouts but it probably doesn't say it's the case) doesn't update the default tokens on handouts, hence why making a new one by dragging it from the handout creates a goblin with a health bar that has numbers.

Well that was a word soup, tl;dr the setting you're on about likely only changes tokens on the map(s) and not those attached as defaults to the handouts. Which I agree is dumb as it should update the default tokens in handouts too.

Huzzah!

PERFECT!!

Thanks R20 gang for the quick response and seeing the issues more than a few of us had as it was before in the first update, you made my day as well as my players!!!

Tom :)

The new options look awesome! Thank you!

Not to sound like I can never be satisfied, but... Can one set up the bar position as a default? I might have misunderstood, but I can't find it.

Anyone else getting upside down status markers on their tokens? I should say, they rotate with the token instead of staying where they should.

Overseer said:

Not to sound like I can never be satisfied, but... Can one set up the bar position as a default? I might have misunderstood, but I can't find it.

It's in your Game Settings from the Settings drop down on the game's main page.

Ben L. said:

Overseer said:

Not to sound like I can never be satisfied, but... Can one set up the bar position as a default? I might have misunderstood, but I can't find it.

It's in your Game Settings from the Settings drop down on the game's main page.

Oh! Didn't think to look at the Map/Token settings collapse. Danke!

Ben L. said:

Anyone else getting upside down status markers on their tokens? I should say, they rotate with the token instead of staying where they should.

That happened at the same time that auras began rotating with tokens.It's issue number 9 on this thread.

I wish they'd quit changing threads. It's hard to know what is being worked on, reported, etc.

keithcurtis said:

Ben L. said:

Anyone else getting upside down status markers on their tokens? I should say, they rotate with the token instead of staying where they should.

That happened at the same time that auras began rotating with tokens.It's issue number 9 on this thread.

Thank you very much for letting us pick our preference!

Very happy to see this is now a preference we can choose!

Played last night, everyone loved "overlapping at the bottom" (we only use one bar for health).

Thanks!.

I'm having a bug where I save the default for having the health bar visible to everyone but when I place a character in it starts as visible to editors.

Secrios said:

I'm having a bug where I save the default for having the health bar visible to everyone but when I place a character in it starts as visible to editors.

This is the same bug I mentioned on the previous page. I have yet to see the team acknowledge it as a bug. 

Part of this is listed already in issue 4 on the error tracking post. However, I think there are multiple things going on with the default settings page. It only applies to tokens on the table, this is true. But Drespar, when you update the issues, please note:

1. Default Tokens that are linked to a character sheet in the journals are not affected by these settings, and
2. Brand new tokens dragged in from the compendium (not already in the game) are not affected either.
3. A graphic dragged in from the library doesn't take the default settings either, and when a character is assigned to it, does not behave as expected.

In other words, the "Default token settings" from the settings page is not setting defaults, as expected, it is merely editing existing tokens in play.

Edited to add point 3

Worse than that it is not even updating existing tokens!

Jim W. said:

Worse than that it is not even updating existing tokens!

I have not been able to reproduce this. Tokens already deployed onto the tabletop change for me.

Secrios said:

I'm having a bug where I save the default for having the health bar visible to everyone but when I place a character in it starts as visible to editors.

There is a known issue with the Text Overlay default settings not applying, but this sounds like a different issue. I would like to get some additional information.

• What type of character are you dragging onto the VTT?
        Default settings currently apply only to characters dragged from the compendium and not the journal.
• When you set the default, are you checking the box next to "See" or selecting "Visible to Everyone" in the dropdown?
        The "See" checkbox grants the ability to view the bar. The dropdown only effects the text displayed on the bar.

keithcurtis said:

Part of this is listed already in issue 4 on the error tracking post. However, I think there are multiple things going on with the default settings page. It only applies to tokens on the table, this is true. But Drespar, when you update the issues, please note:

1. Default Tokens that are linked to a character sheet in the journals are not affected by these settings, and
2. Brand new tokens dragged in from the compendium (not already in the game) are not affected either.
3. A graphic dragged in from the library doesn't take the default settings either, and when a character is assigned to it, does not behave as expected.

