# HELP! My LR seems to have died!



## yorkiemom (Aug 14, 2012)

Well, this is a first. Tried to open up LR several times, have rebooted. It doesn't open up completely full screen. I have to hit the maximize button. But nothing happens. I can't do anything at all. My mouse works, my pen works, but nothing is happening. The program is just stuck on the screen and I have to keep using the Task Manager to shut it down. I know my files aren't lost...but I don't know what is wrong with the program.


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 14, 2012)

What module is it trying to open into? Can you post a screenshot of whatever you see when you try to start?

Where is your catalog and previews? Internal or External drive?

And same question for your image files.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 14, 2012)

It's opening up in the Develop Module. Here's what I get but I can't do anything. My catalog and previews are on my external drive and so are my image files...all on the same external.


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 14, 2012)

Have you checked to make sure the external drive is working OK? Use Windows Explorer to open the drive and have a browse around the various folders to make sure they open OK and the contents are listed.

Assuming that's OK, then maybe try creating a new clean (temporary) catalog to see if that opens OK....to do that, close the existing Lightroom, then press and hold the Ctrl key while you start Lightroom and you'll get a "Select Catalog" dialog box with the option to create a new catalog at the bottom. Do that, and if it opens OK, switch to the Library module, close it down, then try again to open the correct catalog (should this time try to open in the Library module). If it works, fine....if not then you probably need to try resetting the preferences file.

One thing at a time, though....let us know how you get on with the above and we can move on from there if needed.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 14, 2012)

Okay thanks! I will do that. Heading out to the gym now so I'll report back later.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 14, 2012)

Forgot to mention that I had already checked the external which is running okay.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 14, 2012)

Okay, I did what you said and created a temporary catalog. LR opened up, I switched to the Library module and shut it down. Opened up LR again and it came up in the Library module. But...stupid me...where is my correct catalog because I don't see my external drives...only my hard drive. It wants me to "import". I don't want to import again. Can I just go to the Catalog settings and change the location to the old catalog?


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## yorkiemom (Aug 14, 2012)




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## Jim Wilde (Aug 14, 2012)

Just use Explorer to find your 'proper' catalog, then double-click on it to start Lightroom using that catalog.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 14, 2012)

Ok. Thanks so much for your help! I wasn't freaking out yet but I had no clue how to fix the problem. I will definitely copy this in my notes...just in case it ever happens again.

And...do you know what the problem could have been? Was it because it was opening in Develop module or just some hiccup?


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## yorkiemom (Aug 14, 2012)

Yea! It worked! I'm happy, happy, happy now! You guys here on this site are the best!


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 14, 2012)

Opening in Develop should be no problem, I do that a lot of the time (generally Lightroom re-opens in whatever module was being used when it was last closed). So it was probably just a hiccup of some description, just need to keep an eye on it....if it happens again that will probably indicate an underlying problem which will need to be sorted. Just let us know and we'll try some other things.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 14, 2012)

I'll definitely let you know if it happens again, which hopefully it won't. Thanks again for the help. Think I need a glass of wine now!


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## yorkiemom (Aug 16, 2012)

Well, I went back to my original catalog...and it's freezing up on the screen again.It seems like the minute I go from the Library Module to the Develop is when it happens. In Develop, it freezes. It works in Library though.


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 16, 2012)

Is that a permanent freeze, i.e. you eventually have to force quit? Or is it just a 'stall' which eventually clears?

What type of pen are you using, and are the drivers up-to-date?


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## Victoria Bampton (Aug 16, 2012)

Is it only happening on particular pictures?

And have you updated to 4.1?


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## yorkiemom (Aug 17, 2012)

I'm using a Wacom Intuos 3 and a MS mouse...both drivers were updated. I have 4.1 It just freezes the screen the minute I switch to Develop. I've checked the other modules and it works fine. When I go to Develop it freezes. 

Wait, I'm noticing now it comes back after about 3 minutes and then works. My catalog and photos are on an external. But this situation has never happened before so I'm still not sure what the problem could be.


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## Hal P Anderson (Aug 17, 2012)

Norma,

The first time that you go to Develop in a session, it takes a considerable amount of time as it loads all the various items that it needs to have handy to make edits to your images, _*but*_ 3 minutes is _really _excessive. On my computer, it takes about 7 seconds. After that, things are pretty quick.

