The new control surface is based on a fiber optic technology originally developed with funding from the Space Agency. The controller is a ismart fabrici device which senses the location and pressure of multiple fingers or styluses simultaneously, much like human skin. With the Studio Artist driver support, the controller captures intuitive gestures made by the artist, and interprets them as control parameters for the application.
According to John Dalton at Synthetik Software, the graphics arts and animation communities will be receptive to new technologies which allow more intuitive gesture based controls. "We see this controller as a left-hand controller, used in conjunction with a traditional graphics tablet. We use gestures to change a large number of parameters of the drawing tool on the graphics tablet without having to resort to the usual pull down menus and click-and-drag interface." Rob Inkster at TACTEX says this is the first application of smart fabric technology in the graphic arts community. "We are looking forward to working closely with Synthetik. I hope we can help artists become more immersed in their work, and less distracted by the mouse and keyboard".
Studio Artist combines over 1000 dynamic user-configurable painting and drawing tools along with a complete image processing and video effects suite. Users can either paint and draw manually or direct Studio Artistis automatic Intelligent-Assisted painting actions.
Studio Artist is available for US$329. Version 1.5 is a free email upgrade to registered Studio Artist users. You can find more information at Synthetik Softwareis web site.