In other words, the "Default token settings" from the settings page is not setting defaults, as expected, it is merely editing existing tokens in play.

---

Edited to add point 3

Issue 1 is correct.

I have attempted to reproduce issues 2 & 3 but the settings have been applied with the exception of the Text Overlay Permission defaults. When dragging from the compendium, the defaults will only be applied if the creature is not already listed in the journal.

Jim W. said:

Worse than that it is not even updating existing tokens!

By existing tokens, are you referring to tokens attached to sheets in the journal or those that have been dragged onto the tabletop? I have been unable to reproduce this issue with the exception of the known issue with the text overly permissions. If you could provide some additional information regarding the settings, layer the tokens are on, etc, it would help in reproducing and diagnosing the issue.

Sorry, I was speaking mainly to the text overlay. The issue at the top of the thread says:

Apply default settings does not apply to tokens in the journal (Added April 25)
Default setting of "Hidden" not being applied to new assets (Added April 25)

I assumed hidden meant showing the bar, not the text on the bar. This is clarified. And correct, it does not apply to journal tokens, drawings that subsequently are placed and subsequently become tokens, nor compendium drags of brand new monsters. I was misunderstanding the issue as listed.

Is it possible to add a feature that allows user to set the token bars to "hidden," to conceal them altogether? I realize the tokens say "(Leave blank for no bar)", but when the token is linked to a character sheet, this is not effective.

Especially in situations where there are lots of tokens crowded onto the table top, the bars simply uglify the screen and overlap the images, confusing the display. Why not simply hide them sometimes? For users like me who prefer style and ambiance to data-driven display, the bar is simply an eyesore. I don't actually care how much life these cultists have (they'll probably be fireballed in round 1):

Chris said:

Is it possible to add a feature that allows user to set the token bars to "hidden," to conceal them altogether?

That's already possible with the 'Hidden' option in the Text Overlay setting. if you're not the DM in your game you'll have to request they start setting up mook tokens using that setting. Alternatively they can just set the bar to not display to players.

Chris said:

Is it possible to add a feature that allows user to set the token bars to "hidden," to conceal them altogether? I realize the tokens say "(Leave blank for no bar)", but when the token is linked to a character sheet, this is not effective.

The default is to show a bar when the link has a current and a max. If you never want to see a visual representation of the bar, just unlink bar one (for example) and set the "Max" value to blank, as you say. Unlinking is the default for mooks anyway. To reset hit points, you could use something like token mod to read the max value in from the character sheet and set the field properly. So you would gain a cleaner token presentation on the table, but lose some built in automation.

keithcurtis said:

Chris said:

Is it possible to add a feature that allows user to set the token bars to "hidden," to conceal them altogether? I realize the tokens say "(Leave blank for no bar)", but when the token is linked to a character sheet, this is not effective.

The default is to show a bar when the link has a current and a max. If you never want to see a visual representation of the bar, just unlink bar one (for example) and set the "Max" value to blank, as you say. Unlinking is the default for mooks anyway. To reset hit points, you could use something like token mod to read the max value in from the character sheet and set the field properly. So you would gain a cleaner token presentation on the table, but lose some built in automation.

Thanks for the feedback, Keith (and Luke) -- this method is actually how I do it, and it's an abominable (unnecessary?) waste of time. Let GMs set the "Bar Location" to HIDDEN as a default, and be done with it. If the css controls are hooked in, maybe it's not difficult. Especially for a purchased module, where there are hundreds (thousands?) of tokens, it's not a feasible solution to go token by token to remove the bars. Also, for PCs, I don't want to empty the max fields because they contain important data.

The reason I asked for the feature is because it's actually a substantial quality of life improvement for GMs (like me) who don't want to display the bars. While I understand if it's not possible from a technical standpoint, the feature does add value as a time-saver. Frankly, given all the great new token options, this one seems like a no-brainer to me.

