Dock positioning changing between monitors

from Stardock Forums

Hi, my name is Ricardo and I'm a user of some of your software. I'm a Brazilian customer and I'm using a translator to try to communicate. After OBJECT DOCK was updated to version 3, I've been having problems localizing it. I have 3 monitors connected to my computer, two of them being 2 monitors and 1 a samsung TV that is only turned on when I want to watch movies and videos on a big screen. The thing is, as much as I set the main monitor to PRIMARY MONITOR in Objectdock, it appears on different monitors when I turn on the computer. I've even changed the read and write permissions on the configuration files to try and stop it switching monitors. It worked until version 2 like this, but in version 3 it always switches the screen. What I notice is that when I use the TV, the PC has 3 screens, but when it's deactivated, I only have 2, logically. When these changes occur between 3 or 2 screens, the program starts to appear on different screens. Apparently the error occurs because the program sees the monitors as PRIMARY, 2 and 3, with two always being the main one. But windows sees them as 1, 2 and 3. Notepad shows the configuration line last monitor DISPLAY2 even if I change it to 1 the program does not appear on monitor 2. It seems that it considers my monitor 2 different from the PRIMARY monitor however, but my primary monitor is in fact monitor 2 but windows considers it as monitor 2 and the program as primary. Can you help me resolve this conflict?

objectdock
4,695 views 12 replies
Reply #1 from Stardock Forums Top

Hello,
Sorry to hear you are having issues. Please try purge and reinstall steps as mention here : [Link]. Just make sure to redownload the latest version from your account page. Reboot after the purge. Reinstall and reboot again after the installation. Retest and report back here.

Thank you,
Basj,
Stardock Community Assistant.

Reply #2 from Stardock Forums Top

It's still the same. It simply doesn't hold the setting that it should appear on the main monitor, it unchecks the primary option and goes to option 1 or 3. But never on monitor 2, which is in fact the primary monitor.

Elemental: Reforged
Reply #3 from Stardock Forums Top

Few more questions

  1. How many docks you have setup? How many, Quicklaunch dock and how many Tabbed dock?
  2. Your issue is with all tabs or only Quicklaunch dock?

Thank you,

Basj,
Stardock Community Assistant

Reply #4 from Stardock Forums Top

I only use a quicklaunch dock with 16 icons. If I could send you an image it would be great for you to see. I sent the image when I asked your support. But I ended up being directed here

Reply #5 from Stardock Forums Top

Quoting ricardaoguimaraes, reply 4

I sent the image when I asked your support. But I ended up being directed here
End of ricardaoguimaraes's quote
You can upload and post your image here in the forum:

Reply #6 from Stardock Forums Top

As shown in the image. Primary monitor selected in the program. Monitor 2 selected as primary in windows and the program is positioned correctly. But when I turn off the computer and turn it on again, it goes to monitor 1, which in this case is the TV, which is not usually turned on. Whether it's a coincidence or not, notepad points to DISPLAY 1 and not primary. I'll explain here. Monitor 1 is the TV, monitor 2 is in the middle and is the primary monitor and monitor 3 is another monitor next to it. If I put DISPLAY 2 in notepad, it appears on monitor 3 and not on monitor 2. What seems to be happening is that for Objectdock and windows, primary monitor and 1, 2 and 3 are different things. So when I turn on the PC it's not on the PRIMARY MONITOR, it's on 2. Is it clearer now?

 

Reply #7 from Stardock Forums Top

Hello,
I have forwarded your problem/question 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

Reply #9 from Stardock Forums Top

any news? Recently my dock is staying on the screen all the time and I discovered that you have disabled auto hide when I work on multiple monitors. Why is that?

Reply #10 from Stardock Forums Top

Hello,
I have forwarded your problem/question again 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

