Persistent and Annoying Dialog Box

I just did a test on my system. Keep in mind I am on Windows.

1. Deleted studios3.dat file from Affinity Appdata folder (C:\Users\username\AppData\Roaming\Affinity\Affinity\3.0)
2. Launched then closed v3.0.3 to recreate studios3.dat with previous version
3. Launched v3.1, received "newer Pixel studio version is available" message, clicked Cancel
4. Used Studio Manager to Duplicate the default Pixel studio to 'Pixel NEW', switched to 'Pixel NEW' and changed a few window settings so it differs from the default 'Pixel'
5. Closed and restarted Affinity. Received the 'newer version' dialog again, and this time clicked Overwrite. Switched to 'Pixel NEW' studio and all settings/appearance remains as I had customized previously.
6. Closed and restarted Affinity. No more 'newer version' dialog appears. The custom 'Pixel NEW' studio still appears configured as expected.

The behavior of v3.1 indicates that some non-obvious changes were made to the default Pixel studio as compared to earlier versions, thus v3.1 offers to update that studio when launching. The presented dialog box is rather clumsy, though. It provides no detailed explanation and uses the word Overwrite, which almost any seasoned computer user will avoid out of habit unless they know EXACTLY what the overwrite entails.

As an added test, I reverted the application state to #4 above (before approving the overwrite). I then exported the 'Pixel NEW' studio to an .afstudio file. I then restarted Affinity, approved the overwrite, and again exported the 'Pixel NEW' studio to a second .afstudio file. The 2 .afstudio files are binary-identical except for 4 bytes that simply store the timestamp when each file was saved, so the overwrite function did not change my custom studio settings.

I can't prove this with 100% certainty, but if you duplicate your customized Pixel studio, then approve the overwrite on next launch, your custom studio should retain all settings as you configured and the nagging 'newer version' dialog should go away. Exporting your customized studio to an .afstudio file before attempting the overwrite should provide a reliable backup to use if needed.

If there are Mac users around who can advise on anything that might behave differently for that OS, please chime in.

Quote from smadell

One of the first things I did in version 3.0 was to customize my Pixel studio. I added the tools and panels I wanted, and removed the ones I didn't.

I apologise for being that guy, the one who says "What you should have done is ..."

This is where you "went wrong". What you should have done is make your own Pixel Studio either by copying/cloning the default studio or from scratch. Then you can use that one and never have to worry about the original being overwritten. You can take your time adding the 'new tools' or whatever it is that the new Pixel studio has.