Chris said:

Let GMs set the "Bar Location" to HIDDEN as a default, and be done with it.

They already can. From the first post in this thread:

In the Advanced tab on the Edit Token options, you can select a value for the Text Overlay:

• Hidden: Nobody sees it, including you.
• Visible to Editors: Only players who can control the token (and GMs) see the text.
• Visible to Everyone: All players can see the text overlay.

These are also now available in the Game Default Settings in your campaign's Game Settings page under Player Permissions.

Luke said:

Chris said:

Let GMs set the "Bar Location" to HIDDEN as a default, and be done with it.

They already can. From the first post in this thread:

In the Advanced tab on the Edit Token options, you can select a value for the Text Overlay:

• Hidden: Nobody sees it, including you.
• Visible to Editors: Only players who can control the token (and GMs) see the text.
• Visible to Everyone: All players can see the text overlay.

These are also now available in the Game Default Settings in your campaign's Game Settings page under Player Permissions.

That only hides the number overlay, not the entire bar.

Ed S. said:

Luke said:

Chris said:

Let GMs set the "Bar Location" to HIDDEN as a default, and be done with it.

They already can. From the first post in this thread:

In the Advanced tab on the Edit Token options, you can select a value for the Text Overlay:

• Hidden: Nobody sees it, including you.
• Visible to Editors: Only players who can control the token (and GMs) see the text.
• Visible to Everyone: All players can see the text overlay.

These are also now available in the Game Default Settings in your campaign's Game Settings page under Player Permissions.

That only hides the number overlay, not the entire bar.

By default the bar is already hidden when a new token is created so the two settings together give the functionality that's being requested.

I think perhaps there's a miscommunication. Ed, are you asking to be able to hide the bar from the GM as well?

To avoid any lack of clarity, yes, we're talking about no bar at all:

So, I'm referring to a token where no bar displays at all, even when the Bar values and max values are not blank (e.g. linked to a PC character sheet with values in the field.). The new options assign (or omit) as "text overlay" the bar's values. and also assign the bar's location.  The request is to display as hidden both the text overlay and the bar. The current options do not make this available.

To hide the bar you just need to delete the max value on the token. Linking a bar to a token will auto add the max value, but you can just delete it and you'll have what you are looking for. Unfortunately I don't think there's a way to do this for all tokens at once so your request has merit, maybe post it on the suggestions forum and see if it gets some traction? In the meantime you can probably delete all the max values from tokens with an api script like tokenmod.

Sure. I posted the request. Here is the link to the request. 

This is what I requested: 

The new "Bar Position" toggle is fantastic. Being able to move the bars around, or even overlay text values onto them is really cool. One option is missing, however -- that is to set the bars to hidden, so the bar does not display at all. Some users prefer a cleaner tabletop that presents the fantastic art we have available on Roll20, without the art being obscured by HUD type information. 

Hence, a token might look like this:

 or without the Name: 

*Please know that I am aware the GM can "leave blank" the max-value for "no bar." This does not work for the many tokens linked to character sheets, and it could not be applied as a default system setting for a campaign. So, for purchased modules this method requires deleting values on hundreds of tokens to achieve the desired state. 

Here's an explanation of the existing Roll20 feature. I'd like to simply add, "Hide Bar" or "Do Not Display" or something similar to the Bar Position setting. This would allow for standardized display of token bars for all types (mook, PC, linked, etc) using one overriding selector:

Stephanie B. said:

The token bar placement is now configurable. On the token settings dialog box, there is now a "Bar Position" setting, where you can select Above, Top Overlapping, Bottom Overlapping, and Below. Please note that you can change the location of the status icons for your game if they're in the way of the token bars.

Chris said:

*Please know that I am aware the GM can "leave blank" the max-value for "no bar." This does not work for the many tokens linked to character sheets, and it could not be applied as a default system setting for a campaign. So, for purchased modules this method requires deleting values on hundreds of tokens to achieve the desired state. 

