Limit right click tool toggle?

IanM

I've found the way the right click toggles to previous tool to be really helpful. However, every time I grab a tool other than move or rotate my muscle memory will screw me up since I use those tools so frequently that my brain expects right click to move between them by default!

Is it possible to restrict which tools can be remembered by the right click toggle? I pretty much only ever want it to give me move and rotate, and it'd be handy to be able to right click away from another tool and get right back into that flow. Create, pose, and weight tools are "one-offs" to me instead of primary interactions, and even scale/shear I use pretty rarely.

(Actually, why does the weight tool toggle this way? It feels more like a mode than a tool to me)

That said, in Unity and MAX my muscle memory for this is to select a tool directly with the QWER hotkeys. It looks like there are similar Spine hotkeys bound to the bottom row instead. That actually makes me curious about other people's workflows. How are people using the previous tool hotkey, and selecting tools in general? Would I be better off using the per-tool hotkeys instead?

I'm also curious about how that set of bottom row tool hotkeys came about. Does that mirror another application the way Unity is mirroring MAX/Maya?

IanM

Sinisa

Hey @IanM,

IanM yazdı
Is it possible to restrict which tools can be remembered by the right click toggle?

I don't think it's possible, and not really necessary as most of the users are used to the current functionality.

(Actually, why does the weight tool toggle this way? It feels more like a mode than a tool to me)

It will toggle between any of the last two tools you used, so if you used the Weights tool, then translate it will toggle between them.

I'm also curious about how that set of bottom row tool hotkeys came about. Does that mirror another application the way Unity is mirroring MAX/Maya?

I think that the default hotkey setup is based on lightwave3d. But don't hold me for my word, this is just how I remember the hotkeys, I could be wrong.

I have been animating in a lot of different software, sometimes classic 2d, sometimes 3d, sometimes I just draw and design in Photoshop or similar programs. Long story short I always use hotkeys to change the tools. It's the most intuitive way for me to work. To not mess up my brain too much with the different hotkeys for every software, I use the Razer Tartarus V2 keypad where I can customize and save different keymaps so I always put the same tools on the same keys.
Works great for me, I have been using a similar workflow for 9+ years.

warmanw

Sinisa yazdı
Razer Tartarus V2

just bought it 😃

Sinisa

Haha, awesome! ?

stikkanimate

I have to hijack the thread and ask about the Tartarus because I've been eyeballing that thing for the past 2 years. Do you have experience working with it when working on the move? (with a laptop/mobilestudio that can support it)

Also, how do you find going from working on a Tartarus to working on a normal keyboard? For instance, if you have an office job and you leave it at home/work and have to rely on keyboard after getting used to it?

The only reason I haven't bought it is because I feel like I'll have to develop two sets of muscle memory

Nate

IanM yazdı
I've found the way the right click toggles to previous tool to be really helpful. However, every time I grab a tool other than move or rotate my muscle memory will screw me up since I use those tools so frequently that my brain expects right click to move between them by default!

I know what you mean, it happens to me sometimes. Switching to the previous tool gives a lot of flexibility, allowing it to be useful for more tasks than just rotate/translate. For example, you might use the pose tool, which can both translate and rotate, combined with another tool, like scale.

Actually, why does the weight tool toggle this way? It feels more like a mode than a tool to me

It's common to adjust weights, then try them out with rotate or translate or pose.

We could add a new hotkey that only gives you rotate and translate, but there's currently not a way to assign hotkeys to mouse buttons. It may need to be a setting. I've made a note for a future version!

Would I be better off using the per-tool hotkeys instead?

For me personally, I find the right click usually gives me what I need. When it doesn't, I often click the toolbar buttons. Using hotkeys is definitely faster and you'll be better off doing that, but right click gets me pretty close to that.

I'm also curious about how that set of bottom row tool hotkeys came about. Does that mirror another application the way Unity is mirroring MAX/Maya?

Yep, the default hotkeys will be familiar to someone who is used to Autodesk SoftImage. Defaults can't please everyone, so as Sinisa says, it's best to customize them.

Sinisa

Hey stikkanimate,

So I used it in all sorts of situations, on the move, working in the studio, and bringing it there. I never use a normal keyboard anymore, just for writing. I got so used to it, I work way faster because of it. The keyboard itself is very light and small, so it will fit any backpack, no problem.
For the muscle memory, that's not a problem really, before I used it I was remembering hotkey defaults of every software, and that was a real mind screw. With this thing, I set up the keys by functionality logic and what feels good (like undo, for example, I'm so used to the finger gesture on the keyboard that I just mimic the combination of the finger movement)
I use the same hotkey position for the same or similar tools in different software. e.g. translate in Spine (hotkey V ) I set up on the key 07 on the Tartarus, same tool in Maya (hotkey W) I use the same number 07 for this, you just make another keymap for another software and that's it.
Cool thing is that you can change the color for each key so you can also color-code your keys if it helps you to remember the shortcuts, especially at the beginning. For me my favorite thing is the little wheel, I use it to skip through the frames. If I press ALT and rotate it I skip through the keys. This reminds me of a workflow when I was animating on the paper and I was flipping the paper to check my keys.
A lot of stuff is just trial and error, and what suits you and your needs. Cool thing is that you can customize everything so you can really enhance your workflow.

stikkanimate

That's awesome Sinisa! I'm considering getting the Pro over the V2. Not sure how much that makes a difference. I'll look into it.

I'm a shortcut key hound to a fault - I get VERY upset with softwares that hardcode shortcut keys because of the number of softwares I use where I need some degree of uniformity. Thanks for taking the time!

Sinisa

No problem!
If you get it, tell me your impressions. Not sure that you will notice the difference between Pro and V2 while working.