Page 65 - Mastering SolidWorks

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ideNtifyiNg elemeNtS of the SolidWorkS iNterface 33

Figure 2.9
The right-click menu and Context Toolbar
context toolbar

Right Mouse Button
(RMB) Menu.

When you left-click an item, the context toolbar appears by itself; the rest of the RMB menu
does not appear. If you do not recognize an icon on the context toolbar, you can refer to its tool
tip. Context toolbars are editable in two ways. First, you can turn them off and restore the RMB
menu to its complete configuration. To turn off the context toolbars, click the context toolbar and
choose Tools ➢ Customize. Use the options on the right side of the main Toolbars tab. (refer to
upper right corner of Figure 2.10) Second, you can add or remove icons on specific context
toolbars by right-clicking the toolbar itself and selecting Customize.
The purpose of the context toolbars is to save space by condensing some commands into a
toolbar without text instead of a menu with icons and text. The left-click and right-click context
toolbars are the same, but they work differently. The left-click context toolbar fades as you move
the cursor away from it and becomes darker as you move the cursor toward it. After it fades
completely, you cannot get it back without reselecting the item.

Exploring the Shortcut (S) Toolbar
The Shortcut toolbar is also known as the S toolbar because, by default, you access it by pressing
the S key. You can customize this toolbar so it has different content for sketches, parts, assem-
blies, and drawings. To customize the S toolbar, right-click it when it is active and click
Customize from the RMB menu.
Users claim to have customized the S toolbar to such an extent that they have been able to
remove the CommandManager and all other toolbars from their interface or if the Shortcut
Toolbar is used in conjunction with well-customized Context Toolbars. This is possibly true if