So, while I have no desire to wade into another discussion about the UI in Revit (I've actually grown to like the latest flavor) I saw the following in AUGI recently which I thought was worth noting.
One of the great things the iphone (and now iPad) did for the industry was to get rid of the notion of the stylus. Remember that little pencil that didn't write that you needed to have to use your Palm? Remember that you could never find it? Remember you could buy them in a 3-pack because they were so easy to loose?
Out with the stylus, in with the gesture. What a great way to manipulate data at a high level using a natural (more natural) motion.
How does this relate to Revit? Martin (real name withheld to protect the innocent) used a piece of shareware to bring gesturing to the Revit UI.
I'm not sure if I like it or don't but I applaud the concept and think it's a very very interesting way to look at how we interact in a ribbon-free world.
Creating gestures of different motions, visible on the screen, allow different context menus.
check it out on AUGI.
9 comments:
Hah! I gotta check this out in Revit. I remember using mouse gestures way back in the mid '90s on ARRIS running under SCO Unix. Being an AutoCAD guy at the time, I thought it was cheesy - until I tried it. WOW. Keyboard shortcuts instantly became obsolete. Loved it. Then 2 months later we switched to AutoCAD...argh.
Interesting post, but I don't think I really see the connection between iPads, Stylus and mouse gestures? I also think you're maybe selling tools like the stylus short, as though they're inferior to using your finger? The stylus is a bother if your trying to both hold and operate a device with one hand, or because they're easy to lose, etc. But if your finger is a magic marker, the stylus is a ballpoint pen. Where precision is needed, a stylus will likely always be more accurate and less tiring than the finger. Maybe we'll one day arrive at interfaces where accuracy doesn't matter?
p.s. - Ray is spam. Hope that doesn't become a problem for this blog.
the connection is in how you interact with the tool. there's been so much commotion over vertical vs horizontal ribbon but I like the fact that someone else was thinking about a new, innovative way to interact with the tool. The stylus, as you so well put it, is a ball point pen - but I have to buy a 3 pack because I will loose them. My finger is a sausage, but I have yet to loose any and I always have one handy. I use ribbon to tie my birthday presents. Is that the right tool for the software we use? The idea of a gesture is compelling simply because it allows me to take a broad tool (like my finger) and use the shape to help define a specific function rather than relying on my ability to pin-point an exact location on the screen.
per Ray.
Her picture is cute and she hasn't said anything offensive. 'She' was rather upbeat about it. NEVER GIVE UP. heck, she's quoting Churchill. We do pretty good at keeping out the negative / offensive comments. I figured I'd let that one roll.
ps. you don't think she was being ungenuine, do you?
Eddy, "Ray" is literally a spammer. The generic comment is posted on dozens of blogs. The cute photo is to accomplish exactly what happened. Click on his profile link and look at the list of "blogs". First thing you notice is that this "person" isn't connected to anything even remotely involving architecture. Second, click on one of the "blogs" he "writes" and at a passing glance they look legit, but if you actually start reading any of it you realize it's either generic text copied directly from some article or complete gibberish.
Feel free to delete these comments - I was just concerned that no one was paying attention, and spam has ruined so many good blogs/forums.
Thanks for your comments on the gestures. Very interesting points.
Yes, "she" was being "ungenuine". He's a spammer. Generic text and cute picture accomplished exactly what they were suppose to - "I'm harmless and cute so don't delete my spam post". If you look at his "profile" and the blogs he's "writing", it's fairly obvious.
Feel free to delete these comments - I was just concerned no one was staying on top of it.
The most experience I have with gestures is MindManager Tablet and find them very natural with the pen. Not sure they'd beat a right/left/button clisk with a mouse though.
Look at Inventor Fusion for an even better approach to in context menus in a complex model based app.
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