Stylus for CAD

[zwei]

I recently stumble across this https://www.solidsmack.com/cad/cad-stylus-thing/ and it seem rather interesting to me...

Have anyone have any success using a Stylus for CAD?

[SPerman]

I used one in college in 1989.

[jcapriotti]

I recently stumble across this https://www.solidsmack.com/cad/cad-stylus-thing/ and it seem rather interesting to me...

Have anyone have any success using a Stylus for CAD?

I have a Wacom Intuos Pro (Medium) that was my daughter's for her college digital art classes, she changed majors so I have it now. I tried using it with some graphics programs (Affinity Photo/Designer) but it felt 'off'. I just couldn't draw accurately looking at the screen while the pen was traversing the pad on the desk. I didn't try it with SolidWorks. As he says in the article, I guess you have to use it daily a long time to get used to it.

[MJuric]

I used one in college in 1989.

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There were a couple "Holdout" systems that stuck with tablets for quite a while...we until the late 90's anyway. I always found tablets to be slower than a properly set up GUI and a mouse. Maybe I never got good enough with them but the ones I used where essentially the same thing as the icons on a mouse centric screen. The difference is that your graphics area and icons are on the same screen while the commands on your tablet are not...so a lot of looking back and forth. I suppose it would be similar to having a graphics screen and all your commands on another screen, probably wouldn't like that either.

[Frederick_Law]

Not with SW.
SW is still keyboard heavy.
If SW can get to all commands on screen like IV, maybe.
We don't really "draw" in CAD, we point and click.

[mike miller]

Not with SW.
SW is still keyboard heavy.
If SW can get to all commands on screen like IV, maybe.
We don't really "draw" in CAD, we point and click.

I like programs that are keyboard heavy. As @Alin said: "Moving the mouse around on the screen is not something to be proud of. It is not a dog that needs exercise."

I use toolbars for obscure commands that are infrequently used. Context menus, mouse gestures, keyboard shortcuts, and the "S" key menu are all so much faster...especially if you have a 32" monitor.

[Alin]

I recently stumble across this https://www.solidsmack.com/cad/cad-stylus-thing/ and it seem rather interesting to me...

Have anyone have any success using a Stylus for CAD?

In SolidWorks I take advantage of the touch screen mainly for Markups. I imagine would be also useful for very fine Lasso selections.

[Frederick_Law]

I use toolbars for obscure commands that are infrequently used. Context menus, mouse gestures, keyboard shortcuts, and the "S" key menu are all so much faster...especially if you have a 32" monitor.

You'll love IV. Mouse Gesture is context sensitive. Different menu depend on what you selected on screen.
All right click menus are context sensitive also.
I didn't need to use keyboard for commands in IV. 3 button mouse and 3D mouse.
Need 15 button mouse for SW so I can move hands to keyboard less.

[SPerman]

You'll love IV. Mouse Gesture is context sensitive. Different menu depend on what you selected on screen.
All right click menus are context sensitive also.
I didn't need to use keyboard for commands in IV. 3 button mouse and 3D mouse.
Need 15 button mouse for SW so I can move hands to keyboard less.

I loved the early Autocad. Your hands never had to leave the keyboard.

[mike miller]

You'll love IV. Mouse Gesture is context sensitive. Different menu depend on what you selected on screen.
All right click menus are context sensitive also.
I didn't need to use keyboard for commands in IV. 3 button mouse and 3D mouse.
Need 15 button mouse for SW so I can move hands to keyboard less.

Then you would really like Solid Edge. Sixteen commands times thirty environments.....

SE takes the minimalist approach to UI (except for the ribbon). All commands are centralized around an incredible set of mouse gestures and several specific context-sensitive keys (like Shift to toggle symmetry, M-I-C-E to pick up points, and Spacebar to toggle Add/Cut). There are two major drawbacks with hot keys: remembering them, and having to take your hand off the 3D mouse. You don't have either with SE mouse gestures.

[Ry-guy]

Ohh..you are touching my heart! The good ole days of the Calcomp and the digitizer tablets! I remember building my own templates for AutoCAD 10-12 and then swaping out templates between AutoCAD class and Computer Vision Personal Designer class.

Put to be honest there are some tools you can look at that are a bit more modern. If you look at the introduction of the Microsoft Surface Studio and the Microsoft Dial there really are some cool functions that could be built out for computer-aided design tools (I got one at home but haven't found many tools for it.. :-( .
The introduction videos from MS show NX being used on the device. There is also this article.
https://blogs.sw.siemens.com/nx-design/ ... e-devices/
Next, at one point in time I was using the Solid Edge with a Surface Pro 3 and using the programmable pop-up radial menu by 3DConnections to map commands in Solid Edge...I recall you would hit one of the buttons on the Surfce Pen and the radial menu popped up.

Solid Edge has come a long way in bring their software to be more touch friendly. The real future is using something like the MS Kinect scanner for Xbox and then voice AI. It can't be that far fetched these days!

[Ry-guy]

Found it!

[jcapriotti]

I think people underestimate how useful a mouse is. Considering we sit at a desk and look at upright monitors all day, the mouse is just a better tool for a lot of different needs. I guess it's more "versatile" for operating a computer, maybe not perfect for all tasks but adequate. It's not like Stylus' and touchscreens are new.

If I'm freehand drawing, give me a tablet and stylus any day, but as soon as I need to compose an email or write a forum post, keyboard and mouse please. And voice dictation would be a bit annoying in an office setting, not too mention talking all day can be a strain.

[jcapriotti]

Found it!

You know, I'm watching this guy, and I'm already thinking "arm fatigue". Notice he isn't resting his hand and arm on the screen, probably because of the touchscreen picking it up. Palm rejection software helps but it's not perfect yet. Also, with a huge screen , we already talk about inefficiencies in mouse travel to select stuff. With a mouse I can move it 2 inches to the side and traverse across 20 inches of screen.

I hate to be the naysayer because I'm into the technology and have been following to for years, but its like flying cars, it never gets off the ground. Just not practical yet.

[Ry-guy]

You know, I'm watching this guy, and I'm already thinking "arm fatigue". Notice he isn't resting his hand and arm on the screen, probably because of the touchscreen picking it up. Palm rejection software helps but it's not perfect yet. Also, with a huge screen , we already talk about inefficiencies in mouse travel to select stuff. With a mouse I can move it 2 inches to the side and traverse across 20 inches of screen.

I hate to be the naysayer because I'm into the technology and have been following to for years, but its like flying cars, it never gets off the ground. Just not practical yet.

There is actaully great palm rejection on the Studio. It is also design to actually rest your arm and lean into the screen. Panos, from Microsoft does that as a the very first thing he covers on the product release.

Here's the thing with most CAD software GUI's. They are static. Now, if you look at Solid Edge (possibly) and NX you will see that they have an AI (Adaptive UI) that actually learns from your previous commands and then is predicting what you might use next. You can also take what it learns and apply it to other users! Now that is dynamic UIs. We should be asking the same thing from other vendors too!