Sharing my Wacom-Revit Solution

[tychoruniko650599]

I just thought that I would share this trick that I worked out today to help me use my Wacom Pen Tablet (A Wacom Bamboo, my favorite little input device) efficiently in Revit. The two things that I really wanted to be able to do most with my pen that my mouse did perfectly well is PAN and ZOOM, which are {Middle Mouse Button} and {CTRL}+{Middle Mouse Button} respectively. Just installing the Bamboo software was not enough to simulate these inputs in a way that felt good. You can assign one of the rocker buttons to {Middle Mouse Button} easily enough, but holding down the shift key while pushing this button and moving the pen around added an unnecessary level of complication that felt like rubbing my stomach while patting my head and reciting the alphabet backwards.

The solution was a free piece of software called "X-Mouse Button Control" which is a very powerful mouse input controller that has a grundle of useful features, not the least of which is being able to assign actions and modifier keys to the 4th and 5th mouse button input. So I assigned the other rocker button to "4th Button" and in X-Mouse told it that "in Revit, intercept the {4th Mouse Button} and turn it into {CTRL}+{Middle Mouse Button}. Boom, instant one-button Pan and Zoom! The same could be done for Orbit or any keyboard shortcut that is a priority for you. And the best part? It is free software!

I hope this helps someone out there.
-Ben B

Edit:
Here is the link to the X-Mouse developer's website: http://www.highrez.co.uk/downloads/X...tonControl.htm It works with any mouse or other pointer input, because it talks with the operating system and not directly with the device. Enjoy!

[Didier Hoffman]

Hi,

I just bought a wacom tablet, and you tip is very useful. Thank you...

Anyway, the option to put the zoom (ctl+MMB) in the 4th button makes the zoom in Revit always centered in the middle of the screen.

With the mouse, if you scroll the middle button down or up, the zoom is centered at the place of the cursor on the screen.

Have you ever tried to manage this with the wacom ?

Thank you...
Didier HOFFMAN

[slengineering]

Is anyone using a wacom tablet (bamboo connect or capture, etc.) with Revit 2012 products? I have read in other forums that there are some issues with drop downs and property tabs as well as the zoom/pan issue which appears to be addressed in Ben's email above. I am wanting to try one of these and don't know if the touch capabilities work at all in Revit or if I would be better off without them.

Which tablet is best for Revit work?

If there are any structural engineers using one of these, do they work well with design software (RAM, RISA, etc.)?

I've been using a mouse for so many years now that I am afraid I won't be able to get used to a different input mechanism. I can't find a mouse that fits my hand or feels comfortable any longer and am exploring alternative options for input.

Thanks in advance!

Steve

[arj408329]

Hi

I'll only manage to get the zoom on the 4th bottom, even though I intercept it in Xmouse to {MMB}{CTRL}. In X-mouse, which setting do you use in "How to send the simulated the key strokes:"?

Arj

[kurtm.adil683538]

I use a Wacom Bamboo Capture graphics tablet for AutoCAD LT and love it. Thinking about making the move over to Revit. There are things you need on a mouse that a tablet is not quite suited for, like scrolling. The scroll wheel is very useful for zooming in AutoCAD. My solution was to place my mouse (or track ball) on the opposite side of my keyboard that my tablet is on (I am right handed so my tablet is on the right, and my mouse/trackball is on the left side. Next I position the mouse so I can hit the CTRL key on my keyboard and can operate the scroll wheel with my ring finger, however I usually operate the scroll wheel with my Index finger (I do not move the mouse to control the cursor, I actually prefer a track ball on the left). My tablet's pen has two buttons on a rocker; the lower button is set to "grab" (middle click on mouse) the page in model/paperspace and move it around the screen, the top rocker button is set up for a right click.

This set up took a little practice to get used to, but now I have a lot more control over the cursor and the ability to do multiple things at once (like zooming in model/paperspace while grabbing and moving the page at the same time). In other applications like Acrobat, Word, Excel, Photoshop, etc... Holding the CTRL key and using the scroll wheel zooms in and out of pages, which is useful for navigating documents with the pen/tablet. Sometimes I find with my tablet clicking with the pen may not be as precise as I need it to be, I find using the hover feature of the pen useful in this situation; I hover over the point I need and then I use the left click on the mouse/track ball to select or hold the point, While hovering you can then drag the point to where you need it and then just release the left button on the mouse/trackball. After getting used to this I find it very awkward to go back to using a mouse. I don't know how this would transfer over to Revit, but I can't imagine it would be that much different.