# Editor features ideas
**URL:** https://forum.castle-engine.io/t/editor-features-ideas/660
**Category:** Editor
**Created:** [October 12, 2022, 8:33pm UTC](https://forum.castle-engine.io/t/editor-features-ideas/660 "2022-10-12T20:33:20Z")
**Posts on this page:** 3
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@AveryCTF](https://forum.castle-engine.io/u/AveryCTF)
#### Post date: [October 12, 2022, 8:33pm UTC](https://forum.castle-engine.io/t/editor-features-ideas/660/1 "2022-10-12T20:33:20Z")
I’ve noticed some things in the editor that would be a big convenience, especially as a new user learning the engine. I think these would probably be not too difficult as they are mostly small changes/additions, and I didn’t see them listed in the roadmap or 2022 plans.
1.) Translate by global coordinates.
Currently the translation tool always uses local coordinates. If you rotate an object, the translation cursor rotates with it. The position can be adjusted globally by editing the translation property, but it is more difficult to place objects carefully by having to enter the numbers.
2.) Disable num-pad viewport controls when a text box is active.
I am a habitual numpad user. 99% of the time I use it for entering numbers on anything, ever since my days in database management, where I would sometimes have to enter thousands of number fields manually. So, many times in CGE editor I go to input some numbers and my viewport gets flipped around because I forget you have to use the other number keys. It would be good to be able to use the numpad for entering numbers, such as for manually inputting object properties.
3.) Incorporate the “Edit” menu from the castle-view-image application, + the “Use image alpha channel” from the View menu, as the right-click context menu on the image preview box in editor. This would be handy for easily making the most minor adjustments without having to open the view-image application separately.
4.) Global ambient light.
I have been using a double-directional light (one facing reverse of the other, at lower intensity) to simulate ambient light, so shadows are not fully black. It would be good to have an ambient light property natural to the scene that would achieve this automatically, such as a light that determines the minimum light level of everything. Also, deep shadows on normal-mapped surfaces don’t respect my simulated ambient light, they stay 100% black when facing away from the reversed light. A global ambient light property should serve to correct that.
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### Author:  [@michalis](https://forum.castle-engine.io/u/michalis)
#### Post date: [October 13, 2022, 8:36pm UTC](https://forum.castle-engine.io/t/editor-features-ideas/660/2 "2022-10-13T20:36:53Z")
Thank you for the feedback!
> [@AveryCTF](#):
>
> 1.) Translate by global coordinates.
Agreed. We will probably add operating in global coordinates at some point.
Though likely not in 2022 – it is not that easy 🙂 and our plans for 2022 are already rather packed. But I imagine it for 2023 definitely.
Note that inputting numbers in `Translation` property of the object inspector right now also moves the object in local coordinates. I.e. right now both the gizmos, and the numbers in `Translation` / `Rotation` / `Scale`, are in local coordinates.
> [@AveryCTF](#):
>
> 2.) Disable num-pad viewport controls when a text box is active.
Done! 🙂
It was just a bug that it wasn’t like that. I committed the fix to CGE already. In a few hours, the downloads on [Download | Castle Game Engine](https://castle-engine.io/download) will contain the fix too.
> [@AveryCTF](#):
>
> 3.) Incorporate the “Edit” menu from the castle-view-image application
Neat idea to add some image operations to the context menu. Agreed, I will look into it.
> [@AveryCTF](#):
>
> 4.) Global ambient light.
My next planned big improvement in the light department is “environment light”, aka “image-based lighting”, that allows to light everything by a cubemap. This is something more than just ambient light but the purpose may be similar: provide some lighting that lights everything.
Special “ambient light”, like in Unity, may come later… or not, as I predict it will be less useful, once we have environmental light.
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### Author:  [@AveryCTF](https://forum.castle-engine.io/u/AveryCTF)
#### Post date: [October 14, 2022, 12:54am UTC](https://forum.castle-engine.io/t/editor-features-ideas/660/3 "2022-10-14T00:54:48Z")
You work very quickly. You rock. And environment lighting sounds even better. I look forward to it.