[Closed] Artists, graphic designers, web developers and a whole lot more: Nerdgasm alert!

I'd sooner have a metal roller.

Like the one on Shed & Buried.

I genuinely don't know how I can live without one!

Yeah ok... I'll give one a trial run

Ha ha - one of the things I used to hate the most about my old boss was the way he would touch my screen, leaving behind a little, but immensely annoying, fingerprint. Can you imagine trying to work on images after spending time with fingers all over the screen???

Rachel

Would it work with silicone gloves on?

A week with one:
https://www.penny-arcade.com/news/post/2016/10/26/the-surface-studio

As a designer who has avoided Macs for all but 2 years of my working life, it looks tempting 🙂

Not much of an upgrade path though - basically replace every 2-3 years.
Whereas now I upgrade motherboard/processor ever 2-3 years at a cost of about £300. Then monitors at every 5 years.

Ha ha - one of the things I used to hate the most about my old boss was the way he would touch my screen, leaving behind a little, but immensely annoying, fingerprint.

There was a tail on one of those client-from-hell tumblrs of a client marking up changes on someones laptop screen with a sharpie 🙂

Just [b]NO![/b]

Just yes!

I love shed and buried... I am not sure of the angle of the screen when flat, seems a bit too flat. But then hard to tell when not in person. Does look very nice though. Definitely overtaking apple at the moment.

Stated default angle is 20 deg - same as standard drafting board. Other angles available 😉 Nice to see the engineers have put some thought into this.

Ha ha - one of the things I used to hate the most about my old boss was the way he would touch my screen, leaving behind a little, but immensely annoying, fingerprint. Can you imagine trying to work on images after spending time with fingers all over the screen???

Ha! Me too. Boss scratches the screen with his pen and a former colleague scraped away at it with her fingernails.

I've never bought an Apple product but I'm glad they're spending money on style so other people have to up their game/copy it.

No need for a web developer, it's certainly more appealing to the more hands on like graphic design / illustration but as has been mentioned the finger prints would drive me insane!

Also they'd have been better with the original version of the song!

I thought 'yeah so what' until she turned it into a drawing board!

molgrips - Member

I thought 'yeah so what' until she turned it into a drawing board!

That knob thing - when it's off the screen does it function as a 3D mouse I wonder?

So, they copied all the annoying limitations of the iMac, and some of its styling, and added a touch screen.

I spent a year with a controller like that knob… and, in the end, gave up. Thought it would be really useful, but ultimately, one hand on mouse/trackpad/trackball and the other hand on the keyboard, always won out.

(Obviously, if your studio wants to buy you one, bite their arm off).

No need for a web developer, it's certainly more appealing to the more hands on like graphic design / illustration

True. It's definitely for the arty as opposed to cody (codey, coderful?) [b]but[/b] I think this sums up the reason I want one:

[i]Have you ever turned the volume knob on a ridiculously high end piece of audio equipment and felt that smooth resistance that makes you weak in the knees? Now imagine that knob is just sitting on your desk and you can make it control all kinds of stuff.[/i]

I can't for a second justify it but can't help but feel it's my shitty Wacom holding back my artist-within.

I don't know what kind of screen it has (top surface layer) but surely the fingerprints can't be more of an issue than any other high end tablet or [s]i[/s]Phone.

Wonder how worried Apple are. I'd suggest they shold be!

Wizzy stuff like this always looks great, and ends up being shit to use. That looks no different.

You can get those nobby things and tablets and stuff for Mac's. They've been available for years.

Having spent my entire career in the industry, do you know how many people I've met who prefer them to a mouse ? The odd weirdo who mainly seemed to be doing it to be different. You know... a bit mad!

[img] [/img]

Wonder how worried Apple are.

Not even remotely

That knob thing

Found out it's called the Microsoft Dial, but I think the Microsoft Knob is far far better.

I wonder if you can pair it with a Surface Book? If so, then it could be used in a mobile context. And if that were the case, then it could very easily be misplaced and we could end up asking "Where's my Knob? I can't find my Knob? Has anyone seen my Knob?"

This is brilliant.. someone tweet Microsoft.

Having spent my entire career in the industry, do you know how many people I've met who prefer them to a mouse ?

Ok, serious HCI discussion - that's not the same as a novelty mouse, it's a context sensitive hardware knob, which has not been seen before. And that PC also has a normal mouse if you watch the vid.

I wouldn't imagine Apple would be worried, but I'd like to be a product designer in Apple at the moment because I'd imagine a fat chunk of their huge cash reserves will be coming the way of my department.

This is only good news for consumers as these two start to use their large wallets to compete for innovation and coolness.

that's not the same as a novelty mouse, it's a context sensitive hardware knob, which has not been seen before

This is brilliant.. someone tweet Microsoft.

❓

PowerMate… that was the name of the knob… it was sort of great, 'till I gave in and realised it was pointless.

How much?

I've recently (re)discovered a great new piece of kit that has moved my illustration skills on no end!

[img] [/img]

😉

binners - Member

I've recently (re)discovered a great new piece of kit that has moved my illustration skills on no end!

I thought you used these?

[img] &dim=370&fit=1[/img]

Yeah, but I've got to draw the lines first, before I can start with the technical stuff 😉

Gimmicky bullshit

You read the Guardian and talk about art, but you really are a gruff Northerner at heart 🙂

[img] [/img]

Gimmicky bullshit

If it was by a third party developer I'd agree but as it's made by the manufacturer of the OS it has enough weight behind it that software companies such as Adobe and Autodesk might actually get behind it and see how it could be put to good use. If they do that it'll go from gimmick to production tool pretty quickly.

As for the whole package although I think that superficially it looks pretty good, It's not good enough that I'm instantly trying to throw money microsoft's way. I'd need to actually try it out or at least read a ton of reviews first but it's an interesting alternative to a pc or mac working alongside a Wacom Cintiq.

Kudos to microsoft for actually trying out new stuff though. Looking forward to Apple telling me how revolutionary the touch sensitive strip is on the new macbook pro this afternoon.

[edit]

I just bought a set of those rotring pens. I'd been looking for something a bit more sketchy than an isograph but that used proper dense black ink.

It may be gimmicky, but it's more interesting than Apple's little half way house new gimmick.

That knob dial thing looks a bit like one of these...used for 3D cad & stuff....

http://www.3dconnexion.co.uk/products/spacemouse/spacenavigator.html?gclid=CJfrjY_m-88CFQw8GwodVVkAFg

I'd like to be a product designer in Apple at the moment because I'd imagine a fat chunk of their huge cash reserves will be coming the way of my department.

Missed this thread the first time round! The video review posted above, and the official trailer in the OP, show people holding the stylus with their hand "hovering" over the screen. Might be just me (and possibly something you can get used to) but personally I find this awkward compared to the iPad Pro where you can rest your hand on the screen (like I would using pencil & paper). Also people have been talking about a slight parallax which I've not noticed on the iPad (plus the Pencil seems to be a lot better then the Microsoft stylus).

Plus is a 28" touch screen just too big! Surely it would be very tiring to use all day (especially hovering over the screen like that!)

That's probably just them being arty in the video - I can happily rest my hand on my Surface Pro 3 screen when using the pen.

The video review posted above, and the official trailer in the OP, show people holding the stylus with their hand "hovering" over the screen. Might be just me (and possibly something you can get used to) but personally I find this awkward compared to the iPad Pro where you can rest your hand on the screen

What ben said.

You can rest your hand on the Surface Pro 4 too. It's very good.

That review......

Meh..... A techies wet dream, I'm sure.

Personally ... NFI! once they'd uttered the words Windows 10. But a solution for a problem that doesn't exist. I just can't see how this improves on a Mac with a big screen. Am I going to stand there all day, every day hovering over an oversized tablet. Of course I'm bloody not! And neither is anyone else

Speaking of which..... In other news... I've just ordered myself a lovely big 27" Mac monitor this morning to plug my Macbook Pro into. Now you're bloody talking!!! 😀

Am I going to stand there all day, every day hovering over an oversized tablet. Of course I'm bloody not! And neither is anyone else

Cos you don't have to hover - you put your hand on it.

I've just ordered myself a lovely big 27" Mac monitor this morning to plug my Macbook Pro into.

I can happily rest my hand on my Surface Pro 3 screen when using the pen.

You can rest your hand on the Surface Pro 4 too. It's very good.

binners - Member

That review......

In fairness it's probably of more interest to people who are interested in the product as opposed to people who just want to endlessly ram their opinions (which they have expressed ad nauseum) down other peoples throats.

zilog6128

Plus is a 28" touch screen just too big! Surely it would be very tiring to use all day (especially hovering over the screen like that!)

I'm not seeing it as a large touch screen, more of a small light box / digital sketch pad.

Mols. Techies will get themselves all het up about this kind of thing, because... well... its the kind of thing you lot get yourself all hot and bothered about.

Meanwhile... the design industry (target market, yes?) will ignore it, or even hate it, for all the reasons you love it.

In fairness it's probably of more interest to people who are interested in the product as opposed to people who just want to endlessly ram their opinions (which they have expressed ad nauseum) down other peoples throats.

... or the people who are the target market who they'd want/be expecting to use it? ... and actually pay their own (substantial amount of) money for the 'pleasure' of doing so?

