In case you are in need of help, have a suggestion to make or found a bug in PureRef you have come to the right place! https://www.pureref.com/forum/index.php Mon, 24 Aug 2026 00:44:26 +0200 Phorum 5.2.23 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?4,5949,5949#msg-5949 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?4,5949,5949#msg-5949 I am with the settings of "Open files in" as "Current Window"
Testing steps:
1. Use powershell to execute: &"C:\Program Files\PureRef\PureRef.exe" "{old_filepath}"-c "load; {old_filepath}" -c "save; {new_filepath}" -c "exit" "{new_filepath}" it doesn't save the filepath which does not exists.
2. Even if I use the existing path, execute the command shown in 1), it doesn't save the files with the unsaved changes unless I hit save file manually and execute the command.

It would be awesome if I can get some insights in terms of command or maybe some enhancements in the command to allow filepath can be saved when it does not exists and with any unsaved changes.

Thanks,
Kayla]]> kayla_man Bug reports Fri, 21 Aug 2026 13:51:02 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5947,5947#msg-5947 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5947,5947#msg-5947 klownie Suggestions Mon, 17 Aug 2026 16:18:16 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5939,5939#msg-5939 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5939,5939#msg-5939
I've been thinking of something that I feel like could be a helpful feature for those of us with massive PureRef files/boards

When I have a large board of images when I'm designing the concept art for something, I often find myself having to scroll and move to the specific image_1 I have in one area and then to image_2 in another.

I wish there was a button combo I could hit when I select both images from a full zoom out and then they get focused into their own microverse type of canvas that I can close without having to completely make a new file for those 2/multiple images.

For those of us that make piles of image refs and like sorting/mixing multiple images when focusing on specific design elements, this would help us greatly. Like recently I was making beetle & fur armor for someone's DnD OC and I was working on gauntlets and I took a good amount of time selecting all of the horn beetle refs I have and then multiple gauntlet designs and just pasted them into a new PureRef file. (Took me about 4-5 minutes to do).

I wish in that scenario I could just hit a key combo that would focus those images and then sorted them by the order they were selected, and then I auto align them with ctrl + arrow keys.]]> Eldrin Suggestions Sat, 15 Aug 2026 08:57:30 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5936,5936#msg-5936 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5936,5936#msg-5936 andde11 Suggestions Fri, 14 Aug 2026 13:52:28 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5934,5934#msg-5934 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5934,5934#msg-5934 Sometimes when I'm using them as a reference I make a note which frame I used for what part of my own animation. For this cases it would be really useful, if I could display the current frame number under the image (or as an overlay), especially if the movements are tiny.
I could imagine you don't want to dive deeper into this whole "animated reference" hole, since it seems quite deep and your main focus is still images (still still images?)

However thank you a ton for making such an amazing app, which somehow get's better with every update (I use it for absolutely everything)]]> schwarzgrau Suggestions Thu, 13 Aug 2026 12:11:14 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?5,5932,5932#msg-5932 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?5,5932,5932#msg-5932
just starting out but so far loving the program. thanks for making it available

i would love some tips for managing file size in hope of maintaining responsiveness as my canvas grows exponentially :)

for example, i recently used manage images > change image resolution > downscale to reduce dozens of large image files down to max. 1200px. however, when I subsequently saved the file, the file size did not reduce at all. am I missing something?

thanks for any help and/or tips]]> phased Help Sat, 15 Aug 2026 16:36:03 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5929,5929#msg-5929 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5929,5929#msg-5929 basplay Suggestions Thu, 13 Aug 2026 12:14:15 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?2,5926,5926#msg-5926 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?2,5926,5926#msg-5926 tpmer General Fri, 31 Jul 2026 05:29:25 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?4,5924,5924#msg-5924 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?4,5924,5924#msg-5924
The actual content (images, text, etc.) is placed correctly, but the selection outline appears offset from the selected item, making it difficult to resize or manipulate.

This issue occurs while using Overlay Mode (the transparent window mode).

Interestingly, boards created with previous versions of PureRef do not exhibit this issue. The problem only occurs on newly created boards.

Changing the Windows display scaling while PureRef is already running temporarily fixes the issue, regardless of the scaling value selected.
However, after closing and reopening PureRef, the selection bounding box becomes offset again, even if the display scaling remains at 100%.

Windows compatibility settings were tested:
Override high DPI scaling → Application: no change.
System: no change.
System (Enhanced): makes rendering significantly worse.

