Your Tablet PC and Drivers, [UPDATE]
Journal Entry: Sat Apr 2, 2011, 2:48 AM
READ: This article only deals with TABLET PC notebook/slate computers. NOT Graphic Tablets. If you have a tablet that connects via USB, (Graphire, Bamboo, Intuos, Cintiq, etc,) this does NOT apply to you!
UPDATE 4/2/2011 ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
THIS MAY NOT APPLY TO ALL TABLET PC OWNERS, BUT IT IS AN OBSERVABLE IMPROVEMENT ON MY X201T!
The old advice I gave about Fujitsu drivers being better for your Tablet PC may no longer be valid. First off, Fujitsu has removed the drivers previously linked from their support site. Second, because I gave Wacom's Tablet PC drivers, (called "ISD" drivers,) a second shot. These offer notably more accurate pen calibration and better balance between Windows Tablet PC support and Creative Art software such as Photoshop.
Download the ISDDriver here: www.wacom.com/tabletpc/driver.…
What the ISD driver does is provide pressure sensitivity support for art software such as Photoshop, Painter, Sketchbook Pro, (just about everything EXCEPT Painter Tool SAI,) while maintaining the integrity of a normal Windows Tablet PC experience. The new pen calibration program the ISD driver provides keeps the cursor under my pen far more accurately than before, and I no longer have to deal with 2 levels of calibration, no "hold for right click" issues, and I'm all over enjoying my Tablet PC experience more due to a greater cohesive experience. I can't speak for every tablet PC out there, your mileage may vary, but it's worth a shot.
Be sure to uninstall ANY previous Tablet Pen drivers you've installed, from your manufacturer, Fujitsu, etc, and reboot your system before installing the Wacom IDT drivers. Open the "ISD Tablet Properties" or something similar item in your Control Panel to configure and calibrate the pen. It will no longer be called "Tablet Properties" anymore!
Give this a shot and let me know how it goes for you guys. In my experience, all of my software still works except for Tool SAI, which, well, always had really mediocre tablet support anyway (cough intuos 4's.)
ORIGINAL POST FROM LIKE A YEAR AGO:
This article is also written ESPECIALLY for users of the Lenovo X200T and X201T Tablet PC's.
Unfortunately, since Tablet PC hardware is so diverse in its implementation, the drivers for it are... not as easy as they could be to use. In fact, it takes a lot of finagling to get a somewhat comfortable setup. It can also be especially difficult to get used to if you have used Wacom's higher end tablets all your life, such as the Intuos or Cintiq. I'm going to try to help a little bit for anyone having a problem.
So let's start.
Fujitsu probably makes the best working Tablet PC drivers -- and you can install them on any Tablet PC with a Wacom digitizer. I own a Lenovo X201T and I'm using Fujitsu drivers. (Preferred over the Tablet PC drivers downloadable from Wacom, even.) Fujitsu's drivers support pen pressure across all software, multi-touch input (for screens that support it,) and keep Window's Tablet PC services, (such as handwriting input,) to still operate normally.
With a Fujitsu driver, there are two things to be aware of: Microsoft mode and Wacom mode.
What are these two modes?
- Microsoft mode is when Windows uses its own drivers to interpret the pens calibration and input. You know Microsoft mode is active because the cursor will appear as a dot, instead of an arrow. As long as the dot cursor is visible, pressure sensitivity and high-resolution tracking will work as expected in Windows software such as the Handwriting Input Panel, Microsoft Journal, and Microsoft Word. Additional gestures such as Hold-for-right-click and flicks will work in this mode, as long as they are enabled. Microsoft mode will enable automatically when using ANYTHING except an art / drawing program with Wacom specialized input. There are known glitches that can cause Microsoft mode not to activate -- and we'll go over that a little later.
- Wacom mode is when Wacom takes over the pen with its own drivers and calibration setup. By default, Microsoft does not have drivers that enable pressure sensitivity in software such as Adobe Photoshop, Painter Tool SAI, and Corel Painter. (Autodesk Sketchbook Pro uses Microsoft's drivers by default.) So, the Wacom driver must take over to make pressure sensitivity and high-resolution tracking possible. While Wacom mode is active, the cursor (when placed anywhere but over the canvas, such as a menu or palette) will appear as a standard arrow like with your mouse/touchpad. Wacom mode ignores Windows gestures like hold-for-right-click and flicks, making sure that nothing gets in the way of your drawing. This means that the Handwriting input panel can be hard to call up when needed in Wacom mode, so sometimes you'll have to click on the Windows taskbar first to re-enable Microsoft mode, then call up the Handwriting input panel. When switching modes between Wacom and Microsoft by focusing onto another window outside of your drawing application, the first click may not register since that click was needed to activate the OTHER mode. (It's also common to find the click get stuck, and require another click to "unclick" it.)