As a workaround, at the beginning of a session, you could click on Develop and then go get yourself a coffee. By the time you get back to your computer with the cup, you'll be ready to go. 

Hal


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 17, 2012)

Once the Develop module finishes loading, can you then switch back and forth between Library and Develop without any delays? If so, the problem would seem confined to the particular activities associated with the first initialisation of the Develop module (which incidentally probably explains the problem from your initial post). But the question is: how to stop it happening? 

Things I would be trying if it was happening to me:

1. Reinstall Lightroom. Does that fix the issue?. If not, then:
2. Reset the preferences file. Does that work? If not, then:
3. Copy the catalog to an internal drive (I wouldn't bother with the previews initially), and launch from there. Does that fix the issue? If not:
4. Create a new (temporary) user account and try running the catalog from that. Result?

Not suggesting you need to do all those, it may be Hal's "go get a coffee" suggestion is enough (though it wouldn't be for me, I just hate it when things don't work the way they are supposed to). But it you want to try any of those things, and you need help, get back to us.

Hal, any other things you can think of trying?


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## Hal P Anderson (Aug 17, 2012)

Jim,

Yeah, I know what you mean. If it were my problem, I'd want figure out what's happening, too.

I wonder if her anti-virus might be slowing up that initial load. Temporarily turning it off and seeing if the problem goes away would tell us something.

Hal


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## clee01l (Aug 17, 2012)

Hal P Anderson said:


> Jim,
> 
> Yeah, I know what you mean. If it were my problem, I'd want figure out what's happening, too.
> 
> ...


I'd put my money on Anti-virus file scanning of the Previews folder and LR catalog.


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## Victoria Bampton (Aug 17, 2012)

One more - if it's initial load of the Develop module, try removing Develop presets by going to LR preferences dialog > Presets tab and clicking on Show Lightroom Presets Folder button.  Rename the Develop Presets folder (or the whole LR folder with LR closed) and see if that helps.  I'm wondering if it's tripping over a corrupted Develop preset while it's loading the Develop module for the first time.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 18, 2012)

Jim, I will try what you suggested. I'd like to know what the problem is. 3 minutes is excessive because it's never happened before so... It's not the anti-virus.

I'll try and figure it out this weekend. Will keep you all posted.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 20, 2012)

Well, I reset the preferences, haven't done anything else yet. It seems to be working okay not...and I noticed I have a faster response when using the sliders. Though I don't know why resetting the prefs would do that.


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 20, 2012)

Norma, I hope to meant "working okay *now*"?

Resetting the prefs can cure lots of strange problems, and has certainly been known to boost LR4 performance for some (though not all).


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## yorkiemom (Aug 14, 2012)

Well, this is a first. Tried to open up LR several times, have rebooted. It doesn't open up completely full screen. I have to hit the maximize button. But nothing happens. I can't do anything at all. My mouse works, my pen works, but nothing is happening. The program is just stuck on the screen and I have to keep using the Task Manager to shut it down. I know my files aren't lost...but I don't know what is wrong with the program.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 21, 2012)

Yes, I meant now! Thanks so much for the tips! I'm certainly hoping it doesn't happen again.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 28, 2012)

Well, my LR is not working again! I'm starting to get annoyed. It opens up and all, but the hourglass doesn't go away I can't do anything and when I check Task manager, it shows it isn't responding. Now what? Install a new LR?


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 28, 2012)

Norma, you could try resetting the preferences again, though I'm beginning to think there might be an underlying problem with your system (possibly with the external drive connection).

But first try that reset of the prefs, then when I have some time I'll go back through the thread and maybe I'll be able to offer some further suggestions.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 28, 2012)

Okay. Will try again. Do you really think it's something to do with my external? What if I move the whole program or just my photos to the C drive and see what happens??


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## yorkiemom (Aug 28, 2012)

Just so you know where all my files/folders are...I'm a bit confused why I have some LR folders on my C drive but I'm using all that's on the G drive (external).


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## yorkiemom (Aug 28, 2012)

The external G has 1 TB on it free so that's can't be a problem.

