Mistakes in the user guide

[D.T. Nethery]

This is not a mistake in the User Manual ,but is an omission , which should be added to the User Manual.

A very useful function in TVPaint is programming one of the Wacom stylus buttons to Right-Click , which makes it an ERASER if you press it when you are drawing. So, if you are drawing with a Pen or Pencil tool , then press the stylus button that is programmed to Right-Click it instantly turns the pen tip into an eraser. Then upon releasing the stylus button it instantly reverts back to a being a Pen or Pencil drawing tool and you can continue drawing.

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I was recently doing a Zoom training session with a colleague who has used TVPaint for a couple of years , but it turns out he did not know about this function. When I showed it to him he said: "How did I never know about this before ? Why isn't it mentioned in the User Manual ? "

My answer to him: "I really don't know. It should be in the User Manual , but i can't find it mentioned in the User Manual."
(Is this function actually mentioned in the User Manual ? I can't find it. If it is , please tell me.)

So, I am asking that this function should be prominently mentioned as an option for Erasing. It should also be mentioned that the drawing tool must have DRYING enabled to allow for the continuous use of the Right-Click erasure feature . (if drying is not activated then you can use the Right-Click erasure feature as long as you are using the Pen or Pencil drawing tool , but if you switch over to a different tool , such as the Transform tool , then go back to the Pen or Pencil drawing tool , you will no longer have the ability to use the Right-Click erasure function. Therefore, activating Drying is a must.)

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[Svengali]

+1 I've been using the RMB for erasing for so long I thought it was a TVP default setting. Updating the User Guide with the RMB erasing info AND instructions on how to set it up (EXPLICITLY AND PROMINENTLY) is A GREAT SUGGESTION,

For me, that functionality is absolutely critical.

As a Side Note: In many of my scripts, I use the RMB to offer optional operations. Having my RMB on the lower stylus switch is critical for that, too. I think there are other scripters as use the RMB in the same way.

BUT: I don't check DRYING, never have. Still, I've never had any problem with RMB functionality, even after returning from using other tools. In the way I draw, (cumulative buildup of layers) drying is not an option because it erases the frame clean. I like that the most recent drawing strokes that I've added are separately erasable.

Are you sure DRYING is necessary for the RMB eraser to sustain functionality?

sven

[Paul Fierlinger]

This has never, ever worked for me. Every time a thread like this comes up I go through all the hoops and loops to find out what I am missing and I never find anything. It just won't work.

[D.T. Nethery]

Are you sure DRYING is necessary for the RMB eraser to sustain functionality?

If I don't have Drying enabled then I can erase with RMB (assigned to Wacom stylus button) as much as I want , until I switch to another tool (such as Transform Tool) because then when I switch back to the Pen tool the RMB erasure does not work anymore . But if drying is enabled it will always work. (maybe this is a Mac thing ? I would be glad if I could use it without drying enabled.)

At any rate , the Right-Click erasing seems to be a function that veteran TVPaint users who hang around this forum know about , but no one else knows about it until someone tells them about it . (how could they know ? It's not mentioned in the documentation , as far as I can tell. )


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A previous question posted on the forum asked:

When I started using the software, I soon found out that when you hold RMB you use the eraser. However, something happened and now whenever I switch the frames or whatever I do, when I go back to the frame I want to erase on, it just won't work. If I draw again, holding RMB erases only the new lines I've drawn, without erasing the old ones.

So, the feature that helped me a lot, now is useless and my workflow is really slowed down. Can somebody explain? Have I clicked something, or what is it?

