I have found a simple 3-button-mouse (so LMB, RMB and MMB/clickable scroll wheel) to be absolutely sufficient for Blender.
I tried the Space Navigator for a few months. But honestly, the navigation in Blender is so straightforward, I sold it again.
Here is one of my most successful classes, a complete workflow "From Sketch to (printable) Model": https://skl.sh/3219zVE (from 2020 but still 100% doable with current Blender version!)
Or my "Blender for Absolute Beginners" class that is a bit more recent, a thorough introduction to Blender and creation of a simple 3D printable bird :)
https://skl.sh/3xw8S77
(Both links give you a one month free trial of Skillshare, and you can watch the intro video without logging in)
I am a content creater and tutorial maker and I love how this app works! I use it for working with students through screen sharing as well. I think this app gives great accessibility functions as well as very good customizability for all kinds of tutorials.
The 7 day trial period drew me in, as well ;)
If you are interested in learning Blender and or jewelry design, I welcome you to check it out! I have been working as a freelance designer and I have a passion for teaching, I am also a certifite goldsmith and somehow I combined all these aspects in my tutorials. I also have some paid courses accompanying the channel with more in-depth stuff.
It is at the moment more of a side project but I do plan on creating more after I finish my Bachelors degree :P
Hi there, if you'd like to give my course on Skillshare a chance, you might test it for a month for free :)
I have some on jewelry and 3d printing (somewhat obscure ;), but also a purely introductory and very general course for Blender:
https://skl.sh/3xw8S77
If you post a project until the 31st of October you will participate in the give away for one year of free Skillshare.
Thanks! I do have a lot on jewelry and 3D printing, but I also recently launched a purely introductory course which is for anyone interested in Blender. Just visit my Skillshare profile page, there you can find all the courses if you scroll down, as well:
https://www.skillshare.com/r/user/gesa_pickbrenner
Hi there!
Glad you asked - I am a creator of Blender courses, my main platform is Youtube and Skillshare.
I am a goldsmith, autodidact in Blender and freelancer for about 5 years in 3d design for 3d printing, but I also dabble in illustration and animation.
I recently launched a Blender course for complete beginners. It gives a complete overview of the basic functionality. It think it is exactly what you requested. It is available in German and English.
It is relatively short, around 1:50. If you already have CAD experience you may be able to work through it in even less time. You will gain a very good basic understanding of the Blender UI functionality and may branch in any direction you would like to.
If you'd like one free year of Skillshare premium, you might participate in my give away which runs until end of October, I also plan another one in November. Just create a project model and post a screenshot under the Skillshare course (will be explained there also), and you enter the give away. Honestly, you will have a real chance of winning, as the courses just launched recently and there aren't as many projects yet :)
Would also suggest Moodle. My remote university is using it and while the interface is a bit archaic (= looking and feeling outdated) and many functionalities are almost never being used because of better alternatives (like the chat function or messages), it does have its advantages. You can set up a good work space where students can use the forum, you can interact with them, you can set up learning assignments, upload documents, videos and so on. I think it does its job quite well in the area that it is meant to be used.
No live classes, afaik, but those are easily managable via jitsi, for example.