Subject: Re: LW interface (was Re: Projector lights)
From: [email-masked] (Gonzalo Garramuno)
To: [email-masked]
Date: Thu, 22 Feb 1996 09:59:28 -0800

Mark Thompson <[email-masked]> writes:

> be able to bring up multiple motion channels, envelopes, displacement
> mappers, etc. while still interactively working and viewing the results in
> layout. The whole concept of "do this one operation, back out, and see the

Agreed!  For the past two months I have been telling Allen that LW's
interface has to be dramatically changed for 5.0.  Otherwise, forget
about LW (specially when you have SI, 3D Max around now).

> a noble cause to keep the software operating on the lowest common
> denominator machine, but it should not cripple the possibilities of
> the real heavy users.
> 
Well.  I think Lightwave is at a turning point here.  It started as
an amateur package, which, somehow, became a pro or semi-pro package.
So now, you have power users screaming for new and improved features
(to make LW look closest to SGI 3D pro packages) and you have the old,
loyal customer base which still uses Amigas for rendering (I believe
Amiga users still count for the greatest percent of NewTek sales -too
many Toasters, Flyers and loyal Amiga fans out there).
Sooner or later, I believe Newtek will have to make up their mind on
what they want to be.  And there will be many people angry, then.
If NewTek were a big company with thousands of employees working on
the 3D program, I would suggest releasing an entry level LW and a pro
version.  But, LW is only programmed by Allen, Stuart, Arnie Cachelin
and now Fori.  Not many more involved, I believe.

> And my BIGGEST pet peeve about the current motion graphs...whats with
> not having any means to adjust the vertical view axis!!!????!?! It makes
> fine editing of many motions virtually impossible.
> 
Even better, I would suggest adding a dynamic pan/zoom.  Put your cursor
here, press this key and zoom up.  Press this other key, and go back.
Hold this key, and move your mouse to pan around.

> There, I feel better now :-)

I know, it IS tough.  But do not rest, yet.  Keep screaming.  We are
actually trying to help LW, even if we complain too much.

Gonzalo Garramuno
[email-masked]
Buenos Aires, Argentina