Thoughts on tablets?

[getter77]

Thinking about Roguelike Tiles and other applicable art creation, as well as my seemingly being WAY out of the loop in terms of what these things run money wise nowadays, what would be the thoughts about utilizing a Wacom tablet of some sort or some such in conjunction with my new desktop?  Or do the things not function as simply as I might imagine in terms of sketching up an asset/tile and sending/saving it over to the desktop for any other refining/implementation?

I mean, it should work better/easier(faster?) than a mouse for 2D right?...especially smaller things like Tiles and all.

[Etinarg]

Smaller tiles I prefer to pixel. Tablets are better for the big illustration-like images.

[Krice]

I think tablets are good in pixel drawing too, because it's more accurate to draw with pen than mouse. But some programs don't support tablets (at least not all features like pressure), like my own tile drawing program Stile.

If you plan to buy one, get Wacom. I don't know why other manufacturers don't make pens that run without battery, but that's really good thing. Bad thing about Wacoms is that they cost like bananas, but if you don't need sophisticated features like tilting then buy the cheaper Bamboo model. Also, you don't usually need a big tablet. A5 is fine.

[getter77]

Hmm...good to hear that size isn't a factor.  I was reckoning between the Bamboo Craft which apparently is about $130 and a Small Size version of their seemingly improved Intuos4 unit for $200 on Amazon since the bigger sizes for the line seem to rocket skyward on prices once you go past small.  Considering the cost of various useful PC components, as well as some software for music and such I may well have to break down and purchase, they are kinda in line with $70 not being an outrageous seeming jump. Considering Roguelike tiles tend to not be huge, I was reckoning that the small size would be helpful if anything!

I figure with something like this, I could more easily prototype up assets at the very least---all without wasting a small fortune in paper and ink as growing up I was always stymied by do-overs and some unshakiness resulting in a lot of waste to get towards completion of something.  I've surely got USB slots to spare.

[Etinarg]

I've got an A4 tablet and I second Krice suggestion that an A5 one will do, too. Unless you do bigger illustrations ...

[getter77]

Do you a link to this A5 thing?  I don't recall it mentioned per se in the little product comparison thing on Wacom's site alongside the Bamboo Craft and whatnot.

[Etinarg]

Tomorrow I'll look up links. Those are european paper formats. A5 is 148 × 210mm, A4 would be 210 × 297mm drawing area. I guess in the US they are advertised in sizes that you know better ...

I have forgotten the brand name of mine ... it was a very cheap model. It does the job, though. If needed I'll dig it up tomorrow for a reference.

Edit: Found a online reference: http://www.amazon.com/Aiptek-Media-Tablet-14000U/dp/B002IPVQWG/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1262213932&sr=1-6

It was my first and is my only one, so I cannot compare it to the others. It works for me, though, and it seemed to be a good buy for the price.

[getter77]

http://www.amazon.com/Wacom-Intuos4-Small-Pen-Tablet/dp/B001TUYTZM/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1262219218&sr=1-2   There's the Amazon listing for that Intuos4 one....kinda wish Wacom would come up with some better way of browsing sellers on their website.

All into the consideration pile though---Project Roguelike Renaissance and beyond probably need as good a toolbelt of useful means as can be wrangled at least somewhat responsibly.

[Krice]

What the americans call A4 etc. if they don't use that standard? Such silly goofs. They should really switch to european standards like metric system.

[george]

You can do pretty well with a used Wacom tablet, if you'd rather have a bigger tablet instead of latest features. I got a 12x12 Wacom for $100 (though it runs through a serial port ).

[Fenrir]

What the americans call A4 etc. if they don't use that standard? Such silly goofs. They should really switch to european standards like metric system.

Never! Viva la résistance! YEE-HAW!

Fenrir dances wildly around Krice and fires his revolvers in the air.