In the Character Sheet default settings on the Settings page of the game, you can set the Bar1 Max to not be set for new tokens. For existing tokens in a module, you can clear all of the max values with the "Apply Default Settings" experimental feature. Due to a limitation in the design the token defaults don't appear in that feature unless you make a change, making it difficult to revert changes made manually like from a module. As a work around for 5th Edition D&D if you wanted to wipe away the bar for the GM you could update Bar1 Max to a single space " " and then apply that across all tokens and it will remove all of those bars. You will be left with a space in that field though for all tokens, but it shouldn't cause issues.

Reminder, whenever using these experimental features, they cannot be undone and should be used on a copy or backup of your content to avoid losing important data.

Steve K. said:

Chris said:

*Please know that I am aware the GM can "leave blank" the max-value for "no bar." This does not work for the many tokens linked to character sheets, and it could not be applied as a default system setting for a campaign. So, for purchased modules this method requires deleting values on hundreds of tokens to achieve the desired state. 

In the Character Sheet default settings on the Settings page of the game, you can set the Bar1 Max to not be set for new tokens. For existing tokens in a module, you can clear all of the max values with the "Apply Default Settings" experimental feature. Due to a limitation in the design the token defaults don't appear in that feature unless you make a change, making it difficult to revert changes made manually like from a module. As a work around for 5th Edition D&D if you wanted to wipe away the bar for the GM you could update Bar1 Max to a single space " " and then apply that across all tokens and it will remove all of those bars. You will be left with a space in that field though for all tokens, but it shouldn't cause issues.

Reminder, whenever using these experimental features, they cannot be undone and should be used on a copy or backup of your content to avoid losing important data.

Thanks for the workaround idea Steve. I've actually tried this technique, but have never managed to get the desired result.

I figured the new "Bar Location" Token features might have created a hook in the code that would make it straight-forward to apply a style setting to the bars (e.g. display:none). For me as a GM, the bars only disrupt the visual appeal of the tabletop, without adding any real informational value.

One of the great things about Roll20 is how versatile the UI has become, where a GM can access info or visualize data according to a huge range of gameplay situations. There are quite a few situations where hidden bars improve the tabletop experience for GMs, but if this isn't a simple feature addition I understand.

Hi, all.

This morning we pushed some code with an enhancement and bug fix for token bars. From the release note:

• Token bars now have a compact mode options. In the token settings, you can select "Compact" which displays the token bars as narrow. When this option is selected, the text overlay will always be set to "Hidden."
  
  
  
• Fixed an issue in which the text overlay default settings were not being honored for new tokens.

Love the compact setting!

I love the redesign of the token bar. However, I have to set default tokens manually now because there is no API access to the new features, and the default token API command does not respect the new settings. Is there any work being done to bring the new features up to speed with the existing features in regard to the API?

keithcurtis said:

I love the redesign of the token bar. However, I have to set default tokens manually now because there is no API access to the new features, and the default token API command does not respect the new settings. Is there any work being done to bring the new features up to speed with the existing features in regard to the API?

Any news on this?

Thanks Drespar. I will slowly shuffle away and wait in my cave of sadness.

j/k. It would really be handy to have these as part of the API, like all of the other token attributes, since it pretty much makes defaulttoken useless. But if it takes time, it takes time.

Agreed, I'm hurting for that one extra bit of utility as well. Until it's implemented I have a whole idea I'm just shelving and waiting patiently for the update.

keithcurtis said:

Thanks Drespar. I will slowly shuffle away and wait in my cave of sadness.

j/k. It would really be handy to have these as part of the API, like all of the other token attributes, since it pretty much makes defaulttoken useless. But if it takes time, it takes time.

I'm less forgiving. The API is a feature that people pay a subscription for. If they are upgrading features, roll20 should be accounting for this. The token manipulation is a really important part of the API, and breaking the feature is just terrible.

I'm less forgiving. The API is a feature that people pay a subscription for. If they are upgrading features, roll20 should be accounting for this. The token manipulation is a really important part of the API, and breaking the feature is just terrible.

I agree, it's been long enough now. The API functionality is the only reason I pay for Pro membership. Come on :)