Wacom ExpressKey Remote Accessory - any users?

[Jonopen]

Hi all, Just wondered if anyone here on the forum (handrawn?) uses or has ever tried the Wacom ExpressKey Remote Accessory?

https://estore.wacom.com/en-GB/expre...ck-411050.html

I've no specific need one, just curious really, but I can see how it might make certain actions easier/quicker than maybe using a keyboard shortcut or even the Wacom Express menu itself.

For years I've had Intuos graphic tablets and more recently have been using a Cintiq 16 (non pro). I don't exactly know why, but I've never felt quite as comfortable using it, as with a standard graphics tablet. In fact I'm even considering going back to one if I can find out if both can be installed/run at the same time.

I was wondering if the remote accessory would help bring back some of the intuitiveness and control I've felt in the past.

There are also other (quite expensive) devices like the ones from Loupdeck. If anyone has used one of those, I would also be interested to hear their experiences.

Thanks, Jono

[handrawn]

and hi there jono....

I have two wacom tablets: cintiq pro 24 and intuos pro - there are no issues at all in running both on widows 10 at the same time, assuming of course you only try using one at once - never tried on a mac, but I can't see it as a problem - the settings will recognise both whenever they are active, and you can set them up independantly

whilst the two tablets do the same thing they do it in different ways, I'll try and explain as follows :

Drawing on bristol/cartridge with say a staedtler lumograph B pencil is a very tactile experience - by which I mean the very subtle linework that can be achieved is in part a result of adjusting instinctively to the friction between pencil and paper as you draw: paper has drag, 'tooth' - I am probably not telling you anything you don't already know

Cintiqs have smooth screens, they need to be clear and even, to avoid parallax; you can use a felt nib for the pro pen, but it's not the same - recent intuos tablets have a surface that has drag, a definate improvement in this regard especially with said felt nib [but not the same as paper: I still do a lot of layout on paper and scan] - so there is one difference

I started on tablets with a wacom graphire in 2003, hellish smooth and a pita regarding lack of drag, but instantly I felt liberated once I got used to it because the drawing appeared on the screen 'as if by magic' without my hand being in the way; a small point you may think, but no, so a second and very important difference when building up a drawing it really does make a difference

my cintiq came with a Wacom ExpressKey Remote Accessory which I duly set up; do I use it, not so much, but that is maybe more to do with the way I work; it has the capalility to be very useful, I do prefer it to any onscreen keyboard/controls; it comes into its own when your drawing workspace is full screen with an app where full screen means full screen and so you have no UI to access with the pen

you don't need one with an intuos pro since it has pads built in

can't help you with loupdeck, sorry, except I have never seen the need...

and for what it is worth - for cartooning, as opposed to animation, I use the intuos not the cintiq....

[handrawn]

at the risk of making the verbose worse.. the expresskey remote only covers a certain set of functions and whilst you can be program specific, only afaik, for adobe/corel programs... and a catch-all called 'other programs' that is of limited use if your 'other programs' have different settings; ok I guess if you do all your work in just one unspecified program, but that is not me

seriously I would rather clamp a [small] physical keyboard to the cintiq if there is not a handy shelf within reach - saw this done on a blog somewhere and given the right keyboard not difficult; the cintiq has a wide off-screen area at the top, might even be able to use velcro at a pinch... hummm

[Jonopen]

Thanks hd appreciate your reply and the sharing of your valuable experience. I'll read through again properly tonight.

I think what I'm really after is some kind of magical device that makes drawing less frustrating on the computer.

I've actually just started reading 'Vector Basic Training' by Von Glitschka. He's an advocate for developing a good foundation of basic core drawing skills and working out your ideas on paper first - something I rarely do at the moment.

Maybe that's the answer rather than a new gadget!

