MuTools

MuTools · Post by **MuTools** » Wed Feb 18, 2009 8:15 am

A frequently heard feature request is to have a way to delete notes in the Note Editor with 1 mouse click.

As the RMB (right mouse button) is reserved for context menus, that's no option.

Now i've been thinking about this:

Currently, if you hover the head of a note, you can change the start point, similar to changing the start of a part in the composer.

But we could change this in: hover the head of a note shows the gum and then with 1 click you can delete that note.

This would be a nice solution as you can still move the start of a note by moving the note, eventually adapting the length when necessary.

I think a gum tool on the head of a note will be used much more than changing the start of a note without changing its end.

If we would use this system, then there will be a difference between composer and note editor regarding the tool which appears on the head of a note but that should be no problem i think as it will be obvious and relevant.

What do you think?

pquenin · Post by **pquenin** » Wed Feb 18, 2009 12:50 pm

Well, I'm at work so I can't use Mulab, but I think that the composer and note editors must stay as closed as possible (in term of behaviour).
But as you say, that should not be a problem, I have to "test" it...

MuTools · Post by **MuTools** » Wed Feb 18, 2009 5:21 pm

It would be the same as now when holding [Alt] while hovering the head of a note.

But in the idea above you won't have to hold [Alt], the gum would simply appear when hovering the head of a note.

pljones · Post by **pljones** » Wed Feb 18, 2009 7:42 pm

Why can't the gum appear when the mouse points to the start of a Part in the composer? And will holding Alt still swap to the other behaviour?

MuTools · Post by **MuTools** » Wed Feb 18, 2009 8:33 pm

pljones wrote:Why can't the gum appear when the mouse points to the start of a Part in the composer?

Technically no problem.

But i think that changing the start of a part is a more popular/important action than deleting a part.

Especially since changing the start of a part is not similar to moving a part because the part content stays at its position.

So it's about 'trimming' the part start.

And will holding Alt still swap to the other behaviour?

Yes.

liquidsound · Post by **liquidsound** » Wed Feb 18, 2009 11:30 pm

I don't understand this...
It is so easy and intuitive to just click, or double click, LMB on the note to delete it. Other DAWs are doing the same and it is the fastest-Flow thing you can do.
I know we talked about this before regarding the right click being reserved for Pop Up menu, but there is a way with time-motion pointer which allows the right click to have double action.
Again the suggestion about having the eraser at the beginning of the note is still a drag for small fast notes.
I agree with Jo that changing the start of a part is a more popular/important action than deleting a part.

Bonteburg · Post by **Bonteburg** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 12:01 am

I'm sceptical about this.

I wasn't even aware of this before reading the thread so to me this sounds like trouble in the making (animal of habits, etc etc).

liquidsound · Post by **liquidsound** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 12:10 am

Bonteburg wrote:I'm sceptical about this.

I wasn't even aware of this before reading the thread so to me this sounds like trouble in the making (animal of habits, etc etc).

OK...about what in particular

Bonteburg · Post by **Bonteburg** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 12:15 am

about adding a new feature to delete notes.
But I'm getting a bit tired. Didn't read all of it, so I may have posted a lot of unqualified bollocks! My impression was that some people were petitioning for a new way to delete notes which I think is wholly unecessary and even potentially workflow-mess-uppy.

Nite!

liquidsound · Post by **liquidsound** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 12:37 am

I agree that there is always a potential back fire when changing a feature but, this is why users need to voice their opinion.
A developer can't just loose his head at every request, it would be a disaster for us in the first place, but by listening the overall and repeated requests about a certain behavior of MuLab then he can make the right choice if it fits the overall road-map.

Jo is not going to do anything to his program unless he's sure is the right thing. I have been observing this forum and this guy has something called in database language Referential Integrity: main structure and levels are connected by Design Intention and rules.

I like that.

MuTools · Post by **MuTools** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 8:49 am

liquidsound wrote:I don't understand this...
It is so easy and intuitive to just click, or double click, LMB on the note to delete it.

Click LMB on note = Delete note?? Don't see what you mean.

Using a double-click to delete a note would not be consequent with the rest of the MU.LAB GUI as double-click is normally used to 'edit' / 'open' / 'go deeper into' an object.

Other DAWs are doing the same and it is the fastest-Flow thing you can do.

Sure but they don't do other things MU.LAB does. It's about choices.

I know we talked about this before regarding the right click being reserved for Pop Up menu, but there is a way with time-motion pointer which allows the right click to have double action.

Indeed the code can differentiate between a click and a drag.

But in this case we're talking about a click anyway:

Right-click = context menu
Right-click = delete note

Right?

Anyway, also here it would not be consequent to add a special function to the right-click as it's reserved for the context menus.

Why is it so important to have a consequent GUI behaviour? Because it makes the app easy to learn!!

Again the suggestion about having the eraser at the beginning of the note is still a drag for small fast notes.

This will be solved by the fact that notes will always be at least 12 pixels width, so that the head and tail are always at least 4 pixels width.

This is an improvement that was planned anyway.

I agree with Jo that changing the start of a part is a more popular/important action than deleting a part.

Yes i think so.

At the other hand, the disadvantage would be that hovering the head of a part and hovering the head of a note show different tools.

But i think that could be acceptable as it's relevant.

Otherwise, if we want to choose for the uniformity, then the head of a part would show te gum to and trimming a part's start would be done by [Alt]+head of part.

MuTools · Post by **MuTools** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 9:02 am

Bonteburg wrote:about adding a new feature to delete notes.

It's not really about adding a new feature or heavily changing the workflow.

I think it's more about finetuning the current workflow.

Deleting a note with a single click is an often heard FR and i continue searching for a neat solution that fits the MU.LAB GUI.

Head of note = gum

instead of

[Alt] + head of note = gum

seems a nice candidate.

What do you think?

Bonteburg · Post by **Bonteburg** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 12:01 pm

If so many people want it I reckon it can't be bad. hehe

I can't even think of how how I'm doing it now, it's so automatic to me. I probably just select them and hit delete.

Marco

MuTools · Post by **MuTools** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 12:20 pm

That's certainly a very common way too. And nothing would change there

toxicoh · Post by **toxicoh** » Thu Feb 19, 2009 12:20 pm

Bonteburg wrote:If so many people want it I reckon it can't be bad. hehe
I can't even think of how how I'm doing it now, it's so automatic to me. I probably just select them and hit delete.

Marco

Same here.

MuTools

KVR Audio

Deleting notes with 1 mouse click