Customizing workspaces

Adobe video and audio applications provide a consistent, customizable workspace. Although each application has its own set of panels (such as Project, Metadata, and Timeline), you move and group panels in the same way across products.

The main window of a program is the application window. Panels are organized in this window in an arrangement called a workspace. The default workspace contains groups of panels as well as panels that stand alone.

You customize a workspace by arranging panels in the layout that best suits your working style. As you rearrange panels, the other panels resize automatically to fit the window. You can create and save several custom workspaces for different tasks—for example, one for editing and one for previewing.

Choose a workspace

Each Adobe video and audio application includes several predefined workspaces that optimize the layout of panels for specific tasks. When you choose one of these workspaces, or any custom workspaces you’ve saved, the current workspace is redrawn accordingly.

Dock, group, or float panels

You can dock panels together, move them into or out of groups, and undock them so they float above the application window. As you drag a panel, drop zones—areas onto which you can move the panel—become highlighted. The drop zone you choose determines where the panel is inserted, and whether it docks or groups with other panels.

Docking zones

Docking zones exist along the edges of a panel, group, or window. Docking a panel places it adjacent to the existing group, resizing all groups to accommodate the new panel.

Grouping zones

Grouping zones exist in the middle of a panel or group, and along the tab area of panels. Dropping a panel on a grouping zone stacks it with other panels.

Dock or group panels

Undock a panel in a floating window

When you undock a panel in a floating window, you can add panels to the window and modify it similarly to the application window. You can use floating windows to use a secondary monitor, or to create workspaces like the workspaces in earlier versions of Adobe applications.

Resize panel groups

When you position the pointer over dividers between panel groups, resize icons appear. When you drag these icons, all groups that share the divider are resized. For example, suppose your workspace contains three panel groups stacked vertically. If you drag the divider between the bottom two groups, they are resized, but the topmost group doesn’t change.

Open, close, and scroll to panels

When you close a panel group in the application window, the other groups resize to use the newly available space. When you close a floating window, the panels within it close, too.

• To open a panel, choose it from the Window menu.
• To close a panel or window, press Control-W (Windows) or Command-W (Mac OS), or click its Close button .
• To see all the panel tabs in a narrow panel group, drag the horizontal scroll bar.
• To bring a panel to the front of a group of panels, do one of the following:

  • Click the tab of the panel you want in front.

  • Hover the cursor above the tab area, and turn the mouse scroll wheel. Scrolling brings each panel to the front, one after another.

  • Drag tabs horizontally to change their order.

• To reveal panels hidden in a narrow panel group, drag the scroll bar above the panel group.

Working with multiple monitors

To increase the available screen space, use multiple monitors. When you work with multiple monitors, the application window appears on one monitor, and you place floating windows on the second monitor. Monitor configurations are stored in the workspace.

Display the toolbar

The toolbar provides quick access to tools, the Workspace menu, and buttons that toggle between the Waveform and Multitrack editors. Some tools are unique to each view. Likewise, some Waveform Editor tools are available only in the spectral display.

By default, the toolbar is docked immediately below the menu bar. However, you can undock the toolbar, converting it to the Tools panel, which you can manipulate like any other panel.

• To show or hide the toolbar, choose Window > Tools. A check mark by the Tools command indicates that it is shown.
• To undock the toolbar from its default location, drag the handle at the left edge to another location in the work area.
• To redock the Tools panel in its default location, drag the Tools panel tab to the drop zone that spans the entire width of the Adobe Audition window, just under the menu bar.

Display the status bar

The status bar runs across the bottom of the Adobe Audition work area. The far left of the status bar indicates the time required to open, save, or process a file, as well as the current transport status (Playing, Recording, or Stopped). The far right of the bar displays various information that you can customize.

• To show or hide the status bar, choose View > Status Bar > Show. A check mark indicates that the status bar is visible.
• To change the information displayed at the far right of the bar, choose View > Status Bar, or right‑click the bar. Then select from the following options:

  Show Data Under Cusror:

  Displays the frequency, time, channel, and amplitude information at the location under the cursor.

  Video Frame Rate:

  Displays the current and target frame rate of open video files in the Multitrack Editor.

  File Status:

  Indicates when processing is occurring for effects and amplitude adjustments.

  Sample Type:

  Displays sample information about the currently opened waveform (Waveform Editor) or session file (Multitrack Editor). For example, a 44,100 Hz, 16‑bit stereo file is displayed as 44100 Hz • 16‑bit • Stereo.

  Uncompressed Audio Size:

  Indicates either how large the active audio file would be if saved to an uncompressed format such as WAV and AIFF, or the total size of a multitrack session.

  Duration:

  Shows you the length of the current waveform or session. For example, 0:01:247 means the waveform or session is 1.247 seconds long.

  Free Space:

  Shows how much space is available on your hard drive.

  Free Space (Time):

  Displays the time remaining for recording, based upon the currently selected sample rate. This value is shown as minutes, seconds, and thousandths of seconds. For example, if Adobe Audition is set to record 8‑bit mono audio at 11,025 Hz, the time remaining might read 4399:15.527 free. Change the recording options to 16‑bit stereo at 44,100 Hz, and the time remaining becomes 680:44.736 free.

  Tip: By default, Free Space (Time) information is hidden. To show it, right-click the status bar, and select Free Space (Time) from the pop-up menu.

  Detect Dropped Samples:

  Indicates that samples were missing during recording or playback. If this indicator appears, consider rerecording the file to avoid audible dropouts.

Change interface colors, brightness, and performance

Save, reset, or delete workspaces

Save a custom workspace

As you customize a workspace, the application tracks your changes, storing the most recent layout. To store a specific layout more permanently, save a custom workspace. Saved custom workspaces appear in the Workspace menu, where you can return to and reset them.

Reset a workspace

Reset the current workspace to return to its original, saved layout of panels.

Delete a workspace