[Bf-funboard] New Keymap: selection

[Nathan Vegdahl]

Okay, moved here from the development mailing list.  We're discussing
a new keymap (or really, input map; includes the mouse) for Blender.
I've started a wiki page here:
http://wiki.blender.org/index.php/User:Cessen/New_Keymap

First topic is selection!

== Subtopic #1 ==
I think it's high time we joined the rest of the world and switched
Blender to use LMB for selection by default.

However, this isn't entirely straight-forward.  There are some modes
where the LMB is already primarily responsible for an action other
than selection, and yet selection is still necessary.  For example, in
weight paint mode LMB is for painting, and yet the user still needs to
be able to select bones, and select faces for masking.

There are also things like using the manipulators that use LMB.  In
those cases, however, this can be solved fairly easily: click =
select, tweak (mouse down + drag) = move manipulator.

== Subtopic #2 ==
The modifiers for selection are wildly inconsistent.  For example,
when just doing normal click-to-select, no modifiers means replace
selection, and the shift key acts as a combined extend/remove
selection mode.  Whereas when doing box select, the default is to
extend the selection, and then MMB is remove selection, and there is
no replace selection mode.

I think this should be unified and made consistent.  There are 3
things that a user wants to do when selecting:
1. Replace the current selection
2. Add to (extend) the current selection
3. Remove from the current selection

I propose that we standardize on "replace" being default, "add" being
shift, and "remove" being ctrl.

Exceptions can be made for very different interfaces (e.g. the text
editor) and very different types of selection tools (e.g. "grow
selection").  But for most selection tools let's try to unify this.

--Nathan