I have some cheap COMPUSA knockoff. It works great considering it si 50 bucks, but I barely ever use it. Only when my wrist gets tired or I need some really fine detail work.

I got a wacom 4x5 last year thinking it would make selecting objects with the lasso tool a breeze and drawing cartoons like I do on paper. It used to work sweet with illustrator, but would freeze up randomly(I could never figure out why). Drawing with it in photoshop was ok, but it was hard to get used to drawing with my hand and looking at the screen. And using it for the lasso tool was a pain.. I'm 100 times better with the mouse.

Maybe I just need lots more practice? Who knows.. It's just collecting dust.

I wonder how much better a touch screen would be.

I don't even know how to use a mouse anymore. The little wacom tablet stutters some when any other USB device gets plugged in, which can be a drag. The Cintiq, on the other hand, is f'ing awesome all the time, but it belongs to work and not to me.

I doubt a touch screen would be better than anything. I think
I would get tired of holding my hand and arm up in the air to
reach the screen. Now, if it were a horizontal screen cut into
the surface of a desk, maybe. But I think the glass tube is
going the way of the 8-track, and I'm not sure the new flat-
screens will ever be "touch" capable.

I agree that having to look at the screen while drawing
with a pan on a tablet takes getting used to, but I think
it is simply that - practice makes us better. After all, we
learned to do it with a mouse...

mbrna

I got an Intuos3 a few months ago. Best drawing tablet, the pressure sensitivity feels like sketching with a pencil. I love it.

where is the "i stole one from school but i have no pen" option in the poll?

I have one.
And I pulled off some marvellous crap with it

I can't believe how many of you have/use them. I was just talking to my buddy about getting one, but i really don't know anything about them. Being the ex hardcore counter-strike player that i am (think national tournaments for like thousands of dollars lol I hate being a nerd) I have built up a large collection of optical/laser mouses. (MX 500, MX 510, MX1000).

I DO think that it'd help me out a lot though cause I'm left handed and i do all my photoshopping on my right hand. Any other leftys feelin me on this one?

well.... first of all, this is how it looks.. ( it's the new Cintiq)


now, i do believe it can rotate to 180 (hoizontal) but i'm not sure.....
but it's really good cause you can use it the way is most comfortable to you....

...and the best thing is that you draw right on it....
the bad news is that you need a large pile of money if you want it...

OH and FRAMED--- my dad is a lefty and he tried to use my tablet once, he said he was so used to holding the mouse with the right hand that he couldt use the pen with his left..... i guess that it's just to much for the brain to cope with at once but maybe it would work better for you

I just rode my chair over my pen, so I guess I gotta get MacGyver to hotwire a cucumber so I can start drawing again..

Nevet, those Centiqs are really amazing. They're up in the $3000 dollar range. I wonder what they are going for on Ebay.

Got a Wacom tablet in the mail today. First tablet I've used before, so it is a bit of a learning curve and kind of a weird feel for me. Any suggestions on best ways to get use to it and a comfortable feel for it? Or is that just something that will come with time and use instead of technique?

the pressure sensitive brushes give you a lot more control over a mouse, sometimes a mouse works better in certain situations, I always go back and forth, have fun, you will soon see that you should have gotten it a long time ago.

Use it until you get frustrated then use the mouse, keep repeating. Also some tracing, or deleting backgrounds with the pen (free hand) will help you get oriented. Change the pen nib tips also until you find one that you like. I prefer the felt tip or the spring loaded one. Eventualy you will reach for the pen when you start. I've had a intuos 3 for 2 years (6" x 11" I think same shape as my screen) Its all I use for photoshop and Ill. I also use a space pilot in photoshop for detail work. Bigger tab = better detail work.

My normal setup is keybaord to my left, pad on the right at a slight angle. I never use the buttons on the pad.

Intuos 3 can be had for under $100 on ebay, make sure you update drivers. Make sure it matches your screen ration, square screen, square tab, rectangle screen, rectangle tab.

Don't think you have to lean foreward and draw all the time, I usually sit back in the chair with it in my lap and work.

For cleaning up pictures and chopping, it is a real time saver, I can run thru images way quicker with a pen then I can with a mouse. I do have a pair of high dpi mice, mx revolution and a mx performance, only thing they are good for are gaming and internet imo.

Its all personal preference, some like them, some don't.

Heres a pic of how I use the stuff. Directions say to put it in front of you like a piece of paper you are writing on, I hate it like that, so it goes off to the side.