Alphabetical order of attributes in the Node Info

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This is not a bug. But wouldn't it be better to have the attributes listed alphabetically below each other?

Now we have A:
a     b     c
d     e     f
g     h     i
j     k     l
m


What I am suggesting is B:
a     f     j
b     g     k
c     h     l
d     i     m
e
Edited by ikoon - July 29, 2024 07:45:11

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attrib_names.png (146.0 KB)

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I'm not diggin' the new middle-click at all. You can revert back to the previous style by placing this in your houdini.env.
HOUDINI_USE_OLD_INFO_WINDOW=1
Using Houdini Indie 20.0
Windows 11 64GB Ryzen 16 core.
nVidia 3050RTX 8BG RAM.
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ikoon
This is not a bug. But wouldn't it be better to have the attributes listed alphabetically below each other?

Now we have A:
a     b     c
d     e     f
g     h     i
j     k     l
m


What I am suggesting is B:
a     f     j
b     g     k
c     h     l
d     i     m
e

That's a cool idea!
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ikoon
This is not a bug. But wouldn't it be better to have the attributes listed alphabetically below each other?

The problem is when there's too many attributes to fit in the window and you have to scroll. Then you only see the tops of the alphabetized columns, with the rest hidden below the scrolling view, so like:

A   M   X
B N Y
C O Z
D P

...which is a bit confusing. (Or, you make the attributes view scroll horizontally, which I don't think would go down well )
Edited by mchaput - July 29, 2024 16:24:24
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@mchaput Thank you very much for working on the new Node Info. I like it very much!

As regards sorting, thank you for considering it. I have to admit that I often look for the right attribute a bit "mindlessly". I automatically skim through the list with my eyes, while thinking about the problem I am solving ... and the item "pops" under my eye.

So, for the "mindless" or "effortless" search, I believe that B is better. It is easier to skim through the first characters in a column. If I "shoot" my eye into the B list, I know whether to go up or down. If I shoot my eye into the A list, I cannot iterate easily.

The root of the problem might be the distance between columns which makes it difficult to read them as lines.

I feel like in this worst case scenario, I might be lost once, or twice (between columns):
A   M   X
B N Y
C O Z
D P


But with this, I am bit lost on each item:
Alpha                    b_guide                  b_prevnode_dir        
b_prevnode_length b_result b_result_length
b_step Cd centerline
centerline cluster dim
guide mask objid_crop
P range_end range_start
skinprim skinprimuv skinqueryP
u


I opened this thread because sincerely I am not sure that I am right. Maybe I have to get used to the better solution (which certainly happens often).
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With those columns having such a margin between them, my eyes "effortlessly" just snap to the closest word (up or down a line) and brain can't deal with it. But maybe it is just me.


Alpha                      b_guide                  b_prevnode_dir        
b_prevnode_length b_result b_result_length
b_step Cd centerline
centerline cluster dim
guide mask objid_crop
P range_end range_start
skinprim skinprimuv skinqueryP
u

Sorry for the rambling, I believe that it (or I ) will mature into the perfectly usable Node Info!!! Thanks for the efforts!
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@mchaput Thank you very much again! I have the current build and the sorting and working with attributes is great!

I have also seen, that you are the author of the Houdini icons and lots of Houdini UX and UI. I really admire all of that! <3
Edited by ikoon - Sept. 6, 2024 04:56:50
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Oh yeah, I probably should have updated this thread that we changed it
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