NOOOOOO NX9 use ribbon interface 30

[JohnRBaker]

In NX the color setting dialog box has very small icons which really puts lots of strain on the eyes, unless there is a way to make them big.

Yes there is. Below is an image showing the default Color Palette on the left and the one on the right after using...

Preferences -> Visualization -> View/Screen

...and the 'Calibrate' tools to change the size of the color 'swatches' in the dialog.

As for the close proximity of the Save and Undo buttons, you can use customize to put some space between them...

...or do what most people do, just press Ctrl-Z to perform an Undo, like they do in most every Windows application.

Anyway, thanks for the input as there were a couple things there that I'm passing on to the UI design team, like perhaps we really should put a little 'air' between the Save and Undo buttons.

John R. Baker, P.E.
Product 'Evangelist'
Product Engineering Software
Siemens PLM Software Inc.
Industry Sector
Cypress, CA
Siemens PLM:
UG/NX Museum:

To an Engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.

 

[cnc07]

Thanks John. For some reason I never thought of using Ctrl+Z for undo in any cad system I have used. But I use this key combination whenever I need it while writing the code in visual studio, notepad++, etc. basically for all text editing purposes including writing the posts on the forums. I guess it is hard wired into my brain to use Undo button whenever using any cad system. And thanks for the tip on the Color Palette settings, I'll try it next time I use NX.

 

[rickemeyer]

John,
I have looked over the screenshots you posted, we are moving to NX9 next summer. Can you tell me if the in-command menus that pop up are still based heavily on pull-down style fields? The pull downs on everything (Including the selection bar) are soooo time consuming. Take for example the "Move Component" command. For the copy mode, there is a pulldown for only two options, copy or no copy! Every time I hit a pull-down I have to click twice. When doing this all day, it REALLY adds up. Glad to see you can add icons to the side bars, so I at least won't have to click twice just to get to a command. It would be wonderful if some keyboard shortcuts were added for in-command options, like what I described above. Like just hit "C" for copy or something like that. MUCH faster. Anything is better than pull-downs.

Just my opinions.

 

[capnhook]

Adding icons to the side bars == toolbars, doesn't it? If toolbars were not deemed a "modern interface", why is this scheme being included?

Toolbars AND ribbons? Will there be any screen left?


Proud Member of the Reality-Based Community..

[green]To the Toolmaker, your nice little cartoon drawing of your glass looks cool, but your solid model sucks. Do you want me to fix it, or are you going to take all week to get it back to me so I can get some work done?[/green]

 

[JohnRBaker]

At the moment, there are not yet that many changes within the dialogs themselves. For NX 9.0 the focus is on the first level, ie the ribbon bars, and over time more things will be looked at to improve productivity and ease of learning.

As for the so-called 'Side Bars' they are intended primarily as temporary repositories for COPIES of functions which will be needed for a short period of time and then removed when no longer needed. This is because it does not require the use any of the UI Customize tools to do this. Now if there IS a need to have permanently easier access to those functions that out-of-the-box are located on one of the 'More' panels, now that is when you would use the Customize tools to MOVE those functions from one of those 'More' panels up onto the Ribbon Bar itself. Note we're currently working on some additional options which will make it easier to organize the contents of a Ribbon so as to give you more usable real estate so that more functions can to given direct access without having to think of the Side Bars as permanent repositories for icons thus creating, far all intents and purposes, a new type of 'toolbar'.

John R. Baker, P.E.
Product 'Evangelist'
Product Engineering Software
Siemens PLM Software Inc.
Industry Sector
Cypress, CA
Siemens PLM:
UG/NX Museum:

To an Engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.

 

[carlharr]

Been having a go with the new NX ribbon the last few weeks, its fine. I've used top and bottom border bars for regularly accessed "non-modelling" functions (selection, utility and view type commands) and have pretty much otherwise left it unchanged. Finding that the galleries are kind of like a pull down menu system, but quicker.

And yesterday I found out that the context sensitive toolbars are customisable, so that could be pretty useful!

