3Dconnexion mouse

[NormandC]

Hi Matthieu,

although the setup itself isn't always easy

I'm surprised, it's pretty straightforward. libspnav0 is already a dependency of the FreeCAD stable and daily PPA packages. All you need is to install spacenavd from the repositories, and of course run the 2 commands you mentioned before launching FreeCAD. It's a pity that this bug still has not been fixed after all these years, but I'm guessing there are very few people using 3D mice on Linux.

I just installed the spacenavd package from the Ubuntu 16.04 repositories to use my SpaceNavigator which had been collecting dust on my desk for the past few years. I have the same problem as you, the 2 buttons do not appear in the left column. They used to be automatically detected in Ubuntu 12.04, but I don't remember if they did in Ubuntu 14.04 - in fact I think 12.04 was the last version I used my 3D mouse in.

It's unclear to me if the problem is with the spacenavd package in Ubuntu, or with FreeCAD.

One thing you could try is to compile spnavcfg from the source code. It's a GUI to configure the device independently. In this case you could assign keyboard shortcuts to the buttons.

[NormandC]

and of course run the 2 commands you mentioned before launching FreeCAD. It's a pity that this bug still has not been fixed after all these years

Actually this may not be a bug, but a feature

Here's what the project's FAQ says:

10. Spacenavd starts, but fails to connect to the X server ("failed to open X11 display" error in /var/log/spnavd.log).

This problem manifests itself when spacenavd is started from init, and then, when X is started, it tries to connect to the X server.

Since spacenavd runs as root, you must make sure that root can connect to the X server. The X authentication model depends on MIT-MAGIC-COOKIES, stored in your ~/.Xauthority file. If there isn't an .Xauthority file in the root user's home directory (commonly /root) then you must symlink your user's .Xauthority there, to allow root connect to the X server.

Note that this problem doesn't happen when you just use "su" or "sudo" to gain temporary root priviledges to launch the daemon. That's because the XAUTHORITY environment variable still points to your user's .Xauthority file, not root's.

This is worth testing...

EDIT: tested it, doesn't work. Oh well...

[spikey]

Hey NormandC

Thanks for you reply(ies)!
indeed it doesn't seem to work here ither. but just tried it once. maybe a reboot will help so..

about the self compiling bit.. no clue how to do that or where to start looking for a way to do that.. any suggestions on that part?

Kind regards

Matthieu

[tanderson69]

anyway the space navigator works.. EXCEPT! the buttons.
the button field is there (not blank) but everything is greyed out.. there is nothing i can do with it. (see prntscn.jpg)

is there something i did do wrong here or didn't do.. so the buttons don't work?
or anyone else has an idea?

Make sure you pick inside button area with your mouse and leave the mouse pointer inside the window. Then hit the spaceball button with the highest number.

[spikey]

Hello tanderson69,

Thank you very much!! this did seem to work. I now have button1 and button2 in the buttons field and can select functions in right field.
how do i selct them though (drag and drop, or just click? drag and drop din't seem to work and just clicking them stayed as it is int he fields. but the buttons didn't seem to respond to the chosen function when clicked.

I tried orthographic view and perspective view as a try out.
although i feel the buttons click.. the view never changed.

[tanderson69]

how do i selct them though

With a button selected in the left pane, select a command in the right pane to assign.

[spikey]

that is what i did.. but there was no effect. there is no need to confirm this selection in anyway?

anyway I'll go and give it a go with different commands. maybe that works.

[tanderson69]

follow these steps:
1) start freecad.
2) open preferences and go to spaceball button page.
3) Assign some commands to buttons, ok out of dialog
4) close freecad
5) open user.cfg in a text editor. file is in the hidden .FreeCAD folder in your home directory.
6) search for and examine the 'spaceball' section.

something like:

