So we all know that Wacom introduced the Intuous 4 last week at Photoshop World and the response has been overwhelming. The curious thing is that those who have never used a tablet before seem to be the most interested. Veteran users like myself were overjoyed to say the least, but it is encouraging to see that others who were on the fence about getting a tablet are really considering it now. With that, I thought that I would occasionally post some random tip on the tablet. Because there are so many ways and so many configurations, it can be hard to to know how to set up your tablet.

This tip is targeted at you video editors and motion graphics people. Those of you who work with video are familiar with the term scrubbing. This is the process of basically scrolling through video. Some editors will have a special input device with a dial wheel which you turn to run through video frame by frame. This is critical for precision editing. Well with the new touch ring feature on the Intuous 4 you pretty much have a scrubbing wheel built right in. Simply go into your Wacom preferences and click on Functions in the Tool section. Click here to see a larger image of the Preferences. Then just below in the Application section click the plus sign to add an application. When the window opens locate the video app you wish to set up. For instance, I have chosen Quicktime Pro. Next click on the Touch Ring tab. Click on the first menu item and choose Keystroke. You have two fields to input a keystroke for clockwise and counter-clockwise motion. To move forward through frames in Quicktime simply press the right arrow key in the top box. Then click in bottom box and press the left arrow key. Give this function a name at the bottom and click OK. Notice also you can modify the speed at which the keystrokes are activated. There you have it! Now when in Quicktime I can scrub the video nice and easy by simply gliding my finger around the touch ring. Cool!

3 Comments

1. Bassaddicted said on — April 1, 2009 @ 10:26 am

   Very Use full :d Thank you Very much alot of my friends keep asking me how to do this now i can Link them hehe

2. Scott said on — April 2, 2009 @ 2:46 am

   Although I am not a video editor, thanks for the tip. The tablet and onscreen options are endless. So much so that it is hard to decide where to start. I would like to see Wacom.com setup a section with optional (downloadable) presets. A place where artists, photographers, illustrators can share their respective setups. How do Bert Monroy, Deke McClelland, Terry White, Wes Maggio setup their Intuos4 tablets…thanks for sharing.

3. BJ -TX said on — April 2, 2009 @ 10:19 am

   Thanks for any tips! Is there a definite way to know when to change a nib? — other than “when it shows wear”, which is the answer I received from the company. How do you measure wear? Any tips on different nibs would also be helpful.

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