(Full disclosure: I'm the author of this library)

I suggest trying PhalcoPulse. It was designed to be a step up from VPython, directly addressing the limitations you mentioned. It provides full interactive camera controls (including pan, orbit, and zoom) and an easy-to-use API for simulations.

You just define a scene with setup() and loop() methods. Here's a quick example of a vibrating molecule:

Python

from phalcopulse import PhalcoPulseStudio, PhalcoPulseFX, gfx
import numpy as np

class VibratingDimer(PhalcoPulseFX):
    def setup(self, ui_manager):
        self.atom1_pos = np.array([-1.0, 0, 0])
        self.atom2_pos = np.array([1.5, 0, 0])
        self.atom2_vel = np.array([0.0, 0, 0])
        self.rest_length = 2.0
        self.k = 25.0 # Spring constant

    def loop(self, delta_time):
        # Update physics using Hooke's Law
        direction = self.atom2_pos - self.atom1_pos
        distance = np.linalg.norm(direction)
        if distance > 0:
            force = -self.k * (distance - self.rest_length) * (direction / distance)
            self.atom2_vel += force * delta_time
            self.atom2_pos += self.atom2_vel * delta_time

        # Draw the scene
        gfx.draw_sphere(radius=0.4, color=(0.8, 0.2, 0.2), center=self.atom1_pos)
        gfx.draw_sphere(radius=0.4, color=(0.2, 0.6, 1.0), center=self.atom2_pos)
        gfx.draw_cylinder(start=self.atom1_pos, end=self.atom2_pos, radius=0.1)

if __name__ == '__main__':
    studio = PhalcoPulseStudio(scene_fx=VibratingDimer())
    studio.run()

It's a pip-installable package and the source is on GitHub.

• Install: pip install phalcopulse

• Repo: https://github.com/PhalcoAi/PhalcoPulse