ZBrushCentral

Space Pilot or other 6DOF device support?

ZBrush Usage Questions
#1

I use a Space Traveler at work for Maya and Photoshop. They’re pretty popular in the CAD world, but entertainment types haven’t really taken to them as much yet. I’ve been using mine for a couple months, and now I can’t imagine working without it… really keeps me from the stop-go-stop-go of navigating then editing over and over again.

Problem is the device isn’t supported yet in Zbrush, and we’ll be working in Zbrush on a future project. Nooo!!! :mad:

I called up 3D connexion about it (www.3dconnexion.com; they’re the guys who make the drivers and the devices), and they said they’d likely add support for Zbrush if there was any interest.

So, does anyone use one of these 6DOF controllers, and would like to see a driver made for Zbrush? Please put your 2cents here, and I’ll bug Pixologic and 3D Connexion about it until a driver gets made. I can’t be the ONLY freak using these things… can I? :o

Thanks all!

#2

doh, gear lust!!! I have to test one of them. I can see why youd love to get
support for it.
I would enjoy to use all these midi controllers with motor faders and tons of knobs laying around on my desk for Zbrush. Just size your brush via a knob turn… Im dreaming…

#3

I have a spaceball 5000 that I use with maya and its great. The more software support the better, but the zbrush interface is very different than the cad dcc apps that are supported now. Also while zbrush is very different, it is really efficient (with a wacom) once you get the hang of it.

In order to be usefull the driver would need to support navigating in paint and edit mode. It may also be necessary for the 3dx devices to be able to send or mimic mouse clicks for some commands. I dont know if 3dx supports that yet…

DD

#4

Zbrush lives on the Wacom. I love spacemice, and other fancy shamncy mice variants on other more utilitarian programs. But if youre not really getting the best ZB has to give without a tablet.

#5

Well that’s just it; you use both: navtool in left hand, wacom in right.

The newer drivers do have keystroke hotkeys, just like the programmable buttons on a wacom intuos 3.

#6

i use a spacepilot on rhino and 3ds max and it is great for modelling while using the wacom tablet at the same time. i would also like to see support in zbrush to rotate the model. this way, all the rotation-move-scale strokes fall aside and you can improve the navigation speed a lot.

so when you bug pixologic and 3dconexxion, please do so :slight_smile:

thank yu for bringing that up,
daniel

#7

I had once the chance to test the space pilot and I was fascinated. It is so much faster than the normal way of rotating, etc.
I found a website, where this spacepilot can be bought for only ~250€(students only) so I would buy one of them but only if they would support Zbrush, because it’s my main tool.

Greetings

Frenzied

#8

I’d love to see Zbrush drivers for the Spacepilot. I was actually gonna buy a Spacepilot, but I’m hesitant since it doesn’t support Zbrush. I can definently see the advantage of a Spacepilot in Zbrush.

#9

News? about a driver for 3dconnexion device?

#10

I had been looking into a SpacePilot or Traveller, but they don’t support ANY of the software that I use.

If they supported ZBrush, I would buy it just for that–but everything they do support that I know anything about is hideously expensive–heck they don’t even list support for Lightwave!

I realize their primary market is people with deep pockets and ‘serious’ commercial projects–(Not that ZB and LW aren’t serious programs or used for major commercial works, rather iI refer to their CAD heavy lineup and my lack of commercial level skill) but they are really slapping folks with like me who just like to make pretty pictures and explore the frontiers of our imaginations.

My point is this–how many hobbyist/enthusiast level users have shelled out three to five hundred for a Wacom tablet for recreational use? I’d wager Wacom finds it a nontrivial market. And I’d wager most of the same people would buy one of these if they could find a similar level of support.

Granted it’s a mite bit more intense to develop drivers to do what these devices are doing than to come up with a digitizing pad pointer device–but I bet the first few years were hell for tablets too. Especially the pressure sensitivity issues.

#11

mmm… if i write a python script that write in file (txt) the input of 3dconnexion device (in loop)… someone is able to do a Zscript that read this file… and trasforme in zbrush movement?

#12

You know, if you are able to write a python class capable of recieving 3dConnexion input, may as well go whole hog and have it produce the out put as well. There’s already a ton of overhead involved without running major pointer movements through two interpreter layers.

I wonder if 3dConnexion makes an SDK available? Would be nice to have a head start on those methods–even if it was just to see how it works in some other modeler.

#13

I too have a spacepilot that I use for 3d, and I would love to see some support in zbrush. I think it would make it even more intuitive because when you are doing detail work, you have to constantly rotate and zoom to look at your model…and that is what that tool is designed for.

#14

I’m new to zbrush and bought a wacom tablet after seeing the benifits (now that I have one can’t recommend it highly enough.) I have been using 3D software for years mostly 3D Max and more recently Maya - I recently saw a tutorial by Zack Petroc (Gnomon Workshop) - he was working in Maya and had to be using a 3D motion Controller - his speed and control were simply amasing - I instantly decided that I wanted one - having the freedom to control the camera completely with your right hand while still editing with your left just seems so natural - I’ve order a 3D Spacepilot on the strength of seeing that DVD. I recently contacted Pixologic to see if they will be supporting it in the future - Here’s their response:

Some people have expressed interest in such support, but not enough to warrant us taking development time from other features that will affect a wider user base.

There is the possibility that the developer of such devices will be creating a plugin to allow ZBrush to make use of them. I do not know when that might develop, however, or if it definitely will happen.

I think “surfacenormal” is right if enough people request support for it - we might see it’s priority increase - I for one am sold. :smiley:

#15

Here, Here count me in. Would love to see this it just makes sense. Work harder better faster. :smiley:

#16

Yeah, I had contacted them and got the “make your own damned driver” response as well.

During the call, Connectix mentioned that if Pixologic contacted them directly, then they’d be much more likely to prioritize a Zbrush driver… otherwise they don’t pay too much attention to something like Zbrush as compared to something like Maya.

So maybe we should be bugging Pixologic instead?

#17

Yeah, I had contacted them and got the “make your own damned driver” response as well.

Me, too… :confused:

#18

Whoops, nevermind. Andrew already did contact Pixologic. Looks like we just need a lot more people to chime in to say that they’d use it.

#19

Im in. Someone PLEASE get this driver available it will make Z-brush an absolute dream to use.

#20

the problem is 3dconnexion has interest to not really develop drivers for zbrush.interest itself only for large company as autodesk. And hope for large sales figures in the industry. Hobby and small 3d company do not seem really lucrative for 3dconnexion. I had already contact with the company. They make it unnecessarily heavy and show no interest them put stones into that away and to make unnecessarily heavily the development of driver. Also do not leave to the self-development of driver. The customers of 3dconnexion are all the same to the company. Only largely the industry counts. If ILM says we wants drivers… it sees a driver very fast.
:td:
:mad: