Re: [Tuxpaint-devel] Some issues related to the text tool

[Bill K. <nb...@so...>]

On Tue, Jun 03, 2008 at 03:40:16AM -0400, Albert Cahalan wrote:
> 
> A fine point in time is when another tool gets used.
> Magic tools should have a callback to tell them that
> they should dump any saved state. This gets called as
> soon as some other tool is used.

Understand that the #1 reason people want an 'editable' text tool is
because merely hitting Undo isn't sufficient.  Kids make mistakes, and
want to go back and change or move their text way after the fact.
(i.e., they finish making their drawing, then their teacher comes and
tells them they made a typo or misspelling)


> I could have used such a callback when I wrote the
> bricks tools. The bricks tools keep track of brick
> relationships so that they can join bricks together,
> but this info must be forgotten when another tool
> modifies the canvas. Currently the bricks tools get
> rid of their state when the mouse button is released,
> which is not ideal.

In considering how a strokes-to-font tool could work (what I imagine
as a 'stage 1' to Namrata's Big Idea of a writing training tool),
I realize we'd need some means of telling the tool "I'm done with a letter",
after multiple strokes.  (We're not doing "one click-and-drag for an entire
letter" like PalmOS Graffiti...)

It occured to me we could put a little 'checkboxs' button next to their
strokes, or at the bottom of the canvas, or somewhere.  The Magic Tools
can easily do this (see the crosshairs that appear over the entire canvas
when you use the Move magic tool).  However, for this tool to not splat
checkmarks on the drawing when the user happens to switch tools, or hit
Save, or ..., I think we _do_ need a "this tool is finished" clean-up call.


-- 
-bill!
bi...@ne...
http://www.newbreedsoftware.com/