Hey there! Great work on the Live Drawing plug-in, but there are a few things I want to help you tinker with! I noticed that you have the source up; is that updated (and also what language is it because I only know Java and C# so far LOL... I'm going to guess JavaScript)? My experience in programming is kind of limited but I'm really persistent and like learning things, so in my spare time (which I have a lot of) I'd like to see if I can figure some things out and improve what's already a really great plug-in!
Other people have listed these in the forum:[Request] Ability to choose board/member groups
[Request] Show in editor after saving
[Request] Remaining data indication
[Bug] Pictures don't load after using Pagination, refreshing fixes
[Bug] "Mouse Up Issue"
[Bug] Line displacement in Chrome
First off, there seems to be a kink in it where sometimes submitted drawings get "caught by Enderman" as my friend put it. For me, it only shows a broken image icon, and for her the drawing is halfway gone with the bottom all corrupted looking. We both experienced these effects when messing with it, and we've both gotten it to work as well; unfortunately we don't know the cause. You can see our tests here if you'd like. Seems like the one I got working before got corrupted after I edited the post... For the record, I am using Firefox, and she's using Chrome.Edit: I'm going through the support post and I just read about the data limits. Makes sense.
Now, for the personal requests (brace yourself):For context, I'm starting up a forum that's a support group for illustrators.
I started using this plug-in in hopes that it would:
A) Encourage people to do a little more drawing, even if it's just doodling
B) Give members a fun and relevant way to give responses
C) Allow a critique method called
"redlining" to be used with convenience
With that said, here are some features I'd like to see implemented:(obviously, the bugs should be first priority, and I know that some of these
would not work as they'd shoot the data usage through the roof)A Ctrl + Z function
We're artists, so often we're also naturally huge perfectionists when it comes to drawing. It'd be nice to be able to use Ctrl + Z, or at least have some sort of undo function so we can get everything just right.
Things I can see becoming a problem: ProBoards' keyboard shortcuts getting in the way and/or the current post being affected when Ctrl + Z is used while drawing.
Change Canvas Size (I can see data being a huge issue here)
The current canvas size is a tiny bit awkward, so it'd be nice to be able to change that, and maybe set the default in the settings.
Pen Pressure (and maybe here)
Not all, but many web drawing applications have support for drawing tablet pen pressure (most people use drawing tablets from Wacom). I love the simulated pressure you've provided, but it'd be nice to control it ourselves as well.
Import an Image (And probably here as well)
I mentioned "redlining" earlier... Redlining is a type of critique that involves drawing over someone's work, typically with a red line, to show where corrections should be made esp. with anatomy and perspective. To do this we'd have to be able to import an image (which would also require it to be scaled down, most likely) and draw over the top of it. It'd also be nice to have the imported image on a lower "layer" with the corrections made on a separate layer to avoid erasing the original. It'd be a huge, huge, huge help to be able to have this feature but I can see where it'd be low on the priority scale.
Here's a more general use: Drawing mustaches on the faces of celebrities.
This might be useful to have for drawing over someone else's plug-in created drawing as well. If we could have the drawings just be static images with a simple unique URL when they pop out, not only might it help with the data limit issue; it'd also be easy to pull them in via quote. They wouldn't be completely editable (if the "layers" thing is implemented), and there'd need to be a way to store them, but it might fix a few problems!
One really cool way to do this would be to quote, and with the Preview editor, hover over the image in question and a little "edit" button would pop up, bringing up the window and letting you draw over it, then tacking the new image on to the end of the post. So much work though wow
More Brush Options (
Huge issue here!)
I like that we can change brush sizes and that we have a few nifty brush options, but it'd be nice to be able to change the opacity (alpha) of strokes too.
I'll see if I can find some examples of places that use these features in a bit so maybe you can see how they work, but right now I just want to get them down.
Actually, one huge example: DeviantArt's Muro.
If you don't know what that is, you should go to
DeviantArt, make an account, go to someone's profile and try to leave a comment. There's a button that says "Add a Drawing", that's Muro. When you submit the drawing it stores it in what's called your Sta.sh... basically, storage space that's unique to you but visible to anyone with the link.
What Muro can do: Brush size/opacity/various other options, a LOT of brush styles, image importing, layers, transparency; among other things, like being able to watch the "redraw". I see a lot of "tegaki" boards that can also do the redraw thing.
I don't expect this plug-in to be anywhere near this in-depth, I'm just showing that it's possible. DeviantArt's got a lot of resources, including but not limited to time, money, team members, and last but not least, storage space, but you can definitely see what a top of the line "in-post graphics editor" could be like.
I know this is a lot to ask, but I'm not expecting anything to be implemented; these are just things my buddies and I have wished for while playing with the plug-in
and I am completely willing and able to help you with anything, including bugs. For now, I'm going to make the plug-in accessible to staff only (man I love ProBoards) so nobody tries to mess with stuff and gets upset if there's a later release that destroys what they've done... on the off chance that anyone actually comes to this forum LOL
