Tool windows
Tools with options or settings have a small square icon displayed , either on the icon view or in the menu list view.
To open the tool window settings:
- On a Palette tool icon, use
Shift
+ select or double-click on an icon. - On a Menu item, use
Shift
+ select or move the mouse to the small square and click on it (instead of on the tool name).
Each tool window will have different settings, but the icons and action buttons will work in the same way, as described in the following sections.
Title bar tools
The title bar icons are displayed on toolboxes (such as the Palette and Shelves) and on tool windows.
- Expand or contract the window to fit the contents.
- Open the tool window menu with the following options:
- Help - opens the online help for the tool.
- Allow Transparency - If Window Transparency is enabled in the General Preferences > Windows > Transparency section. This controls whether this particular window becomes transparent or not.
- Auto Hide - select to enable automatic collapse/expand of the tool windows. With Auto Hide selected, only the title bar displays until you move your cursor over it.
- Click-hold opens menu to select the collapse direction for the tool window, and also does a collapse.
Collapse to Top
Collapse to Bottom
Collapse to Left
Collapse to Right
Tool windows and toolboxes are collapsed by a double-click in title bar or click-release on this icon. If the Auto Hide option has been selected, this will override the manual collapse/expand interaction.
The window will be reduced to its title bar only, allowing for a compact arrangement of many tools (typically editors and toolboxes) on the screen at one time.
- Save changes to settings and close window.
Tool Type: Options Window
Option windows are displayed with a blue border because they stop any other part of the interface from being used while they are open.
The settings in an Option window take effect when the tool is applied (by clicking 'Go'), but cannot be modified later - there is no construction history between the option window settings and the object created.
Option window buttons
The controls at the bottom of each Option window are used to manage the operation of the tool.
Reset - Revert any settings modified in the tool window to the last saved Profile.
Cancel - Discard and Exit. This closes the window without executing the tool and discards changes you have made to the settings.
Go - Execute and Exit. The 'Go' button executes the tool and closes the window.
Tool Type: Control Window
A Control window is a Construction History window.
The settings used are held as metadata in the geometry created and can be modified either during the creation process, or later by re-opening the Control window using one of the following:
Use Object Edit > Query Edit, then either:
- select the geometry in the scene with the left mouse button
.
- select the geometry in the Object Lister.
- select the geometry in the scene with the left mouse button
Or first, use Pick > Object to select the geometry (for example a Skin surface), then click once on the tool used to create it (for example the Skin tool icon).
Control window buttons
The controls at the bottom of each Control window are used to manage the operation of the tool.
Reset - Revert any settings modified in the tool window to the last saved Profile.
Update - Once the tool has been used, if the control window remains open and changes made to the settings, there are three ways to update the geometry:
- Click on this Update button in the tool control window
- Click on the Build button that appears on the bottom right corner of the modeling window.
- Alternatively set Auto Update on in the Control Options section of the tool window.
Undo All - reverses the geometry created, for example removing a fillet surface and un-trimming the base surfaces.
Next - restart the behavior of the tool from the beginning.
Collapsible sections in Control windows
When there are a lot of settings in a tool window, these may be organized into collapsible sections. Click on the header of a section to open or close it, or use:
Shift
+ click on a tab - Open or close all tabs in the Control window.Alt
+ click on the tab - Open a tab and close all others in the Control window.RMB on a closed collapsible heading to display the contents in a fly-out window.
Tool Type: Settings Window
Some of the Subdivision tools for example have settings windows that offer limited, one-time interaction between the tool settings and the geometry created.
This only occurs on first use of the tool, if the tool window is opened (Shift
+ click or double-click). After that it is not possible to re-open the settings window to make any further changes.
There are a few other tools that have this kind of option window, for example:
- Transform CV
- Transform Place
Number field micro-slider
Number fields are equipped with a feature called a 'micro-slider', which allows you to finely adjust any numeric value option.
To use a micro-slider, hold down the Alt
key, then click in the numeric field and drag the mouse.
Dynamic layout for tool windows
The dynamic layout behavior allows docked tools to remain readable at any window scale or aspect ratio.
This is most useful for Editors and listers which can be docked. But the behavior also applies to tool windows.
General Preferences for tool windows
The following settings in the Preferences > General Preferences affect the tool windows:
Remember Tool Option Window Open/Close State
When selected, Alias remembers the state of all tool option windows after you close them. When you reopen the tool option window, all settings and preferences remain the same as they were when you closed the window. Otherwise, tool option windows open with the default settings every time you open them. This option is enabled by default.
Window Collapse Action
Choose how to collapse windows. You can click the title bar, double-click it, or select the collapse icon (arrow) on the title bar. Clicking the collapse icon collapses the window no matter which option is selected.
Use Common Tool Window Attributes
All tool windows appear the same size and in the same position when you select a tool.
Window Transparency
When selected, inactive control windows that are not embedded in the Alias window are transparent.
Set the Inactive Window Opacity, the Active Window Opacity, and the Transition Speed, the rate at which the window becomes transparent when it becomes inactive.
You can override this transparency using the Allow Transparency option in the window title bar menu.