February 04, 2010, 09:55:51 AM

Quite so, Dunk. My Samsung monitor relied on a a battery-driven stylus; it needed an hour's recharge for every three hours usage, and during that last hour the cursor shot all over the screen (it always happened when in the middle of a very tricky illustration).

I thought my Intuos 3 was having the same problems (jerky cursor) until I realised my wireless keyboard and mouse could sometimes run interference.

I enjoy the Intuos 3 because of the way you can almost handle it as a drawing pad (and the large drawing surface). The lead is very long, and depending how well I feel when drawing (I have a bad back, disposition towards RSI AND chronic fatigue), I can either lean back and position it at an angle against the desk's lip, or slump over it flat with the desk. The keyboard shortcuts mean I can leave the keyboard stored under the monitor out of the way, and the stylus practically replaces the mouse.

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March 11, 2010, 06:08:22 PM

I was wondering, since this is the only Tablet thread the search bar led me to, if you chaps had any advice on using the tablets. With traditional drawing I'm alright, but I can't draw with the tablet at all.

Cheers, neviazsky.
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March 11, 2010, 06:14:55 PM

I was wondering, since this is the only Tablet thread the search bar led me to, if you chaps had any advice on using the tablets. With traditional drawing I'm alright, but I can't draw with the tablet at all.

First question: where do you have the tablet, in relation to your monitor and keyboard? For years, I had mine where my mouse-mat would normally be, and then one day I noticed how D'israeli had drawn himself using his:



I don't know if that's completely bleeding obvious to everyone else, but that straight line of sight across hand-tablet-monitor was a revelation to me.

Cheers

Jim

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March 11, 2010, 06:27:00 PM

I have decided on an Intuos4 - I can get one through work at a discount. I'm still not 100% happy with the Intuos4 and it's insanely rough surface texture which wears down nibs alarmingly quickly  Angry.

Putting down a layer of clear plastic alleviates the problem almost completely, but does affect the sensitivity of the tablet a bit - hardly ideal, but don't really see another option, and at least the glossy black finish will match my new computer, printer/scanner and speakers!

Quote
I was wondering, since this is the only Tablet thread the search bar led me to, if you chaps had any advice on using the tablets. With traditional drawing I'm alright, but I can't draw with the tablet at all.

Practice practice practice Wink. To be honest, I don't use the Wacom to draw as such, I use it only for colouring and corrections. I don't like the look of a lot of digital inking and wholly digital art - and prefer the tactile feel of drawing by hand.
radiator
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March 11, 2010, 06:29:23 PM

Quote
where do you have the tablet, in relation to your monitor and keyboard? For years, I had mine where my mouse-mat would normally be

I don't know if that's completely bleeding obvious to everyone else, but that straight line of sight across hand-tablet-monitor was a revelation to me.

I have things laid out in a similar way to the illustration - my work system doesn't even have a mouse plugged in!
radiator
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March 11, 2010, 06:33:58 PM

Thanks Jim, I didn't think of that. It was lying next to my keyboard, what a fool I was.

And to radiator, I assumed that would be the best thing to do Smiley
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March 11, 2010, 10:07:03 PM

Mine sits next to my laptop on the right, rotated slightly clockwise (about 20 degrees).

I suppose if I worked at a desktop my keyboard might sit to my left with the tablet in front of me but it works for me like this. When I set up my workspace if it's been cleared away the first thing I do is draw a straight line down by hand to make sure I've got my angle correct.
James
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