PureRef: 2.1.3
OS: Windows 11
Monitor: 3840×2160 (4K)
Windows display scaling: 125%
Single monitor setup]]> k3vnbuzz Bug reports Sat, 15 Aug 2026 16:17:19 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?2,5921,5921#msg-5921 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?2,5921,5921#msg-5921 You can export a transparent PNG and add it right on top of PureRef so you don't have to keep remeasuring.]]> SmallKiwi General Sun, 26 Jul 2026 01:39:51 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?4,5920,5920#msg-5920 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?4,5920,5920#msg-5920 SmallKiwi Bug reports Sun, 16 Aug 2026 05:25:38 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5919,5919#msg-5919 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5919,5919#msg-5919 _NN_ Suggestions Sat, 25 Jul 2026 06:14:18 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5917,5917#msg-5917 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5917,5917#msg-5917
Thanks.]]> Glep Suggestions Fri, 24 Jul 2026 10:07:50 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5916,5916#msg-5916 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5916,5916#msg-5916
First of all, thank you for such an amazing tool! As an environment artist, PureRef is an absolute must-have in my daily workflow.

I would like to suggest a new feature: Layered Images (or Image Parenting).

The Concept:
The idea is to allow attaching or "pinning" a smaller, high-resolution detail image directly onto a specific spot of a larger base image (like a sprawling landscape, concept art, or a city map).

How it would work in practice:

Coordinate Locking: The detail image becomes a "child" of the base image. When you move or scale the parent image, the child follows.

Strict Z-Order: The child image always stays on top of its parent, regardless of other sorting.

Nesting: The hierarchy can go deeper. You could attach an even more detailed crop to the first child image (e.g., Main Landscape -> Building close-up -> Brick texture).

Why this is useful:
When working on large-scale environments, I often need to reference both the macro layout and the micro details. Placing them side-by-side works, but you lose the spatial context of where that detail belongs.

With this feature, I could place high-res snippets exactly where they belong on the main canvas. To examine a detail, I would simply zoom into that specific area of the main image, essentially creating an infinite-zoom canvas with localized high-res textures.

Thank you for considering this idea and for your continuous work on PureRef!

Best regards

Example: https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/55413084739_0f02b72556_b.jpg]]> Hardway Suggestions Thu, 23 Jul 2026 10:10:07 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5905,5905#msg-5905 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5905,5905#msg-5905
With that out of the way, I absolutely love this program, and its so sleek and easy to use. I used to enjoy things like Pinterest a lot, and often you could find boards that had fun inspiration, or a collection of images for a specific character. But of course we all likely know what Pinterest is (and the AI nightmare that plagues it).

My idea is less Pinterest and more like Clip Studio's Assets 'Store' where you can create and upload your own assets for others to use as a tool! Perhaps even a small, one-time fee (say maybe 0.99 or something in that range) for access to the library could also stimulate a good stream of suppourt while also providing searchable, tagged, and indexed reference boards, of anything the users could think of! Sort of way to reward those who want to back your work with their wallets. Of course people who have already donated or paid would be grandfathered in.

This is just my idea and I hope it doesn't come off a pushy or preachy I just think it would be really cool to have. By no means do I want to imply the Pure ref team Has to or Needs to do this, but if its something they're open to, maybe exploring!]]> EmGhostlyScholar Suggestions Sat, 04 Jul 2026 16:32:10 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5904,5904#msg-5904 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5904,5904#msg-5904 aruman Suggestions Fri, 03 Jul 2026 20:09:12 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?5,5903,5903#msg-5903 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?5,5903,5903#msg-5903
Could not open file for save.
Source file C:/Users/user/AppData/Local/Temp/PureRef/ce5d5a63e0df4faea402de1e8f1f21d3_AutoSave.pur can not be copied to D:/Art/pureref/strawberry.32336.pur: Cannot create D:/Art/pureref/strawberry.32336.pur for output. (D:/Art/pureref/strawberry.32336.pur)]]> fei Help Sat, 15 Aug 2026 16:28:45 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5898,5898#msg-5898 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5898,5898#msg-5898
OR

within the arrange by path, each row of images, or each image block, would be representative of the parent folder they came from, so that they can quickly be organized as well as have some visual separation between which is in what folder.]]> jogrnaut Suggestions Fri, 26 Jun 2026 17:33:27 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?5,5896,5896#msg-5896 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?5,5896,5896#msg-5896 My file is 591MB]]> d896848643 Help Tue, 30 Jun 2026 17:16:26 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?5,5895,5895#msg-5895 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?5,5895,5895#msg-5895
I've been using the pureref very usefully.
but now I have a problem with opening the file.
the warning said "The file you are trying to open might be corrupt (incorrect signature).

I just clicked Try to recover button, but it seems not working perfectly.. some of the images are lost.
What should I do? Can I get some help?

