Event constraints are not working as expected

[swdpowell (Steve)]

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Platform & OS Version

Platform: Mac
OS Version: 14.1.2 (23B92)
OS Language Setting: English (UK)

App Version

Version: 3.3.8
Application Shell: 3.3.6

Problem Description + Screenshots

Event constraints are not working as expected, creating illogical results.

I have more screenshots but as a new user can only add one.

Steps to reproduce

Provide step-by-step instructions to recreate the bug

Create an event (event a) for a ten day period
Create a second event (event b)
Set the start of event b to be three days before the end of event a (this requires using negative values - an issue which I raised in Q + A)
Set the end of event b to equal the end of event a
This should set event b to be three days long
Instead, event b starts one day after event a, and there is an error on both events

• Are you able to reproduce this bug reliably?
  Yes, see above

• Can you make this bug happen with a clean timeline file?
  Yes

• Does it only happen with a specific timeline file?
  No

Any relevant files?

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Tidy Up

Please delete any remaining instructions (including this section) before posting

[jess]

Currently this is something that happens by design.

Currently when resolving conflicts in constraints, it will move the start date of an event to fulfill the constraint, not the end date (effectively changing the duration), even though both could be valid.

It was initially set up this way due to the use of constraints in Project Management, where people set strict durations of how long a task will take to be performed and then use constraints to work out when to start certain projects.

However we have had requests for this to be changed, as other people would prefer to have the duration of an event change instead (eg. for authors that are setting death dates based on other events, they would rather the age the character died at change rather than the date of the event it is based on).

It is something we will be looking at in the future to improve on and add more options for uses

[Amontillado]

Jess, I think the suggestion was “move 1 day before” should equal “move back one day”. As it is, to move something back one day the constraint has to read “move -1 day before”.

Moving before by a negative number of days, for the algebraic-minded, would seem like moving after by a positive number of days.

[swdpowell (Steve)]

Yes, this. Before = negative, After = positive.

Therefore a positive offset value with the negative before keyword should equal going back in time. A negative value with the negative before keyword should equal a positive time value.

Either way I can’t seem to constrain an event to start three days before the end of another, and end at the same as it.

@jess I feel he point here is that this set of constraints shouldn;t cause a conflict at all.