Feature Request: special selection cursor

[selden]

It'd be really helpful for selecting objects if Celestia provided its own cursor, for example a crosshair/bullseye cursor with an open center. The standard arrow is rather awkward. One can set one's preferences so the operating system uses a different pointing cursor, but that changes it for everything.

[JackHiggins]

Good idea!

How about the cursor only changing when you're actually over something that can be selected?

[chris]

I'll do something about the clunky arrow cursor . . . I agree that a crosshair would be much better.

I'd like to make the cursor change when over a selectable object, but testing to see if an object is underneath the cursor every frame would be very computationally expensive . . . At some point, I'll make it an optional feature so I can investigate just how serious the performance impact is.

--Chris

[selden]

thanks!

[Dave Peck]

I too think a crosshair is a good idea. But when I tried version 1.3.1pre9 (windows) the crosshair is black and so mostly invisible.

I am using WinME on a Dell Inspiron 8100 1Ghz 256Mb (laptop) with a GeForce 2 Go (Dell Mobile) 32MB chip and updated drivers.

Any ideas?

By the way, I love this program! I haven't been so fascinated by an astronomy program since Distant Planets.

[selden]

FWIW, the new cross-hair does "the right thing" under XP with a GF4 Ti4200 and with an FX5200, both using Detonator v44.03 drivers:
It's dark when over light pixels and light when over dark pixels.
I have to believe that it's something in Nvidia's drivers that's messing up.

[Darkmiss]

Official Nvidia Detonator FX 45.23, are out and working very well indeed.


Get them here http://www.nvidia.com/content/drivers/drivers.asp

[Dave Peck]

Thanks, Selden.

I think you're probably right about my drivers being at fault. Unfortunately NVIDIA doesn't support its laptop chips with driver updates. Laptop users are at the mercy of the computer manufacturers for new drivers.

Perhaps for the benefit of we poor laptop users future versions of Celestria could make the dedicated cursor optional.

Thanks again,

Dave

[Buzz]

Sorry for this whiney remark, but... I like to use Celestia without any info texts and other "clutter", using just the keyboard to navigate for an undisturbed view of the universe. The old cursor would be invisible when put in the corner, while this one stays visible. I would like a black border on the cursor