So, what about the calibrations that threse two different modes use?
Since both Microsoft and Wacom mode both use respective calibrations for the pen, you have to find a way to actually calibrate them. If you try to calibrate your pen, whether it be from the Tablet PC menu in Control Panel, or the Wacom Pen Tablet configurator, you'll only ever see the Microsoft calibrator. You know when you're using the Microsoft mode calibrator because you'll be asked to calibrate using 4 or 16 points on the screen (depending on whether or not you've done it once already.) The Wacom mode calibrator, by contrast, only uses two points on the screen.
So, how do you calibrate Wacom Mode?
There is a known and long standing glitch with Wacom Pen Tablet drivers and Windows 7. When you disable Microsoft mode's setting for "Hold for Right Click," the entire Microsoft mode disables! Handwriting recognition will still work, but pressure sensitivity and high-resolution tracking will be completely gone. The other added side effect of this glitch is that calibrating the pen will no longer use Microsoft's calibrator -- it will go straight to Wacom's.
To disable "Hold for Right Click" in order to access Wacom's calibrator, go to Control Panel in the start menu, and click on the icon for "Pen and Touch." In this window, double click the option "Press and Hold" and uncheck it. Hit OK, then hit Apply. Close the window.
Now, open the Pen Tablet options by clicking on the "Pen Tablet" icon in Control Panel. (If, by chance, this window was already open, close it and reopen it.) Go to the last tab, and click the "Calibrate" button. You SHOULD now see the Wacom calibrator with two points to complete the test. The calibration you keep from this will be used completely separately from Microsoft mode WHENEVER Wacom Mode is in use. This means that this calibration directly affects the cursor position and accuracy for software like PHOTOSHOP.
Now, we're going to want Microsoft Mode to function properly again -- so re-open the "Pen and Touch" options and re-enable "Press and Hold." Microsoft mode will now work normally again, and the Wacom Calibration will still work as you want it to in drawing software!
- Go to the following link: [ FUJITSU SUPPORT DRIVER DOWNLOADS (AMERICA) ]
- Once there, click the gray tab named "By Configuration #."
We're going to be borrowing drivers from the Fujitsu T900, which is one of Fujitsu's highest-end Tablet PC's.
- Enter the following configuration number and click Go: FPCM11764
- You should now see a list of all the drivers for the T900. Download the driver called "Pen" under the operating system you have. (Windows 7 users should verify that you have 32 or 64-bit version before downloading.)
- At this point you should uninstall any other Pen Tablet drivers you've installed before, such as ones from Wacom directly, or one previously provided by your PC maker. (Note: Don't install drivers needed to make the shortcut buttons work. Only drivers directly used for Pen and Touch input.) It can be considered good practice to restart after uninstalling any, if they exist.
- Install the driver downloaded from Fujitsu.
- BAM. You should now have a good working Wacom Penabled tablet!
DISCLAIMER: My X201T only has a wacom digitizer! I don't have a touchscreen. I can't say for certain that these drivers will enable flawless touch-screen interactivity, but if any of you have a problem with this, let me know and I may have an alternative solution for YOU.
On Wacom's website, www.wacom.com , you normally would download the "Tablet PC" driver from the support section of the site. Unfortunately, this driver sucks compared to others available -- especially recently when Wacom updated the driver and made it nearly incompatible with Windows 7. So where do you find these other drivers?
Well, remember how I said Tablet PC's share hardware with Graphire and Bamboo tablets? That's right -- you can use THEIR drivers too. However, you can't just use any old version of it.
For example, let's say you go and download the driver for the Wacom Bamboo Pen. You can't download the most recent driver, you have to click on an older version of the driver (visible in the list after you choose the model) that makes no mention of incompatibility with Tablet PC's. If the version of a Graphire or Bamboo driver you're attempting to download says something similar to "NOTE: This driver does not work with Tablet PC's!" you'll have to backtrack to an older release.
