Google Street View workflow improvements

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pmanix
Posts: 13
Joined: Wed May 20, 2009 1:19 pm

Hi there.
As I have just started to use Pano2VR to export to Google Street View, I have noticed a lot of things that I think you might urgently consider for improvement. Keeping in mind that it is a very good time for you to appeal to thousands of Google Trusted Photographers, allow me to share my views on UI and UX.

First things first, you would like your workflow to resemble that of R.I.P Google Pano Editor as much as possible to enable a smooth transition for those, who have spend years using it and not make them spend hours on tutorials and your time to make them. The interface was very intuitive and in my opinion there is a good point in copying those solutions, which a lot of us know by heart. So...
- clicking on the node on Maps window should automatically open it in the viewer. No need for a second click in the pop up box, which on a small resolution screen most often opens partially hidden by the top bar.
- by clicking on blue link line between the panos, you should be able to select it, delete it, or lock it, all with results to the respective panos and their hotspots. It is much more intuitive than accessing the link from panorama. If a panorama has 10 links, it is way easier to select the one that you want to edit, than to select one node and then the other node, especially when the pop up info box covers the constellation. Right clicking on the link itself could lock the link and if there was a grey line between the current two panoramas, that could be left-clicked to create a link and clicked twice to delete the link. There is no point in creating additional misleading buttons in my opinion, but if you think it is functional, then you might still consider implementing the above as an alternative way of adding links in a faster way. That hugely improves the workflow. Once you try it, you will never go back.
- by selecting a group of panoramas, one should have the possibility to scale, move and turn the whole group. It makes things SOOOOO much easier with big tours.
- selected panorama(s) should be marked on Maps window
- by locking a link between two panos one should have the possibility to move or turn one panorama and the other(s) that is linked should follow
- the Maps window should have the possibility to manually turn orientation of the panoramas just by selecting and rotating the red radar of the selected panorama
- the info box which pop-ups in the Maps window effectively covers the part of the constellation above the selected pano. Why don't you put that information on top/bottom/corner bar, so that it doesn't cover the very center of the workplace. You should also (at least) consider showing it only on mouse-over.
- ctrl+z doesn't work for undo in Maps window
- satellite view should be further zoomable, not only to the point where there is no more detailed imagery. It helps A LOT in getting positions spot on.
- you should consider doing away with grey indirect hotspots in the viewer window as they are only covering the image and not serving any purpose. Maybe an triangle icon to signal the vertical line on which the hotspot is with a name displayed on mouse hover on the bottom and on top of the viewer would be better - as the R.I.P. Pano Editor had.
- selecting multiple panos in the tour browser should have the effect in Maps window - for selecting, moving, scaling and rotating a group
- all the icons in the Maps window should be kept to corners. Workflow suffers a lot on lower resolution screens.
- one should be able to decrease the current minimum width of the tour browser window
- north, south, etc arrows should not be big and in the center of the window. They would be perfectly visible for all if you put them on top and bottom of the viewer so, that they don't cover important areas.
- one should have the ability to preview the target panorama in a pop-up window in order to see whether the hotspot is placed precisely in line. Your competitors have such feature and it is very handy. Pano Editor also had a similar feature, though not as much functional.

That's it for now. I will try to add some ideas with time.

Kindly treat it not as a yet another complain, but as a reminder - keeping in mind, that your software already is a very complicated and robust tool -that focus on small things such as worflow improvements - counting how many clicks can be saved to perform a given action, will eventually pay off with people enjoying working with the software more by improving their workflows and wasting less time on trying to understand and copy your tutorials.

Thank you for your constant improvements!
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