Think I might be being converted, my only concern is convincing everyone else!

http://www.jcb.com

NX 7.5 with TC 8.3

 

[JohnRBaker]

Here's a chance to actually see a bit of the newer look of what the Ribbon UI will be like with the release of NX 9.0.1.

http://community.plm.automation.siemens.com/t5/NX-Design-News/NX-Quick-Tips-NX9-Ribbon/ba-p/23005

John R. Baker, P.E.
Product 'Evangelist'
Product Engineering Software
Siemens PLM Software Inc.
Industry Sector
Cypress, CA
Siemens PLM:
UG/NX Museum:

To an Engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.

 

[Millimeter]

Thanks.
We are still on NX 8, but anxious for to try this new interface. It looks promising.
Perhaps next year the managenent will hear us.

 

[DonJackson]

Now that I have used the Ribbon interface in NX 9 for a month or so, I mostly prefer it. However I find that the current implementation is very feature light, and doesn't include numerous (basic?) functions that I use regularly. If the intent is encourage users to move towards this then they need to be able to do most everything within this ribbon system. In addition, I find the default menu separations convoluted and lacking coherency at times. I think the team at Siemens needs to think a little bit more about sensible locations and groupings of these buttons. In the end, I feel like I still have to use the old 'menu' drop-downs and binoculars more than I should have to with a ribbon system (since they are now in some sort of unusual ribbon location, or buried within the context of the 'Menu' drop-down.)

Naturally, this can all be customized, but I think that a little could go a long way, in regards to defaults, when it comes to getting users to adopt this system. As of right now everything is just too fragmented to consider ribbons a fully fleshed out solution.

 

[DonJackson]

Oh, and one other thing that I find EXTREMELY annoying about the new interface:

Out of all the different options we get now while using the ribbons (ribbon, top/side/bottom toolbars, upper left shortcut bar, etc) not one of these are static. Unless I am mistaken, every one of NX's menus are dynamic and change with the module. Which means if you want a function you use all the time in a specifc location, you have to redefine it for each module. If we could have just one static location to drop tools (whether such tools can be utilized in the currently active module or not) it would help in developing locational memory for the user. Withe the toolbar system it seemed easier to create a locational environment, even though it was dynamic it was easier to manage because adding/removing an existing toolbar to a general location a simple right click and select. Now if I want to customize there is quite a bit more digging and clicking involved and more divided by the various interface options (ribbon, top/side/bottom toolbars, upper left shortcut bar, etc).

 

[JohnRBaker]

What you could do is to go into Customize and create a NEW 'Ribbon Tab' where you can place the icons (copies or originals) for those functions which you'd like to have access to across multiple applications. And while defining the new 'Ribbon Tab', you can select, under the 'Properties...' button, exactly in which applications you'd like this new 'tab' to be available.

John R. Baker, P.E.
Product 'Evangelist'
Product Engineering Software
Siemens PLM Software Inc.
Industry Sector
Cypress, CA
Siemens PLM:
UG/NX Museum:

To an Engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.

 

[DonJackson]

Yes, I have done this and it does help. What I dislike about it though is that I still have to traverse to the ribbon tab to get to those functions. Meaning more clicks than before, unfortunately. But its something I can deal with...

As one of our CAD admins, one question though: is it possible to customize these ribbon tabs to where they auto-populate via text file or another method. I have the same question regarding ribbon groups and which tabs these they populate by default? With toolbars I could define via text file, place in the startup location, and all users would get the toolbar. Do ribbons offer this same level of functionality, or are they only user.mtx and role based? Hopefully something like this exists or is planned...role modifications are good and great but not a very good solution for users who have already customized their environment or if there are a bunch of users you want to deploy new toolbar functionality to.

 

[JohnRBaker]

There's nothing preventing you from creating your own customized ribbon files, just like you used to create menu and toolbar files, and place them in the 'startup' folder where they will be activated when NX starts-up.

John R. Baker, P.E.
Product 'Evangelist'
Product Engineering Software
Siemens PLM Software Inc.
Industry Sector
Cypress, CA
Siemens PLM:
UG/NX Museum:

To an Engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.

