Getting Started Tutorials - MechDesigner > Settings, Styling, Mouse actions, Shortcuts > Themes, Styles, and Settings (Recommended)

Theme, Style, and Settings

Styling - the active Theme, Style, and Application-Settings.

We save for you the Theme, Style, and Application-Settings as the new Styling when you exit MechDesigner.

We save your Styling to style-name.XML, MechDesigner.INI, and MechDesigner.XML.

Note:

This help document uses the Charcoal Dark Slate theme and the Dark style.

Application-Settings

You may have color preferences, size of icons, text, symbols, number-formats, ... that are different from those in the active Style.

For example, if your display has a low resolution, you may select a Small Text-size and/or Small Icon-Size.

We recommend these settings in the Application-Settings dialog - but please experiment.

> General tab > File Options

◉ Specify ZXL output directory

☑ Enable Auto-save

☑ Allow Internet Downloads (for Tutorials)

> Accessibility tab > Menus

Icon Size : Medium

Text Size: Small/Medium (Note: If you change the Text Size, close and open the Application-Settings dialog again, and drag the right side of Application-Settings dialog to re-size the dialog

> Accessibility tab > Graphics:

Symbol Display Size : 5 to 7

Symbol Selection Size : 6 to 10

> Number-Format tab > Data Output Format

Float Number Format : General

Precision : 8

Digits: 4

> Number-Format tab > Dimension and Vector Format

Precision : 8

Digits: 4

Dimension and Vector Font Size: 13

> Graphics tab > Display colors

Background : Mid-Grey or Dark-Gray (RGB: 32:32:32).

Selected color: Orange (RGB: 128:64:0).

Part Not Solved, Geometry Under-Defined - Blue

Part Solved, Joint Solved, Geometry Fully Defined - Green ;

> Graphics tab > Display Option

☑ Show Function-Block Captions

Theme

A Theme controls the colors of the borders, menus, and dialogs. The colors should contrast with the toolbar icons.

When you install MechDesigner, you must select a Theme.

To select a different Theme:

1.Edit menu > Application-Settings > General tab > Theme Options : Target Theme drop-down

2.Select a Theme from the list

3.Restart MechDesigner

Style

A Style applies colors to different elements - see Application-Settings > Graphics tab > Graphic colors.

To select a Style:

1.Edit menu > Application-Settings > LOAD button

2.Explore to: <CommonAppData>\style\

To save a Style, with different Application-Settings:

1.Edit menu > Application-Settings > SAVE button

2.Explore to: <CommonAppData>\style\ .... please do NOT overwrite a Style in the list

Move a Styling to a different computer

Why make a copy and/or move your Styling to a different computer?

•Different engineers use the same computer, each with Styling preferences

•You want to distribute the Styling to different computers for a company-wide Styling environment.

•You want different Styling for when you work at night or in the day.

To move a Styling to a different computer:

1.Click the Application-Settings > Save button

2.Save to <CommonAppData>\style\your-style-name.XML - do NOT overwrite an existing style.

3.Exit MechDesigner

Use Windows Explorer to:

4.Copy your-style-name.XML, MechDesigner.INI, and MechDesigner.XML - see File on your PC.

5.Paste the copy of your-style-name.XML, MechDesigner.INI, and MechDesigner.XML on the other computer.

6.Start MechDesigner.

7.Click the Application-Settings > Load button, to load and apply the your-style-name.XML.