Topic: Preview 2.20: Various UI improvements

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  • August 5, 2009 at 12:11 #2003
    Zynewave
    Keymaster

    2.20 is shaping up to be all about minor usability improvements. Please post if you have suggestions for small easily implemented UI improvements.

    Beta1:

    • Each MIDI and audio input can be assigned to multiple tracks by dragging the input object and holding the control key when dropping on a track. It can also be copied by using the new “Assign/Copy To Track” popup menu command in the inspector input list.

    • The “auto-assign to focus track” option is added to the track/input submenu. Previously it was only available in the track inspector.

    • When a track has an auto-assigned input, the input is shown on the track header. Previously auto-assigned mappings were only shown in the track inspector and the mixer.

    • New arrangements will by default have the “auto-assign to focus track” option enabled for the first MIDI input.

    • The device, preset, param and input popup menus in the mixer are now identical to the corresponding submenus in the track menu.

    • Removed the “track layout mode” combobox setting from the arrangement properties. Tracks are now always shown using the compact mode.

    • Removed the “set up audio input and VSTi” option from the new arrangement dialog.

    • Selecting the “Microsoft GS” synthesizer in the MIDI input interfaces setup will pop up a warning about the potential conflict with the ASIO driver.

    • Added “Browse Podium Video Tutorials” command to the Help menu. This will open the new Zynewave channel on YouTube.com.

    • Fix: Drag and drop of a device mapping on a track now checks if the mapping is already assigned in the track effect chain. This eliminates the issue where accidentally dragging an effect mapping in the track header would create a duplicate instance.

    August 5, 2009 at 12:32 #15887
    LiquidProj3ct
    Participant

    Mixer colours:

    http://www.zynewave.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1891

    And instrument menu instead full menu when single left click in instrument slot:

    http://www.zynewave.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1969

    When I remember more I’ll post those here, I think that Podium need badly fix those small things.

    From kyran post:
    @kyran wrote:

    2. Always have the spacebar control transport, no matter what has the focus (be this the browser, or a plugin or …)

    Thanks you!

    edit: another one, allows turn on/off master record from a MIDI controller, as play and record.

    edit2: another, I don’t know if this is easy or not, but allow drag’n’drop samples to plugins.

    August 5, 2009 at 12:33 #15888
    thcilnnahoj
    Participant

    Awesome changes so far!

    • Removed the “track layout mode” combobox setting from the arrangement properties. Tracks are now always shown using the compact mode.

    I wondered when this was going to happen… I hope nobody’s taken aback by this. Farewell, Extended Mode – you will always be with us, in spirit. =D>

    Let’s see… I have two simple ones:
    – I think Podium shouldn’t ask the ‘save template?’ question after every new project created. Or maybe you could add a “don’t show again” checkbox.
    – Left click to slide timeline should be disabled in the default setup. The same thing can be done on the navigator, where it’s a much more expected behaviour, in my opinion. You don’t need two regions to do the same, right?

    August 5, 2009 at 12:39 #15889
    LiquidProj3ct
    Participant

    It would be nice also dump those ugly Windows titlebar from plugins or children windows, and leave a simple podium title bar, with the same colour that background. It would give a good consistent feeling.

    August 5, 2009 at 12:42 #15890
    Conquistador
    Participant

    Lovely start for 2.20. Great. 🙂

    Here are some more things that can simplify getting around Podiums UI.

    Navigator arrows
    By default the navigator gives no visual clue how to move it. I think it should have two small arrows on either side of it, as one cannot be expected to know this in advance.

    Horizontal slider bar:
    Unless it is still there it should be restored IMO. The navigator unless I am missing something, replaced the horzontal slider? While the navigator offers a nice way to very quickly move around Podium the horizontal slider IMO should be there as well. I should have mentioned this ages ago. Kept forgetting to mention it.

    B Button optional behaviour
    On click bounce button. The B button should always be visible on tracks and cycle through the following when clicked…

    1. Realtime Recording
    2. Realtime bounce playback
    3. Disabled

    It is buried in the bounce menu currently.

    Bounce > Bounce mode Realtime recording

    Then you have to go back into the Bounce menu (very strange) and choose Activate Realtime Record.

    Really it needs to be far easier than that. Going back into the same menu is a very odd. The B Button should cycle through its offerings on the track.

    Docking GUI’s?

    We currently have to drag them out of the way. A simple window that can be embedded like the mixer would be great for keeping the UI clear. One could work with many different tabbed GUI’s and not have any of them obscure the UI.

    August 5, 2009 at 12:47 #15892
    swindus
    Participant

    Great changes so far!

    – Using track color for the notes in the drum map editor
    – Using track colors for the velocity bars

    +1 for the horizontal slider bar

    August 5, 2009 at 12:50 #15893
    thcilnnahoj
    Participant

    @Conquistador wrote:

    Horizontal slider bar:
    Unless it is still there it should be restored IMO. The navigator unless I am missing something, replaced the horzontal slider? While the navigator offer nice way to very quickly move around Podium the horizontal slider IMO should be there as well. I should have mentioned this ages ago. Kept forgetting to mention it.

    Agreed. While I love the navigator in the arrangement view, I quickly replaced it by the old scrollbar in the MIDI editor, as I found out there’s not much to gain orientation-wise from seeing a few horizontal lines. I kept it in the sound editor. 🙂

    August 5, 2009 at 12:54 #15894
    thcilnnahoj
    Participant

    @Conquistador wrote:

    Docking GUI’s?