BTW, why can't I edit my posts...they will never save. I have to keep adding another post.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 28, 2012)

Can't reset the preferences...LR is not responding.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 28, 2012)

An update...I couldn't reset the preferences. I decided to try the route of the create a temporary catalog again. That worked. Then I called up LR again and got my original catalog back...works fine thru the Library module til I try to go to Develop and then it stops working. I have to use Task Manager to close the program. It says it's not responding. So I can't use the program.


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 28, 2012)

The preference reset is done while Lightroom is shut down, so not sure what you were trying to do there. Try it again, just make sure LR is closed down first.

Probably best not to try to do too many different things all at once, with a problem like this it's usually best to take one step at a time. So I'd do the prefs reset first, then analyse that to see what the outcome is. It certainly seems that moving into Develop causes the problem, so that knowledge gives us a couple of things we can try next.


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 28, 2012)

http://www.lightroomqueen.com/commu...(or-Trashing-)-the-Lightroom-Preferences-file


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## yorkiemom (Aug 28, 2012)

Should I just delete or rename? Not sure how to "reset". I see the file Lightroom 4 Preferences.agprefs.


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 28, 2012)

Rename if you think you might need to use it again.

Delete if you don't.

"reset" in this context means do either of those two things to force Lightroom into creating a new Preferences file, thus effectively 'resetting' the preferences.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 28, 2012)

Well, I deleted the preference...thought it's still in my delete file. I'm still having the same problem though.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 28, 2012)

Another thing...after trying the preferences again, which didn't work, I got it to come up once in the Develop Module. And a photo actually appears on the screen (which nothing appeared before). But the problem is it just says "loading" and then freezes.


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 29, 2012)

OK, Norma....if resetting the prefs has made no difference, it looks like we'll have to take a more methodical approach to the problem and start with some information gathering:

1. Can you confirm that the problem only happens when you try to open the Develop Module? Do you have any similar issues when working in Library?
2. What happens if you try to open other modules, i.e. Map, Book, Print etc? Does that work or do you get similar hangups?
3. Can you recall when this problem first started? Was it the same time as a Lightroom upgrade?
4. Can you clarify some locations for me, as I'm not 100% certain from your screenshots. Easiest way would be by giving me some new screenshots. Start with Lightroom open using your main catalog, go to Edit>Catalog Settings>General Tab and take a screenshot of that tab (that'll tell me exactly where your catalog is). Then go to Edit>Preferences>File Handling Tab and take a screenshot of that tab (that'll tell me where your ACR cache is). Finally can you take a screenshot of the Folders Panel in the Library Module, that'll tell me where all your images are.

If the problem only happens when trying to use the Develop module, we may need to focus on those parts of the overall Lightroom environment that are used by the Develop module (i.e. catalog, ACR cache, original images), and maybe try moving them around. But that's getting ahead of ourselves, if you could supply the answers to my questions, and those screenshots, we'll take it from there.

Anyone else out there got any additional suggestions?


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## Hal P Anderson (Aug 29, 2012)

Jim,

Sometimes when a particular module cannot be entered, there's a bum preset for that module. I'd try renaming the develop presets folder and see if that helps.

Hal


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 29, 2012)

Thanks Hal, that's certainly worth a try.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

I've already tested all the other modules...they all work fine. Library works fine. It's only Develop that doesn't work.

No, it wasn't at a Lightroom upgrade...when I upgraded to 4.1 it worked fine. No problems.

Here are the screenshots....


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## Victoria Bampton (Aug 29, 2012)

Go t Preferences > Presets tab and press the Show Lightroom Presets folder.

Close LR and rename the Develop Presets and Local Adjustment Presets folders (maybe just add an extra character to the beginning.)

Restart LR and see if you have the same issue.

Your presets will be missing, but they'll still safely be in the renamed folders so we can put them back once we've figured out what's going on.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

Okay. Just to make sure we are seeing the same thing, when I press Show Lightroom Presets folder, this is what I get.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

Sorry, and the subfolder of the above shows this..


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

I don't see a presets folder. I do see one under Lightroom Settings. Is that where I should be going to rename?


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

Wait...I have something weird going on and don't know how it happened. I noticed I also have the same LR folder on my F drive (not sure why.). They look almost identical except for the dates.











I went in to Default Catalog in LR and switched to the catalog on the F drive and it all works perfectly. (but probably minus some photos since the dates don't match). But I use the catalog and stuff on my G external drive and always have.

So now what do I do? How much has this been screwed up?


