全新的SolidWorks2008The latest release from SolidWorks, SolidWorks 2008, brings some terrific interface changes to the table. In this month's "Solid Thinking," the first in a series of SolidWorks 2008 articles, I'll look at some of the productivity enhancements that are a result of those changes.
The Menu Bar
The first changes you will notice are the standard menu bars. Cleverly displayed, the menu bars serve as both standard toolbars and a set of menus for accessing other commands. The standard toolbar is shown by default, but if you hover over or select the SolidWorks icon, the toolbar changes to show the drop-down menu interface, exposing standard commands such as File, Edit, and View. You can also now pin the menu bars in place.
The standard toolbar.
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Menu bar menus.
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A menu bar pinned in place.
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CommandManager
The CommandManager was overhauled in SolidWorks 2008, and it now uses tabs that let you control how commands display. The tabs are shown based on the type of document you are working with or the workflow customization you chose. You can customize the new CommandManager in several ways:
- adding, modifying, or hiding custom tabs
- adding tool buttons
- changing the display of tool button text
SolidWork's new CommandManager.
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It's easy to add a custom tab to the CommandManager. With a document open, right-click on the CommandManager tab and select Customize CommandManager. A new tab appears (see below).
It's easy to add a new tab with the CommandManager.
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With the Customize dialog box open, right-click the new tab and select Rename Tab, and type in a new name (My Tab, for example). Next, click the Commands tab in the Customize dialog box and drag buttons to the newly created CommandManager tab. The checkmarks next to each tab name let you hide a tab simply by deselecting it.
My custom tab.
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Other CommandManager options include grouping tool buttons, showing or hiding button text, and deleting individual tool buttons.
Context Toolbars
My favorite interface addition is context toolbars. These context-sensitive toolbars provide instant access to frequently used commands, depending on the type of document or the actions that you are performing. The tools in each context toolbar are a subset of shortcut items previously found in right-mouse button (RMB) menus -- FYI, you can still right-click to see additional shortcut items. To use the context toolbars, left-click on a part in an assembly (in the graphics area or the Feature Manager Design tree), a feature, face or edge in a part document, or a sketch (again, in the graphics area or Feature Manager). Depending on the selection, a semi-transparent menu appears. As soon as you move your cursor over the menu, context-sensitive commands are available.
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