[handrawn]

know your limitiations

there is a school of thought that says anyone should be able to do anything, it's a load of guff; ok it can be motivational, but if taken too close to heart it can lead you down rabbit holes you should never have gone anywhere near; you only have to look at a photo of me in specs aged 6 to guess I was never going to make it as a fighter pilot, heck I didn't even have the eyesight to play cricket you need to be able to see an incoming fast-moving ball from further away than six feet...

lots of different experiences are essential, true, but know your limitations; if you find something really difficult then there is a reason for that, and the reason is often that you are going about it the wrong way, sometimes completely the wrong way; never give in my gran used to say, but also stand far enough back so you can see what it is you are actually doing, not just what you think you are...

I don't know exactly how you draw; I know you draw very well, I know you use a pen whenever possible rather than a mouse - investigating different methods if the way you currently work is proving difficult has to be a good start

I do all my initial designs on paper, any paper will do for thumbnail sketches; I use daler rowney 96gsm A2 pads for more detailed pencil work, and 180/250gsm bristol for anything that needs a lot of working up - it's all then scanned and inked/coloured on computer

I tried using the computer for the designing, I gave up; I can cover the walls with paper and see it all with just a turn of my head [as long as it's no further way than six feet ] - I could zoom out on a computer but then, like in alice, everything would shrink down to nothing.. and that's another thing: everyone, so they tell me, has a natural drawing size, mine for a cartoon 'strip' is somewhere between A3/2 and that in itself is an on-screen issue when sketching, the cintiq is ok the intuos too small...

[Jonopen]

Thanks hd for advice. I think you can sense the artistic aguish I go through!

I do keep falling down rabbit holes, climbing out, then falling straight down another one. I even fall back down the same hole two years later! A good consequence is I never get bored, but on the other hand I never really become a master of anything. Over the years I've accumulated a hard drive full of half-cocked ideas. I supposedly do this for fun! I'm glad I'm mostly retired, I don't know how you do it for a living!

[handrawn]

look through a copy of private eye - you will see cartoons that range from the really well drawn to the not at all artistic, but they all have one thing in common: agree with it or not, they have something to say

in 'my world' a great point drawn half-ass will beat a wonderfully artistic drawing that says nothing every day of the week... the drawing is just a suit of clothes for the viewpoint to wear; whilst it should have style, it does not have to be saville row

as soon as I realised I didn't actually want to just 'draw wonderful pictures', I wanted to express my world-view in a visual way, I was free to move on

also, in case it's not obvious, when I express myself verbally I do tend to go on a bit; cartooning is a disciplined shorthand, it keeps me in my place

so why are you doing it jono? that is the key question; fun is a good reason; me I do it because I have to say what I think about things, and cartooning is safer than getting into arguments; still have to be very careful of course, but safer; it stops me going mad

[Egg Bramhill]

Hi Jono, I've no experience of Wacom Expresskey Remote but I do own a Stream Deck which I have configured to work with Xara (see images below). I've used wacoms a lot a few years back but as I do very little drawing now I've reverted to the mouse and the Wacom Bamboo sit's on my windowledge gathering dust.

I bought the Stream Deck to experiment using it as an alternative to select tools from the toolbar. It works well for this but again I rarely use it. I think the main reason for this is that I'm almost exclusively right handed. I only ever use my right hand to peck away at the keyboard (and I still have to look at the keys!) Therefore to select a tool from the Stream Deck I have to let go the mouse, click the required tool key on the Stream Deck then return to my mouse, so it defeats the purpose. I also have Dupuytren Contracture in my left hand with my ring finger sticking out at 90 degrees to my palm permanently so operating it with my left hand becomes very difficult.

That said if I were able to use my left hand I'd say a remote would be a worthwhile investment.

[handrawn]

interesting egg - and sorry to hear about your hand

I use two monitors - which allows me to set up desktop shortcuts and floating workspace/toolbar/panels seperately for easy access with mouse: cintiq is a monitor in its own right of course

[Jonopen]

@hd Yes I agree about making a point and having something to say. And again that's something I definitely struggle with. Other than 'for fun' I'm not sure I've got anything much to say at the moment that hasn't been said already. I certainly have a point of view and strongly care about certain things so perhaps I should start there.

@egg Thanks for the info about Stream Deck. I'd not heard of that one. I'll check it out. Btw I like the look of your set up - curved screen and all! And sorry to hear about your hand/finger. Really hope it can fixed.