How to exit from certain projects on timeline?

How do I exit out of certain projects on the timeline? I find myself wanting to reference different projects from time to time but they ultimately end up jumbling the timeline scanning when I no longer need to reference them. Is there a way to remove a specific project from the timeline after done using it? Thanks!

For example, in this screenshot, I no longer need DSP_FromHeresComeHeres_160618 in the timeline.

Unfortunately, you cannot "close" projects on the timeline.

But you don't need to scan through all of your projects to make one active: click and hold one of the timeline history arrows and you will see a list of all projects before or after the currently active one. Just select the one you want from the list, and it will open instantly.

- Ronny

I think We still need a close timeline box icon!!

Thanks, Ronny. And yes, I absolutely agree that we need a "Close Project" option in the Timeline. Seems straightforward and simple, not sure why they haven't done it yet...

Playing devils advocate, but what would being able to "close" a timeline, and leave the Timeline Pane empty, accomplish, in a practical way? To clear a "recent" list? Is that all? Just asking...

Or are you looking to close the Timeline Pane totally, make it collapse, and be gone from sight, to make room for the top half of the GUI to take up the whole screen?

Well , in my case i happen to open fcpx and usually openes with the last project open and the last timeline. Makes bo sense to me. I want to have it clean when i open my project.

OK, I guess. But this isn't an FCPX only behavior, most OS X applications do this. And FCPX can't launch without at least one Library loaded up. So you could make a Template Library, and just launch that each time you want to start from scratch. Just an idea for in the meantime.

Open FCPX while holding down the option key. You will then get the option to open whatever project you want or to start a new one.

EDIT: I meant whatever "library" you want not project.

willypimentel wrote: Well , in my case i happen to open fcpx and usually openes with the last project open and the last timeline. Makes bo sense to me. I want to have it clean when i open my project.

Still don't get the difference:

A Project IS a timeline.
Or, vice versa, no timeline, no project.

Willy wrote:
In my case I happen to open fcpx and usually opens with the last project open and the last timeline.

Usually but not always… I find this very random and annoying. Does anyone know if there’s a way to make FCPX consistently open on the project that was last open?

By that I mean, we might have a library ‘Radiography’ containing several projects, ’Radiography Edit 1’ Radiography Edit 2’ ‘3’ ‘4’ etc as we get revisions from clients. Pretty standard stuff.

Yet despite having worked on ‘Edit 4’ all day long, the next time FCP is launched it will often open randomly on an earlier project - and if you don’t notice you’ll start working in the wrong timeline until you realise what’s happened!

I don’t remember this problem in FCP7. Is it an oddity with FCPX? Or maybe I have been missing something all this time.

John G

Let's say I have 5 different projects in the timeline - A, B, C, D, and E.

I only needed project D for a quick minute. I no longer need it after that. Leaving it in as something I have to scroll through is not good for two reasons:
1. I run the risk of accidentally making edits to Project D
2. It's one more project I have to sift through.

#1 is avoidable (but possible) and #2 is a pain, albeit a minor one. For those playing devil's advocate, is it really that big of a deal to want to be able to close out of Project D in the timeline while still leaving Project A, B, C, and E in there? I personally don't think so. Cheers.

I don't rely on the navigation arrows in the Timeline for that in-depth sort of organization. I just use a Smart Collection that contains all my Projects. Very fast to get to. That's just me.

Cotton wrote: Let's say I have 5 different projects in the timeline - A, B, C, D, and E. ....

… I guess, your premise is a bit … subjective. Who's working on 5 projects simultaneously?
And why should I open/close projects just for a minute? ... a skimmable Project Icon would be more handy!

You like to have a 'close project' feature, comparable to 'close library', right?
>> Enhacement Request, Apple....

I agree. I would like to see a 'close project' function for many of the reasons the OP has stated.

I sometimes open a project to grab something out of it to put in a new project and then don't need it again. That is a case where that project "open" takes away from what should be the usefulness of having quick access to projects via the history.

Besides - that open project must be using some resources that would be better allocated to what you are actually working on.

That navigation arrow is simply a "Recently Opened" menu, uses next to zero resources. That is all it is, nothing more. Those projects listed in that recently opened menu are not actually "opened" unless they're showing in the Timeline Pane. And even then, if its sitting there and you're not doing anything to it, nothing of extra resources is being used.

I'm curious as to what mechanism you would propose be implemented to selectively remove a timeline listed in that menu.

Click and hold on that arrow, menu drops down, select the recently opened timeline you want. I don't see how much faster or easier that type of navigation could be. But, as stated, this is a very subjective function. I would guess there are many ways different folks would want it to work.

I never use the backwards / forwards arrows. As Ben says, don’t rely on them for navigating your projects efficiently. Although I do use the ‘click and hold the arrow’ drop-down feature quite a lot.

How about a drop-down menu in that position called something like ’Select Project’ or ‘Recent Projects’ - and get rid of the arrows completely?

Then maybe that menu could could have a ‘Default Project’ tick-box to set FCP to open the project I want next time it’s launched rather than opening a random one (as I mentioned in earlier post). Hmmm….

JG

Having some control over what projects are open would allow you switch between projects using the existing keyboard shortcuts without having to wade through projects you are not using or reverting to using the mouse.