Hi there, Folks

It has been a couple of months now since I used EIAS and suddenly I figured :

It’s still my favorite 3D Tool, but hey, what horrible way to rename a group in the project window !

I’m currently working on a character rig with typically hundreds of object groups.
Each time when I need to rename a group, I need to select it, move my cursor all the way up to the white edit box, type in a new name, hit enter, and go back to the area where I was before.

This is bizar and I’m truly stunned that I realize this only after 14 years working with this fabulous app.

Question :
Why not add a simple “rename” option in the group’s contextual menu ? It’s not in there right now ...

Or, even better, let users double-click on a group’s name to rename it, just like in the Finder.
(Fast double-click opens the Groups Info window, Slow double-click shows the rename box around the word)

I’m sure this has been brought up before, but couldn’t find any threads.

Any comments are most welcome

Cheers, Bert.
Silverbullet 3D

http://www.silverbullet3d.com/eias_benchmark/

Or at least an edit box in the Group Info dialog.

Actually, there was/is experimental code in the Project Window source for inline renaming but it’s such a nightmare and doesn’t work right.

Can’t it be… click on the name, rename
Click on the icon, select the object.

Just keep flapping and you should be able to take off. 

Well with the right attachments I can glide.

An uncalled for statement I think. I guessed that the feature request forum was for requesting features.
Can’t hurt to ask. And I’m just putting forward my 2 cents.

The User-pack had a ‘mass rename plug-in’, it wasn’t chosen however.
It’s safe to say we all wish the Project Window used the same framework as the FCE.

Best,
Ian

I know we can recognize clicks in various regions.  That’s not the problem.  Editing text in-place is the problem.  Part of it comes from the fact that the hierarchy area is a completely separate drawing region from the keyframing area so when you try to stick an edit box in there it can get clipped off by the hierarchy area.  You have to be able to draw an edit box 31 characters wide all the time.  The other nasty is that if you’re editing and you scroll the window, seriously unpleasant things happen.

I agree that it would be useful as would editing spreadsheet-style view keyframe values in-place.  The problem is that the project window was never designed to do this.  IMHO, a complete redesign of it would be better including integration of the FCE.  But in order for this to happen a very detailed and thorough design document has to be created describing how everything should work and what it should look like.

Personally I am much in favor of BJ’s idea to split the clickable areas in the project window :

a) Double click on the Group’s (circle shape) icon to access Group Info, Shaders, etc.
b) Double click on the name itself and change the name (if desired).

Apart from this request, I’m trying to think long-term here, and see EIAS with a brandnew restyled UI in a couple of years. Quite frankly, I think that’s what many of the current hardcore users would appreciate.

This is by far not a new forum discussion. (UI restyling).
In the past 12 months, I have read dozens of threads - both on this forum as well as on the CGSociety forum - and the majority agrees that the UI needs a clinical retouch.

Or maybe it’s just me who’s becoming too old and having difficulties reading those small characters in the current Project Window. ) Would certainly mean a big deal to me, if users had the option to change both font type and size in the main Preferences.

Ah well, think I’m gonna be allright for now.
All my EIAS renderings still look rich and crispy in almost every project I run.
Same story here, people simply do not believe I am using EIAS for 90 percent of my 3D client work.
They all do believe that Maya is the holy grail.

Right now, I am teaching Maya 101 courses to 3D newbees.
At the same time, I do all of my serious heavy-duty polygon crunch work in EIAS.

Cheers, Bert.

http://www.silverbullet3d.com/eias_benchmark/

Hi Juanxer,

you can navigate in the project window with the arrow keys when you hold down the option key. Look in the manual for keyboard shortcuts.

Jens

Jens C. Möller - 07 November 2008 05:25 AM

Hi Juanxer,

you can navigate in the project window with the arrow keys when you hold down the option key. Look in the manual for keyboard shortcuts.

Jens

Argh! I can never remember them all. Thanks.

OK, so then it’s only the RETURN-Highlight thing that we would need . I’ll edit my post so.

Hi All

Although inline edit is a very standatd practice, IMO it’s not a good idea to add/use it in Project Window. Unlike Finder folders windows, the Project Window has much more functionality, others edit fields, hot keys etc so another one editor practically guarantees a lot of probs/conflicts. But IMO all can be much simpler if “localize” rename action into a separated modal dialog. Just a listbox with groups names (with order, color labels and icons as in Project Window). Here is no probs with inline editiing. Same as with find groups by letter(s). Most probably a “massive renaming” (that Ian noticed) anyway will be needed. And if so why need to waste efforts for big window modification that would be really complex but finally ineffective?

What about this way?

Highlight the Group’s name. Then, upon pressing the RETURN or ENTER key (a la After Effects), the content of the Value Edit Field at the top of the Project Window gets highlighted and we can just type a new name and confirm it by pressing RETURN again. No mouse actions needed to activate the field. That would let us rename things fast without our hands having to leave the keyboard. Say, one wants to rename a series of Groups:

Clck on first Group to rename.
RETURN, type new name, RETURN.
ALT-Right,
RETURN, type new name. RETURN.
ALT-Right
etc.

This would be limited to working while in Time Mode only, probably (it could conflict with the other spreadsheet-like modes’ functionality, I imagine).

I hope that wouldn’t be too difficult to implement. It’s not as nice as inline field editing, but it would be faster than what we have today.

EDITED to reflect Jens’ reminder of ALT-Arrow Keys functionality (Option-Arrow Keys in Macs)

Igors - 07 November 2008 08:23 AM

But IMO all can be much simpler if “localize” rename action into a separated modal dialog. Just a listbox with groups names (with order, color labels and icons as in Project Window).

That would be a nice way to solve the problem, given the constraints, and if it could have a couple of very simple batch renaming tools (search-replace text, add at the beginning/end) it would be a winner. There would be just one requirement: that when one highlights one name in the list, the relevant element in the scene gets highlighted or selected, too, so that one can identify what is going to get renamed (in complex scenes it is easy to confuse things).

(Would the idea of using RETURN or any other keypress to activate the Value Edit Field in the Project window while in Time Mode be very costly to implement? It really would make renaming faster)

Isnt the “hit enter” process defined by juanxer how it used to work pre- version 3? I remember just hitting enter to get the field to highlight then enter again to confirm. Ah, the golden age of 2.7…