Page 175 - Mastering SolidWorks

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144 CHAPTER 5 Using VisUalization techniqUes

Figure 5.1
Use the heads-Up View
toolbar to easily
access most visualization
tools.

TIP some mouse drivers change the middle-button or scroll-wheel settings to do other things. of-
ten, you can disable the special settings for a particular application if you want solidWorks to work
correctly and still use the other functionality. For example, the most common problem with mouse
drivers is that when the model gets close to the sides of the graphics window and the scroll bars
engage, the middle mouse button suddenly changes its function. if this happens to you, you should
change the function of the MMB to Middle Mouse Button from its present setting.
For visualization, you cannot buy any hardware that’s quite as nice as a spaceball (3D mouse).
It allows you to rotate with one hand and select with the other hand. It is also great for custom-
izing buttons; depending on the model you get, it may even have some keyboard buttons such as
Alt, Esc, and Ctrl right there on the device.

Using Arrow Keys
You can use the arrow keys on the keyboard to manipulate the view in predictable and control-
lable ways. You can use the Shift, Ctrl, and Alt keys to add to the behavior. The arrow keys
enable you to rotate to the following views:
Arrow: Rotate 15 degrees (to customize this setting, choose Tools ➢ Options ➢ View)
Shift+arrow: Rotate 90 degrees
Alt+arrow: Rotate in a plane flat to the screen

Ctrl+arrow: Pan

Using the Middle Mouse Button
Most, if not all, mice sold today have middle mouse buttons (MMBs), usually in the form of a
clickable scroll wheel. The MMB or scroll wheel has several uses in view manipulation:
MMB alone: Rotate
Click or hover: Work on an edge, a face, or a vertex with MMB and then drag MMB: Rotate
around selected entity
Ctrl+MMB: Pan
Shift+MMB: Zoom
Double-click MMB: Zoom to fit
Scroll with wheel: Zoom in or out (to reverse direction of the zoom setting, choose Tools ➢
Options ➢ View)
Alt+MMB: Rotate in a plane flat to the screen