[Bf-funboard] Feature Req: Nodes auto connect

[jonathan ferguson]

hi.

I wonder if the dots could stay proportionally large given the zoom  
factor, that is, the dots don't zoom smaller at all... (the text does  
not zoom, neither does the connecting line). Right now with lots of  
nodes (zoomed out) to connect the dots takes some high degree of  
precision. If that isn't enough, then perhaps a little more dot or  
node zooming could happen:

The idea that springs to my mind is that the node you connect to  
could temporarily zoom to the "actual size," or perhaps only the dots  
would need to zoom. Zooming and panning take lots of time, especially  
on a 2D plane.

This would also imply that the nodes would behave not as the awful  
Dock, but that the selection/activation area is zoomed as well as the  
graphics that represent the node.

What about that idea?

have a nice day.yad
jdpf


On Nov 22, 2006, at 12:29 AM, Alex Fraser wrote:

> On Wed, 2006-11-15 at 19:43 -0500, trip somewhere wrote:
>> Another way that could help is that the dots gett larger when near or
>> over them Kinda like a zoom.
>
> I like the zoom idea.
>
> I think Maya does it two ways depending on the mouse button used. One
> way connects it to some default, the other pops up a window to set the
> connection manually (select output; select input). Maya doesn't  
> have the
> connection dots that Blender does, tho.
>
> I love the dots! It's such a cool way to connect nodes. I like the way
> the connection snaps to them, too.
>
> The trouble with zooming when the mouse comes near is that you may not
> end up with any more precision. For example, the OSX dock makes the
> icons larger but doesn't change the clickable area. As you move the
> mouse, the next icon grows to replace it. That's the impression I get,
> anyway.
>
> I think a workable solution would be to use a timeout: if you hover  
> the
> mouse over a node for more than a couple of seconds, the connection
> points are enlarged. After the connection is made it shrinks back  
> to its
> normal size. It should revert when the mouse moves away too, like  
> popup
> menus do already. The timeout could be adjustable, and for the power
> users, a hotkey could exist to zoom instantly.
>
> Alternatively, how about hotkey that snaps to the nearest connection
> point? E.G. you're dragging a connection, and the cursor is  
> somewhere to
> the left of a node. Holding control makes the connection snap to the
> nearest input, regardless of how far away it is. This behaviour can be
> seen in the Metacity window manager in GNOME: hold down shift and your
> window snaps to the screen edges. Unfortunately this doesn't solve the
> problem of selecting the first point of the connection.
>
> Cheers,
> Alex
>
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