Wacom support in Windows version 0.46 is an epic failure

[goto]

System: Windows XP SP2, Wacom Graphire4, Inkscape 0.46

When I try to draw with the mouse, the old bug where the actual cursor is displaced by a few hundred pixels still persists.

Furthermore, in this latest version, I can't even use the pen anymore. I can move the cursor (at the right coordinates), I can click on icons, but when I actually want to draw on the document, nothing happens. I can click anywhere I want using any drawing tool, no lines, paths or dots appear.

So basically, the latest version is completely useless if you only have a Wacom and no simple PS2/USB mouse like me.

[dnquark (leo-alekseyev+launchpad)]

I confirm inability to use stylus under windows XP, Tablet PC edition (Inkscape 0.46, Wacom extended Tablet PC drivers v. 5.05-7).

I also have to grudgingly agree with the term "epic failure". A graphics program that fails to work with a stylus deserves that label given the current wide availability of Tablet PCs and graphics tablets.

[ScislaC (scislac)]

Unfortunately I don't have my tablet at the office today...

A) Has the tablet (meaning stylus/pen, eraser and puck) been configured in the Input Devices dialog in the File menu?

B) If so, have you tried both the screen and window modes available for the devices?

[goto (gotolaunchpad)]

Forgot to say I'm using the German version, so I'm not sure if I'm in the correct configuration menu:

a) In the "device" drop down menu, I can only choose "WACOM Tablet Puck Transducer", nothing else.

b) Even if I choose one of the other modes ("disabled" and "window") in the drop down menu, it always stays on "screen". It won't let me choose the other modes.

[dnquark (leo-alekseyev+launchpad)]

I reinstalled v. 0.46 just to check and File -> Input Devices says "No extended input devices found".

Everything works fine with v. 0.45.1 "out of the box".

[dnquark (leo-alekseyev+launchpad)]

Addendum: when I say everything works fine out of the box on 0.45.1 I mean that going to File -> Input devices brings up a dialog box that says has the following listing of devices:

WACOM Tablet <some garbled Unicode string>
WACOM Tablet ISD Stylus
WACOM Tablet Eraser
WACOM Tablet Eraser
WACOM Tablet Eraser
WACOM Tablet Eraser

Only the first entry displays a list of modifiable settings.

Once again, v.0.46 says "No extended input devices found".

This really ought to get fixed. I realize Windows bugs have lower priority, but for many tablet PC users Ubuntu isn't a choice due to poor hardware support.

[Frank J Fischer (frankjfischer)]

System: Windows XP SP2, Wacom Graphire3, Inkscape 0.46

Pen work fine everywhere except the drawing area. Pen tracking is ok everywhere. Pen 'clicks' work as they should for menus, toolbox, and attributes dialogues eg fill and stroke. But pen 'clicks' are not recorded in the drawing area.

[goto (gotolaunchpad)]

Could you please make this bug urgent/important? I would like to be able to use Inkscape.

[Jon A. Cruz (jon-joncruz)]

Changing the bug priority won't really do so much to get it fixed. What would help, however, is if we have some Win32 users who could run debug passes and give us actual feedback for fixing it.

Most of the developers are running Linux or OS X, so don't have easy access to work on this.

[Rygle (rygle)]

Any spare Wacoms going?

[goto (gotolaunchpad)]

How much "actual feedback" do you still need? I'm on WinXP with a Wacom, maybe I could run a debug pass if I knew what it is.

[goto (gotolaunchpad)]

Haha, I managed to get it working, not quite well, but it works. Note that I have the German version, so what I write might not be the correct English translation of the menu entries:

- in the "File" menu, open the "Inkscape preferences"
- in the tab tree to the left, choose "Mouse"
- there should be a box that says "use pressure-sensitive graphic tablet (needs restart)"
- the very first time I opened this menu, the box WAS already TICKED, yet the Wacom WOULDN'T WORK (what were the coders thinking?)

- so untick the box and tick it right away again
- restart Inkscape as it says
- now the Wacom should work, at least the pen. The mouse bug is still there

- very often it happens that after another restart or a crash, I have to repeat that untick/tick trick

[madwizard (thomas-madwizard)]

I have the same problem but managed to patch the program so that it works correctly again, at least for me (I haven't tested it yet on other computers).

OS: Vista 32-bit + SP1, English
Tablet: Wacom Grapphire 4, latest drivers installed

My problem was with Inkscape but I tested GIMP and it has the same problem, like veryone describes here, the cursor freezes on certain proximity events.

Since I didn't feel like compiling all the necessary libraries again I just binary patched the GDK DLL for Inkscape and GIMP. It involves changing one byte (one bit actually :) in the GDK DLL.

I hope this fix will work on other systems as well, if you want to quickly check if this fix works for Inkscape or GIMP then you can apply the binary
patch. For this you need these specific versions (which are the latest at the moment of writing)

Inkscape: 0.46
GIMP: 2.4.5 i686

You will also need a hex editor, I use HxD (http://mh-nexus.de/hxd/), description below is for that tool.

Install as usual, then run HxD (be sure to run it as administrator if you use Vista with UAC and installed in program files!!). For inkscape, in HxD open
libgdk-win32-2.0-0.dll (this file should be 639270 bytes). When patching GIMP, open the same file from the bin directory inside the GIMP directory, this
version of the DLL should be 617992 bytes.

Menu search, goto (or press alt+g).
Offset: 39030 for Inkscape, 39180 for GIMP
Select 'hex', relative to 'begin' and press OK.

Your cursor should now be at the hexadecimal offset you've entered, you should see this sequence of bytes:

  32 00 00 00 8B 4D 88 89 85 E4 FD FF FF B8 E1 15

Type 00 to overwrite the 32 at the start with 00. It will become red. Save the
file, close HxD and try the program again.

I've also posted the details of this patch in the GTK bugtracker: http://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=496958

[sas (sas-sas)]

Marking as a duplicate of bug 168646.

Madwizard's fix should be included in GTK+ 2.12.10 (see http://bugzilla.gnome.org/show_bug.cgi?id=496958#c29 ). In the meantime, for those who don't want to patch their own DLL as described above, the patched version can be found at https://bugs.launchpad.net/inkscape/+bug/178823/comments/3

[andy1279 (michael2718)]

I believe the "duplicate" status is in error.

The above patch does not fix the problem of not being able to achieve pressure sensitivity.

OS: Vista 32-bit + SP1, English
Tablet: Lenovo X61 tablet PC
Latest drivers as far as I know...

I've tried all the above suggestions, checking and unchecking the use pressure-sensitive graphic tablet, etc. but File -> Input Devices always says "No extended input devices found" and pressure sensitivity does not work. (FWIW, it works fine in Windows Journal.)

I have not experienced any crash or hang problems before or after.

I can run any other tests you think might be helpful.

[sas (sas-sas)]

This bug report isn't about pressure sensitivity; it's about Wacom tablets being essentially unusable.

There are some reports about lack of pressure sensitivity: bug 169049 and bug 167403, and maybe others. It would be better for you to post to one of those, or file a new bug report if you don't think the existing reports cover your situation.

[Visorup (francisholmes)]

In windows XP and Vista go to "windows features" turn on off tanlet support pen services works for me, vista wacom bamboo. cheers

[JavaJigs (gijsleussink)]

Let me say first and off-topic that I like the Inkscape product a lot! Thanks for developing this great product for free!

I have a Wacom Graphire and had the problem as well of not being able to use the pen in the canvas area (Could use it on the menus and buttons)
But the steps in #11 did the trick for me too. Thanks.