S L O W K E Y S T R O K E S I N V W 9

[canarch]

i have found that using keystrokes within vectorworks 9 is very slow when compared to VW8.5

for example in vectorworks 8.5 i would select an object while holding OPTION key in order to duplicate it then i could move the duplicated opject with the mose and switch fingers to hold the SHIFT key in order to constrain the horz or vert movement. in VW9 it seems that for each of these steps i have to pause or unselect the object.

this makes for very slow drawing, and i can't understand why this process would have been changed.

also why can't we use our keys to flip between options within a tool. within the double line tool one could use the option and apple keys to flip between desired options. this is not possible within VW9 unless it is different keys?

i suppose the only good thing about all this is while drafting you can almost feel like you are faster than your computer.

on second thought i'd rather have the speed back than the ego trip.

alistair

[Andrew Treverton]

We agree. VW9 is a pain to use. This is just one of many bugs which are costing our company a lot of time and money.

Andrew

quote:

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Originally posted by Alistair Kirkwood:

i have found that using keystrokes within vectorworks 9 is very slow when compared to VW8.5

for example in vectorworks 8.5 i would select an object while holding OPTION key in order to duplicate it then i could move the duplicated opject with the mose and switch fingers to hold the SHIFT key in order to constrain the horz or vert movement. in VW9 it seems that for each of these steps i have to pause or unselect the object.

this makes for very slow drawing, and i can't understand why this process would have been changed.

also why can't we use our keys to flip between options within a tool. within the double line tool one could use the option and apple keys to flip between desired options. this is not possible within VW9 unless it is different keys?

i suppose the only good thing about all this is while drafting you can almost feel like you are faster than your computer.

on second thought i'd rather have the speed back than the ego trip.

alistair

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[Guest]

quote:

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Originally posted by Alistair Kirkwood:

i have found that using keystrokes within vectorworks 9 is very slow when compared to VW8.5

for example in vectorworks 8.5 i would select an object while holding OPTION key in order to duplicate it then i could move the duplicated opject with the mose and switch fingers to hold the SHIFT key in order to constrain the horz or vert movement. in VW9 it seems that for each of these steps i have to pause or unselect the object.

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One difference between VectorWorks 8 and VectorWorks 9 is that in 9, the option key must be held down when a dragged object is released rather than when it's first clicked in order to cause the object to be copied instead of moved. So you can change your mind between moving and copying as much as you like while you're dragging the object: the final decision as to whether to drag or to move isn't made until you release the object.

A helpful visual cue that tells you you're copying is a little '+' that appears next to the cursor as you drag. Release the option key and the '+' goes away.

I don't notice that response to the shift and option modifiers is slow at all. VectorWorks 9 reacts instantly when I press either of these keys, and I can't press and release them repeatedly fast enough to outrun the program. Could it be that confusion over when the option key takes effect caused you to misinterpret the results you were getting as slowness?

quote:

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also why can't we use our keys to flip between options within a tool. within the double line tool one could use the option and apple keys to flip between desired options. this is not possible within VW9 unless it is different keys?

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I think the fact that you could toggle the drawing mode with modifier keys for the double line tool was a little quirk of that tool only. If I remember correctly, that behavior wasn't a feature of most tools.

Tools have a much more consistant set of behaviors in VectorWorks 9: you can expect modifier keys to behave consistantly no matter which tool you're using, and you can also do a lot of things in the middle of drawing that you couldn't do before such as move palettes around, scroll, zoom, and pan. I suspect the double-line tool's quirky mode switching behavior was removed for the sake of consistancy and also to make room for some of these new features.

But that doesn't mean you can't switch modes from the keyboard! You can, of course, use the mode groups shortcut keys to cycle any set of mode bar buttons. In the standard workspace, these shortcuts are: U, I, O, P, [, and ]. The double-line tool has three groups of buttons (constraints, placement, and preferences), so only the first three keys (U, I, and O) have any effect. Press U to toggle between constrained and unconstrained drawing modes. Press I to cycle between the different placement options, and press O to bring up the preferences dialog for the tool.

If the response to the modifiers still seems slow to you even after considering the advice above, do let us know. You can send bug reports to bugsubmit@nemetschek.net .

[canarch]

i have tried your suggestion to the slow keys (as that is the reason it is slow) and i still say they are slow so have taken your advice and sent to bugsubmit.

as for the double line comand and the option key it may have been a mistake but it was a good one.

i will make a presumption that most people are right handed. thus use there mouse in the right hand leaving the left hand over the keys. if the left hand is over the keyboard, and in its normal position why would you make the default the U I O P keys. certianly worked better using the left hand side option key.

i will admit i have not looked into using the U I O P keys any further and can only assume that they can be changed to suite the users personal preferences?

thanks for the response.

lets hope everyone gets there wishlist items on the next update.

thanks

alistair kirkwood

[Guest]

You can certainly change the mode group keys to whatever you like, except for modifier keys (control, shift, option, command, alt) and a few "special" keys that aren't currently configurable in VectorWorks (tab, escape, return, enter, delete, a few of the F-keys).

Page B-7 in the VectorWorks 9 manual explains how to change the mode group keys.

One more thing: if you haven't noticed it already, you can use the space bar to temporarily switch to another tool. Pressing the space bar will temporarily activate the pan tool; holding down option or command at the same time switches to the zoom tools, or you can click a tool or type a shortcut to switch to some other tool. When you release the space bar, you're returned to the tool you were using when you pressed it.