Old 11-06-2016, 12:22 PM   #1
Lawrence
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Default Subjective UI Stuff

Note: None of this is complaints. It's more just subjective ways to improve the UI workflow.

Right click a send and select ... "Go to send destination track" ... and if the track is hidden you get this illogical & unnecessary dialog...



... when of course you want to see it or you'd never have clicked the action to go to it in the first place. This is one of those cases where the application doesn't logically assume something that it should, and asks an unnecessary dialog question.

Last edited by Lawrence; 11-06-2016 at 12:52 PM.
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Old 11-06-2016, 12:25 PM   #2
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But you presumably hid it for a reason, so it's worth letting you know that it was hidden so you remember to hide it again when you're done looking at it.

A better dialog might be:

"This track was hidden, making it visible now."
[]Don't show this message again [ OK ]
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Old 11-06-2016, 12:27 PM   #3
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Not really. If you ask to see something it should always just show it. It makes no sense to me to confirm something that you've already literally asked for.

This is a case of the software getting in the way by doing too much... imo.
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Old 11-06-2016, 12:31 PM   #4
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Part II: Being able to directly jump to a destination makes sense, that in a large project you don't have to scroll to the send destination or search the console for it... so "Go to destination track"... makes sense.

With that in mind, there is no return path to do the same, to be on a FX bus or something and jump back to any source track. Maybe these menu items should have a modifier for that, to mod click on any one of sources and jump directly to it... and likewise, show it if it's hidden.

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Old 11-06-2016, 12:44 PM   #5
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Part III: No direct or obvious way to call FX from a send destination.

Example: Large project. FX return busses staged far right or even hidden. You should be able to double click or mod click the send to directly call the FX chain from the send destination track (maybe there's an action for that?). As it stands now I don't see a way to do that directly from the send and without showing the destination track.

So below I would (I guess) mod click that send to bring up the chain from that channel.

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Old 11-06-2016, 12:52 PM   #6
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Part IV: No direct or obvious way to apply FX or send adjustments to multiple (selected) tracks.

Examples:

- If 8 tracks are selected, adjusting a send should adjust the sends of them all, with no modifier. It should follow track selection by default.

- If 8 tracks are selected, applying a plugin to any one of them should load the plugin to all of them, with no modifier or script. Same goes for copying, a drag and drop duplicate of a plugin should apply to all selected tracks.

- Same with sends. If 8 tracks are selected and I drag from the send panel of any of them, the sends should be created for them all, all selected tracks.

- Same with removing sends. If 8 tracks are selected and I right click to delete send X, send X should be deleted on all selected tracks.

- Same with bypassing FX and sends, it should follow across all selected channels by default.

- Same with rearranging plugins. If below I drag the EQ after the Comp on any of those channels, the same should happen on all selected tracks.


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Old 11-06-2016, 01:25 PM   #7
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Part V: No menu to hide tracks directly that I can see. This really huge context menu below and there's no "Hide Tracks" item. I suppose a new user would have to customize the menus to put the SWS action there to avoid remembering the key command or always opening the Track Manager window.

You't think "Hide Tracks" (a default menu for that) would be up there with Remove and Duplicate (selected tracks).

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Old 11-06-2016, 02:13 PM   #8
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lawrence View Post
Not really. If you ask to see something it should always just show it. It makes no sense to me to confirm something that you've already literally asked for.

This is a case of the software getting in the way by doing too much... imo.
What is missing in the dialog is a check box "Don't show this message again". Those things are very convenient as you can decide for yourself whether you want to see that message again or not.
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Old 11-06-2016, 02:19 PM   #9
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Fabian View Post
What is missing in the dialog is a check box "Don't show this message again". Those things are very convenient as you can decide for yourself whether you want to see that message again or not.
I suppose. I just don't get the logic of being asked if you want to see or "go to" something that you've already asked to see or "go to". Hidden channels don't change the sound of anything, so (imo) just show me what I asked to see without the additional question. So... a hidden channel is now visible (because it has to be to do something to it).

I've never personally seen that in any other DAW I've ever used. When, under what circumstances, would you intentionally click that menu and actually "not" want to "see" the channel you just asked to go to? "Oh, it's hidden so... I'll just not adjust what I was about to adjust?"

It just makes no sense at all to me, mmv as usual of course.

P.S. Of course, if there was an action to just open the FX chain on the destination channel, 70-80% of the time you wouldn't need to unhide it at all to do what you wanted to do (from a send) which is most typically to adjust an FX on it.

But sure, if the option "Don't show this again" was there, that would work.

Last edited by Lawrence; 11-06-2016 at 02:28 PM.
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Old 11-06-2016, 02:31 PM   #10
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To put the thread in context, all of that is mostly related to mixing, the additional clicks to navigate around or to do other things. I think some of those suggestions would make for a much more fluid UI experience.

Another random example: Copy FX Chain + Paste FX Chain is two steps... when it maybe should be the case that FX chains can be copied directly via drag and drop like any single FX can.

/ Nitpicks.

Last edited by Lawrence; 11-06-2016 at 02:41 PM.
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Old 11-12-2016, 05:39 PM   #11
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I like those suggestions. I was thinking of them too, and particularly more then one selected tracks actions.

Would also like to add option to group tracks, like in pt, to be able to toggle those groups view, and auto select all tracks in group.
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Old 11-13-2016, 03:41 PM   #12
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Lawrence View Post
To put the thread in context, all of that is mostly related to mixing, the additional clicks to navigate around or to do other things. I think some of those suggestions would make for a much more fluid UI experience.

Another random example: Copy FX Chain + Paste FX Chain is two steps... when it maybe should be the case that FX chains can be copied directly via drag and drop like any single FX can.

/ Nitpicks.
Not sure what pre-release it came with, but they can be now. Just drag the FX button over to another track.
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