[Bf-funboard] a call for sanity when it comes to simply selecting something...

[Nathan Vegdahl]

Hi Jin,
I agree with your observation about the inconsistencies of mouse
select in Blender, and I agree that it is very frustrating and stupid.
 Making selection consistent throughout all of the interfaces in
Blender is certainly among my goals with the new keymap/inputmap.

We have already been discussing quite a bit how selection could work.
It's not quite as simple as it seems given the numerous selection
tools in Blender, but indeed it needs to be consistent across all of
Blender.

--Nathan


On Sun, Jun 3, 2012 at 4:50 AM, jin choung <jin.choung at gmail.com> wrote:
> (this is a repost from blendernation and they referred me here and try to
> get the ear of Nathan Vegdahl)
>
> howdy,as a professional cg generalist using maya, zbrush and lightwave and
> a big fan and cheerleader for blender, i try to get into blender every now
> and again - usually when i'm wooed by new, simply ridiculously advanced
> features that not even the most expensive apps have yet.
>
> but almost every time, i get repulsed at the lowest possible level - the
> user mousing interface.
>
> in particular, the fact that different buttons are used to select in
> different interfaces.
>
> WHY? for the love of god, why?
>
> because of this, even selecting LMB select ends up simply FLIPPING selects
> in different contexts so that if it was LMB select in a context, it becomes
> RMB after i've chosen LMB SELECT in the preferences.
>
> this even happens with lasso select. for some unfathomable reason, for
> lasso select, it uses the NON SELECT button with CTRL. again, the mind
> boggles... why would you do that???
>
> it is JUST SELECTING... an object, a vert, a node, a graph spline... WHY
> jump from one button to another???
>
> ------------------------------------------
>
> another issue is that sometimes, RMB is used to CANCEL operations.... but
> if RMB is by default for click selecting (an "AFFIRMATIVE" operation), it
> is just illogical to assign it a "NEGATION" operation too....
>
> i desperately desperately want to use blender in my day to day work. but it
> makes even simple selection a memory game that i can't afford to play when
> i just need to jump in and work and jump back and forth between different
> apps.
>
> -------------------------------------------
>
> INTERFACE PROPOSAL
>
> (and please people, chime in if you don't think this is sensible)
>
> 1. ONE MOUSE BUTTON is used to select in ALL CONCEIVABLE CONTEXTS. it is
> mapped this way in the PREFERENCES (which will probably need to be
> rewritten a bit to accommodate this) so that if you change this to LMB, LMB
> ALWAYS selects. if you change it to RMB, RMB ALWAYS selects. in ALL
> WINDOWS, MODES, etc... whether you are simple click selecting, lasso
> selecting, box selecting... you have modifier keys but the button to select
> is U N I V E R S A L.
>
> 2. if a NEGATION button is needed, it is ALWAYS THE OTHER BUTTON. so if RMB
> is select, then LMB is NEGATE/CANCEL. again - always, in EVERY CONCEIVABLE
> CONTEXT. actually, what i'd REALLY like is that the other button is NOT
> negation but simply context menu... in my mind, that's a very standardized
> use and would just make everything more intuitive. if negation is needed,
> just map it to ESC which is pretty standardized as well.
>
> 3. there are too many strange interdependencies right now in the user
> configuration of mousing. for instance, if i choose LMB SELECT, you lose
> the ability to choose the simulate 3 button mouse feature that makes the
> mouse navigation like LW. also, if i make MMB set the 3d cursor, all of a
> sudden i cannot rotate using the 3 button simulation mode (ALT-LMB)...
> there's no reason that these buttons need to step over each other like
> this. i should be able to LMB AND have simulate 3 button AND MMB place 3d
> cursor with no problem... and the fact that you can't is indicative i think
> of way too much unnecessary cross talk here.
>
> does anyone think that is unreasonable in any way? not at all being
> belligerent here... i'm just really curious as to whether any blender user
> really thinks the way things are done now good.
>
> ------------------------------------------
>
> if there's somebody that i can foreward or email this to to plead my case,
> let me know. cuz i really really really want to add blender to my
> repertoire.
>
> regardless, i'll use blender for the mindboggling bsurfaces and "dual
> contouring of hermite data" in blender's "dyanmesh" functionality but i
> really want to dive in and stay in. and INTUITIVENESS at the foundational
> level would go a loooooooong way to help me and other newbs.
>
> thanks much and yeah, i'm genuinely interested in what people think of the
> current state of simple selection paradigm.
>
> jin
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