Few things can be as big a
headache as a misbehaving Photoshop. Thankfully, replacing
Photoshop's preferences file can do wonders when the program
is acting up. Think of it as "Photoshop Aspirin." Here's how
to do it , and a tip that makes it easy to do regularly.
THE PREFERENCES FILE
The Preferences file is where Photoshop stores all of your
settings. The selections you make in Photoshop's eight sets
of preferences (Photoshop 6: Edit> preferences; Photoshop
5.x: File> Preferences). The file can become corrupted,
leading to all sorts of mysterious and unusual Photoshop
behavior. If you delete the file, it forces Photoshop to
create a replacement file the next time it runs. Without a
preferences file available when it starts up, Photoshop uses
the factory-set defaults.
Among the clues that the preferences file
has gone bad are:
• Freezes and crashes.
• Unusual tool behavior.
• Menu commands unexpectedly not available.
• Missing or blacked-out icons in the Toolbox.
• Unusual colors for interface items.
The preferences file records more than just
the selections you've made in Photoshop's Preferences. Ever
notice how Photoshop remembers the size of the new document
you created that last time? And your last brush for each of
the painting tools? Even where you left each palette? (You
can, of course, turn off that behavior in the Preferences.)
These are just some of the other things that are recorded in
the preferences file.
So what happens? How does it get corrupted?
The preferences file is rewritten every time you quit
Photoshop. One way to try to minimize the possibility of
corrupting Photoshop's preferences file may be to allow
sufficient time for the program to quit. While I've not been
able to develop reliable testing data, it seems that
interrupting the Photoshop shutdown by starting another
program or beginning another operation may be a possible
source of problems.
WHERE DO I FIND IT?
Photoshop 6
For Both Windows and Mac, you're looking for the file named
Adobe Photoshop 6 Prefs. Here's where it hides:
• Mac OS: System> Preferences> Adobe Photoshop 6 Settings>
Adobe Photoshop 6 Prefs
• Windows 98: Windows\Application
Data\Adobe\Photoshop\6.0\Adobe Photoshop 6 Settings
• Windows NT: WinNT\profiles\<username>\Application
Data\Adobe\Photoshop\6.0\Adobe Photoshop 6 Settings
• Windows 2000: Documents and
Settings\<username>\Application
Data\Adobe\Photoshop\6.0\Adobe Photoshop 6 Settings.
Photoshop 5.5
The file is named Adobe Photoshop 5.5 Prefs. You'll find it:
• Mac OS: Adobe Photoshop 5.5> Adobe Photoshop 5.5 Settings
• Windows (all versions, including Win 95): Program
Files\Adobe\Photoshop 5.5\Adobe Photoshop 5.5 Settings
folder
Photoshop 5
The file is named Adobe Photoshop 5 Prefs. It's in:
• Mac OS: Adobe Photoshop 5.0: Adobe Photoshop Settings
• Windows (all versions): Program Files\Adobe\Photoshop
5.0\Adobe Photoshop SettingsHOW DO I REPLACE THE PREFERENCES
FILE?
• Quit Photoshop.
• Locate the Adobe Photoshop Prefs file.
• Delete the file.
• Restart Photoshop.
• Reset your preferences.
• Reload any custom palettes.
SPECIAL TIP: MINIMIZE PREFERENCES
DISRUPTION
Here's a tip that makes replacing your preferences file less
difficult.
Replace your preferences:
• Quit Photoshop.
• Locate the Adobe Photoshop Prefs file.
• Delete the file.
• Restart Photoshop.
• Reset your preferences.
• Reload any custom palettes.
• Immediately quit Photoshop again. Don't do anything that
might change your preferences.
• Go to the appropriate location to find your brand new,
freshly-customized Prefs file.
• Make a copy of that new file.
• Move the copy to a location other than the Adobe Photoshop
Settings folder. (I recommend the next higher level, the
folder in which you find the Settings folder.)
• Rename the file to the exact name of the actual Prefs
file.
• Next time you need to fix a corrupt Prefs file, simply
delete the old one and copy the file you just made into the
Settings folder. Never move the file, always copy it. Keep
this newly-created, clean-as-a-whistle Prefs file as a
back-up. Use copies of it to replace a bad Prefs file , it
will save you the trouble of resetting all of the
preferences each time.
Note: Remember to quit Photoshop first. The program rewrites
the preferences when you quit. If you replace the Prefs file
while Photoshop is running, the old corrupt preferences may
be written over your new file.
WHAT ABOUT OTHER PHOTOSHOP-RELATED
PREFERENCES?
• ImageReady (both 2 and 3) writes in the Windows registry,
but creates a preferences file on the Mac. Mac users will
find Adobe ImageReady 3.0 Prefs or Adobe ImageReady 2.0
Prefs tucked into the System> Preferences folder (for both
version 2 and version 3).
• Save for Web also write in the Windows registry, and also
creates its own Mac preferences file. If you’ve got
Photoshop 5.5 for the Mac, look in the System> Preferences
folder for Adobe save for Web 1.0 Prefs. Photoshop 6 users
need to find Adobe Save for Web 2.0 prefs (in the same
location).
• Color settings information can also be reset by deleting a
file. In Windows, look in the same location noted above for
your version of both Windows and Photoshop. If you’ve got
Photoshop 6, the file name is Color Settings.csf. Photoshop
5.5 for Windows names the file Color Settings.psp. On the
Mac, look in your Photoshop Settings folder for the file
named Color Settings.
• Photoshop 6 also generates preferences files for Actions,
Brushes, Contours, Custom Shapes, Gradients, Patterns,
Styles, Swatches. They will all be found in the same
location as the general Photoshop preferences. Photoshop 5
and 5.5 generate these files only for Actions, also located
with the general Photoshop preferences.