The Canvas (Design & Preview)¶
The canvas is where you place, orient, and preview your work. The toolbar Preview toggle switches between the Sequencer layout and the Preview.
2D vs. 3D view¶
- 2D — the flat design view for 2D art.
- 3D — a perspective view for 3D imports and 3D-slice previews. Switching to a 3D Slice action puts the canvas in 3D mode.
Navigating¶
| Action | How |
|---|---|
| Zoom | Mouse wheel |
| Pan | Right-click drag |
| Orbit (3D) | Middle-click drag |
| Snap to a view (3D) | Click a face/edge of the view cube |
| Perspective ⇄ orthographic (3D) | Projection toggle button (top row) |
| Reset view | Reset button |
| Zoom to fit | Fit-to-content button |
Selecting & editing¶
- Click an object to select it; multi-select within a layer.
- Selecting in the layer tree highlights the object on the canvas, and vice-versa.
- Nudge the selection with the arrow keys (step sizes are set in Preferences).
- Use the Position / Size / Rotation controls (and link/unlink X/Y scaling) to place objects precisely — see Importing Geometry.
Rotating 3D models¶
A 3D model carries two independent rotations that combine:
- Model Registration — spins the model about its registration-cube point. A center point spins it in place; a corner or edge point tilts it about that point. The model's location doesn't change.
- Workspace Center — rotates the model about the workspace origin (0,0,0). A model away from the origin swings around it as the angle changes, turning as it goes; a model sitting at the origin spins in place.
The Origin: dropdown picks which of the two sets the RX/RY/RZ fields show and edit — switching it never moves the model, and each set remembers its values. Returning a set to 0 undoes exactly that rotation; with both sets at 0 the model is back in its original pose.
- Size and Location always describe the current rotated footprint — the box the model actually occupies in the workspace, which is what marking uses (slice height, where it lands). This holds whether or not the model is selected, and the values stay consistent across reselects, mode switches, and project reloads.
- Typed Location edits and arrow-key nudges move the model along plain workspace axes by exactly the amount entered, whatever the rotations are.
- Size editing follows the combined rotation: at right angles (0/90/180/270°) each axis can be stretched independently (or proportionally with the link on); at other angles scaling is uniform — the proportional link locks on (a gold indicator appears beside it) and one value scales all three axes. To stretch a single axis at an odd angle, bake the rotation into the model in your CAD tool and re-import at 0°.
- A flat perimeter has no tilt, so X/Y rotation is disabled while a perimeter is selected (Z rotation still works).
What you see¶
- A grid for scale reference (toggleable).
- Imported geometry colored by layer.
- Fill and cut previews drawn over the shapes so you can see the marking pattern before you run.