Wacom multitouch and SolidWorks 2010
When SolidWorks came out with 2010, and it advertised that it now worked with multitouch, I got a little excited. I’m a believer in getting rid of the mouse and physically interacting with your data a little. I really think the interface is going to lean toward the screen. It will probably wind up looking like a small drafting board sitting just above your lap to make it easy to see and touch at the same time.
A couple of years ago, I bought an HP tablet PC. It required a stylus, but worked well for some tasks. Sketching in SolidWorks on a tablet works well if you use click-click sketching. Sketching with your fingers, well, your fingers are simply blunt instruments compared to a pencil, and some of us still remember how to use a pencil. So accurate sketching almost requires a stylus, but stylus on glass is honestly a bit awkward visually. You’d have to have a monitor where the image is displayed right on the surface.
And then on the other end of the touch spectrum is the reviled touch pad that comes with laptops. For the same reason that the abstraction of removing the mouse from the actual data doesn’t really work like you might want it to, the touch pad on laptops removes your hand from the data. For this reason, I like touch screens where you interact directly with the data over touch pads or mice where you interact abstractly with the data.
Anyway, along comes this Wacom (pronounced “walk-em” rather than “way-com”) Bamboo tablet, and it claims to have multitouch capabilities. We are familiar with tablet/stylus combinations from the department store check out lines, or the UPS guy’s tablet where you have to sign your name. And combined with Windows 7, this Wacom does the familiar stuff with scaling pictures with two finger gestures.
The tablet goes nicely with my backlit Logitech keyboard, but I admit that I had to do some severe clearing off my desk to fit it in. Notice that the tablet is in the place where the spaceball might go. I have a nice spaceball, but honestly, I don’t use it. I’m actually hoping that this Wacom can replace the function of the spaceball for a fraction of the price and also be able to do a lot of other things more intuitively.
I tested the tablet with Irfan View (the free application I use for viewing, conversions and simple edits for images), as well as Powerpoint 2003, and then SolidWorks. In general, scaling the image or the window was accomplished easily, but rotating or selective scaling were not things I was able to do.
SolidWorks 2010 does have some options built into the Options dialog.
And if you read the Help (under Flick – I know, who would ever find it there?), there is a section on multitouch showing all the gestures that Solidworks is supposed to understand.
So, in the end, I know you’re wondering about how multitouch functionality works in SW10? It works for scaling the image (zooming in and out), but seems to work backwards from the diagrams in the Help. It also seemed to walk the part off the screen fairly easily, but that is fixed by using the View>Modify>Zoom About Screen Center option. I couldn’t get it to work at all for rotating parts, or the stuff that you would want it to do if you were replacing a spaceball. I just installed the driver that came with the tablet in Windows 7, and didn’t change any settings. It could be that I am simply missing a setting somewhere. The Control Panel has a Tablet PC entry and a Pen and Touch entry, neither of which had any setting specifically for multitouch.
This was a little disappointing, but I understand that the technology is still new, and it was developed for screens, not tablets. I called SolidWorks, and got to talk to Tom Spine, who was recently interviewed on Matt West’s SolidWorks blog. Tom helped develop the new touch and gesture functions in Solidworks. . Tom acknowledges that the technology and the application to real CAD interface has a ways to go, but seems excited about developments in the field. I am too.
What are the tablets good for? They are great little devices if you find yourself scanning a lot of hand sketches.You can draw directly in Paint, or Photoshop or Illustrator. Wacom makes one model that is just for stylus use, and one that is for stylus and multitouch. These are $69 and $99, and then they have another one that is pressure sensitive for stylus only, and costs $200.
So the age of real multitouch SolidWorks CAD interface is not yet upon us, but it is coming quickly. It is coming more quickly if you have a multitouch monitor. I have a friend who has a 20″+ Wacom touch screen. Tom tells me that HP and Dell also have devices available now. Touch is on the way now. 3D displays are the next big thing after touch. With the prices of large monitors coming down so low, I suspect that the industry has been forced to develop these other technologies to drive revenue.
Thanks Matt, I just put one of these on the holiday wishlist. Is this the Bamboo Fun Pen & Touch? Wondering if it comes in different sizes? I actually want it more for artistic stuff in photoshop and had heard it is excellent for that but just a little wonky yet on the multitouch stuff.