Just a thought...

They'll sell about 12 of them. Those 12 will sit in the far corner of a design studio gathering dust, until 5 years later someone will say, "Does anyone ever use this ****ing thing? It takes up a shitload of space. What does it do anyway?"

"Oh that POS....., Yeah, that was some dickheaad art director who worked here for about a month, 5 years ago. Wanted to be different. Insisted on one, he did. You know the type... trying too hard."

*sound of useless, oversized tablet being turfed into a skip*

binners

... or the people who are the target market who they'd want/be expecting to use it? ... and actually pay their own (substantial amount of) money for the 'pleasure' of doing so?

You seem to be of the impression that you're the only person on the forum with any experience of design or creative industries or that your opinion carries much more weight and validity than it actually does.

If the system works well it could be a brilliant tool for digital artists, concept artists, illustrators, graphic designers, texture artists, 3d modelers, photographers, motion graphics artists aaaand people who combine facets of any or all of those in digital media.

It's just a tool at the end of the day and any "artist" who is so stuffy and inflexible that they fail to recognise this is probably extremely conceited or insecure.

As a piece of market research I've just shown the riveting review video to a few of the designers and illustrators I'm presently working with. Their reaction was pretty much the same as mine. Meh. Watching a techie banging on about Quadcore processor speeds? Just demonstrates that Microsoft just don't understand the market.

They'll sell 12 of them...

They'll get used for a week, before it becomes apparent that its a big daft gimmicky thing that no software developers support, then....

*sound of useless oversize tablet being hoyed into a skip*

Just demonstrates that Microsoft just don't understand the market.

Just to point out that the review wasn't done by Microsoft. It's not marketing aimed at artists, it's a review. All reviews talk about processor speeds.

Mols. Techies will get themselves all het up about this kind of thing, because... well... its the kind of thing you lot get yourself all hot and bothered about.

Actually what I am getting every so slightly het up about isn't anything to do with the PC - I couldn't care less if you like it or not. It's the fact you seem to WANT to hate the thing when your opinion shoudl be based on merit. And you are basing your argument on assumptions that don't seem to be sound.

However you probably are trolling so I should not bite.

I wouldn't do that to you Molls 😀

[img] [/img]

I see you've lost weight in that pic.

It was interesting that the two pro artists in that review both had 'dealbreakers'.
Yet the reviewer seemed to gloss over this a little. Presumably, the pro artists currently use either Cintiq or iPad Pro and liked the screen but still didn't want to swap.

It could just be a case of getting used to it.

The wheel thing looked every bit as pointless as we assumed.

Binners - if a digital artist/illustrator of the type that currently uses Cintiq or iPad Pro isn't at least wanting to test this, it seems a little closed-minded to me.

In terms of support, surely all you need is Adobe CC support.

That thing with the pen drawing when it's not on quite on the screen - just tried this out on the Surface, and it definitely doens't do it. So I'd imagine that could be fixed with a bit of tweaking, providing they're the same tech.

Personally ... NFI! once they'd uttered the words Windows 10. But a solution for a problem that doesn't exist. I just can't see how this improves on a Mac with a big screen. Am I going to stand there all day, every day hovering over an oversized tablet. Of course I'm bloody not! And neither is anyone else

and 99% percent of the photographers/designers/editors i know use a wacom tablet*, control surface or trackpad. don’t know anyone who uses a mouse anymore.

it’s a ****y product some committee came up with ‘to challenge apple'

*and not even a big one, a smaller one reduces the arm movements you have to make when you use it all day. nobody wants to wave their arms about hovering over screen like some sic-fi utopian vision of the future.

Again.... I don't want to tweak things. Like most designers I consider installing a printer driver an operation as complicated, and fraught with potential danger as defusing a roadside IED. I want to plug it in, turn it on, and for it to do what I want it to do. No 'tweaking' or fannying about!

A bit like a....

What are those other machines called again Mols?

You techies are a weird breed. Why on earth would you start 'tweaking' things if you didn't absolutely have too?

Freaks!

😀

Not biting any more binners.

For everyone else, found a [url= http://www.digitalartsonline.co.uk/reviews/creative-hardware/microsoft-surface-studio-hands-on-review/ ]first look review[/url] by an artist comparing it to a Cintiq monitor/digitiser and they reckoned the Studio was a cheaper option 😯

Surprised people are calling it a gimmick. Looks excellent for retouching & illustrating. Computers should be more tactile / natural

Everyone in my studio wants one - our imacs seem to change very little with every update

and 99% percent of the photographers/designers/editors i know use a wacom tablet*, control surface or trackpad. don’t know anyone who uses a mouse anymore.