my list of niggling feature requests

As a new user to synfig I am very impressed how quickly I can get into making animations with synfig. Thanks!

However, I have some niggles – I’m sure these aren’t new, or too surprising. I come from using gimp, inkscape, Blender etc. and it’s possible I’ve just missed how to do these things…

Anyway, I’m putting this list here to record my present feelings in the hope that it’s useful for the developers. Comments, discussion and pointing out just how wrong I am are all welcome!

Drawing

D1. A way to reload the image for an import image layer
(eg if I edit it in gimp. I’ve only managed to do this by closing and reopening.)

D2. Drag the canvas with mouse or stylus
(middle button? I hate scroll bars!)

D3. Short cut keys should appear in pop-ups and menus
(actually, it should almost be illegal for any software to omit this :wink:! Helps enormously with learning keys)

D4a. short cut to remove the duck below the pointer
(one key, not selection from menu!)

D4b. the same short cut removes all selected ducks
(is there any way to do this at the moment?)

D5a. combine two blines into one
(eg first select the common points as if you were going to link them, then “join”. need also to join any linked regions etc, so it’s not totally straightforward, and decide what to do if other data conflicts)

D5b. split one bline into two, at a common vertex

D5c. take a previously created bline and add to it using the bline tool

D6a. an easy way to select all the green ducks of selected layers

D6b. an easy way to select/deselect a single duck without danger of moving it
(this is easy with a mouse, but very tricky with the stylus. The “rectangle” method doesn’t work well with green ducks, nor with very close ducks. I’d like to hover and press a hot key)

D7. a way to move the origin of an object without moving the object
(eg I make a complicated, encapsulated object, but the paste canvas origin is miles away from the action. It’s awkward to move all the child layers nearer to the paste canvas origin, and then move the whole thing back again – see D6a!)

Animation

A1. a way to edit waypoints in the time curve window
(this is a lovely feature in blender)

A2. a way to freeze the type of a waypoint
(so that draging its duck doesn’t change it back into a TCB every time. Why does this happen?)

Andrew

Hi Andrewkay,

D1.- I agree
D2.- Middle button currently drag canvas, doesn’t work for you?
D3.- I agree. There are lots of menus without short cuts keys.
D4a & b.- I agree. Nice ones.
D5a,b & c.- I agree Nice ones too. I think already asked.
D6.- I agree. Green ducks are avoided to be selected with drag box to avoid move the origin when just want to translate the other ducks. This behavior maybe under discussion and might change in the future.
D7.- I agree. Already asked.

A1.- I agree.
A2.- Interesting. I agree.

thanks genete.

no, middle drag doesn’t work for me (Ubuntu 10.10). In that case I should report a bug!

Andrew