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Would it be possible to have the layer position locked by default?
I find myself accidentally shifting layers so often.

Or are there users who shift their layers so regularly that this would make things harder for them?

I understand you request. I always have all my Layers "Position Locked" But I guess a lot of users is enjoying shifting the layer around.
What if the Position lock was a part of the New Layer Popup. So you can choose what default behaviour you like. And TVP will remeber it

That would be perfect for me.

I do shift layers often, and I also sometimes shift them by mistake, but it doesn't bother me too much. unlocking/locking layers through right click menu takes too much time in a workflow - maybe this option should be among the visible toggles (next to the full lock), and not hidden in the right click menu?

meanwhile, you can modify the "Create New AnimLayer" default shortkey by adding the "Layer Position Lock" command
so any animlayer will be (position) locked from the outset, or, keep the the default [Ctrl N] as it, for creating unlocked animlayers,
and choose another free hotkey and assign it for creating a locked animlayer.

Yes! That's a great alternative. Thanks Zig!