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

Sorry I keep adding, but I can't seem to edit the threads to add more text.

Even though I switched to the F external catalog to see what would happen, it still shows up as G in LR.

Hope I'm not making this more confusing.


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 29, 2012)

Norma, do you backup the G drive to the F drive?

And can we have 2 more screenshots please?

1. The General Tab of your Lightroom Preferences.
2. The Presets Tab of your External Preferences.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 14, 2012)

Well, this is a first. Tried to open up LR several times, have rebooted. It doesn't open up completely full screen. I have to hit the maximize button. But nothing happens. I can't do anything at all. My mouse works, my pen works, but nothing is happening. The program is just stuck on the screen and I have to keep using the Task Manager to shut it down. I know my files aren't lost...but I don't know what is wrong with the program.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

Backup as with LR...those backups go to F. But I also backup the whole thing to F also using Syncback.

I assume you are talking the tabs from this F drive version that is working.

Here is the General Tab now...






I'm confused with the 2nd...all these screen shots are confusing me now...where is the Presets Tab for my External Preferences. You're not talking External Editing and not Presets Tab so not sure where to look now. ?


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 29, 2012)

Sorry, that was my error, I meant the Presets tab of the Lightroom Preferences.

But no, not the F drive. I'm assuming that's just a backup of the G drive....so you really shouldn't be using that!!! So please open the catalog on the G drive and retake those screenshots, thanks.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

Well, here is the External Editing shot if that's what you wanted.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

Trying to think backwards here, I think a while ago I modified my Syncback naming to folder called Lightroom backup...but before that it was just Lightroom. This F version might be that so it's LR backed up maybe before I had the problem. I'm thinking I might never have deleted that one.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

Meaning the program is working correctly with this June version of LR that was backed up on F before it got screwed up.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

G drive:


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

Okay, I hope I didn't screw anything up but when I tested that LR backup on F, and as you can see I'm back to the damaged version on G (the above captures), the Develop Mode is now working. ???? I don't get it...nothing has been changed today except for me doing all these screen shots and switching to that F version for a minute. It's showing G in my LR and now the Develop Module is working again. I don't get it. Course tomorrow I could be not working again.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

Of course, now it's doing something else weird...just today. When I go to export a photo and the dialog box comes up, all I had to change was the name of the photo and everything else was set up so it would go to the desktop. It would just go there and that was it. Now it sends to the desktop and I get a dialog box like this...which I never got before. I shouldn't even get this screen.


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 29, 2012)

Taking the last issue first, it's possible that you've (inadvertently) set a Post Processing action of "Show in Explorer" in the export dialog.

Back to the main issue.....I'm a little confused about what I'm seeing in the screenshots of the General Tab, as no matter which catalog you have opened the Preferences should be the same. And they're not, unless you change them?

Without doing anything further, can you explain to me how you launch different catalogs (i.e. the one on the G drive and the one on the F drive)?

Unfortunately you misread my correction for the second screenshot....I wanted the *Presets* tab, not the External Editing tab.

Just by way of explanation, I'm just trying to establish where all the various parts of your Lightroom environment are stored, in preparation for perhaps trying a different setup to address the problem with the Develop module.....however, your two different views of the General Tab have rather confused me a little, so we need to understand that (it may in fact be relevant to the main issue).


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

Last issue first...Yes, I figured that out after I went back to check what I had in the menu. Thanks though.

I'm confused too because I haven't changed anything eiher. Both catalogs are the same except one is on G (the one I always use) and F was that backup.

To change the different catalogs I've been going to Preferences/Default Catalog.

Sorry and here is the presets tab for G.






That's fine...I understand you need to have all this information at your fingertips...I'm not the expert (thought I may be after this! LOL!).


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 29, 2012)

OK, the fact that you've been changing the actual Default Catalog in the Preferences was what confused me (tip: if you ever want to open a different catalog than the default, simply press and hold the Ctrl key when you click on the Lightroom icon and you'll get a "Select Catalog" screen which allows you to choose from your most recent catalogs).

OK, now we're all on the same page, lets try doing what Victoria and Hal suggested some while back....take your develop presets out of the loop to see if that makes a difference. To do that, with Lightroom closed down, go to the location in the screenshot in your post #47 and rename the "Develop Presets" folder (something like "OldDevelop Presets" will do), then start Lightroom (using the G drive catalog) and see what happens when you go into Develop.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

Thanks for the tip! I had done that before...but didn't think about it in that instance. I will definitely remember next time.