These driers can behave differently than Fujitsu's driver -- making it nearly impossible for Microsoft mode to fully deactivate (even after disabling Hold for Right Click.) So it can be very difficult -- if impossible -- to calibrate the pen for Wacom mode. But, it may be your answer if you're not getting any pressure sensitivity or high resolution tracking in some software on your stock drivers.
UPDATE 4/2/2011 ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::
THIS MAY NOT APPLY TO ALL TABLET PC OWNERS, BUT IT IS AN OBSERVABLE IMPROVEMENT ON MY X201T!
The old advice I gave about Fujitsu drivers being better for your Tablet PC may no longer be valid. First off, Fujitsu has removed the drivers previously linked from their support site. Second, because I gave Wacom's Tablet PC drivers, (called "ISD" drivers,) a second shot. These offer notably more accurate pen calibration and better balance between Windows Tablet PC support and Creative Art software such as Photoshop.
Download the ISDDriver here: www.wacom.com/tabletpc/driver.…
What the ISD driver does is provide pressure sensitivity support for art software such as Photoshop, Painter, Sketchbook Pro, (just about everything EXCEPT Painter Tool SAI,) while maintaining the integrity of a normal Windows Tablet PC experience. The new pen calibration program the ISD driver provides keeps the cursor under my pen far more accurately than before, and I no longer have to deal with 2 levels of calibration, no "hold for right click" issues, and I'm all over enjoying my Tablet PC experience more due to a greater cohesive experience. I can't speak for every tablet PC out there, your mileage may vary, but it's worth a shot.
Be sure to uninstall ANY previous Tablet Pen drivers you've installed, from your manufacturer, Fujitsu, etc, and reboot your system before installing the Wacom IDT drivers. Open the "ISD Tablet Properties" or something similar item in your Control Panel to configure and calibrate the pen. It will no longer be called "Tablet Properties" anymore!
Give this a shot and let me know how it goes for you guys. In my experience, all of my software still works except for Tool SAI, which, well, always had really mediocre tablet support anyway (cough intuos 4's.)
ORIGINAL POST FROM LIKE A YEAR AGO:
This article is also written ESPECIALLY for users of the Lenovo X200T and X201T Tablet PC's.
- How your Tablet PC works.
Unfortunately, since Tablet PC hardware is so diverse in its implementation, the drivers for it are... not as easy as they could be to use. In fact, it takes a lot of finagling to get a somewhat comfortable setup. It can also be especially difficult to get used to if you have used Wacom's higher end tablets all your life, such as the Intuos or Cintiq. I'm going to try to help a little bit for anyone having a problem.
So let's start.
Fujitsu probably makes the best working Tablet PC drivers -- and you can install them on any Tablet PC with a Wacom digitizer. I own a Lenovo X201T and I'm using Fujitsu drivers. (Preferred over the Tablet PC drivers downloadable from Wacom, even.) Fujitsu's drivers support pen pressure across all software, multi-touch input (for screens that support it,) and keep Window's Tablet PC services, (such as handwriting input,) to still operate normally.
With a Fujitsu driver, there are two things to be aware of: Microsoft mode and Wacom mode.
What are these two modes?
- Microsoft mode is when Windows uses its own drivers to interpret the pens calibration and input. You know Microsoft mode is active because the cursor will appear as a dot, instead of an arrow. As long as the dot cursor is visible, pressure sensitivity and high-resolution tracking will work as expected in Windows software such as the Handwriting Input Panel, Microsoft Journal, and Microsoft Word. Additional gestures such as Hold-for-right-click and flicks will work in this mode, as long as they are enabled. Microsoft mode will enable automatically when using ANYTHING except an art / drawing program with Wacom specialized input. There are known glitches that can cause Microsoft mode not to activate -- and we'll go over that a little later.
- Wacom mode is when Wacom takes over the pen with its own drivers and calibration setup. By default, Microsoft does not have drivers that enable pressure sensitivity in software such as Adobe Photoshop, Painter Tool SAI, and Corel Painter. (Autodesk Sketchbook Pro uses Microsoft's drivers by default.) So, the Wacom driver must take over to make pressure sensitivity and high-resolution tracking possible. While Wacom mode is active, the cursor (when placed anywhere but over the canvas, such as a menu or palette) will appear as a standard arrow like with your mouse/touchpad. Wacom mode ignores Windows gestures like hold-for-right-click and flicks, making sure that nothing gets in the way of your drawing. This means that the Handwriting input panel can be hard to call up when needed in Wacom mode, so sometimes you'll have to click on the Windows taskbar first to re-enable Microsoft mode, then call up the Handwriting input panel. When switching modes between Wacom and Microsoft by focusing onto another window outside of your drawing application, the first click may not register since that click was needed to activate the OTHER mode. (It's also common to find the click get stuck, and require another click to "unclick" it.)
