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Any of you productively use mouse gestures?

Question asked by Kevin Andrews on Apr 30, 2018
Latest reply on May 17, 2018 by Jerry Myer

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One of the things that I truly miss in Solidworks (unless someone tells me it does exist and I haven't found it in 9 years) is the "Repeat last command option" for the right mouse button in ACAD. Yes, I will tie this into the mouse gestures in a quick second.

Do any of you actively use mouse gestures? If so, how long did it take you to get used to using them and how do you think it helped with your overall productivity? I have tried using them, even to the point of customizing the options, but I continually forget that they are there.

So, I am contemplating as to whether, or not, I want to try and get them back up and going...but I also wanted to know if there was a command similar to the "repeat last command" that can be implemented into the gesture menu?

Glenn Schroeder Apr 30, 2018 2:02 PM

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I use them extensively, and don't remember any problems getting used to them. However, I didn't come from AutoCAD so that might have some bearing, and I don't like keyboard shortcuts (one hand on my regular mouse and one on the 3d mouse) .

As far as "repeat last command", as I said, I'm not familiar with AutoCAD, but if you hit Escape to close out a command in SW, then hitting Enter will reactivate it (and no, as far as I know you can't set Enter as a Mouse Gesture). Edit: I was wrong. You can.

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Peter Kennedy Apr 30, 2018 1:54 PM
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I have the measure tool, plane views and then certain commands depending on part/assembly, or sketching, use them all the time.

Edit:
Looks like you can program repeat last command.
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Matt Lombard Apr 30, 2018 1:54 PM
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don't you use the enter key to do the repeat last command?

I don't use any of the gesture stuff. I never liked it when it came out, and haven't changed my mind about it yet. I use hotkeys primarily.
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Todd Blacksher Apr 30, 2018 1:55 PM
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I have been somewhat slow to adopt ALL of the gestures - I went with them in part and assembly right away for the views & orientation, but I didn't start using them for sketching until a little while back (I still don't use them much for drawings.)

Definitely print out the mouse gesture guide to help you remember everything that you added.
I say this because you WILL want to add the "Repeat Last Command" to your gestures (as you mentioned), and I would highly recommend adding your "s" key shortcut menu to gestures - this will help you "bridge the gap" if you already use the "s" key a lot.
todd
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Alex Lachance Apr 30, 2018 1:58 PM
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Hey Kevin,

Not sure if it's assigneable to the mouse gestures but pressing enter repeats the last command.It's also in the keyboard short-cuts so perhaps there is something you can do

Edit: Looks like somebody beat me to it lol
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Glenn Schroeder Apr 30, 2018 2:02 PM
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I use them extensively, and don't remember any problems getting used to them. However, I didn't come from AutoCAD so that might have some bearing, and I don't like keyboard shortcuts (one hand on my regular mouse and one on the 3d mouse) .

As far as "repeat last command", as I said, I'm not familiar with AutoCAD, but if you hit Escape to close out a command in SW, then hitting Enter will reactivate it (and no, as far as I know you can't set Enter as a Mouse Gesture). Edit: I was wrong. You can.
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Todd Blacksher @ Glenn Schroeder on Apr 30, 2018 2:08 PM
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I gotta ask - Glenn Schroeder, what is the command at 1:00 on your gestures?
I am not recognizing the icon (my first thought was undo or repeat last command, but it isn't either of those.)
Give me a second to put some padding on my desk for when I smack my head down and say "duh!"
thanks!
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Glenn Schroeder @ Todd Blacksher on Apr 30, 2018 2:14 PM
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Todd Blacksher wrote:

I gotta ask - Glenn Schroeder, what is the command at 1:00 on your gestures?
I am not recognizing the icon (my first thought was undo or repeat last command, but it isn't either of those.)
Give me a second to put some padding on my desk for when I smack my head down and say "duh!"
thanks!

Escape.

Make it a thick pad.
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Tom Gagnon Apr 30, 2018 2:14 PM
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I productively use only half of the gestures available to me, and have customized it very little.

