Test Driving Moho... Some Questions

[Visions of Domino]

Hi,

I'm toying with the Moho demo, and I'm amazed at what it can do. It's tutorials have got to the like best documentation I have ever read.

However, I'm still unsure about a few things:

1) Guides - Does Moho have guides/paths that you can define for objects to travel along? I have seen a year old forum post saying "no" but this may have changed. I have heard mention of "paths", is that the same thing? Can't find them.

2) Any way to preview gradients, brushes etc. without rendering? A real pain.

3) Movieclips - Does Moho have anything like Flash's movieclips? Like nested timelines. So you can have an object be an animation within itself.

4) Select on stage - Any way to select objects faster than selecting their layer, like straight from the stage? Hard to find them in the layers sometimes.

6) Recently opened - Anyway to enable that in the file menu? Working on many projects, this is always a timesaver. Can scripts be written for this?

7) Shortcuts - Can one set custom shortcuts? For one, REDO doesn't have one.




Thanks,
VoD

[bupaje]

Hi, and welcome.

For #1 check out the 'Copy Selected Curve" and "Paste Curve to ..." scripts by forum user macton http://www.lostmarble.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=2448 several great items there.

I don't think you can preview gradients but check the "Display Quality" option button at the bottom right of the main window and you can at least see the brushes.

#3 - I don't know flash but Moho can import movie clips -you can render something in Moho as a movie and then File/Import/Movie into another Moho scene

#4 when the 'select points' tool is selected (upper left) you can name your group and then it will be available from a drop down menu which may help. You can also use multiple layers and group them using folders from the Layer box.

[Visions of Domino]

Thanks, I didn't see the option for brushes. The tutorial asked to render.

#4 - The save select points is neat but not quite what I needed. I'm wondering how you would be able to track down an object in the layers when you have a big list?

I'll check into the scripts.

[myles]

By using nested layers and grouping, along with giving every layer a sensible name as you create it rather than the default name, you can go a long way to finding objects when you need to (plus named groups of course) e.g. Bob's house, front view, top left window, curtains, deeper shadows. However, there is no way of selecting a shape on the screen and saying "go to the correct layer".

As for #3, I think Moho includes this already as so much an integral part of the way things work we no longer see it as a separate process.
I've never used Flash, so let me know if I'm missing some aspect of movieclips below:

All animation is already particular only to that layer or object (and any sub-layers). If you want higher animation, you can go up to the next layer, or even create a group layer container for that purpose.

For instance, you can make a car tyre turning, as point, bone, or layer rotation, or even as some sort of switch layer, depending on how the car is set up. Think of this as the movieclip - it can be set to cycle easily enough if your "movieclip" needs to cycle.
You can duplicate this layer, complete with animation, for a second car tyre turning (assuming you are looking at the car from the side).

Now the car itself, a higher group layer, can be animated separately without ever referring to the spinning tyres.

Set up a spinning tyre in its own layer, in its own file or some shared "car parts" file, and you can import it into any other car you create, animation included.

Regards, Myles.

[myles]

6) Recently opened - Anyway to enable that in the file menu? Working on many projects, this is always a timesaver. Can scripts be written for this?

At the moment it's probably easier to work from your file manager with appropriate file association ("open this file with Moho"). With the addition of file paths in a recent scripting API update, it may be possible to script this.

7) Shortcuts - Can one set custom shortcuts? For one, REDO doesn't have one.

Yes, to a limited extent, although it invlolves editing an optional configuration file and is possibly not officially supported. You're also probably going to have to give up one of the existing shortcuts. Last time I made a full list they were:

Ctrl-A : select all
Ctrl-B : Batch export
Ctrl-C : copy
Ctrl-D : random line thickness
Ctrl-E : export animation
Ctrl-F : toggle NTSC safe zone display
Ctrl-G : snap to grid
Ctrl-H : toggle output only
Ctrl-I : select inverse
Ctrl-J : timeline window
Ctrl-K : style window
Ctrl-L : reset line thickness
Ctrl-M : mute soundtrack
Ctrl-N : new document
Ctrl-O : open document
Ctrl-P : preview render
Ctrl-Q : quit
Ctrl-R : render
Ctrl-S : save document
Ctrl-T : insert text
Ctrl-U : show tracing image
Ctrl-V : paste
Ctrl-W : close document
Ctrl-X : cut
Ctrl-Y : select tracing image
Ctrl-Z : undo

That list is now a little out of date - Ctrl-J now does output-only view, Ctrl-[ does the timeline window, Ctrl-] does the style window, and Ctrl-K does the actions Window.
Hmm, Ctrl-H now seems to be free?

You could also use a third-party generic keyboard macro program.

Regards, Myles.

[Visions of Domino]

Thanks myles, nested layers sound like what I want. I'll look into them.

[Visions of Domino]

Just wanted to say that the DEMO convinced me, and that I have bought it. My work is going much faster and nicer with the help of MOHO.