So, what about the calibrations that threse two different modes use?
Since both Microsoft and Wacom mode both use respective calibrations for the pen, you have to find a way to actually calibrate them. If you try to calibrate your pen, whether it be from the Tablet PC menu in Control Panel, or the Wacom Pen Tablet configurator, you'll only ever see the Microsoft calibrator. You know when you're using the Microsoft mode calibrator because you'll be asked to calibrate using 4 or 16 points on the screen (depending on whether or not you've done it once already.) The Wacom mode calibrator, by contrast, only uses two points on the screen.
So, how do you calibrate Wacom Mode?
There is a known and long standing glitch with Wacom Pen Tablet drivers and Windows 7. When you disable Microsoft mode's setting for "Hold for Right Click," the entire Microsoft mode disables! Handwriting recognition will still work, but pressure sensitivity and high-resolution tracking will be completely gone. The other added side effect of this glitch is that calibrating the pen will no longer use Microsoft's calibrator -- it will go straight to Wacom's.
To disable "Hold for Right Click" in order to access Wacom's calibrator, go to Control Panel in the start menu, and click on the icon for "Pen and Touch." In this window, double click the option "Press and Hold" and uncheck it. Hit OK, then hit Apply. Close the window.
Now, open the Pen Tablet options by clicking on the "Pen Tablet" icon in Control Panel. (If, by chance, this window was already open, close it and reopen it.) Go to the last tab, and click the "Calibrate" button. You SHOULD now see the Wacom calibrator with two points to complete the test. The calibration you keep from this will be used completely separately from Microsoft mode WHENEVER Wacom Mode is in use. This means that this calibration directly affects the cursor position and accuracy for software like PHOTOSHOP.
Now, we're going to want Microsoft Mode to function properly again -- so re-open the "Pen and Touch" options and re-enable "Press and Hold." Microsoft mode will now work normally again, and the Wacom Calibration will still work as you want it to in drawing software!
- Downloading the (Universally Awesome) Fujitsu Driver
- Go to the following link: [ FUJITSU SUPPORT DRIVER DOWNLOADS (AMERICA) ]
- Once there, click the gray tab named "By Configuration #."
We're going to be borrowing drivers from the Fujitsu T900, which is one of Fujitsu's highest-end Tablet PC's.
- Enter the following configuration number and click Go: FPCM11764
- You should now see a list of all the drivers for the T900. Download the driver called "Pen" under the operating system you have. (Windows 7 users should verify that you have 32 or 64-bit version before downloading.)
- At this point you should uninstall any other Pen Tablet drivers you've installed before, such as ones from Wacom directly, or one previously provided by your PC maker. (Note: Don't install drivers needed to make the shortcut buttons work. Only drivers directly used for Pen and Touch input.) It can be considered good practice to restart after uninstalling any, if they exist.
- Install the driver downloaded from Fujitsu.
- BAM. You should now have a good working Wacom Penabled tablet!
DISCLAIMER: My X201T only has a wacom digitizer! I don't have a touchscreen. I can't say for certain that these drivers will enable flawless touch-screen interactivity, but if any of you have a problem with this, let me know and I may have an alternative solution for YOU.
- Other Wacom Drivers
On Wacom's website, www.wacom.com , you normally would download the "Tablet PC" driver from the support section of the site. Unfortunately, this driver sucks compared to others available -- especially recently when Wacom updated the driver and made it nearly incompatible with Windows 7. So where do you find these other drivers?
Well, remember how I said Tablet PC's share hardware with Graphire and Bamboo tablets? That's right -- you can use THEIR drivers too. However, you can't just use any old version of it.
For example, let's say you go and download the driver for the Wacom Bamboo Pen. You can't download the most recent driver, you have to click on an older version of the driver (visible in the list after you choose the model) that makes no mention of incompatibility with Tablet PC's. If the version of a Graphire or Bamboo driver you're attempting to download says something similar to "NOTE: This driver does not work with Tablet PC's!" you'll have to backtrack to an older release.