Code: Select all

<FCParamGroup Name="Spaceball">
        <FCParamGroup Name="Motion">
          <FCBool Name="FlipYZ" Value="1"/>
          <FCInt Name="PanLRSensitivity" Value="10"/>
          <FCInt Name="PanUDSensitivity" Value="10"/>
          <FCInt Name="ZoomSensitivity" Value="10"/>
          <FCInt Name="TiltSensitivity" Value="10"/>
          <FCInt Name="RollSensitivity" Value="10"/>
          <FCInt Name="SpinSensitivity" Value="10"/>
          <FCBool Name="PanUDReverse" Value="1"/>
          <FCBool Name="RollReverse" Value="1"/>
          <FCInt Name="GlobalSensitivity" Value="40"/>
          <FCBool Name="Dominant" Value="0"/>
        </FCParamGroup>
        <FCParamGroup Name="Buttons">
          <FCParamGroup Name="0">
            <FCText Name="Command"/>
          </FCParamGroup>
          <FCParamGroup Name="1">
            <FCText Name="Command"/>
          </FCParamGroup>
          <FCParamGroup Name="2">
            <FCText Name="Command"/>
          </FCParamGroup>
          <FCParamGroup Name="3">
            <FCText Name="Command"/>
          </FCParamGroup>
          <FCParamGroup Name="4">
            <FCText Name="Command">Std_ViewAxo</FCText>
          </FCParamGroup>
          <FCParamGroup Name="5">
            <FCText Name="Command">Std_ViewTop</FCText>
          </FCParamGroup>
          <FCParamGroup Name="6">
            <FCText Name="Command">Std_ViewFront</FCText>
          </FCParamGroup>
          <FCParamGroup Name="7">
            <FCText Name="Command">Std_ViewRight</FCText>
          </FCParamGroup>
          <FCParamGroup Name="8">
            <FCText Name="Command"/>
          </FCParamGroup>
          <FCParamGroup Name="9">
            <FCText Name="Command">Std_Delete</FCText>
          </FCParamGroup>
        </FCParamGroup>
      </FCParamGroup>

[BlipBertMon]

OS: Mac OS X
Word size of OS: 64-bit
Word size of FreeCAD: 64-bit
Version: 0.16.6706 (Git)
Build type: Release
Branch: tag: 0.16.6706
Hash: f86a4e411ff7848dea98d7242f43b7774bee8fa0
Python version: 2.7.11
Qt version: 4.8.7
Coin version: 3.1.3
OCC version: 6.8.0.oce-0.17

Spoiler: I am using FC with a SpaceNavigator, which works supremely to adjust the view, after I unplug the SpaceNavigator, the referenced grayed-out menu options become available again. plugging the SN back in again, and the affected menu options 're-appear';
so there appears some combination of FC state ( or mouse configuration options ?) which, properly tweaked, might prevent the problems described here. I 'd argue any incorrectly-set configurable parameter which triggers the sort of behaviors I describe below is manifestly a 'bug'.

-----------

While I have the highest hopes, [ of using FC like I've used Blender and bpy for procedural generation and interactive viewing of models... ] I'm finding FC really, completely, unusable.

Almost every operation after I've got some geometry displayed is 'grayed out' ... this despite first 'doing the Python' to try and divine what type of object I have selected; 'Types' seeming the crux of issues related to what one can and can't do with a selection - types which are nowhere displayed, in the view/data property/value panels;

>>> App.ActiveDocument.getObjectsByLabel("Extrusion_NACA_ys930chordXC")[0].TypeId
'Part::Extrusion'
which, curiously, < the referenced extrusion, at least > seem to retain just-changed ( stale) names
>>> App.ActiveDocument.getObjectsByLabel("Extrusion_NACA_ys930chordXC")[0].TypeId
'Part::Extrusion'
>>> Gui.ActiveDocument.setEdit('Extrude001',0) <- 'Extrude001' was the former name of "Extrusion_NACA_ys930chordXC"
>>> App.getDocument("NACA_ys930").ActiveObject
<Part::PartFeature>

pathologically iterating through all the workbenches and deselecting-selecting the part to see if cut / copy / paste or any other of potentially usable myriad menu items ever becomes un-grayed; they don't

After closing all the open files,
>>> App.setActiveDocument("")
>>> App.ActiveDocument=None
>>> Gui.ActiveDocument=None

I can't even exit. FreeCAD -> [ Quit FreeCAD cmd-Q ( is grayed out.) ]

Nor can I 'open' any ( File -> New, File -> Open ... all gray .. ) except from the list of 'recent' files.

Py frags which capture & display the state of the FC UI and the model App & Gui hierarchies would seem of great utility here, in lieu of or to augment and disambiguate prose descriptions ( such as this one ... )

all reference material, tutorials, etc. I find blithely suggest I should be used [ everything grayed out ] to accomplish those trivially simple operations like cut / copy / paste, duplicate, fuse or union replicated parts together, etc. etc. I'm imagining there's some giant FSM somewhere keeping FC from crashing from type mismatches between operators and document objects ... in reality it's probably just the class hierarchy and OO fns conspiring to render the thing unusable; and the 'root cause' here would seem to revolve about the mechanism / mechanisms of the SN drivers.

summary: anyone similarly affected and who happens to be a novice user, unfamiliar with how or whether particular options in FC work, and therefore unable to diagnose AND who has a configuration similar to that above listed will have a miserable experience ( with a SN together ) with FC until they chance on the thought of unplugging it.

[NormandC]

Version: 0.16.6706 (Git)

Start by updating to the very latest release... (even though it might not help) https://github.com/FreeCAD/FreeCAD/rele ... /0.16.6712

summary: anyone similarly affected

You are the first to report such issues. Ever. I have a plugged SpaceNavigator and I've never had such issues. None. But I use Ubuntu.