Menus, toolbars and interface profiles
The top bar of the screen editor holds the menu bar and does not move. The commands of the editor sit in separate toolbars that you can move to any edge, float over the canvas or hide. The overall arrangement of toolbars, explorer and panels is the interface profile.
Top bar
From left to right:
| Item | What it does |
|---|---|
| Home button, Configuration editor | Go back to the home page, open the configuration editor of the project |
| Menu bar | File, Edit, View, Arrange, Tools, Help; see Menu bar |
| Project name | The open project; * after it means that something is not saved. Point at it for the number of unsaved items |
| Session button, language list, theme switch, alarm bell, About (?) | Who is signed in, interface language, light or dark theme, live alarm summary, version information |
| Simulate communication loss, Live preview | Design helps; see Appearance without a value or communication and Test run, live preview and watch. Simulate communication loss is hidden during a test run |
| Run | Starts a test run in the editor; the button then reads Stop |
While you edit a layout, a violet mark after the project name names the layout and has an Exit button.
Menu bar
The menus run the same commands as the toolbar buttons. A tick shows a setting that is on; commands that cannot be used at the moment are greyed out.
| Menu | Items |
|---|---|
| File | Save (Ctrl+S), Save All (Ctrl+Shift+S), Discard Changes, Refresh, Backups (restore), Clear All, Configuration editor, Back to Home |
| Edit | Undo, Redo, Cut, Copy, Paste, Duplicate, Delete, Select all, Group, Ungroup, Format Painter |
| View | Ruler, Center Axes, Grid, Color strip, Dim layout, Toolbars (submenu), Interface profile (submenu), Reset toolbars to default positions, Live preview, Simulate communication loss |
| Arrange | Bring to Front, Bring Forward, Send Backward, Send to Back, Snap to objects, Snap to grid, Keep objects inside the page |
| Tools | Run (Stop during a test run), Configuration editor |
| Help | About |
The shortcuts shown in the menus are for information; the keys work in the editor as listed in Keyboard shortcuts. The menu bar also works from the keyboard: Alt or F10 moves the focus to the first menu, the arrow keys move between menus and items, Enter or Space runs the item and Esc closes the menu.
Toolbars
| Toolbar | Buttons |
|---|---|
| Project | Save, Save All, Discard Changes, Refresh, Backups (restore), the screenshot camera (Screenshot and PDF), Clear All |
| History | Undo, Redo |
| Arrange | Send to Back, Send Backward, Bring Forward, Bring to Front, Shape Operations, Format Painter |
| View | Ruler, Center Axes, Color strip, Dim layout |
| Snapping | Snap to Objects, Keep objects inside the page |
| Canvas | Canvas Size, Grid with the grid style and the spacing in px, Snap; see Grid, rulers, canvas and zoom |
| Tool options | Color and Pen Width of the pen, or Eraser Size. Shown only while Pen or Eraser is the active tool |
| Drawing tools | Select, Area select, the shapes, More shapes…, Pen, Eraser, Line, Polyline, Polygon, Trim and Continuous drawing; see Draw shapes and lines |
| Align | Align, distribute, arrange, flip and layer order; see Align and arrange objects |
| Color strip | The color strip; shown only while Color strip is on |
Toolbars are shown only while you design. During a test run the editor shows only the top bar.
Move, hide and reset toolbars
| To | Do this |
|---|---|
| Move a toolbar | Drag it by the dotted handle at its left end (at its top on a left or right edge). The toolbar follows the pointer, and a blue line shows where it will be placed. |
| Dock it | Drop it on the top or bottom edge to lay it out horizontally, on the left or right edge to lay it out vertically. Several toolbars fit in one row; dropping above or below a row opens a new row. |
| Float it | Drop it away from the edges. A floating toolbar has a title bar: drag the title to move it, Hide (×) hides it. It always stays fully inside the window. |
| Show or hide toolbars | Right-click a toolbar or the toolbar area, or use View › Toolbars. |
| Reset the positions | Right-click a toolbar and choose Reset toolbars to default positions, or use the same item in View. The toolbars of the active profile return to the positions of the profile and are all shown again. |
Interface profiles
A profile sets the positions of the toolbars and the side of the explorer (pages, widget palette, tags) and of the Properties and Objects panels. After choosing a profile you can still move every toolbar.
| Profile | Top | Left | Bottom | Explorer | Panels |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| YTCC (default) | One row: History, Arrange, Project, View, Snapping, Tool options, Canvas | Drawing tools | Color strip, then Align | Left | Right |
| Classic engineering | Two rows: Project, History, Arrange, Align; then View, Snapping, Canvas, Tool options | Drawing tools | Color strip | Left | Right |
| Compact | One row: Project, History, Drawing tools, Arrange, View, Snapping, Canvas, Tool options | none | One row: Align, Color strip | Left | Right |
| Wide — explorer on the right | Two rows: Project, History, Arrange, Align, Canvas; then Drawing tools, View, Snapping, Tool options | none | Color strip | Right | Left |
With the explorer on the right, its resize handle is on its left edge, and the Properties panel docks at the left edge of the window.
Choose a profile
- The first time you open the editor in a project, the window Choose your working layout shows the profiles with a small drawing of each. Click one and then Start with this layout, or click Continue with default for YTCC (default).
- Later, choose View › Interface profile, or right-click a toolbar and pick a profile under Interface profile.
- On the home page, Settings › Editor Defaults › Interface profile sets the default of this computer: the editor starts with it for a user who has not chosen a profile yet. Choosing a profile in the editor also changes this default.
Where the choice is saved
The last profile and the toolbar positions of every profile are saved for each user in each project, so the same arrangement comes back when the user signs in on another computer. Each profile keeps its own positions: when you switch to another profile and back, your arrangement of the first profile returns. Reset toolbars to default positions resets only the active profile. In a project with user login off, the choice is kept in this browser.