Unreadable Black Text on Dark Colored Tabs in 1.18

Hello,

Sorry to hear you are having issues. But I have not see it on Dark blue, could you give a screen shot of your problem.

Thank you.

Basj,

Stardock Community Assistant.

While this does not happen with Windows Explorer, I can replicate OP's report in other software.

Steps to reproduce.

1 - Select Dark Mode on  Personalization --> Colors,

2 - Select Show ambient color in title bar and window limits,

3 - Open an instance of any software besides Windows Explorer. I tried with LibreOffice and Zotero,

4 - Result is black text on active window title bar.

Expected result:

White text on active window tab. Similar look to Windows Explorer active tab.

As Deckard_Cain83 said, this is reproducible in 1.18 with LibreOffice. They posted a screenshot. I can't because, as I said, I downgraded to 1.17, and now, bizarrely, 1.18 is no longer offered as an update:

Has 1.18 been silently pulled? 1.18 is not in the ChangeLog either. 

Quoting CantTakeIt, reply 3

As Deckard_Cain83 said, this is reproducible in 1.18 with LibreOffice. They posted a screenshot. I can't because, as I said, I downgraded to 1.17, and now, bizarrely, 1.18 is no longer offered as an update:



Has 1.18 been silently pulled? 1.18 is not in the ChangeLog either. 

End of CantTakeIt's quote

Hello,

Sorry to hear you are having issues.

try this link to get 1.18 https://www.stardock.com/support/product-key-retrieval

AzDude
Stardock Community Assistant

Thanks for your reply, but it appears that Stardock has put 1.18 behind a wall. As I stated in the original posting, I am evaluating groupy with the 30 day trial, so I have no product key, and when I put my email into the form you linked me to it says:

Sorting out these errors are part of my evaluation. Being linked to software behind a wall does not build confidence. A version which has no ChangeLog (as of this moment) does not build confidence. But I am keeping an open mind. I really want to like Groupy. I want a version of Groupy that works with Dark Mode as promised. I want to trust StarDock as a company. I need the functionality of Groupy, and it makes a lot of sense.  

Hello,

Sorry to hear you are having issues.

If you still have time left on your Trial OK, if not you have to Buy Groupy.

Try this Purge Groupy ( uninstal ) https://forums.stardock.com/488142/groupy-support-faq#reinstalling

REBOOT your PC

then you can go here to download this link gets you 1.18 ( I just tried it ) https://www.stardock.com/products/groupy/

REBOOT again .

Report here when done if that works for you.

AzDude
Stardock Community Assistant

OK, my Groupy found the 1.18 update today on its own, so I have made now my own dark mode screenshots to show you, illustrating the reproducible bug that I originally posted with:

1. The main issue: Hard to read black text (instead of white) on the Active tab on a LibreOffice Writer window that has the focus:

2. A secondary issue, but extra credit if you could solve virtually unreadable text on inactive tabs on a LibreOffice Writer window that does not have the focus: 

Is Stardock going to acknowledge this visual bug and fix it? 

Hello,

To be fair, I can still clearly read from your screenshots those active and inactive tabs. But, I have forwarded your problem to Stardock Support team for their assistance. Please keep an eye on this thread for any updates. We appreciate your feedback and patience.

Basj

Stardock Community Assistant.

This issue is only seen if one uses "Combine if Possible' and not 'Always Place Above'

This minor issue has been logged internally.

----------------
Sean Drohan
Stardock Customer Service Manager

Thank you for acknowledging my minor issue and passing it on to the developers. 

Yes the low-contrast tabs in LibreOffice Writer are technically readable, though inconsistent with how they look in Windows Explorer (where they look stunningly perfect BTW).

I understand that Tab software must be hard to write, so hard that MS has seemingly given up on Sets, and that you probably have bigger issues to address.  

The "Place Above" workaround is appreciated, but I prefer not to take up more vertical space on my monitor if possible. 

I also use the Combine if possible only, due to not wanting to lose more vertical space in my screen.

Just to chime in: Had the same problem and reverted back to 1.17. Personally, I don't consider it a minor issue, when I can hardly read the tab title.
I don't use a dark theme, and had the issue with every tabbed program (Command Prompt, Explorer, PowerShell, etc.). 

But not with 'Always Place Above' set I trust.

Sean Drohan
Stardock Support Manager

Any way, congratulations and thank you Stardock.

Even if there are minor niggles with Groupy, it's the only tabbed software that I prefer over qttabbar. I bought it because I think it is aesthetically pleasing.

Hopefully, you have enough resources to gradually improve it because it really deserves it.

I have tested an internal build that fixes this issue.  It should be released in a beta after the first of the year some time.

----------------
Sean Drohan
Stardock Customer Service Manager

Quoting CantTakeIt, reply 7

OK, my Groupy found the 1.18 update today on its own, so I have made now my own dark mode screenshots to show you, illustrating the reproducible bug that I originally posted with:

1. The main issue: Hard to read black text (instead of white) on the Active tab on a LibreOffice Writer window that has the focus:



2. A secondary issue, but extra credit if you could solve virtually unreadable text on inactive tabs on a LibreOffice Writer window that does not have the focus: 



Is Stardock going to acknowledge this visual bug and fix it? 

End of CantTakeIt's quote

Ok, so we think we have most of the issues with Groupy 1.19 fixed and ready for a beta:

• Mostly Open Office fixes
• Keeps focus when on of a group is closed
• Stays readable when not focused

But we need to know how you changed the title bar color (the blue and dark gray for example).  Is it a Windows theme it inherits, paired with an app that is blue, or is it in the app itself?

Thanks

Sean Drohan
Stardock Support Manager

The color was not changed in the app itself, the Active title bar color comes from the Windows 10 interface.

Here are my exact settings. (Notice "Dark Mode" is also switched on.)

I am trying to reduce glare and eyestrain when I can in Windows 10, so my Inactive title bar was changed to a dark color with WinAeroTweaker 0.12.1.0 under Appearance in that program. (I wanted a darker, less harsh alternative to the bright default inactive title bar color.)

I appreciate your work on compatibility with LibreOffice Writer.

Last Issue:
Ctrl-N for a new document in LibreOffice should pop it open in a tab, as tabbed programs like Firefox, Chrome, Visual Studio Code, Notepad++, etc. do.

My 30-days of beta-testing Groupy are near an end, as the program notified me, so I have uninstalled it, since Groupy is not quite ready yet. I am still willing to take the time to provide feedback on here about my experiences.

If Groupy irons out its issues I will certainly be purchasing it. The software has great potential. 

Unfortunately the inactive titlebars not having overly readable text is caused by your choice to alter that colour.  The active titlebar colour issue is resolved in the upcoming 1.19, but the inactive issue you have will remain as Groupy is designed to work with the OS standard theme.