Pivot users trying out Stykz

[stykzman]

The GIF export is different in Stykz not only from an interface standpoint, but from the under-the-hood programming libraries used. For example, you don't need to use the websafe colors in Pivot like you do in Stykz (at least atm).

The other thing is not "getting" the difference between "Save Animation" (Pivot) and "Export Animation" (Stykz)... maybe I'm being too much of a purist here, but my understanding is that formats that a program can "Save" to should be the same formats they can open... and that if an application is outputting a format that it can't open, you should use "Export".

So Pivot is actually not sticking to these rules and using "Save" for every format that it can put out to disk. But Pivot users are used to that and so when they come over to try Stykz for the first time, they try to do a Save or Save As and discover that they can't save as a GIF!

One thing that I might do (depending on if I have time) is that if a first time user says they use Pivot, then the first time they choose "Save As" I can bring up a dialog asking if they want to export to GIF, and if so, direct them to the right place (this would of course be a one-time dialog)... I don't know...

[Darc]

The thing that bothers me is that the only thing they need to do is actually LOOK in the File drop down menu...
I'm pretty sure if they see "Export..." That light bulb in their head would illuminate.

But yeah, I agree that upon the first execute of Stykz for Windows, a dialogue should pop out asking if they've used Pivot before...

I think that when you select the add line tool, somewhere in the hints, it should say something like "right-clicking and dragging with the Select tool also creates a new segment." Because that's a crucial difference between stickfigure making in Stykz than in Pivot.

[stykzman]

Agreed... highlighting the "edit directly on the stage" approach in Stykz is definitely important to cover.

[EmPeeKay]

Perhaps a little bit about layering too? I here a lot of questions from people that want to know how to arrange segments to different layers.

[Hoboapple]

I completely agree with you on the "export vs. save" thing.

[scykei]

Waaait...

What if I wasn't a Pivot user and is new to Stykz altogether?

[Sean]

I think most of the problem Pivot users have when using Stykz is the fact that there is so many windows and some of the features are more complex than most in Pivot and things are more spread out then they're used to.

[GuitarMangler]

Actually, I think the main problem is just ignorance.

[stykzman]

Waaait...

What if I wasn't a Pivot user and is new to Stykz altogether?

There's going to be a separate "Getting Started" tutorial as well as the one directed at Pivot users.

I think most of the problem Pivot users have when using Stykz is the fact that there is so many windows and some of the features are more complex than most in Pivot and things are more spread out then they're used to.

The multiple windows thing is (IMHO) more of an illusion than a reality. I mean if you sliced up Pivot's screen into its four "natural" sections (frames, controller, commands, and stage) and converted those to palettes and put them in the exact same place as they are in Pivot's single window form, I'm sure there would be comments about it having "too many windows"... And with the exception of the Library palette (which is set by default to NOT show up when you first launch Stykz), Stykz has only one additional palette that Pivot doesn't (properties) and that's needed because of the 'edit-in-place' nature of Stykz.

However, illlusion or not, it's still a valid complaint, and the single window mode option coming in 1.5 will address at least that part of it. Another thing that I think contributes to the "many windows" effect is that things are larger in Stykz than in Pivot - the default stage size is bigger, the controller is larger, even the commands palette is a bit bigger. All of this contributes to an overall "lots of stuff" feel that might put some Pivot users off.

It's funny that you mentioned that some of the features are "more complex than most in Pivot" - I've heard similar comments and I think that most of that falls under "I'm used to doing it *this* way and now I have to do it *this* way", or like the "too many windows" comment above, is more about how it *feels*. I actually found Pivot to be (for the most part) more complex than Stykz! Like stretching and distorting - you can't do stretching in Pivot at all, and distorting requires editing the figure, entering Edit Mode (which I guess you weren't already in when you clicked the "Edit" button) and then dragging on handles, then ultimately adding the figure back to the animation and replacing the one you edited. That seems a lot more complex than Control-Option-dragging a node...

That said, I want to make things as simple and easy to use as possible, and I'm clearly open to suggestions for improvement. So if any of you end up in a conversation with someone who has tried Stykz and found it difficult, I'd love to hear exactly what is seeming difficult to them so I can address it if possible.

Actually, I think the main problem is just ignorance.

Agreed, but there's also the lack of a good "getting started" guide for Pivot users that adds to this - I mean if you jumped in and didn't see the link on the Welcome Screen, you'd start playing with the tools and not know what you can and can't do without digging around for some kind of help (which unfortunately is pretty sparse in Stykz right now). You'd be surprised at the number of emails I get from people asking if there is some way to create their own figures or to edit the ones that Stykz comes with!

[Hoboapple]

Maybe you could make a thread on Droidz or DarkDemon asking people what they find difficult or strange in Stykz, and add those things to the tutorial.