New Further Interface Improvement Proposal -Updated!

Monkeyboi · Post by **Monkeyboi** » Mon Nov 17, 2003 6:08 pm

I like/agree/am indifferent to most of your suggestions, with the following notes:
-changes to the mousebuttons should (and you mention this, but I stress) definetly be user-definable. Otherwise, its not fair to old users to just remap and force us to become less productive while we relearn.

Definitely agreed.

hotkeys should be user definable too and come with the following presets:
current: for old users/compatibility
right handed: right hand on mouse, left hand on keyboard.
left handed: the reverse
custom...

Good idea, but I don't know how left handed keyboard leyout would work. I mean, there is some logic in the keystrokes (Xkey constrains to the x axis and Tkey brings up texture rotating in the 3d window for example). I like the idea of having the keyboard customizable for people who might be very used to other applications.

if the limit is still 31 it should be increased (I'll check)

It is, I'm afraid, still 31.

this is a want not a need but: selectably hidable/namable 'groups' of RVKS, i.e. "phonemes" "face" -etc.

Yes that is a very good idea. All it would require is to add a new type of panel in the IPO/Animation Editor along side mine where you can drop RVK/morph target panels into. These panles should also be collapsable.

nice to show the sliders as floating windows in the 3d view (like project:messiah)

Another great idea actually. I don't think this would be that hard to incorporate if something like my/Carnivores RVK proposal is folowed. There could be a new floating panel called "RVKs" or "Morph Targets" in the 3D window that basicly displays the same as the righthand bar in the IPO/RVK window.

Monkeyboi · Post by **Monkeyboi** » Mon Nov 17, 2003 6:08 pm

Today I have finished a new part of the proposal, the Texture buttons reorganising proposal. It is a comprehensive guide to reorganising the texture buttons. See it here:

http://www.shadeless.dk/ui/texturebuttons.htm

Also, the original Further Interface Improvement proposal has been updated. There are a few comments inserted here and there as well as a new section in the bottom about a new Object Info box. Check below:

http://www.shadeless.dk/ui/

pinhead_66 · Post by **pinhead_66** » Mon Nov 17, 2003 9:18 pm

An amazing piece of work Monkeyboi. I'm very curious how you would rearrange the material and rendering buttons.

The overal proposal is inpressive and exactly the kind of feedback/extra info the coders can use to inprove the new interface further.

after all, the current 2.30 is a Preview release, with bugs and not completely finished.

Resprect dude (as for all the other people who actively participate on the developing of blender)

pinhead_66

pinhead_66 · Post by **pinhead_66** » Mon Nov 17, 2003 9:19 pm

An amazing piece of work Monkeyboi. I'm very curious how you would rearrange the material and rendering buttons.

The overal proposal is inpressive and exactly the kind of feedback/extra info the coders can use to inprove the new interface further.

after all, the current 2.30 is a Preview release, with bugs and not completely finished.

Resprect dude (as for all the other people who actively participate on the developing of blender)

pinhead_66

pinhead_66 · Post by **pinhead_66** » Mon Nov 17, 2003 9:19 pm

An amazing piece of work Monkeyboi. I'm very curious how you would rearrange the material and rendering buttons.

The overal proposal is inpressive and exactly the kind of feedback/extra info the coders can use to inprove the new interface further.

after all, the current 2.30 is a Preview release, with bugs and not completely finished.

Resprect dude (as for all the other people who actively participate on the developing of blender)

pinhead_66

pinhead_66 · Post by **pinhead_66** » Mon Nov 17, 2003 9:21 pm

sorry for the triple post, got an error message, so i assumed the answer didn't get through

pinhead_66

dante · Post by **dante** » Mon Nov 17, 2003 9:45 pm

EXCELLENT IDEAS! I especialy like your ideas for the RVKs and the object info! Brilliant!

Any official plans for integration into blender?

dante

Carnivore · Post by **Carnivore** » Tue Nov 18, 2003 6:27 pm

slikdigit wrote:this is a want not a need but: selectably hidable/namable 'groups' of RVKS, i.e. "phonemes" "face" -etc.

