Modeling Toolkit preferences

General

Auto-Activate Modeling Toolkit: The Auto-Activate Modeling Toolkit option forces Maya to use the Modeling Toolkit's selection and transformation tools. When on, the Modeling Toolkit tools are always used regardless of whether the Modeling Toolkit is active or not. When off, the Modeling Toolkit's tools are only used when they are selected from the Modeling Toolkit window.
On pressing active component mode button: The following options determine what happens when an already active component mode button is selected:

Toggle out of Component Mode: When enabled, Maya switches to object mode and the Modeling Toolkit is deactivated.
Use Custom Command: When enabled, any custom MEL commands that are entered in this field are added to the hotbox and executed.

Free Rotate: Lets you use the center of the rotate manipulator to rotate an object freely. This option is enabled by default.
Prevent Negative Scaling: When enabled, Maya prevents negative scaling. For example, if you attempt to scale an object in Z when this option is enabled, it will not scale beyond the zero point of the Z-axis.
Update transformations in active view only: When enabled, all viewports are refreshed after each transformation. This option is disabled by default.
On Transform Tool switch: Specifies how the active manipulator handle is affected when you change between Modeling Toolkit transform tools. Select between Reset to Screen Handle and Keep Last Active Handle. See Transform tools.
On Selection change: Specifies how the active manipulator handle changes when you adjust your selection. Select between Reset to Screen Handle and Keep Last Active Handle.
Manipulator Pick Range: Sets the range within which the cursor must land before the manipulator handle is highlighted. The range is set to 4 pixels by default.
Plane handle offset: Sets the distance between the plane handles and the center of the manipulator.
Hide Manipulator when: When the manipulator is hidden, selectable components are more visible, and you can more easily add or subtract components from your selection. This option lets you assign a hokey to hide the manipulator: Ctrl, Shift, or Ctrl + Shift.

This section contains options that display information over top of the view panel content.

Show Tool Mode: When enabled, displays the current tool mode. Tool mode includes any of the transform tools or mesh editing tools.
Show Coordinate Space: When enabled, displays the coordinate space (world, local, object, custom). See Coordinate space.
Enable Dynamic HUD: When enabled, displays details for dynamic actions including extrusions, bevels, or soft selection resizing. For example, if you're resizing the soft selection falloff radius and Enable Dynamic HUD is enabled, the falloff radius value is displayed.

Use Inverted Cursor colors: When enabled, Maya uses inverted cursor colors. Disable this option if you use a dark background.
Highlight Colors: Sets the colors of vertices, edges, and faces when Pick/Marquee selection mode or any transform tool is active.
Paint Selection Colors: Sets the colors of vertices, edges, and faces when Drag selection mode is active.
Manipulator Handle: Sets the color of the active manipulator handle.
Opacity: Sets the level of transparency that is applied to the colors.

Use Ctrl+Middle Click-Drag for Target Weld in Quad Draw

This option controls the behavior of

-drag and

-drag when in Quad Draw mode.

When this option is on:

-drag always deletes dots and/or quads. + -drag always performs a target weld. This is typically preferred, because it eliminates inadvertent welding.

When this option is off:

Both -drag and + -drag perform the same action depending upon the current selection. If an edge/vertex is selected, a target weld is performed. Otherwise, dot/quad deletion is performed.

Shift + MMB Drag

Lets you control what happens when you

-drag components when any of the Modeling Toolkit transformation tools are active.

Slides Components: Slides the selected components with out constraints.
Slides Components using active manipulator handle: Slides the selected components along the active manipulator handle.
Engages Predictive Transformations: When this option is on, you can + -drag up and down or left and right anywhere in the scene to move in that direction. For example, if the Y-axis is pointing towards the top of the viewport and you + -drag upward, the Y-axis handle will be activated.

Ctrl + Shift + MMB Drag: Lets you control what happens when you + + -drag components when any of the Modeling Toolkit transformation tools are active.

Slides Components: Slides the selected components without any constraints.
Slides Components using active manipulator handle: Slides the selected components along the active manipulator handle.

Lists the hotkey mappings for the Quad Draw tool. For a list of the default mappings, see Quad Draw hotkeys.

Default: Maya uses the default Quad Draw hotkey mappings.
Note: Select this option to reset the mappings to the default settings.
Custom: Maya uses a customized set of Quad Draw hotkey mappings.