Thanks for the references Tim! It's definately a good idea to have a separate link to the hotkeys list. I finally found the list within Blender, but opening it up takes over one of my windows... Makes it tough to work.
I have to agree with much of what was written in the Proposal paper. I can say for myself that most of my frustration had to do with the unusual default settings. This, coupled with not being able to find anything, really got my blood pressure up.
In all fairness, I really don't care so much that the hotkeys are so different. What does bother me is the fact that you pretty much HAVE to use them for most of the functions. Personally, I really hate having to keep my left hand on the keyboard ALL of the time. Ergonomically, it's simply not how I'm comfortable working. And not to be facetious, but it would be extremely difficult - if not impossible - for a one-armed individual to use this program.
That's why - for me - a complete menu system, coupled with button toobars for the most commonly used features is much more user friendly.
I think the real key to improving the interface is
A. Full Menu System where all features can be accessed (a universal item for software being made today).
B. Customizable button sets
C. Customizable hotkey mapping
In reality, I don't even use the default hotkeys in 3ds Max. I actually only use a few which are mostly single key "pecks." Every version of Max I get, the very first thing I do is re-map everything to what makes perfect sense to me. The fact that I can do this, and that I can do pretty much everything by just using my mouse, is a big reason why I still use Max.
Overall, I love the idea behind this program. Based on the listed features, they have been able to cram tons of functions into a tiny program that costs nothing. Kudos to the developers!
However, I honestly don't see myself using this program for any serious work until these interface issues are addressed (if ever). It's simply not worth the stress - something thing I really don't need more of....
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http://nws.carbonmade.com/
(Well, maybe NL team starts going nuts with so many open fronts... Don't give up NL!)
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