So if the mask manager attaches the module (with all its settings) to the saved mask then that problem is solved surely? It doesn’t prevent individual masks being used for individual modules, they just wouldn’t be saved as a ‘preset mask’ and therefore wouldn’t be in the mask manager list.
why duplicate the information that needs to be present in the pixelpipe? The darktable pixelpipe is built via processing modules, not via masks that are processed
I don’t think what you just said actually made any sense, but then I’m not interested in pixel pipes - I am interested in usability though, features that make the software easier to use (a common complaint levelled at Darktable). Other software manages this a lot better than DT and I think the devs have forgotten that it’s actually photographers who use this software - it is amazingly sophisticated, but that complexity could be better managed, we don’t need to know this stuff, we just want tools to edit images.
so better stay with that other software - or just fork darktable and start implementing an alternative. If your solution is ways better then i’m pretty sure it will be merged 
This is FOSS and not a commercial product. The developers normally develop the software they want to use themselves and then freely share their work.
You know I find the atmosphere in here decidedly unfriendly… not my usually experience in groups like this I must say. So I’ll bid you adieu and yes, maybe Darktable isn’t for me then…
foss is about sharing, not claiming …
suggesting the developers forget about someone is quite offensive, so don’t be surprised on the reaction
@Timiambeing please understand that “lightroom does this better” without any actual suggestion on how to improve our own UI/UX is not helpful at all. We can’t be lightroom (and don’t want to be) so we can’t just drop lightroom paradigms of operation into our application and have it make sense.
Also we aren’t on the mad dash for new users, we have no profits. We do want people to use the software because we like it and we think it works well, but we are well aware of the alternatives and if one of those works for you, then you should use it.
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Thank you for your comments, I do understand. I think the problem was I came on here with a query, I praised Darktable and made sure it was known how much I liked it - but after the first useful comment I was treated as if I had suggested something ridiculous and totally stupid - there’s nothing wrong with mentioning how another software does the job, but that again was met with hostility.
I did notice this tone in reply to another post of mine, so I have received the message loud and clear. I’ll discuss Darktable elsewhere.
How long have you been using darktable?
And how long have you been using other raw editors?
Darktable has a different approach than some of the larger editors (larger in terms of user count). So if you are used to such an editor, darktable will indeed not be “intuitive” (read: not work as you have learned to expect). “Muscle memory” won’t work, and needs to be retrained.
That’s neither darktable’s fault, nor the fault of any other program…
And if you start claiming replies make no sense, and devs don’t consider photographers, I’m not surprised replies to that also get less friendly.
Good luck “elsewhere”
A limited solution for now in DT might be to create the style. The module and the settings will be transferred. Then apply that to an image…draw your gradient which might have needed to be adjusted anyway and then use selective copy and paste on further images that you would have applied the style to…this does transfer the mask… still not what I think you were asking but in reality pretty close unless your mask is more complicated but again if it is I can’t imagine it being too widely applicable anyway but maybe that is at least a bit faster…
Cool down everyone, DT has enormous power, and there is usually a way to do things.
Tim, It may not be exactly what you want but some potential solutions are discussed in this thread:
Read on past this point in the thread as I think you can create a kind of “template” image that has the gradient mask you want, and then copy in overwrite mode to all the images you want to process.
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I have to say this is a very friendly and supportive forum. We as users have to appreciate that all the great features of DT are developed by volunteers. Sometimes as a user i may see the opportunity to change something or add something but i need to convince a developer that it is worthwhile to spend their time doing these changes. Sometimes the developers push back because they don’t see value in the suggestion, but they are not being disrespectful to me. Again, i just want to say what a great job the developers have done and how helpful I find this forum.
