Gravity Sketch. Left-hand preference.
As I mentioned several weeks ago, I wanted to try out a VR art app on my Oculus Quest 2. Initially, I thought of the famous Google Tilt Brush. I have done basic research and it appeared to be an attractive and intuitive tool enabling drawing and modelling in VR. The only thing was the price. I didn’t necessarily want to pay £14.99 for it. Therefore, being preoccupied with my coursework and other activities, I put this idea aside.
Recently, as I felt better, I started to use my VR HMD more. I had a chance to explore new to me applications and options. Doing so, I came across an app called Gravity Sketch. It is a powerful, yet quite easy to navigate creative tool. It is free, too.
I tried it on my Quest 2 on two occasions so far and was pleased with the way it worked. I did simple 3D sketches, scribbles, wrote my name and drew, or actually modelled, flowers in a vase. I know that there is a lot to be explored and learnt in the Gravity Sketch for me. According to the producers, the app has great potential and can be widely used in designing and modelling for various industries1. Gravity Sketch offers countless possibilities of work on many levels, from simple sketches, through real-life collaboration, to accessing the content from different applications and devices (not only in VR). Most of them are yet to be experienced by me.
I enjoyed my first attempts at creating in the app. The only downside I experienced was the fact that by default, Gravity Sketch is designed for right-handed people. It felt unnatural and difficult for me to be creative in a VR environment, being uncomfortable and unable to use functions properly at the same time. I simply swapped the controllers and used the right one in my left hand and the left one in my right hand. It didn’t solve the issue, as the ergonomics of controllers didn’t work well, but made it slightly easier to use the app at that time.
I mentioned that to my class, and it came out that in this particular case it was easy to change the hand preference from the settings level within the app. A simple slide from the right to left hand option made a huge difference.
Nevertheless, this experience reminded me that living as a left-handed person in the right-handed world is not that simple. It is something to bear in mind while working on applications accessible to all.
- Think in 3D. Create in 3D. (2021), www.gravitysketch.com. Available at: https://www.gravitysketch.com/ [Accessed on 18.03.2021]