Okay, I renamed the Develop Presets and then went back into LR and Develop seems to be working now. I've tried different folders, photos, went back and forth between the different modules and it seems to be working and faster actually. Not sure why faster but it seems to be responding better. 

Have quit Lr and gone back in a few times to make sure Develop Module is still working. It came up in the Develop Module this time and as I go along the photos, it is "loading" them but it seems to be working.


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## Jim Wilde (Aug 29, 2012)

OK, that sounds promising. Suggest you carry on for a day or two, and if it stays running properly we can then start trying to isolate what in the Develop Presets might have been causing the problem.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 29, 2012)

Sounds good to me! Will check back on Friday afternoon.


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## yorkiemom (Sep 1, 2012)

Well, I've been working with about 100 photos I needed to edit. The Develop Mode is still working. I've switched between modules trying to have it not work (heaven forbid!) and it's still working fine.


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## Jim Wilde (Sep 1, 2012)

OK, that sounds promising.

What do you want to do about the Develop Presets? Do you want to try recovering them, maybe risking the return of the problem, or do you want to start rebuilding them from scratch?


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## yorkiemom (Sep 2, 2012)

Not sure I want to risk the problem returning.  I'd rather start rebuilding...hope it's not to complicated.


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## yorkiemom (Sep 5, 2012)

What do I have to do to get this resolved?


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## Jim Wilde (Sep 6, 2012)

Not sure what you mean, Norma. Did you have a lot of develop presets, and were they ones you created yourself or downloaded? Why not take a screenshot of the Explorer view of the contents of the renamed old Develop Presets folder (actually it'll be the User Presets sub-folder that we'll need to look at).


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## yorkiemom (Sep 6, 2012)

Well, what do you mean by start rebuilding by scratch. Will the program automatically do that? And if so, when can I download the newer LR version?


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## Jim Wilde (Sep 6, 2012)

Norma, what I meant was recreating the presets in the same way as you originally did. Without seeing the contents of the old User Presets folder, I don't know how viable a course of action that is.....you may have just a few presets that you created yourself, you may have hundreds, you may have lots of presets that you've downloaded over time, I really don't know. What we do know is that there seems to have been a problem in your Develop Presets folder which caused your problem whenever you went into Develop, and which we circumvented by effectively removing that entire Presets folder.

So now the issue becomes how to progress from here as you no longer have your stock of develop presets available to you, and there are basically two options: try by trial and error to copy individual presets from the "old" presets folder into the new empty folder until you find one that triggers the problem (and there may be more than one of course), or start from scratch and recreate your presets and re-download any that you had previously downloaded. With no idea of the scale of the issue, I can't help much....the decision on which route to take has to be yours, but we'll obviously try to help as much as we can.

And no, the program won't do that. Yes, you'll still have access to all the LR-supplied Develop Presets, but I'm afraid that anything user-based is down to the user to sort out.


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## yorkiemom (Sep 7, 2012)

I didn't have that many presets so at this point I'm not worried about it.


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## Jim Wilde (Sep 7, 2012)

OK then, it sounds as if there's nothing more to do. However, you might want to keep that old renamed Presets folder for a while, just in case you get a recurrence....then you might be able to do a comparison between old and new presets folder to see if you can spot the culprit.


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## yorkiemom (Sep 8, 2012)

Would that be the LR4 preferences.agprefs that I took out. If so, I still have it


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## Jim Wilde (Sep 8, 2012)

No, it was the Develop Presets folder that you renamed and which seemed to fix the problem....see posts #61 and #62 in this thread.


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## yorkiemom (Aug 14, 2012)

Well, this is a first. Tried to open up LR several times, have rebooted. It doesn't open up completely full screen. I have to hit the maximize button. But nothing happens. I can't do anything at all. My mouse works, my pen works, but nothing is happening. The program is just stuck on the screen and I have to keep using the Task Manager to shut it down. I know my files aren't lost...but I don't know what is wrong with the program.


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## yorkiemom (Sep 11, 2012)

I'll do that and keep the old/new presets folders. Thanks.

Now do you think it will cause a problem if I download the new LR version that is now out?


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