@Jeff Waters
I got the Pen & Touch, which was only $99, the Pen only is $69. If you are going to do stuff that needs pressure sensitive tablet, you will probably want the Intuos, which is $200.
After speaking with Matt this afternoon, I stopped at one of our local electronics stores on my way home from work and picked up the same Wacom Bamboo model that Matt writes about. I’ll be hooking it up to SolidWorks 2010 tomorrow when I’m back in the Concord office, and I’ll start investigating just what is going on. I’m intrigued by this device…
Have the Intuos 4 on the way for Christmas when I talked to Wacom over the summer they were not sure how well it would work with SolidWorks/CAD packages, but getting more for use with photoshop and getting with a reasonable discount from being part of the Adobe user group Community. I’ll let you know how it does with SolidWorks after I get it. I know it has some extra functionality then the Bamboo and most PhotoShop user love the wacom products. It would be nice if it can replace the the 3D controller to free up the number of input devices need to make life a little bit simpler when do work.
I work with a Wacom Cintiq 21UX. It’s absolutely perfect for freehand sketching right on the screen in Photoshop, Painter Pro etc.
But I don’t use it for SolidWorks, a 3D mouse and a trackball works better and faster for me.
But I can’t wait for an ilovesketch add-in for Solidworks. http://www.ilovesketch.com/
Agree 100% with Rob Wolkers…The Cintiqs are perfect for sketching with Sketchbook Pro, PhotoShop, and Illustrator. SolidWorks is much more efficiently controlled via mouse…at least for me.
I’ve used an Intuos 2 for several years—again, not for SolidWorks (it works fine, but I’m not remotely as efficient with it as I am with mouse/keyboard). I use it primarily for drawing/painting applications, and it works great. The Cintiq is amazing for that purpose, however, but those are pricey, have limited drivers (which can be a touchy issue with use for SolidWorks), and come in limited sizes/aspect ratios. I’d probably get a Cintiq if I did more on-screen sketching, but most of my line-work is still done faster with pen/paper, scanned, and then digitally cleaned up and shaded.
I am starting to think that Matt’s problems with rotation in SW2010 using the Bamboo are Bamboo device problems. I found this in Engadget’s review of the Bamboo:
“We had a go with this capacitive tablet’s touch mode on both Snow Leopard and Windows 7. While the gestures worked as promised in Wacom’s demo video, some failed to work in certain areas of each OS. For instance, on a MacBook and Windows 7 touchscreen device you can natively pinch-zoom the file thumbnails, but this wasn’t possible on our Mac with the Bamboo. Similarly, the rotation gesture only worked in Preview on Snow Leopard, but not under Windows. Needless to say this was rather annoying and should’ve been streamlined before launch.”
Just doing some Google snooping before I hook my Bamboo up…
I have an Intous4 Medium. FYI it doesn’t have multitouch functionality like the Bamboo Touch.
I used to draw on SketchBoook Pro, and on Photoshop. Until they implement “Freehand Splines” these tablets are a waste for SW. The best and most productive IMHO) input setup for SW is a Logitec MX1100 and 3DConnexion SpacePilot.
Just my two pesos!
When I load SW2010 onto my Macbook Pro I’ll tell you if it makes Solidworks mutitouch capable…
I have a wacom pen and touch and I work with SolidWorks. I got the wacom specifically for Solidworks.
It took a few tries before I could get things working in my SolidWorks 2008 such as zooming, panning, and so on. But once that was figured out, I think it works great and love working with it.
First off, back in the day when CAD systems first came out, mostly all were with a pen and tablet. Only aftet commands started to get on the screen, did the tablets disappear and the mouse was mainly used. I loved working with these first CAD systems and the pen and tablet and wasn’t ever too happy working with the mouse.
I have tried the space pilot and space ball, but this is only to move around. I wasn’t too happy with either and both are in my closet.
The pen and tablet are no subsititute for the space pilot, so if you are looking for something like that then maybe don’t bother with the pen and tablet.
The pen and tablet are more of a different kind of mouse. I like working with the pen better, for it’s more natural as if you would be making a drawing on paper. I think it’s also more fun and more comfortable for me to hold the pen then the mouse.
I can only recommand using one.
But again, if you are looking for a different kind of space pilot, this it is not.
my 2 cents