 

[ClearBlueSky85]

How do you save the custom ribbon files? You mentioned that there are

'Ribbon Tab' (.rtb) and 'Ribbon Group' (.grb) files

and that you can

create menu and toolbar files, and place them in the 'startup' folder where they will be activated when NX starts-up

I am new to NX 9.0 and am a current ProE / Creo user. I just started going over some tutorials that were freely available online. Some of the tutorials available online were written for NX 8.5, which did not have the new ribbon interface. I created a custom 'Menu' ribbon so that I could follow along in the tutorials faster. The Menu button that is in the Top Border Bar requires two mouse clicks to get to each menu, while creating a custom ribbon with each menu only requires one mouse click.

I don't know how to save the ribbon I created and to make sure that it gets loaded everytime. I see that it will show up in the Customize menu and I can check the box to show it. How can I save the custom ribbon as a file? Where is the default startup folder? Thanks

Here are some screenshots:
Default Menu in Top Border Bar
Custom Menu in Ribbon

 

[JohnRBaker]

Any changes to the UI whether it's toggling something on/off or adding icons to a border bar, as well as any changes made using the Customize tools, they are automatically saved in a file named 'user.mtx' and it will be used the next time you start NX so as to give you what you had when you last logged-off. However, it's recommended that you create a 'Role' for yourself which you can always go back to if you mess-up the UI in any way.

As for the documentation on how to use file-based customization to alter/add-to the ribbon interface, you can get a copy from GTAC.

John R. Baker, P.E.
Product 'Evangelist'
Product Engineering Software
Siemens PLM Software Inc.
Industry Sector
Cypress, CA
Siemens PLM:
UG/NX Museum:

To an Engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.

 

[almakuch]

Being an NX user for 18 years, using the toolbar configuration has been my "go to" when working fast in an unfamiliar environment. As is using NX on someone elses desktop....I would have my roles or .mtx file on a network or thumb drive, and very quickly get my "style" of workspace at my immediate disposal. I think from NX10 on the ability to change back to "classic" mode will be removed as JB stated.....can't support both UI's without arthritis. Good terminology John!.....
I feel that the ribbon UI is going to be combersome and take up more space to model in as I have noticed in my first looks at NX9. We as designers need more workspace, not less. I am sure I will adapt to the new UI, but at first glance I prefer the toolbar UI.

RIP toolbars.....

regards,

Al Makuch

 

[JohnRBaker]

You will have until NX 11.0 before the old 'classic' UI is retired.

Note that for NX 10.0 we've done a lot of what we call 'polishing of the UI', based on feedback that we got during the NX 9.0 beta testing and from the early NX 9.0 adopters. I suspect that once you start using either NX 9.0 or NX 10.0 that you'll soon see that while it might look like the interface takes up more space, it also offers you much more control over the access to the functions that you use all of the time versus those which you may access less frequently but still often enough that you don't want to go hunting for icons which have been switched off and that you need to toggle back on temporarily. Also note that we are still using the .mtx, and Roles, to capture all of your UI changes and for NX 10.0 we've even included the Resource Bar setting in the .mtx file (and Roles) so that even more of your preferred settings can be captured and 'taken with you' when you need to.

John R. Baker, P.E.
Product 'Evangelist'
Product Engineering Software
Siemens PLM Software Inc.
Industry Sector
Cypress, CA
Siemens PLM:
UG/NX Museum:

To an Engineer, the glass is twice as big as it needs to be.

 

[deedub777]

I have followed this thread with great interest and noted a few key points.

Those that have not tried the ribbon or only 'briefly' are skeptical and understandably reluctant (I was in that group). Now those that have spent some time familiarizing themselves with the new interface have generally liked it (I am now in that group now).

There will always be some that resist change, we are engineers', that's how it is! Move with the time, you may like it.

 

[carlharr]

I also was in that group too, but eventually I did grow to sort of like the NX9 ribbon.

I do still prefer NX8.5 full screen mode though with collapsed toolbar collector, ALT key to bring commands to cursor, radials and shortcut toolbars etc. - for me this is this really good UI.

But as you say, move with the times!

http://www.jcb.com

NX 8.5 with TC 8.3

 

[jerry1423]

I used to look forward to new software releases, now I dread them.