I have X3c - the Normal template loads no matter what I check in "Preferences | Advanced" etc.
Heard back from tech support: if I use "Per Project Audio Folders" I can turn this off; yes, this does then work.
However, for various reasons, I do not want to use Per Project audio folders.
Instead, I would like the "Preferences | Advanced" checkbox for loading or not loading the normal template to actually work.
Cakewalk, please fix this.

All I can say is when I have "Load Normal" set to off - all I get when I start X3 is a totally blank page. So I have no idea what other settings you have that are influencing this.

joden
All I can say is when I have "Load Normal" set to off - all I get when I start X3 is a totally blank page. So I have no idea what other settings you have that are influencing this.

Like he said, it's because you have "Use Per Project Audio Folders" checked under Preferences|File|Audio Data. If you uncheck that, Normal Template will always load on startup no matter what. It's been that way for a pretty long time (at least a few versions).

ahhh okay - gotcha. My bad. I do use per project as I always want audio with a project, not in some generic folder. I agree then, that it would be nice to have the option to ALWAYS disable it.

Yeah, I figure it's either a bug or someone wasn't thinking when they made that programming decision a while ago. It's not very logical and it's obviously pretty difficult to figure out as a user.

Yes - I had to contact tech support and wait to get an answer.
Using the "Per Project Folders" is not an option for me - BUT X3 worked fine before I installed the X3c patch, and the X2 version was doing fine as well.

Using the "Per Project Folders" is not an option for me

 
Can you indulge my morbid fascination and explain why this is not an option for you?

It too was curious but not enough to ask

I always keep several versions of each project on hand - amount of data for each ranges from about 500 MB to 1 GB.
Every time I number a new version, the files are copied over to a per project folder. Now, perhaps it only does this one time, but still it doubles the disk space needed for audio data.

There is no limit to the number of cwp files in a folder. I use per-project audio folders and almost always have several active cwp files (and older versions too) in the folder above the audio folder. The only time I make a copy of a project is to make a backup or use the "Save As" to another folder for the final cleanup. I can copy the other cwp's from the original folder if I need them.