Hi Tim, when i edit a series of images in DT and I want to apply modules and masks across multiple shots I don’t create a style or preset. What I do is with the first edited image select I use control shift c which brings up an option to copy module settings. I select the wanted modules and then I can paste using control v these modules for another image. Masks are included and masks can be tweaked, moved or deleted as required. This is super helpful at times. So DT does what you are asking inmy view. Good luck
We don’t have to praise the software every time we want to make a suggestion for improvement or offer some constructive criticism. That isn’t necessary. Nor does the praise buy you any leeway in your criticisms. I think we all enjoy the software and try to speak up because we want it to be better. But I think what is missing specifically here, and in many of these types of interactions, is a bit of humility and recognition that a few lines of text is not enough to make a complete feature. A few lines of text is an excellent jumping off point for a discussion that may lead to a feature, but much more is necessary. We should also expect some resistance in our request, because if it was obvious and unanimously a good idea, then it’d probably already be done.
We should also be aware that “lightroom does xyz” without some in depth analysis of why it behaves that way and why that behavior is a good fit into our application is something that people who have been around a while have heard a lot and, in and of itself, is not a convincing argument (and actually has the opposite effect).
I don’t mean to level this at you directly @Terry – rather you just provided a nice jumping off point to some more thoughts. 
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Thanks for your feedback. I have picked DT as my #1 editor and am aiways pleased to see the new improvements which i often hadn,t even thought about. I don’t want a LR clone.
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Damn it I just couldn’t resist seeing what came next here… 
Well, really, that reply (not yours, yours was informative and made a valid point) did make no sense!!
“The darktable pixelpipe is built via processing modules, not via masks that are processed…”
??? in what way aren’t masks processed? and in what way are they not in the pixel pipeline?? and really what on earth does any of that sentence actually mean!
But hey, its true I didn’t understand the type of person that makes and uses free software - I was just coming from the perspective of a user talking to other users - I didn’t realise users of free software are a different bunch, and did things differently?
Of course it isn’t, that’s why I made the effort to explain how masks could work, to make things easier? In fact I went into some detail in my answer to @rvietor, perhaps @paperdigits didn’t scroll that far back to see? I was very positive about DT and still am, all I did here as to ask if a certain element worked a certain way and I was shot down immediately. This isn’t nice group behaviour, but again I admit I was treating this group just like any other software group, not taking into account what I now realise is a very different way of thinking about software development and how making suggestions or criticisms to this group isn’t very well received by some of its regular contributors.
Now can I express my appreciation to the comments that followed my exit, @priort that’s similar to what I have been doing, but I hadn’t thought of selective copy and paste, great idea thanks. Also @Aliks for a link to a very useful article, @Terry for a similar suggestion and because I have seen how nice it is in here mentioned elsewhere and wondered how in the world with just a few statements I had seemingly alienated the entire community - thankfully I can see this wasn’t the case. Thank you for the later useful tips and suggestions… just one last comment…
What supreme arrogance… and to suggest someone is ‘sucking up’ to win leeway, and of course from an esteemed moderator with a little badge. Which is why I’m off, poor Terry offered up a sensible idea and had to be put in his place by the regulator.
Listen, it’s ok if we don’t like the feeling a place gives us isn’t it, we don’t have to stick around. I’ve been contributing to groups like this for decades, and I definitely don’t need to be told how to behave by ‘people who have been around here awhile’ - good grief the arrogance astounds me!
Thanks to those who actually understood what I was trying to achieve and helped.
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Where? I don’t see “quite some detail” anywhere in this thread.
Hmmm
- Come to a new community
- Make disparaging remarks about the developers and insinuate they’re not photographers too
- Say “but I’ve also praised the software!!” multiple times
- Wonder why you’re not getting positive replies…
You’ve said this numerous times, yet here you are.
Don’t push your woe-is-me plight on others.
You keep saying you’re leaving, you should do it. Don’t be a tease.
I’m sorry, but I don’t think this discussion is bringing anything positive to the Darktable project. So much energy spent for nothing…
Greetings from Brussels
Christian
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In my humble opinion, there is one case where it could be helpfull to store a drawn mask in a preset :
=> When you want to hide a sensor dust visible on a blank surface (for ex : blue sky)
In this case, the correction is always at the same place so the mask doesn’t change between different pictures.
For now I use the copy/paste functionnality which works well but I have first to find a corrected picture from which doing the initial ctrl+c.