To me, moving away from keyboard command entry was my learning curve. I kept triggering selection filters with keystrokes, and that had to stop. Adopting mouse gestures was an important part of retraining my habits of input for SWx compared to oldCAD.
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Alex Lachance @ Glenn Schroeder on Apr 30, 2018 2:16 PM
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Really? I tought it was repeat last command. Why do you have it there..?
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Todd Blacksher @ Glenn Schroeder on Apr 30, 2018 2:29 PM
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Glenn Schroeder wrote:

Escape.

Make it a thick pad.
D'oh!
Made even worse because I looked through the "Commands" tab on the Customize menu, but I DIDN'T look at the Keyboard tab.
(When I hit the keyboard tab, I almost immediately change "Show" to "Commands with Keyboard or Search Shortcuts" and this prevents Escape from appearing.)
I'm going home, I have failed another Monday . . .
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Glenn Schroeder @ Alex Lachance on Apr 30, 2018 2:29 PM
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Alex Lachance wrote:

Why do you have it there..?

I don't understand the question. I have it as a Mouse Gesture because I use it often, and it's in the same place in all four environments so I don't have to think about it. Or do you mean why is it at the 1:00 o'clock position as opposed to a different location?
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Dennis Dohogne @ Todd Blacksher on Apr 30, 2018 2:32 PM
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Todd Blacksher wrote:
I'm going home, I have failed another Monday . . .
So, Todd, that's 18 Mondays for you so far this year?!
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David Mandl Apr 30, 2018 2:36 PM
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I use mouse gestures.

Therefore I am using them productively.

It's easily one of my favorite elements of the UI, and I've been aggressively encouraging the other CAD jockeys here to use them.
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Alex Lachance @ Glenn Schroeder on Apr 30, 2018 2:37 PM
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Excuse me if I wasn't clear with my questioning, I'm having a hard time aligning my toughts today. My question pertained more about the utlity of having it there instead of using the keyboard escape or the one on a 3D Mouse.

I'm guessing it has to do with working methods. If I were using a 3D mouse, I'd use the escape on it but since I don't use one, my left hand is always in typing position so it's close enough to the escape.

If you don't use a 3D mouse and you use mouse gesture, what do you do the rest of the day with your left hand? My left arm feels like it's always waiting for something to do lol
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Todd Blacksher @ Dennis Dohogne on Apr 30, 2018 2:40 PM
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Dennis Dohogne wrote:

Todd Blacksher wrote:
I'm going home, I have failed another Monday . . .
So, Todd, that's 18 Mondays for you so far this year?!
I'll answer this question over here - Non-technical Thread: Favorite Quotes
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Glenn Schroeder @ Alex Lachance on Apr 30, 2018 2:41 PM
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Thank you for the explanation. As I said above, I tend to avoid keyboard shortcuts because I do have a 3d mouse. I used to have the simple one and had the buttons programmed to do other things. Now I have a better one, with Escape programmed in, but I still use the Mouse Gesture from habit. And I haven't removed it from my Mouse Gestures yet because I haven't found a command there that I'd put there to replace it.
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Dan Pihlaja Apr 30, 2018 2:48 PM
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I am still getting used to them. One way that I modify my behavior is to make sure that, when I do something in a way that I don't want, or wasn't planning, then I go back and re-do it completely, no matter how long it takes or how much time seems to be wasted.

Honestly, I learned this studying addictions over the last 7 years. LOL But it applies to everyday life as well.

Example:
I have the delete key tied into my mouse gestures. I am getting used to it being there and when I accidentally delete something using my keyboard (and realize what I did), then I CTRL-Z, and then force myself to redo the delete using my Mouse Gesture.
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Tom dunn Apr 30, 2018 2:48 PM
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I use them, just like anything else, have to get use to them and I hardly ever use the "S" key.
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Alex Lachance @ Dan Pihlaja on Apr 30, 2018 2:58 PM
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It is a good way to break habits as it forces you to do it corectly. You eventually get frustrated enough to the point that you think of it before starting something and do it correctly from the get go.
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Dave Laban May 1, 2018 5:15 AM
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Huge fan of mouse gestures, productivity is significantly enhanced just by virtue of slashing mouse miles.

