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CHAPTER 1 Inventor DesIgn PhIlosoPhy
The Ribbon Menu
The Ribbon menu is similar to the one introduced in Microsoft Office 2007 in that it is composed
of tabs and panels. Each tab contains panels for a particular task, such as creating sketches, and
each panel contains related buttons. As previously mentioned, the Ribbon will change to the
proper tab based on the current task (for example, sketching brings up the Sketch tab), but you
can select a different tab as needed.
You can customize the Ribbon menu by doing the following:
Turning off tool button text, reducing icon size, or using a compact icon layout
•u
Turning off panels that you don’t use•u
Adding frequently used commands to a tab•u
Minimizing the Ribbon•u
Undocking the Ribbon so it becomes a floating tool palette•u
Docking the Ribbon on the left, right, or top of the Inventor window•u
th e ge t st a r t e D ta B
Most of the icons on the Get Started tab link to help topics. The Launch tools are used to access
and create files. The User Interface Overview tools help you find your way around Ribbon menus.
You can use the What’s New button to read about the new features for the current release, as well
as the last few releases. The Learn About Inventor tools contain a Getting Started guide, built in
tutorials, (including files to use), and a collection of learning resources.
Of particular note is the Show Me Animations tool. It links to a comprehensive set of short
videos that show you the “picks and clicks” of how to accomplish tasks in Inventor. For
instance if you want to see how Inventor’s Direct Manipulation tools work, you can click the
Show Me Animations button on the Getting Started tab and select Parts - Direct Manipulation
from the Show Me Animations topics list. You can use these to your benefit as quick reminders
for tasks that you may not complete often and when you need a helpful reminder of how a par-
ticular tool works. Figure 1.17 shows the Get Started tab and its tools.
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The View tab, shown in Figure 1.18, has controls for object visibility and appearance, window
control, and navigation. There are some variations in the icons, depending on the environment,
but most of the icons are used in all of the modeling environments.
Figure 1.17
Tools found on the
Get Started tab
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