Is it possible to make the Fit Curve tool something like the Curve Equalizer for Robofont, such that I can apply and try different curves in real time (with a slider for example) and get results I can see instantly. This is much preferable to pressing through ctrl+optn+1-8 and then finding that oh, I need finer control, now I need to change one of the numbers in the ‘Fit Curve’ tool.
Is it difficult to port the Curve EQ tool over to Glyphs?
I see what I can do for you. I will try a Fit Curve plugin with a slider.
Personally, I have always found that 8 steps between the two values I set for the project are more than enough. I can usually narrow it down to something like 62 through 76 percent, and then the curve differences are pretty small already, and with the adjustments that follow anyway, it wouldn’t make much if a difference anyway. I think it is more convenient (and more important) to quickly differentiate between two percentages for inner and outer curve.
The issue isn't that I need smaller steps but that I can't imagine yet what 57% or 80% and anything in between looks like yet, so I'd rather be able to edit in a WYSIWYG way instead of cycling through each shortcut to 'test' the result in a trial and error fashion.
Also, I often find myself changing the max and minimum so that I can get a finer control, like sometimes its on 57% to 80%, other times I have it on 65% to 75% to get more control…
What do you mean by this? Do you set it so that the min and max includes what you want for inner and outer curve percentages?
With the buttons it is easy to reproduce the same curvature in different places. And I find it way more intuitive to being able to switch between two discrete values to determine what I like better. And if you have determined that number you like, you can use it on all other curves. And for whatever reason, in bolder weights, the inner curve of the “O” needs the next number.
About the vales. 57% makes a circle or eclipse (at close as it is possible with bezier paths).
For inner curves, you need higher percentages, usually. So, e.g., I set my max percentages, then select the inner curve, type ctrl-opt-4, then the outer curves, and ctrl-opt-3. Very quick, precise and convenient.
With a slider, you might be able to fine tune, but it is impossible to reproduce curvatures. Or relationships between different curvatures, like in the example above.
What’s bothering me really is having to continually change the min/max value because some curves I need a value lower than the set min, but then for other curves, I can’t get enough fine control since after setting the min even lower, the range for min/max becomes too large to give me enough control.
Could we not have both ? A slider + preset buttons, and the existing input method?
Just a speculative design (probably not the best for this interaction but…)
The slider would be the same as Curve EQ, such that sliding it would provide real time feedback overlayed on the original curve, pressing the ‘tick’ would confirm it.
The numbers are individual preset values, when none have been set:
Pressing any of the numbers would bring up a dialogue asking the user to set a curve, so one would select a curve, move the slider and then pressing ‘tick’ would set that preset. Afterwards, selecting any curve and pressing the preset would set the slider and the curve to the corresponding value (short cuts would be good too).
To edit already set preset buttons, a user can click the ‘settings’ button, and a dialogue would pop up asking the user to select which preset they would like to change, then once selected, the preset which is being edited will be highlighted or darkened to indicate this is being edited, then the user selects a curve, and a value along the slider, and presses ‘tick’ to confirm the new preset.
(Having the different Eq algorithms in there would be great too.)
? A slider + preset buttons, and the existing input method?