Hi Michael

There seems to be some problems with SpaceNavigator and MoI

it works fine until you zoom in and then it stops function on the zoom
like its goes to sleep on that function, still you can pan and rotate but
under "closeup" the zoom function freezes after a while,
if i then reset view, all is normal again.

This is only in the 3D view iv observed this phenomenon
and if you use the mouse at the same time it lags total!!
in Top, Front, Right view i can zoom 4 ever :-)
but still problems if moving the mouse at the same time :-(


Best Regards
Frank

Hi Frank, the way the zoom in the 3D view works is that it moves the camera closer and closer to the rotation pivot point.

So it won't move you past the pivot - when it appears to have frozen that is when you have approached very close to the pivot point, so each additional step towards it is very very small at that point.

This makes it possible to zoom in on a particular point, but it does have this problem of a "getting stuck" type feel.

I'll see if I can tune it up, maybe it would be best if I let it go past the pivot point like some of the other zoom functions, and have an option to turn on the current "focus in on pivot point" style zooming instead.

Also I should mention that you can click the button on the left side of the Space Navigator as a shortcut for doing a view Reset.

Can you describe a little bit more about the problem with moving the mouse at the same time as using the Space Navigator? Over here I can't seem to get any problems when doing that, but it also seems like a kind of unusual thing to do, normally it seems like you would use only one of those at a time, not both simultaneously.

- Michael

Hi Michael :-)

I am not an expert but the way i understand the pivot point, is at the center of an object by default,
where if im using for example 3dsmax, i can move the pivot point as i please.
The way you say it makes me thing hmmm if thats the way "ill never get there"
lets imagen an object like a big galaxy, in that model you will never get to the earth.
I know people mite think, but in a galaxy all the planets and stars are individuals, yes yes
but imagen for a moment they all where connected together by tubes like a big atom model.

I know about the left click (reset view) on SpaceNavegator, but that will definitely never bring me "there" ;-)

For me the SpaceNavigator is an suppley tool to the mouse
( Mouse Right hand - SpaceNavigator Left hand )
i really recommend that people try it.. its a whole new dimension to interaction,
it takes some time to get used to but then its...wow..belive me ;-)

hmmmm wered today there where no lag, maybe some Memory Cache thing ?
my pc P4 3400mhz 2gb ram, G7900GT.

hope at least some of it makes sense.


Best Regards
- Frank

Hi Frank - at the moment you can get "there" by using the Area zoom on the bottom control panel. That lets you center your view on a particular point, and that point will become the new rotation pivot which will also be the focal point for zooming in.

But I agree with you, it would be better for the Space Navigator to have more free forward movement by default, I will see about tuning that up.

The only downside is that free movement also makes it more difficult to zoom in very closely to any one particular spot because you will tend to zoom right past it instead of approaching closely towards it. But you will still be able to use the area zoom to get in close.

- Michael

I would like to pop in here and say I LOVE the new sensitivity controls you've added to the view manipulators Michael!

It makes them totally usable now (I used to avoid them as much as possible before) - now I can pan / zoom and rotate my views exactly without the viewport flying all over the place - BRAVO!

-Will

PS - I think I'm going to try out one of those space navigators for my laptop, they seem pretty cute!
I already have a Belkin Nostromo N52 (and a shuttle pro for my desktop when video editing) but this looks nicer for 3D apps than the N52 - just gotta figga which one to get!
I like the singular knob but having only 8 buttons feels limiting (coming from the N52) - perhaps the mid-range one (21 buttons if I remember correctly) may fit me better? Can't get a sense how big they are from the pictures though? I know the top of the line one looks HUGE like it needs a desk all by itself! :-p

Hi Will, the Space Navigator model is really quite compact, it's got a 3 inch diameter circular base.

It actually only has 2 buttons on it, but it has the same kind of twisty knob thing as the higher end models.

Since it is so inexpensive, if you are interested in trying them out it might make sense to get this one first to see if you like that navigation method.

For the models with extra buttons, you can set up the buttons to generate different keyboard shortcuts, I don't think they really do anything else special like change the navigation or anything like that.

- Michael

Hi, yes, I'd be replacing my N52 so I'm looking at either the SpaceTraveler or Space Explorer - pricey (amazon has somewhat better prices) but I can't see myself not having programmable buttons for my apps!

Problem is, it's like have a mouse with a mouse wheel and then going to a machine without one - you become dependent on your button programs! Well at least the Traveler is supposed to be simple to take with you!

-Will