VMD-L Mailing List

From: John Stone (johns_at_ks.uiuc.edu)
Date: Mon Jun 17 2002 - 11:38:55 CDT

Dear Brendan,
  Yes, we've used various devices with VRPN and an SGI.
In order to use trackers with VMD, you need to make entries into
your .vmdsensors file, and then use the tracker menu in VMD to
create a "tool" which is then associated with the tracker of
interest. Have you read the manual on the tracker menu stuff
yet? The manual should help cover the general details, then we'd
be happy to help you with any specifics you're having trouble with.
To answer your question regarding the use of buttons, at the present
time, only the first button (0th button?) on VRPN devices are really
being used for anything. We are working on implementing a more general
and featureful tracker interface for future versions of VMD, but it is
still in the early stages. Let us know if you need more help with this.

Thanks,
  John Stone
  vmd_at_ks.uiuc.edu

On Mon, Jun 17, 2002 at 07:15:07PM +1000, Brendan O'Malley wrote:
> Hi,
>
> Has anyone used tracking devices with VMD using VRPN on an SGI? I've just installed VRPN on a SGI Onyx and checked that its working OK with an Intersense IS900 (head trackers +wand). But I'm not too sure how VMD actaully works with a tracking device e.g. whether any of the wand buttons or even the wand are used by VMD. Has anyone used one this tracker system with VMD? I also have a Polhemus fastrak and Fakespace pinchgloves so if anyone has had success with these I'd love to hear about the nitty-gritty.
> Thanks.
>
> Best Regards
>
> Dr. Brendan O'Malley
> Applied Chemistry Dept
> RMIT University
>
> Email: brendan.omalley_at_rmit.edu.au
> Phone: (03) 9925 3368
> Fax: (03) 9639 1321 

-- 
NIH Resource for Macromolecular Modeling and Bioinformatics
Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology
University of Illinois, 405 N. Mathews Ave, Urbana, IL 61801
Email: johns_at_ks.uiuc.edu                 Phone: 217-244-3349              
  WWW: http://www.ks.uiuc.edu/~johns/      Fax: 217-244-6078