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FiftyThree Gives Behind-The-Scenes Look at Developing Paper's Zoom Feature

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FiftyThree, the developer behind the popular sketching app Paper, has posted a lengthy article examining the new Zoom feature that was added to Paper earlier this month.
Zoom is one of those UI controls, like the color picker, that has grown so familiar as to become almost invisible. Designers drag and drop it out of a mental library of stock functionality, and the most pressing consideration is whether to use a magnifying glass or a +/- button for the icon.

"Pinch to zoom" reinvented zoom for touch devices, and Apple made the gesture ubiquitous by including it in iOS. "Pinch to zoom" is now probably the single most broadly understood multitouch gesture; it feels like something we've been doing all our lives, even though it entered the popular lexicon barely six years ago.
Click to expand...
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Paper seems to be a favorite of Apple as well, winning both iPad App of the Year and Apple Design Awards in 2012. Apple also featured the app prominently on its home page as part of its 50 billion app download contest.

Paper by FiftyThree is an iPad-only app that can be downloaded from the App Store for free. [Direct Link]

Article Link: FiftyThree Gives Behind-The-Scenes Look at Developing Paper's Zoom Feature
 
Article Link
https://www.macrumors.com/2013/05/22/fiftythree-gives-behind-the-scenes-look-at-developing-papers-zoom-feature/
v7nn7

v7nn7

macrumors newbie
Apr 29, 2013
1
0
BR
Paper by FiftyThree zoom at Draw Something

this type of zoom would be GREAT in Draw Something.
Where is Zynga now?
 
GerritV

GerritV

macrumors 68020
May 11, 2012
2,124
2,428
53 has integrated this new zoom in a unique and well designed way.
I love this app :)
 
JoEw

JoEw

macrumors 68000
Nov 29, 2009
1,583
1,291
I really great app, won't be surprised if they get bought up soon.
 
tardegrade

tardegrade

macrumors regular
Jan 14, 2009
146
250
Devon, UK.
Guess I'm the only one who finds the Zoom "feature" awful. It's restrictive in how much zoom it allows and if you get the pinch out slightly wrong it incorrectly identifies the gesture as the incomprehensibly daft rewind "feature".
A simple pinch to zoom would have been the best way. A simple undo would have been infinitely preferable to rewind as well. It's a gimmick.

The drawing engine is still painfully slow. I don't understand why Paper gets so much attention when something as screamingly great at Procreate languishes in obscurity at the same price. And if I want something instant and simple, I get better results with Bamboo or even Penultimate.

Apps like this and the Clear to-do app, seem to persistently get far more exposure than their respective abilities merit.
 
E

everything-i

macrumors 6502a
Jun 20, 2012
827
2
London, UK
tardegrade said:
Guess I'm the only one who finds the Zoom "feature" awful. It's restrictive in how much zoom it allows and if you get the pinch out slightly wrong it incorrectly identifies the gesture as the incomprehensibly daft rewind "feature".
A simple pinch to zoom would have been the best way. A simple undo would have been infinitely preferable to rewind as well. It's a gimmick.

The drawing engine is still painfully slow. I don't understand why Paper gets so much attention when something as screamingly great at Procreate languishes in obscurity at the same price. And if I want something instant and simple, I get better results with Bamboo or even Penultimate.

Apps like this and the Clear to-do app, seem to persistently get far more exposure than their respective abilities merit.
Click to expand...

Problem with apps like this is they demo too well ;)
 
GerritV

GerritV

macrumors 68020
May 11, 2012
2,124
2,428
tardegrade said:
Guess I'm the only one who finds the Zoom "feature" awful. It's restrictive in how much zoom it allows and if you get the pinch out slightly wrong it incorrectly identifies the gesture as the incomprehensibly daft rewind "feature".
A simple pinch to zoom would have been the best way. A simple undo would have been infinitely preferable to rewind as well. It's a gimmick.

The drawing engine is still painfully slow. I don't understand why Paper gets so much attention when something as screamingly great at Procreate languishes in obscurity at the same price. And if I want something instant and simple, I get better results with Bamboo or even Penultimate.

Apps like this and the Clear to-do app, seem to persistently get far more exposure than their respective abilities merit.
Click to expand...

I understand your comments. As compared with p.e. ProCreate, Paper has a somewhat different approach, at the risk that it just isn't your thing. What I like about the Rewind/Undo, is that you can perform it right on the spot almost without lifting your stylus. In ProCreate, even with the Undo button at my left thumb and working right handed, the flow isn't there. Watching the video, I was quite impressed by 53's zoom concept - they gave it lots of thought. And it fits my personal working method.
YMMV
 
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