Anyone using a graphic tablet -instead- of a mouse?

[urlwolf]

I'm considering this.
I have a wacom bamboo.
The problem is that it's not easy to scroll with editors/IDEs. For browsing it's fine.
Double-click is pretty bad too.

[davkol]

I have a convertible tablet, so yes, sort of, but it sucks. I usually keep virtual keyboard near the bottom of the screen — mostly because of cursor arrows, which I use to move around PDFs and text in general.

[urlwolf]

I meant on a desktop.

[davkol]

I use an ordinary desktop environment (MATE in this case) on that Tablet PC.

[chewyfruitloop]

I have one of the older bamboo's (2 or 3 years old)
you can use it as a touch pad, but I've found that irritating in the past
I tend to use it for work in GIMP
In the past (like early 90's past) I did switch back and forth to a tablet on my Amiga and it sort of works well, just takes a bit of getting used to the direct positioning when you use the pen

having said all that....using the bamboo should be akin to using a trackpad on a laptop in your dev environment...assuming your using your finger ofc

[davkol]

BTW when the tablet is in the tablet (not touchpad) mode, how does it deal with dualhead?

[vun]

I have an Intuos3 that I use every now and then, I don't think I'd have an problem using it instead of a mouse full-time if I didn't game. I can't really see why there would be a problem with using an intuos tablet as a mouse, although the bamboo could get annoying since last time I checked it didn't have a scroll wheel or touch strip.

[asura]

Another Intous 3 user; and I do use it over ninety percent of the time, off time being a track-ball.  Mine's a nice big one though nine inches by twelve inches.

Previously I had a smaller I3 (A6 size-ish) and used it only for applications where it was pertinent.  Learning to use the little tablet took little or no time, getting used to the difference between the two took much longer; but the great thing about them is you can limit the working area of the tablet, thereby inching your self up to the full size.  I just jumped in, it took about three weeks of feeling a bit weird.  Now mice are so alien.

Little one now travels in my bag so I can have one wherever...

[vun]

I also have the 9x12 I3, these days it sees little use simply because of the size. I've considered picking up ~A5 sized I4 because that would actually get some use, and I'm pretty terrible at using the full space of the 9x12. Limiting the active area just feels weird to me.

[file_id]

GF is a photographer does touchups using her intuos 3. She does everything with it instead of a mouse. I hate using her computer because of it and ask her to plug in the mouse for me.

[tufty]

I vastly prefer a tablet over a mouse.  About the only thing mine is missing is a scrollwheel, but that's minor.

[minamitek]

I have a Wacom Bamboo tablet I drag out every now & then to use instead of my mouse for a week (usually after I get the urge to start drawing again).
I like being able to place my pointer anywhere on the screen instantaneously without having to mouse all the way across, and I like being able to control exactly where it'll go.

What always takes me back to the mouse in the end is a pain in my wrist from gripping the narrow pen too firmly in that position for too long, and dealing with the fiddly (and awkwardly placed) buttons on the side of the pen for scrolling and right-clicking.

[link_tree]

sometimes I do use my intuos 5 stylus instead of the mouse but only when I'm already working with it in photoshop and am too lazy to reach the mouse for a quick web lockup.
It's not uncomfortable but  I would certainly not decide to use it exclusively instead of a mouse. I've grown used to those things I can't live without one for too long.

[NamelessPFG]

I tried it before with an old Graphire4 and didn't really like it. Small active area (4x5") and most games spazzing out because they're built around relative mouse input instead of absolute mouse input didn't help at all.

For general desktop use, though, it's pretty nice to handle the mouse cursor that way, so long as the active area is about medium-size (by Wacom standards) and it's a single-monitor setup.

[Djankie]

I have a wacom tablet fun & touch. But is cannot ever.... EVER.. replace my mouse. I use it alot through for some quick design sketches.

[Lastpilot]

My best friend used a Wacom that came with a "mouse" which was essentially a plastic rock with a tablet pen node on the bottom.  I have had to use it multiple times when I forget to bring my mouse over. It is terrible and should never be used in place of a mouse. The tracking is imprecise, the shape is uncomfortable, and the roaming space is limited by how large your tablet is.

Let me clarify something about roaming space. Some of you may use high DPI mice and don't really need much "roaming space." But that's not the weakness here. The weakness is in a desk that changes. Wherever you want to MOVE the mouse (not necessarily move as in using it but also as in relocating it), you have to move the tablet with it. It might not SEEM like a hassle talking about it, but if you have papers, drinks, folders, pens, etc. on your desk moving around a mouse attached to a permanent mouse pad is really annoying.

[asura]

To my mind 5080 lines per inch isn't that imprecise...

And I don't quite understand what you're talking about regarding moving it about on your desk - when I had a mouse, nothing went into my mouse area, when I had a trackball, it stayed in the same position, and my tablet sits always in the same position.

You don't have to move the tablet to put papers, drinks, folders, pens or etcetera on it, you just pile them up.

[Lastpilot]

I guess I didn't really mean to say imprecise. It just feels imprecise because I cannot adjust sensitivity or have acceleration.

And lol I guess my desk can get a little bit too messy then since I often find myself looking for movement space. Or maybe I need a bigger desk. Probably both.

[Jmneuv]

First thing is to throw away the wacom mouse.

From what i hear from friends, they use the pen quite happily as a vertical mouse.
You'll need a mid-range model though like the intuos m, not the tiny starter ones - pricey though (300~)

Gaming is supposedly the no.1 thing they're not good for.

[Hyde]

Yeah Wacom mouse is quite horrible.  Actually the mouse itself is not bad but I think because they don't want to scratch the tablet surface, so they put this cloth bottom which I find makes the mouse feel horrible and slow.

So I always keep a mouse on the side when I browse the web/game.  The tablet is strictly for drawing