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View Full Version : Copy & Paste Visual Learning Aids into OneSpace Modeling


LoveLearn
11-14-2007, 12:58 PM
One Visual Aid that's common to many software packages which I've not found in OneSpace Modeling Personal Edition is simple listings of Commands with brief descriptions.

I wrongly thought that copy and paste might work within Modeling to enable copying a gear, rotate 1/2 of one gear tooth increment degrees, then paste to generate a meshing gear rotated sufficiently to display meshing. When I clicked on paste I was surprised to see an image file displayed within OneSpace Modeling as fixed background. That unexpected result brought to mind a way to use this characteristic to good advantage. I'll explain and provide an example.

Attached to this note is an image file I named "OneSpace ShortCuts 1.jpg" It's good as an illustration, but should be improved and generated as a higher resolution image, probably as a GIF rather than JPG. I ran a simple screen capture on a CoCreate on-line support page. Then I moved some of its elements around to leave its center space blank. If you display this JPG file, then click "Copy," Windows operating system will capture that image into temporary memory space. Then, within OneSpace Modeling Personal Edition, click "Edit" near top left corner, then click "Paste" in the menu displayed under "Edit."

In a moment, you will see a useful list of shortcuts surrounding your current OneSpace Modeling Project. You will be able to continue modeling as before with this useful supplementary Visual Aid learning material TRULY integrated into your OneSpace as ONE-Window rather than as TWO Windows.

But how can you get it to disappear? I don't see an easy command for that. But you can "Copy" a white blank image, then simply repeat the "Paste" command again under "Edit" within OneSpace Modeling which will restore the white blank background.

Right now, if we click on "Help," we gain access to what I've read is over 2500 pages of help files. But they appear in a separate Window so we either must switch back and forth between our OneSpace Modeling PE Window and the Help file Window, or we can resize both of those Windows so they can simultaneously be seen. When people are learning complex new commands, they often need to swap back and forth between those displayed Windows repeatedly to track those instructions and get needed results. All that frustrating swapping should be unnecessary. If this system is tweaked just a little users can see and use both contents from the Modeling Window.

If we can copy individual OnceSpace Modeling "Help" pages into Windows short-term memory, then "Paste" them into OneSpace
Modeling as background material, we won't need to swap or resize Windows to simultaneously use both to their intended purposes.

Right now OneSpace Modeling "Help" files allow us to toggle between "Hide" and "Show" the indexing pages while the search content remains on screen. But it does NOT enable a "Copy" choice.

I urge creating a new top-of-screen "Help" file display choice which instantly copies user choice of either a blank screen or the currently-displayed help content page and then automatically paste it into OneSpace Modeling as the new current background.

I don't think this should be a huge programing project. But the resulting improved user experience will significantly improve self-learning and reduce need for external teaching aids. This would be a big step in the right direction to improve this program's Joy/Pain curve.

Also, I think at least a dozen blank center screen images covering most commonly-used Modeling commands should be generated so when users need help in knowing what command they should use next, they can quickly flip through those content-rich command-explanation screens while staying withing their Modeling Window rather than being forced to open "Help" and swap in those most-frequently viewed images.

The name OneSpace suggests better integration within Windows. The strategy I've just suggested significantly extends that OneSpace philosophy to Help file use.

Thanks for your consideration,
John

LoveLearn
11-14-2007, 01:37 PM
Just in case anyone doesn't understand how I'm suggesting Help file information can be usefully displayed within OneSpace Modeling, take a peek at the attached image. Background text can be read through the green box. I hope this helps.
John

clausb
11-15-2007, 09:54 AM
A creative idea, indeed!

However, I'm not sure I would use it, personally. I guess I'd rather resize my online help and application windows once rather than pushing and spinning the model each time I need to read some notes in the background.

But it's a cute idea anyway, and prototyping it should be fairly straightforward.

Claus

LoveLearn
11-15-2007, 01:28 PM
Claus, you are so wonderfully enabled at controlling OneSpace Modeling that no one would expect you to even occasionally use an aid like this which might be compared to adding training wheels to a bicycle. I hope to become sufficiently familiar with OneSpace Modeling's amazingly-robust command set that I can easily illustrate new complex physical architectures I invent. I want OneSpace Modeling to become for me a comparatively transparent tool that I can use without thinking much about how to illustrate so I can stay focused on inventing and improving design relationships.

But gaining the minimum proficiency level needed to enable that kind of low-effort use through instruction from embedded internal Help files and CoCreate's freely-provided on-line external learning aid mini movies is coming slowly for me. I've suggested to several friends that they download CoCreate OneSpace Modeling Personal Edition. The few feedback comments I've received indicated that they are impressed with its power demonstrated by enterprise-class users, but frustrated by weak introductory instructions.

CoCreate management wants to gain market share. Ideally they'd probably like to replace AutoCad as the default standard CAD program considered by non-CAD-specialist general computer users. Offering OneSpace Personal Edition was a shot across the bow of all market-share competitors. Personal Edition users who become proficient with this amazing tool are likely to want to own a fully-enabled commercial version. It might be likened to being allowed to drive a Ferrari with a 2-liter fuel tank. Certain to drive a desire for more. But if the Joy/Pain curve endured while getting up to speed is unnecessarily discouraging, that ultimate market-share response will be greatly muted.

Our interests are aligned as I want to make learning to use OneSpace Modeling PE easier and faster. Adding user-deployable and user-retractable training wheels in the form of integrated one-Window modeling & help files would certainly ease that learning curve. By the time a user becomes as proficient as you are, I don't think they are likely to deploy those training wheels.

What I'm about to say is neither new nor unique to CoCreate OneSpace software. Economic incentives create inherent conflicts between software-creating companies verses people making money providing $500-$700/day software-use instructions. CoCreate's best interests are best served by creating a huge demand for their software. That demand can only be generated by creating a large class of potential buyers who have been exposed to the joys of driving this powerful system. So their interests are best served by making the learning process as easy, fast and robust as possible. Even a game-type feedback learning mechanism could help if B.F. Skinner's human motivational response insights were correct. But highly-paid software-use instruction vendors DO NOT want demand for their services diminished by easy, fast, robust and potentially fun interactive instructions which would kill demand for their activities. Don't look for them to shoot their golden goose.

Thanks for your consideration,
John

Mike Swartz
11-16-2007, 07:52 AM
You may want to consider adding an additional monitor to your system. This way you can access the help files or other applications without compromising the size of your Modeling PE viewport.
The size of the viewport becomes increasingly important as the complexity of your models grow.

Graphics cards that are able support 3D CAD applications rarely have problems supporting dual monitors.

clausb
11-16-2007, 10:14 PM
If somebody wants to experiment with John's idea, here are the programmatic building blocks:


(vp_background "vport1" :type :bg-image :image "foo.bmp")
;; to "drop" an image into the background of vport1

(vp_background "vport1" :type :gradient)
;; to return to a gradient background


Claus