Reply #11 from Stardock Forums Top

I am a long-time user of ObjectDock, and I am facing a persistent monitor-jumping issue in ObjectDock version 3 that did not happen the same way in version 2.
My Hardware Setup:
  • 3 Displays connected: 2 desktop monitors and 1 Samsung TV.
  • Usage behavior: The Samsung TV is turned off most of the time. I only turn it on when I want to watch movies or videos on a large screen.
  • Windows Monitor Topology: Windows detects my primary desktop monitor as Monitor 2 (based on the GPU port priority).
The Problem:
Whenever I toggle the TV on or off, the active monitor count changes between 2 and 3 displays. When this happens, ObjectDock constantly jumps to the wrong screen, completely ignoring my setting to keep it on the "Primary Monitor".
Technical Analysis of the Bug:
  1. Windows ID vs. ObjectDock Index: Windows assigns static hardware IDs (Monitor 1, 2, 3). However, ObjectDock seems to map the dock position to a dynamic array index based on currently active displays (DISPLAY1, DISPLAY2, etc.).
  2. The Shift: My primary desktop monitor is recognized by Windows as Monitor 2. When all 3 screens are on, ObjectDock writes DISPLAY2 to the configuration file, and it sits on my primary screen. However, the moment I turn off the TV, Windows drops the TV from the active topology. ObjectDock recalculates the indexes, and my primary monitor shifts to a different internal identifier. Because ObjectDock forces itself back to the literal string DISPLAY2 (which is now a different physical screen or an offline slot), the dock disappears or moves to the wrong monitor.
  3. Regression from Version 2: In ObjectDock v2, I managed to permanently bypass this bug by manually editing the configuration file in Notepad and changing the read/write permissions of the file to "Read-Only". This prevented the software from overwriting my monitor preferences when the TV state changed.
  4. The v3 Issue: In ObjectDock v3, this workaround no longer works. The software seems to manage its layout memory/cache differently in real-time, completely ignoring the write-protection tricks on the .ini or configuration files, causing the dock to jump screens every single time the display topology updates.
What I need:
Is there a hidden configuration setting, a registry key, or a launch parameter in ObjectDock v3 that allows me to bind the dock to an Absolute Windows Monitor ID or Absolute Pixel Coordinates (X/Y) instead of a dynamic display index? If not, could this be logged as a bug fix for future updates, since version 3 broke the previous permission-lock workaround?
Thank you for your time and assistance. I look forward to your guidance on how to fix this layout instability.

Reply #12 from Stardock Forums Top
Quoting ricardaoguimaraes, reply 4148409

I am a long-time user of ObjectDock, and I am facing a persistent monitor-jumping issue in ObjectDock version 3 that did not happen the same way in version 2.

 

My Hardware Setup:

  • 3 Displays connected: 2 desktop monitors and 1 Samsung TV.
  • Usage behavior: The Samsung TV is turned off most of the time. I only turn it on when I want to watch movies or videos on a large screen.
  • Windows Monitor Topology: Windows detects my primary desktop monitor as Monitor 2 (based on the GPU port priority).

 

The Problem:

Whenever I toggle the TV on or off, the active monitor count changes between 2 and 3 displays. When this happens, ObjectDock constantly jumps to the wrong screen, completely ignoring my setting to keep it on the "Primary Monitor".

 

Technical Analysis of the Bug:

  1. Windows ID vs. ObjectDock Index: Windows assigns static hardware IDs (Monitor 1, 2, 3). However, ObjectDock seems to map the dock position to a dynamic array index based on currently active displays (DISPLAY1, DISPLAY2, etc.).
  2. The Shift: My primary desktop monitor is recognized by Windows as Monitor 2. When all 3 screens are on, ObjectDock writes DISPLAY2 to the configuration file, and it sits on my primary screen. However, the moment I turn off the TV, Windows drops the TV from the active topology. ObjectDock recalculates the indexes, and my primary monitor shifts to a different internal identifier. Because ObjectDock forces itself back to the literal string DISPLAY2 (which is now a different physical screen or an offline slot), the dock disappears or moves to the wrong monitor.
  3. Regression from Version 2: In ObjectDock v2, I managed to permanently bypass this bug by manually editing the configuration file in Notepad and changing the read/write permissions of the file to "Read-Only". This prevented the software from overwriting my monitor preferences when the TV state changed.
  4. The v3 Issue: In ObjectDock v3, this workaround no longer works. The software seems to manage its layout memory/cache differently in real-time, completely ignoring the write-protection tricks on the .ini or configuration files, causing the dock to jump screens every single time the display topology updates.

 

What I need:

Is there a hidden configuration setting, a registry key, or a launch parameter in ObjectDock v3 that allows me to bind the dock to an Absolute Windows Monitor ID or Absolute Pixel Coordinates (X/Y) instead of a dynamic display index? If not, could this be logged as a bug fix for future updates, since version 3 broke the previous permission-lock workaround?

Thank you for your time and assistance. I look forward to your guidance on how to fix this layout instability.

End of ricardaoguimaraes's quote

Hello,
Sorry to hear you are having issues. There is a new version released recently. V3.04 Beta. Have you download this version and retest your issue?

Thank you,
Basj,
Stardock Community Assistant.