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mind blown


TERRYH
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27 minutes ago, huskermcdoogle said:

Once you get used to it you won't want to go back.  It's just like usual, you get used to the tools you have at that moment, as soon as you get used to something else, you won't be effective at what you had before without a reintroduction period.

 

I have 24 years of muscle memory for using Mastercam; I've been using it by keystroke since '94.  The changes I had to make for the X series were trivial by comparison to what I'd have to do for 20XX.  If I have to relearn from scratch I may as well learn another product, which I am seriously considering for when X9 gets too old.

When a UI is not possible to use quickly and efficiently without heavy customization someone has made some very bad decisions.  Furthermore, when it is not possible to customize a UI to make it behave like a previous version, yup, more very bad decisions.

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I personally can't commit keystrokes to memory with ease.  I have found it pushes more important things out of memory.  I don't understand people who memorize movie quotes yet can't remember a procedure that I explained and showed to them minutes prior.  For me, show me once, and I will have it in RAM ready to go 99% of the time.  Can't to do that with key strokes and the such, visual/auditory memory doesn't work that way.  Anyway, I don't give a crap how an interface looks, just make sure that all of the original functionality isn't lost.  I agree with you that it sucks that the keystrokes weren't maintained as I feel for some that is in the functionality category, not interface so to speak.

58 minutes ago, Matthew Hajicek™ - Conventus said:

If I have to relearn from scratch I may as well learn another product,

I think this is somewhat spiteful.  I would highly suggest considering software capability and functional familiarity before considering interface.   

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5 minutes ago, huskermcdoogle said:

I think this is somewhat spiteful.  I would highly suggest considering software capability and functional familiarity before considering interface.   

Speed of use is functional.  In X9 and before, one half of my brain decides what I want to do, and the other side executes it automatically.  I keep my right hand on the mouse, and my left hand touch-types the dropdown menu navigation without my having to think about it or move the mouse cursor away from the work.

We're also looking into getting a Swiss, and that means several other software packages will be better suited.

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17 hours ago, Matthew Hajicek™ - Conventus said:

menu navigation without my having to think about it or move the mouse cursor away from the work.

This is what i'm telling Tech support in my e-mails lately. It's nice to see others with similar habits.

I don't like to " move the mouse cursor away from the work." it seems counter productive.

I was held back on v9 all thru the x series so the change to 2018 is not bad so far, it seems easier than the X's were to learn.

you're absolutely right about how important the keyboard interface is tho . I hope they will see this issue and help !!!

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You can right click any command icon and select "Add to Quick Access Toolbar"

I despise the MS style File Management setup that takes you to a separate page so I've added all the file commands

and all my most common geometry commands to the QA toolbar .

You'll notice the File Open icon has a little drop down arrow  which launches a Recent Items list

Its the little things like this that can save a thousand mouse clicks over time

See attached screen shot

 

Quick Access toolbar.pdf

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20 hours ago, huskermcdoogle said:

I personally can't commit keystrokes to memory with ease. 

Everyone is different Husker. The first MRP system I ever used was number driven for the memory structure. QAF!

Same as CAD. AutoCAD. So I want to draw a line, L.

I want to copy something, CP.

I want to move something, MO.

My brain works (sit down at the back :rolleyes:) by thinking "what do I want to do" then I do it. 2 key keyboard commands won't ever be beaten IMO.

Except for 1x click on an icon...

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21 hours ago, huskermcdoogle said:

I personally can't commit keystrokes to memory with ease.

The first system I ran was all keystrokes.. there was no mouse.

The first computer I bough (an IBM XT) with a mouse was amazing.

I still use some hotkeys in Mastercam though their performance is vastly degraded over what we had in V9

Having said that, the advancements in the software's capabilities  far exceed the hot keys we've lost with the new interface.

The Planes Manager is light years better than X9

Section View is one of the best things about MC2019

I never knew it was there because importing  an earlier version Mastercam.workspace file overwrote the Section Views column.

If you aren't using Section Views, I suggest you check them out.

Stock models and stock recognition are an order of magnitude better in MC2019 than X9.

Regen times and software stability are vastly improved over X9

I recently spent a couple of weeks on an old impeller file originally done in X5 then editied in X9

It starts as a 5000 pound steel forging and finishes at 1100 pounds with 18 12" high impeller blades.