Put the Shortcut Bar (S-key) on the bottom right of the mouse gesture wheel and you can have a huge amount of commands immediately at your cursor rather than having to go back and forth to toolbars at the edge of the screen.
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Dennis Dohogne @ Dan Pihlaja on May 1, 2018 7:52 AM
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Dan Pihlaja wrote:

I am still getting used to them. One way that I modify my behavior is to make sure that, when I do something in a way that I don't want, or wasn't planning, then I go back and re-do it completely, no matter how long it takes or how much time seems to be wasted.

Honestly, I learned this studying addictions over the last 7 years. LOL But it applies to everyday life as well.

Example:
I have the delete key tied into my mouse gestures. I am getting used to it being there and when I accidentally delete something using my keyboard (and realize what I did), then I CTRL-Z, and then force myself to redo the delete using my Mouse Gesture.
Dan, I really admire your commitment and self-discipline!!
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Paul Risley May 1, 2018 9:18 AM
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Never used them until 2 years ago.

Started with 4 simple commands. Used those that way for 6 months. Moved up to eight, it takes time, patience and practice. Now they are so ingrained along with external mouse functionality I use my keyboard during design for text fill and some numerical input and that is about it.

I encourage everyone here to at least set up 4 gestures just to get in the habit of using them.
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Matt Lombard @ Dan Pihlaja on May 1, 2018 9:26 AM
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To me, this is just silly (undoing work only to redo it in a different way). I understand applying it on the academic side of things, but real work is not academic. I doubt a manager would look at that as a productive use of your time, especially since what you are learning is more of a rigid dogma than an improved or time saving method.

There are several ways to measure the efficiency of a method - time, clicks (mouse or keyboard), distance traveled, accuracy required, memory required (brain memory), and others. Gestures require coordinated speed and direction, but you get a break on accuracy of hitting a button because you can initiate it anywhere. It's just harder to initiate the gesture, and before you can react to it, the gesture has either worked or not, so it's a bit of a shot in the dark. Plus, I've had gestures go wrong and wind up with a part flying into blank CAD space. And, you can't put all your tools on the gesture wheel, there's just not enough room. This is why I use hotkeys for as much as possible. You can access more tools faster from the keyboard. Plus, for me, the keyboard is second nature. I don't use the S key, because that just guarantees an extra stroke. I do like the context bars, though, it makes sense that when you select something, you will next want to do something with it. Context bars on the RMB menus are a little counter productive, though, especially for non-experts, since you have to essentially learn all of the context bars by heart so you know where to look for certain tools.

I know different methods appeal to different people for different reasons. I just think you should have a conscious, identifiable reason for choosing a method. Undoing work done correctly just due to interface usage dogma sounds unnecessarily risky.
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Glenn Schroeder @ Matt Lombard on May 1, 2018 9:49 AM
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Matt,

I certainly can't speak for Dan, but it's my impression that he believes using Mouse Gestures will eventually be more productive. He's losing a little time now changing old habits, but I expect he'll make it up, and more, later.

And you said that for you the keyboard is second nature. That's not true for all of us, and while I agree that I can't put all the commands I need in Mouse Gestures, I can get most of them, and certainly the ones I use most often. I don't have any research to prove it, but I'm sure I can use them faster than taking my hand off my 3d mouse to go to my keyboard. And I disagree with "It's just harder to initiate the gesture, and before you can react to it, the gesture has either worked or not, so it's a bit of a shot in the dark." I bring up Mouse Gestures with a small movement of my mouse, and then move to the command I want. And on the rare occasions that I do miss it takes a very small amount of time to hit Escape (at 1:00 o'clock on my Mouse Gestures in all 4 environments) and then hit the correct one.
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Dan Pihlaja @ Matt Lombard on May 1, 2018 10:08 AM
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Glenn is correct. This worked for me in many areas of my life. Take the extra time now to increase productivity in the future. Maybe it is just a couple of seconds here and there, but over the course of years, it pays off. It is like spending money to save money.

Yes, I suppose that there are times, like when the project is due yesterday, or I need a CAD model for a meeting in 15 minutes that was just scheduled, where I will NOT use the aforementioned redo method....but those times are rare. And, once the training has kicked in to becoming muscle memory, then I won't have to redo anything anyway.
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