I had some time to waste, so I tried making a mockup of that idea as well. Technically this image would need a lot of refining, but is this what you basically had in mind? www.hot.ee/tere343/rvk_new2.jpg

Monkeyboi, nice ideas as before. A+! Keep it up, this way the suggestions might actually make it into 2.33 or smth

slikdigit · Post by **slikdigit** » Wed Nov 19, 2003 12:36 am

Wow Carnivore, that looks pretty cool. Something of that sort is what I meant, yes.
Nice to see all these ideas flowing (I'll still stand by IPOs and RVKs, tho

)

Monkeyboi · Post by **Monkeyboi** » Thu Nov 20, 2003 3:49 pm

Wow Carnivore, that looks great! Good job! REALLY like it! It just came to me that I think there should be a button to edit the mesh in the morph target panel, so that you won't have to enter the "options" menu to edit the morph taget shape. Options should be for slider min/max and the name.. If the name editing is taken out of the options panel it will take up too much space in each panel I think.

Also, there needs to be a button to add Groups. Here is a mockup of how it could look:

Forgot to change the colours of some of the buttons... anyway, the idead is that you create an empty group with the "Add Group" button and then you can add panels to groups by dragging into them.

On the subject about having morph targets in the 3D window, this is what I imagine:

The idea is that there is one panel per Group, so each group has its own panel. If there was just one big panel it would get problematic with many morph targets. When you create a morph target group in the morph target window it shows up in the Object menu under Morph Targets in the 3D window. You can then activate/close/minimize/move the panels just like the Object Properties panel.

Pablosbrain · Post by **Pablosbrain** » Thu Nov 20, 2003 5:06 pm

A great idea on the panels and the moreph target ideas all together! I hope to see this someday implemented into blender! Two notes though.

Idea 1. Backwards compatibility... Make sure that old blend files with RVKs will load up and work with this new way.

And idea 2. An idea to possibly make the morph panels shorter...

This makes each morph tareget control just a little shorter allowing more to be displayed vertically.

Monkeyboi · Post by **Monkeyboi** » Thu Nov 20, 2003 5:23 pm

Good idea Pablosbrain! Or maybe their should be no buttons at all in the 3D window panels at all? The sliders could be made really wide then..

Yes, backwards compatibility would definately be nice. Definitely preferrable Lets see how possible it is though.

MikaMTB · Post by **MikaMTB** » Thu Nov 20, 2003 7:59 pm

Monkeyboi, Just a short message to let you know I really liked your proposal for the texture buttons and panels. Great thoughts.

As for RVK I don't use them myself (yet) so I wouldn't know.

Fred_Pyo · Post by **Fred_Pyo** » Fri Nov 21, 2003 4:52 am

I feel bad about this... but...

Sometimes you all are just so good, that the only thing I can come up with is...

BRILLIANT...

keep on with the

to improve our beloved Blender

monkeyboi, i read most of your propolsal, I love it, with the exception of a thing or two, will comment them out when I have more time. But still, GREAT work... (can't wait to see this implemented into Blender)

malefico · Post by **malefico** » Fri Nov 21, 2003 2:09 pm

I like very much the RVK stuff from your proposal, specially the Grouping thing from slikdigit. I will just comment a couple of ideas:

There should be a way to show up each "morphing target" as you call them (I also prefer RVK, sorry), in another way than selecting the "Key horizontal line", but as quick as that. Currently, you can move the slider to 1 to see the changes but it's uncomfortable.
Maybe a "Show" toggle button (one that cannot be activated for two simultaneous keys).

Speaking about names, "Animation window" instead of "IPO Curve Editor" is IMHO more confusing. Maybe "Animation Curve Editor" would be more appropiate. Or even "IPO Curve Editor" as it already is.

I have several ideas to improve the UV Editor, if you want me to share them with you just drop me a line.

Cheers.

Blender.org

New Further Interface Improvement Proposal -Updated!

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