unnecessary mouse differences Re: [Bf-funboard] LMB, RMB...

[Luke Wenke]

>   But still the selection button is RMB and should be used in all window
> content. LMB is for buttons.

You can choose panels and tabs and drag them with the LMB... and the buttons
window is a bit like the 3D window - you can pan and zoom its content using
the mousewheel... and press "home" to zoom to fit the contents. When you
choose materials, layers, material channels, etc, you are also choosing an
object though you do it through buttons. When you edit text you can use the
LMB to select where you want the cursor/caret to start... and 3D objects
kind of work like buttons... when you select one (making it the active
object) the buttons window changes. Perhaps my argument that the LMB be used
for selection (including button selection) for the sake of internal
consistency isn't a very good argument... though I don't think that change
would make things *inconsistent*.

> ........I guess this decision has been made to divide strain between the
fingers
> of the hand and I see no reason to argue it.

Hi Peter,
It seems your support of RMB for selection, LMB for buttons is:
1. it's too much effort to make things consistent with OS's and other
programs.
2. perhaps it divides the strain between the fingers.

> As far as I know, LMB is used for almost anything in other applications,
> while RMB is only used for context menus and minor functions. This is a
> questionable 'let the index finger do everything' standard.

Since the LMB is used like that in so many other programs, I don't think
that standard way is "questionable". In fact, Macs (or at least the older
ones) normally have one-button mouses so you literally only use the index
finger on your mouse. Unless you have evidence from RSI studies or at least
some anecdotes in support of Blender's mouse system then it seems that it is
Blender's method that is "questionable".

So if there isn't a real (not theoretical) RSI type reason for Blender's
mouse setup then I think Blender needs to adopt the standard ways of using
the mouse - otherwise it is unnecessarily hard for users to start learning
Blender. I mean sure they can get used to the unconventional mouse usage,
but if there are no real benefits in the mouse being non-standard then it
means that this part of Blender's learning curve is unnecessarily steep. Of
course it isn't much of a big deal to learn the new mouse methods but all of
those non-conventional things to learn in Blender add up...

> .....If you reverse one side only, you start using LMB for almost
anything.
> Well that's how every other program that I know of does it...

Maybe they all do it that way because there is nothing wrong with that
standard. "Don't try to fix something that isn't broken"... i.e. if the
standard mouse setup that most people are used to (from other programs)
works well, just use it.

>   You are right in one point: the use of LMB in the browser windows as
> selection tool seems inconsistent. I agree to that.
>   now for shift LMB:
>   It is absolutely not necessary for the function 'select' to work totally
> the same, regardless of the content. A file browser demands other
qualities
> than a 3d window. So a RMB drag in the file browser is better as long as
an
> additional shift is unnecessary. Smart instead of hard.
>   Consistancy is important only as long as it supports the workflow.

Making the browser windows efficient is actually quite complicated.

My suggestion is:
LMB - select item, deselect others
LMB drag - select consecutive items, deselect others
shift-LMB - add item to selection
shift-LMB drag - add consecutive items to selection
alt-LMB - remove item from selection
alt-LMB drag - remove consecute items from selection

Currently it works like this:
LMB - put this item in the textbox
RMB - toggle whether the item is selected or not
RMB drag - toggle whether consecutive items are selected or not (if the
start of the drag began on a selected item then the rest become unselected,
otherwise the rest become selected)

You seem to be saying that LMB should be eliminated here, leaving RMB and
RMB drag. I can see some problems with that....
If you open a file or append an item and then go back to the open or append
window, is that item selected (highlighted)? If so, then it might take a
little while to change what you want to append... you'd have to click on the
original item to deselect it and click on the other item to select it.
If the original item isn't highlighted then it takes longer if you want to
append the original item (again) plus another item - you'd have to click on
both of them. Also, if you just clicked "load library" straight away it
would probably append the same item again even though it wasn't highlighted.
My method involves a click to select another item (deselecting the other one
(or ones)) or shift-click to add an item to the selection, eliminating those
mentioned problems.

- Luke.