I reworked it in MC2019 for a new machine recently and a project like that really illustrates how far

we've come since X9.

I do miss a lot of the hot keys and find myself muttering curses under my breath when I forget

to Green Check out of an Offset command :angry: , but I wouldn't go back to X9 for a 40% bump in pay

 

 

 

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8 hours ago, Seedy steve said:

This is what i'm telling Tech support in my e-mails lately. It's nice to see others with similar habits.

I don't like to " move the mouse cursor away from the work." it seems counter productive.

I was held back on v9 all thru the x series so the change to 2018 is not bad so far, it seems easier than the X's were to learn.

you're absolutely right about how important the keyboard interface is tho . I hope they will see this issue and help !!!

According to those in charge of the UI at CNC Software, anyone who doesn't like the new interface is the only one.  They have told me to my face that I'm the only one who's complained about it, and everyone else loves it so I should too.

Their sole priority is attracting new millennial customers who are used to a "Microsoft interface", and long term power users are SOL.  They also lied about incorporating a third party ribbon interface package and said they wrote it all themselves, but for some reason can't tweak it.  It also mysteriously uses the same file extensions as a third party ribbon system designed and marketed to be incorporated into other software.

Honesty goes a long way, and dishonesty goes a long way the other direction.

 

6 hours ago, gcode said:

You can right click any command icon and select "Add to Quick Access Toolbar"

I despise the MS style File Management setup that takes you to a separate page so I've added all the file commands

and all my most common geometry commands to the QA toolbar .

You'll notice the File Open icon has a little drop down arrow  which launches a Recent Items list

Its the little things like this that can save a thousand mouse clicks over time

See attached screen shot

 

Quick Access toolbar.pdf

That's still hunting and pecking icons, which takes several times as long as keystrokes.  And how many of Mastercams "over 900" functions can you fit in there?

 

5 hours ago, gcode said:

Regen times and software stability are vastly improved over X9

.

I do miss a lot of the hot keys and find myself muttering curses under my breath when I forget

.

Then why am I always hearing people complain about constant crashes?  I can have multiple X9 windows open for days with no issue.  I get maybe one crash in four months.

And I'm not talking about "Hotkeys", I'm talking about what they call "Quick Access Keys".  You know how you used to be able to do a Surface Finish Flowline by hitting <Alt> <T> <F> <F> in about a quarter second or less without moving your mouse?  Now you have to customize everything to even access it, and even so your only option is to hunt and peck icons with the mouse.

 

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16 minutes ago, Matthew Hajicek™ - Conventus said:

You know how you used to be able to do a Surface Finish Flowline by hitting <Alt> <T> <F> <F> in about a quarter second or less without moving your mouse?  Now you have to customize everything to even access it, and even so your only option is to hunt and peck icons with the mouse.

I position the Red Arrow of Doom where I want the tool path, then select the desired tool path via the default right click tool path menu.

Most of the time I run with the Ribbons minimized.

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On 11/17/2018 at 4:27 PM, gcode said:

position the Red Arrow of Doom where I want the tool path, then select the desired tool path via the default right click tool path menu

I was doing it this way until i set up the QAT with a toolpath section. now its only one click, but if I use the key board, it's three different keys... clumsy. Any thing to get my mouse hand to leave the mouse is a good move... so I put up with it for now.

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On 11/16/2018 at 11:29 AM, TERRYH said:

holy crap I'm totally lost.

The best advice I can give you is to make a couple of new TABS on your ribbon bar and put the stuff on there arranged somewhat how your X9 icons looked.

Otherwise you'll be going form tab to tab to tab to tab just to do simple stuff. 

Oh and another thing I did was to add these functions at the beginning OF EVERY TAB:  

New,Save,Open,Print,Fit,Undo and Redo.

Because the ones at the very top of the screen are too tiny for me. And I'd wager they're even smaller if you're using a 4K monitor.

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I guess I am one of those millenials who loves ribbon interfaces. I cant stand hunting for icons in the mastercam X series. Its just a massive blob of tiny little icons. Now I have custom ribbons, hotkeys and macros programmed into my gaming mouse. Im still finding new customization. I like the idea of having a tab or 2 of "speed icons" that are laid out perfectly.

 

Speaking of...what is the hotkey for closing the green check box after youve chained geometry? Thats my main gripe

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