In tool panel, check "drying" option so RMB can erase anytime (and not only the last strokes)

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[Soom]

The RMB for me was always an integral part of the software - without it TVPaint is like an eagle without wings - this functionality literally makes half of TVPaint. It's not just an Eraser - it is used also for zooming the Canvas, the Timeline and the Project View, right clicking on the menus, putting the Selection tool into a "Subtract" mode, Fill bucket and Brushes into Erase mode, etc. All you need to have is Wacom pen side switch set to Right Click, which is usually by default. I never ever had to read the manual - I was introduced to the power of RMB in the first minute after opening TVPaint for the first time, and it was so intuitively clear to me, that I can't imagine other people not using it...
About DRYING: Drying is an important part of this function, and it doesn't necessarily has to be always ON. When drying is OFF, the brush will erase ONLY the recent strokes until the tool is changed. And it will delete ONLY the strokes of the last tool while keeping whatever was underneath intact. It is a little bit more like a "history brush" and not exactly Eraser. This function is very handy when working with only one brush above another if you want to quickly erase without loosing the previous strokes. Also - don't forget that all these brush settings are remembered when a brush is created and it's very easy to change them to your liking - just set whatever parameters you prefer and "reGrab" the Current Tool in each Tool's Edit menu and voila - you have the tool permanently with Drygin ON - you only do it once. I guess that most TVP default brushes were created like this a long time ago, and just were never changed.

[Dean]

Wow Soom, if I ever need to explain the use of RMB to some new TVP user, I will recite your post
I have a few things to check regarding RMB when Xavier comes back.

[Paul Fierlinger]

But how about an explanation why I am deprived of all these amenities. Always have been and my type of work is of the kind that would benefit the most. It's hard for me to believe I am the only one -- but am I, possibly? How should I tackle this? Any advice where to start looking?

[Dean]

Hello Paul, my first guess would be that maybe a pen shortcut setting in your Wacom driver is altering right clicking in TVPaint?
Does switching the drawing mode from Wintab to Windows Ink or the other way around in the General tab of the Prefences?

[Paul Fierlinger]

Good points; will check -- right now updating Windows. Thanks

[D.T. Nethery]

. All you need to have is Wacom pen side switch set to Right Click, which is usually by default. I never ever had to read the manual - I was introduced to the power of RMB in the first minute after opening TVPaint for the first time, and it was so intuitively clear to me, that I can't imagine other people not using it...

It took me a while to find out about using RMB (on the Wacom pen button) to erase. I can't remember exactly who it was , but it was someone here on the forum who told me about it . I would not have intuited that I could erase by pressing the RMB . Because this is such a useful function (and the other useful things that are accomplished with Right-Click) I think it should be mentioned prominently in the User Manual.

About DRYING: Drying is an important part of this function, and it doesn't necessarily has to be always ON. When drying is OFF, the brush will erase ONLY the recent strokes until the tool is changed. And it will delete ONLY the strokes of the last tool while keeping whatever was underneath intact. It is a little bit more like a "history brush" and not exactly Eraser. This function is very handy when working with only one brush above another if you want to quickly erase without loosing the previous strokes. Also - don't forget that all these brush settings are remembered when a brush is created and it's very easy to change them to your liking - just set whatever parameters you prefer and "reGrab" the Current Tool in each Tool's Edit menu and voila - you have the tool permanently with Drying ON - you only do it once.

All good points about using it with Drying enabled or disabled. This information should also be added to the User Manual (exactly as you wrote it above) along with the tip about using Right-Click on the pen button to erase.

[Paul Fierlinger]

Switching from Ink to Wintab seems to have done the trick! Once more, thanks Dean.

[Matthieu]

Thank you for bringing this up. This is indeed something that should be part of the documentation: I will update it.

[Paul Fierlinger]

Well, that trick was short lived. I'm back to using Sven's script which works almost the same way except not exactly...

[D.T. Nethery]

In the user manual the function of the Stencil is described as "Mask". If a user seeks for "Stencil" in the User Manual they won't find this function because it is categorized under "Masks" in the User Manual. This is confusing.

https://www.tvpaint.com/doc/tvp11/index ... ions-masks


In the user manual this is what you will find, describing the function of "The Masks" , "Mask ON" and "Mask OFF" (but also referring to the function as "stencils")

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But in the current TVPaint interface the term used is "Stencil" , not "Mask" --

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[Thierry]

Thanks for the notice David!
I've just checked on a TVPaint 10, and it was written "Mask On/Off" as well.

The documentation screenshots were taken before we renamed the feature to "Stencil" (and that part of the documentation was also written before that change).

We'll change that as soon as we can