Preferences: Inspire Render

Define preferences for display, units, tolerances, and snaps.

General

Preference Description
General Autosave: By default, the current scene is automatically saved every 5 minutes. To change this, define the Autosave interval (min). The autosave file is not generated if the current model file has not been previously saved and named.

Crash recovery: Turn on an auto recovery feature that helps you recover unsaved models in the event of a software crash.
Updates Check for updates automatically: Automatically check for updates Once a Week, Every Two Weeks, Once a Month, or Never.
Mouse Optimize for tablet: Optimize the graphical display if you are using a tablet computer.
Miscellaneous Safe save: Every time you save, Inspire Render will ask for confirmation. Enable this option to avoid accidentally saving changes to your model.

Show Delete dialog: When you select and delete an object, a dialog window appears asking if you want to Smart Delete or Delete. Smart Delete restores the source objects, returning your model to its exact state before you performed the last action. Any objects that were grayed out in the Model Browser as a result of that action are once again active and editable. Delete, by contrast, will simply delete the selected object from the Construction Tree without restoring its previous state. If you don't want the Delete Objects dialog to appear every time you delete an object, deselect this option to turn it off.

Transparent dialogs: Deselect this option to disable the transparency of the Control Panel and microdialogs.
Note: When you change this setting, restart the application to apply the change.
Views Grid in ortho views: Clear the checkbox to hide the grids in the orthogonal modeling views.

Grid in 3D views: Clear the checkbox to hide the grids in the perspective modeling view.

Arrow on curves: By default, arrows are drawn at the start of each curve. Clear the checkbox to turn off this feature.

Prehighlighting: By default, objects are prehighlighted as you hover over them with the mouse. Clear the checkbox to turn off prehighlighting.
Note: When in PolyNURBS editing mode, turn on Pre-highlighting to access all of the graphic handles.

Autotransparency when editing with a modeling tool: Select this option to make the other objects transparent when you are editing an object with a modeling tool.
Adaptive Degradation Min frames per second: Allows you to specify a minimum number of frames per second during camera movement. When the model is so complex that it could cause the rate to drop below the specified level, the model will be redrawn in a simplified manner. This includes wireframe and bounding box. Set the value to 0 to disable the option.
OpenGL Control the method by which graphics are displayed. Choose from Antialiasing and Wide lines.

Mouse Controls

Preference Description
Presets This option defines the pan, view, and rotate controls assigned to the left and right mouse buttons, so they are the same as used in another application.

Presets mouse controls for Inspire can be edited. To restore the preset values, click Use Defaults in the lower left corner of the Preferences window.
Zoom in by wheel Forward: Select to set the upward wheel action to zoom in.

Backward: Select to set the downward wheel action to zoom in.
Buttons Define what the mouse buttons do.
Ctrl, Shift, Alt Define what holding down Ctrl, Shift, or Alt does while using the mouse.

Colors

Preference Description
Load Theme Select and load a color template file.
Save Theme Save changes you've made to the user interface elements.
Restore Theme Restore the default user interface elements.
User Interface Elements, Geometry, Modeling Tool Handles, Sketching, Symmetry, Grids, Browsers Change the default colors assigned to various user interface elements and objects in your models.
Override global background Override the global background color with the selected color for a given user interface element. For certain options, this option is selected automatically and grayed out.
Apply immediately By default, any changes you make to the user interface colors are automatically applied. Clear the checkbox to save changes without applying them. This is useful when setting up alternative color templates.

Units

Preference Description
Length Define the units used for length.
Mass Define the units used for mass.
Area Define the units used for area.
Volume Define the units used for volume.
Density Define the units used for density.
Moment of Inertia Define the units used for moment of inertia.
Curvature Define the units used for curvature.
Save as Defaults Click the Save as Defaults button to save the values entered in the tolerance fields as your standard default settings.

Tolerances

Preference Description
Modeling Define the maximum distance allowed between two curves or surfaces in 3D space so they touch with no gaps. This is important when using modeling tools that cannot produce a perfectly smooth, continuous result, such as Trim, Intersect, Blend, and Round. The lower the tolerance, the more accurate your model, but this will increase computation time.
Angular Define the maximum angle allowed between two curves or surfaces where they meet, so there are no sharp curves or breaks. The lower the tolerance, the more accurate your model, but this will increase computation time.
Curvature Define the maximum deviation allowed between the chords being used to approximate a curve and its geometry. The lower the tolerance, the more accurate your model, but this will increase computation time.
Save as Defaults Click the Save as Defaults button to save the values entered in the tolerance fields as your standard default settings.

Snaps

Preference Description
Grids Inspire Render has four different grids, each with successively larger spacing. Grids are drawing aids used to place and align points and objects with precision. They do not appear in rendered images.
You can define the following:
  • The spacing between grid lines in the x, y, and z direction.
  • The appearance of the grid: Points, Crosses, Continuous.
  • The color of the grid.
Angle Define the increments in which objects will rotate when Snap to Rotate is activated.
Scale (%) Define the increments in which objects will scale when Snap to Scale is activated.