    We currently have to drag them out of the way. A simple window that can be embedded like the mixer would be great for keeping the UI clear. One could work with many different tabbed GUI’s and not have any of them obscure the UI.

    Ooh – now that’s something! 8)
    It’d could be a bit like in Live. Maybe use the embedded editor’s space and show a little plug-in chain for when a track instead of an event is selected.

    But however you do it, it sounds like much work to me. 😛

    Edit: a little mock-up. I forgot the send track but you get the idea. I don’t know if you can dock VST GUIs but it’d work for the z-plugs, at least. Others could have a generic editor displaying the user’s favorite parameters, preset selection and an ‘open VST’ button. Yep, sounds like trouble. 😆


    (click)

    August 5, 2009 at 12:59 #15895
    ronin
    Participant

    the global SMR buttons plus the fantastic “add track” and “add child track” button!
    http://www.zynewave.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1438

    August 5, 2009 at 13:04 #15896
    Conquistador
    Participant

    More usability improvements… less graphically related but still usability related.
    Start Page:Addition of a Clear all command to the Recent projects area.

    Standard / easier folder behaviour: When moving mappings in the Devices area of the Start page Cut, Copy and Paste right click options would seriously simplify moving things around there.

    August 5, 2009 at 13:12 #15898
    kyran
    Participant

    Nice little tweaks.

    I’ve got some minor ones
    1. The spacebar should always control the transport, regardless of the current focus
    2. A single keyshortcut to zoom in/out horizontally (like +/-), without needing to use the mouse.
    3. Quick create new arrangement: just makes a new arrangement with all the default settings, no popup windows. Make this the default option. Most of the time I only have one arrangement in a project. If I change a setting on them it’s the name. The rest is nice to have, but it just intimidates new users.

    I’ve got some idea’s for the track inspector and browser, but they probably don’t fall under quick improvements and are food for another topic.

    Also, maybe we should do the following excercise a bit more formal:
    1. What steps are taken to get from a fresh podium install to recording a vsti with a midi keyboard. Make a flowchart of this.
    2. Mark the steps that contribute to the end goal green: without these it won’t work
    3. Mark the steps that you should be able to skip red
    4. Make a flowchart of how it should be done.
    This is normally a very enlighting excercise. It should allow us to get a good workflow for new users, with good default settings, without sacrificing the tweakability.

    August 5, 2009 at 13:26 #15899
    Conquistador
    Participant

    @thcilnnahoj wrote:

    @Conquistador wrote:

    Docking GUI’s?

    We currently have to drag them out of the way. A simple window that can be embedded like the mixer would be great for keeping the UI clear. One could work with many different tabbed GUI’s and not have any of them obscure the UI.

    Ooh – now that’s something! 8)
    It’d could be a bit like in Live. Maybe use the embedded editor’s space and show a little plug-in chain for when a track instead of an event is selected.

    But however you do it, it sounds like much work to me. 😛

    Indeed it would be a great addition. Some sort of visual chain of all FX on a track would be great but it does sound like a lot of work (might not be hopefully) in any case I am quite happy for Frits to settle for something simpler (yet still very effective) like this…(one GUI docked at any one time).

    @ronin wrote:

    the global SMR buttons plus the fantastic “add track” and “add child track” button!
    http://www.zynewave.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=1438

    Absolutely. Yes yes and…yes please. 🙂

    The Global SMR buttons and thcilnnahoj’s brilliant mock up for the quick addition of different track types would fall under small graphical UI enhancements (they at least look that way). 😛

    August 5, 2009 at 13:30 #15900
    LiquidProj3ct
    Participant

    About docking GUIs, I’ve read about it very quickly… but don’t you think that it would be almost imposible? Each GUI has different size, if you join IL Delay 2, with Synth1 it would be weird! Live can do it because all their plugins are native…

    Did I understand it right? Am I right?

    edit: try to dock Gladiator 2, you will need a cinema screen 😛

    August 5, 2009 at 13:36 #15901
    thcilnnahoj
    Participant

    Yeah, it might be impossible to dock the actual GUIs. But a simplified chain using generic editors and displaying important functions of a plug-in (preset selection, parameters you use the most) should be doable. Dunno if it’s worth it. 🙂
    It most certainly doesn’t fall under ‘quick improvements’ though, sorry!

    August 5, 2009 at 13:46 #15903
    Conquistador
    Participant

    @LiquidProj3ct wrote:

    About docking GUIs, I’ve read about it very quickly… but don’t you think that it would be almost imposible? Each GUI has different size, if you join IL Delay 2, with Synth1 it would be weird! Live can do it because all their plugins are native…

    Did I understand it right? Am I right?

    edit: try to dock Gladiator 2, you will need a cinema screen 😛

    But docking it with an embedded editor will allow you to drag it down out of the way (like the mixer) without having to keep closing the GUI and re open again. Multiple docked GUI’s is probably too much for 2.20 but a single docked GUI that can be dragged up or down out of the way like the mixer I think would work with any size of GUI and would I suspect be far less work. If it can be docked in an embedded editor it can be dragged down partially or totally out of sight as well.

    If Gladiators GUI is so big it is an excellent candidate for such a feature. 😉

    I have plenty of GUI’s that are large but don’t want to close just yet during a project, but they still obscure another part of PDM I want to see. Docking even one GUI would be a huge usability addition to PDM IMO.

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