Surface Pro 3 Pen Button Customization

Anonymous
2014-06-21T18:20:54+00:00

I am a previous owner of a Surface Pro 2, and loved the capability it provided of customizing the button commands per program through the Wacom drivers. As a new owner of the surface Pro 3, I a very disappointed to discover that the same functionality is not available in the N-trig driver options. As an artist, the primary use of my surface is for drawing inside of programs like Adobe Photoshop. Not being able to customize the button functions on the new pen is detrimental to my efficiency as a digital artist. Without the ease of having quick access to specific commands through the pen buttons, I am forced to either dig through the menus and submenus of the program to execute a simple command, or connect a keyboard to use hotkeys. One of the greatest features of the surface is the ability to draw inside of photoshop as if it were a paper notebook, freeing me from my desktop work space and removing the requirement of the mouse and keyboard. Without the customization of these pen buttons, I lose that freedom.

I spoke to a Microsoft support tech this morning who informed me that "hopefully" in the next month or two, this feature will be added to the pen drivers. While this is a new product, and I understand that some features are still in development, this feature is crucial in the workflow of any artist using this device. I already own a desktop computer and a laptop; so again, the primary function of the Surface Pro 3 for me is drawing inside of programs like Photoshop without the need for a mouse and keyboard. 

I don't know if any Microsoft representatives read these discussions, but if there is a way I could be included in any sort of pre-release developmental versions of drivers that introduce this capability, I would love to be a part of it and am happy to provide feedback from an artist's perspective. 

Thanks for reading.

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  1. Anonymous
    2015-10-05T01:48:13+00:00

    This may not do exactly what you like, but I saw this video on YouTube. I haven't tried it personally, but looks like it should work.

    https://youtu.be/k00WYqM_ubs

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  2. Anonymous
    2015-10-05T00:52:00+00:00

    It's very troubling that the discussion at this point has deteriorated to whether or not the Surface Pro 4 will fix the problem. It's been what(?), something like over a year and a half since the Surface Pro 3 came out, and Microsoft HAS REFUSED TO ADDRESS THIS HUGE ISSUE.

    It is like the simplest, & most expected of functionality to be able to program buttons on your input device, be it mouse, trackball, stylus, or EVEN SURFACE PRO 2 STYLUS!!

    Microsoft, ****? You have succeeded in completely screwing over an entire product generation of people who put their faith and a great deal of money into your flagship product.

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  3. Anonymous
    2015-10-03T12:08:22+00:00

    But it still does not solve the programmable button issue. Which is the real problem of the surface pro 3 stylus. Unless the surface pro 4 does not resolve such a software flaw it will not be a tool for artist or professional users.

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  4. Anonymous
    2015-08-08T18:38:40+00:00

    https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/download/details.aspx?id=38826  

    Download and install

    Wintab-1.0.0.18-64-bit.zip

    Will add wintab functionality to apps like Photoshop 5

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  5. Anonymous
    2015-08-08T17:33:09+00:00

    Hello, got my new surface pro 3 as it seemed the best option, and after loving my surface pro 1 it was a no question decision. But I'm very disappointed at the fact I can't  use many of my regular apps.

    It seems Microsoft decided to ditch the wacom technology, which I wouldn't mind if the pen worked, but sadly is not the case. The pen buttons can't be remapped which becomes a total hassle and on top of that many apps like PhotoShop do not recognize the device, this was never an issue with te first surface. What's going on Microsoft?

    How do we get in touch with microsoft representatives to ask for  an update to this PROBLEM, this is definitely not a minor issue, I see many people complain about this since 2014 and with no success.

    Or does this confirms the rumors about surface bein discontinued?

    Thanks

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