2.0.3 is my version

and I share the link to my file
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1TMt_yemu_IsDeC1kAFvi-EDAfH_XH0Jr/view?usp=sharing]]> roalfhs Help Tue, 30 Jun 2026 17:13:29 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5892,5892#msg-5892 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5892,5892#msg-5892 vinhshiro Suggestions Thu, 18 Jun 2026 08:05:28 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5891,5891#msg-5891 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5891,5891#msg-5891
If that's not possible, then how about being able to double-click the title bar to shrink the window down to zero height, with just the title bar visible until it is double-clicked again. This would be similar to how palettes in Clip Studio Paint shrink down to a title bar when double-clicked, and then expand when double-clicked again.]]> MarkSweeney Suggestions Tue, 16 Jun 2026 17:48:22 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?4,5888,5888#msg-5888 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?4,5888,5888#msg-5888 redstars8 Bug reports Sun, 23 Aug 2026 00:34:15 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5887,5887#msg-5887 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5887,5887#msg-5887
The idea is to allow users to designate any image within a board as a custom "Cover Image" or "Board Thumbnail." This image would represent the board visually wherever thumbnails are displayed, such as in Windows Explorer, recent files, project browsers, or any future library-management features.

Currently, when working with dozens or even hundreds of PureRef boards, it can become difficult to quickly identify the correct board from filenames alone. Artists often remember projects visually rather than by name. A custom cover image would make browsing and locating boards significantly faster.

Suggested Workflow:

* Right-click any image inside a PureRef board.
* Select "Set as Board Cover" or "Set as Thumbnail."
* The selected image becomes the visual representation of that board.
* If no cover image is selected, PureRef continues using its current automatic thumbnail generation.

Possible UI Behavior:

* A small badge or icon could appear on the selected image indicating it is the board cover.
* Users could change or remove the cover at any time.
* The cover image could be displayed in:

* Windows Explorer thumbnails
* Recent Files lists
* Open Project dialogs
* Future library or asset-management views

Benefits:

* Faster navigation between projects.
* Easier management of large reference collections.
* Better visual organization for artists, designers, and creative professionals.
* Improved recognition of boards without relying solely on filenames.

This feature would function similarly to a book cover, allowing users to immediately recognize a board based on a single representative image rather than opening multiple files to find the correct one.

Thank you for your time and for creating such a useful tool.]]> HexTheArtist Suggestions Tue, 09 Jun 2026 00:43:22 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5885,5885#msg-5885 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5885,5885#msg-5885 Reido Suggestions Fri, 05 Jun 2026 23:06:04 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5884,5884#msg-5884 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5884,5884#msg-5884 ljy26lee Suggestions Fri, 05 Jun 2026 15:07:44 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5883,5883#msg-5883 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5883,5883#msg-5883 I'd like to suggest adding a right-to-left (reverse Z-order) arrangement option as an alternative to the current left-to-right Z-order layout used when arranging images by name.
Current behavior:
When arranging images by name, they are laid out in standard left-to-right, top-to-bottom order (left Z-order):
1 → 2 → 3
4 → 5 → 6
7 → 8 → 9
Requested behavior:
An additional option to arrange in right-to-left, top-to-bottom order (reverse Z-order):
3 ← 2 ← 1
6 ← 5 ← 4
9 ← 8 ← 7
Use case:
This is particularly useful for artists working with manga or right-to-left (RTL) publications, where reference images represent pages or panels that are read from right to left. Using the current left-to-right layout forces an unintuitive reversal of the reading order, making it harder to navigate and compare references while working.
It would fit naturally alongside the existing toggle behavior (toggling the same arrange command to reverse order), or could be a separate option in the arrange menu.
Thank you for the great tool!]]> okikonnyaku1121 Suggestions Wed, 03 Jun 2026 15:27:37 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?4,5881,5881#msg-5881 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?4,5881,5881#msg-5881 Oneiro Bug reports Tue, 02 Jun 2026 12:28:34 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5878,5878#msg-5878 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5878,5878#msg-5878 I wanted to suggest adding a way to creat and manage templates (in the future possibly even with a free community marketplace?)

This could allow you to imrpove your workflows massively.
For example:
- Adding questions to fill out before/while making the moodboard
- Adding premade zones to your moodboard to better structure things
- Boards with a preselected image set (includes a variety of themes and styles and subjects to choose from for inspiration)
and so on

Also I would like to request a revamped startup experience + a Library where you can easily browse boards and put them into folders (and subfolders;) to organize them.

Idealy the startup page would then use a mix between a „New Board“ + 3 Stared/Most used Templates + Last 3 Boards (Pinned/Stared Boards have higher priority?) as a quick start window.]]> VisualChris Suggestions Mon, 01 Jun 2026 11:17:35 +0200 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5876,5876#msg-5876 https://www.pureref.com/forum/read.php?3,5876,5876#msg-5876 JC3d Suggestions Sat, 30 May 2026 15:12:46 +0200