These driers can behave differently than Fujitsu's driver -- making it nearly impossible for Microsoft mode to fully deactivate (even after disabling Hold for Right Click.) So it can be very difficult -- if impossible -- to calibrate the pen for Wacom mode. But, it may be your answer if you're not getting any pressure sensitivity or high resolution tracking in some software on your stock drivers.
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I love you !
With the ISD driver from wacom I just had thin or fat pressure, but when I installed the fujitsu you gave that was amazing, I could control everything and go from thin to fat and to thin again in one move... Thx again, very very much !
PS I needed both drivers together
ISD> thin or fat
Fujitsu> nothing happens
Fujitsu+ISD> Magic !
Thanks!
I'll try all of this, and see if I can bet my pressure sensitivity back c:
this one produces me some problems in Win Xp
Thanks to this tread: [link] I found this site: [link]
Inside you will find this driver: "ISD_DualTouch_702-21"
Is the latest driver and till now no problem. Thanks for all your tut's.
I was wondering, which tablet do you use? I tried the 702-21 on my X201T after uninstalling all touch/pen drivers and it says "A supported tablet was not found on the system".
I learned that with a bit of command line trickery you can have the TABCAL calibration tool show a lot more calibration points than when you're calibrating the screen via regular methods (4-16). This method doesn't seem to work with the ASUS drivers. It says I have to remove some existing 'linear calibration data' first going through the Control Panel, but I still cannot get it to work.
Seeing as I have an X201T as well, I was pretty sure it would work... The only problem I noticed during the installation was that it was a Dualtouch driver, while my computer is pen-input only.However, on Wacom's European site, there are no other versions available.
Now to get something to draw on that works better than Microsoft One-Note :/
It's kind of rare that I see people with Tablet PCs for art, due to their nature they usually have really weak graphics cards and are only really good for taking hand written digital notes with. I know mine only has an Intel gm945 chipset and I have trouble going higher than 15 layers on a 1500x1500 72 dpi in GIMP.
I imagine the eraser tip is, well, like a good ol' squishy Intuos tip rather than a springy tablet PC's?
The nib end feels much the same as the fujitsu's nib end, which is no surprise as they both use the same electronics.
Overall its just a much nicer pen to hold, feels just like an intuos3 pen in the hand.
Another thing is that I have difficulties calibrating the pen. The missalignment is especially pronounced at the far righthand side of the screen. E.g. I have to "click" some 2-3 mm to the left of the scrollbar to "grab it" (i.e. the dot is hovering some 2-3 mm to the right of the pen tip). The allignemnt is good at the center of the screen and better at the left side. I have tried to recalibrate about 10 times with more or less the same result. Any ideas?
I have to manually install the primary "Penabled" driver using the old "Have Disk" method. I install once, install via "Have Disk" for the missing Penabled driver, then install the driver again to get it fully working. Pressure Sensitivity works for Microsoft apps, but nothing else...
The Fujitsu drivers are 511-1. These rename the devices with my Hardware Id of "WACF00C" to "Wacom Dual Touch". It prevents me from getting the driver working on my machine.
Thanks so much for the driver link and the information. I have a MC LE1600 and all of a sudden the Wacom driver started losing capabilities until it didn't work at all. The fujitsu driver works great!
~John
~John
just off the top of your head.. would you know why my tablet pen tip would suddenly stop working :S?its pretty much.. once upon a time it stopped working. the rubber side works. but the pen tip doesnt track or anything, its like its non-existant. i has the wacom bamboo btw.
regarding this articlle.. OMG!! so saving it for a read when i have free time. do you publish these anywhere else? you really should if you dont
Anyways, this is a very useful imformation, I had to use Compaq drivers for my Olivetti once because they didn't provide the correct ones, btw i'm subscribing to your channel
Otherwise - awesome! Very informative, and thank you.
An intuos 3 is a "Graphic Tablet" since it's an external peripheral, not a PC.
Still good information for the future though (should I happen to get a tablet pc).
They may share the same hardware, but the implementation is different. A standard USB tablet talks to the system differently than a full-blown tablet PC. It's hard to pinpoint why, but I think it has something to do with the fact that a Tablet PC has ONLY the pen as a mode of input. (No keyboard or mouse to accompany it.)
It apparently also uses a different sub-set of drivers present in the Graphire / Bamboo mix.