Mouse Standards

Modo has many keyboard-based shortcut keys. Despite this fact, you may still largely interact with the application by way of the mouse (or pen and tablet, if that's what is preferred). When working in the various 3D Viewports, Modo has two main styles of mouse input: hauling and handle manipulation. Hauling is when you press and hold the left mouse button, and then drag anywhere within a 3D viewport while a tool is active. (In this instance, active means selected, and activated tools are highlighted in the toolbox.) Handle manipulation is when you hover over a tool's manipulator handle, which is present in the viewport when a tool is active. This action highlights the handle in yellow, wherein you may then click and drag the handle, constraining the action to the particular function that the handle represents.

To make your workflow more fluid, Modo employs a set of standards for all mouse behaviors, depending on the type of tool. These standards allow Modo to leverage all three mouse buttons as well as qualifier key combinations to produce variations on tool behaviors. There are several basic types of tools - geometry creation tools, geometry editing (transform) tools, and curve creation tools. The standards for mousing are slightly different between these categories, so that the most commonly desired behaviors could be mapped to the primary mouse inputs for each style of tool. When you activate a tool in Modo you can always see the mousing behaviors listed at the bottom of the Modo interface in the Tool Tips viewport.

The Status Bar appears at the bottom of the default interface providing feedback on the current tool. The basic rules of using a mouse are quite simple. Understanding these rules allows you to take full advantage of the flexibility and speed of the tools. The following tables quickly illustrate the various modes, followed by detailed descriptions and examples of each operation type.

Transform Tools

Click	Middle-click	Right-click	Shift+click	Ctrl+click
Reset tool and haul parameters	Clone and haul parameters	None (reserved for falloff modifiers)	Continue hauling parameters without reset	Constrain parameters

Reset Tool and Haul Parameters

Definition: On click, the tool properties are reset. As the mouse is dragged, the values are changed.

Example: When using the Axis Rotate tool with the Automatic Action Center, clicking in the 3D viewport sets the pivot position for the rotation. Click and drag resets the tool properties to 0° and sets the pivot for the rotation under the mouse. Dragging then changes the amount of rotation.

Clone and Haul Parameters

Definition: Re-applies the current/last properties of the tool and allows continued editing from those values.

Example: The Axis Rotate tool has been used to rotate the selection by 45°. Using clone and haul parameters re-applies that rotation so the selection is then at 90° from its original position. The tool widget is still at 45° since the value was cloned. You are now able to continue hauling to edit the value.

None

Definition: The right mouse button, when transforming geometry, has no direct action. This option is reserved for setting the action center and defining the range of an active falloff.

Continue Hauling Parameters Without Reset

Definition: The tool properties are edited from the current value without resetting any of the tools parameters or action center info.

Example: When using Axis Rotate, this mode leaves the current rotation amount in place, as well as the Rotate tool's pivot. Dragging the mouse in this mode simply increases or decreases the rotation value.

Constrain Parameters

Definition: Uses initial mouse drag to determine which properties to edit, and constrains the mouse to only edit those values.

Example: When hauling the Move tool, two properties are edited simultaneously depending on the current Work Plane. If you are editing on the XY plane, hauling edits both the X and Y move values. Using Constrain parameters, the first direction the mouse is moved determines the editable axis. In this case, holding Ctrl and dragging to the right edits the X move value, and the Y value remains unchanged.

Geometry Creation Tools

Click	Middle-click	Right-click	Shift+click	Ctrl+click
Haul parameters	Clone and haul parameters	Haul alternate parameters	Reset tool and haul parameters	Constrain parameters

Haul Parameters

Definition: The tool properties are edited from the current value without resetting any of the tools parameters or action center info.

Example: Using the Polygon Bevel tool, the first click activates and allows you to haul both the inset and shift values freely. Subsequent clicks simply add to the existing edit values. This enables you to click and drag repeatedly on a single bevel to edit the values.

Clone and Haul Parameters

Definition: Re-applies the current properties of the tool and allows continued editing from those values.

Example: The Polygon Bevel tool can be applied repeatedly with the same inset and shift properties by using Clone and Haul parameters without additional dragging.

Haul Alternate Parameters

Definition: Some creation tools provide hauling edits for secondary properties by right-clicking to haul.

Example: The Cube primitive tool allows the segment value to be edited by right-clicking, then dragging, while the tool is active. The axis is determined by the orientation of the work plane.

Reset Tool and Haul Parameters

Definition: Any current tool action is applied, the tool properties are reset and a new application of the tool begins.

Example: When using the polygon bevel tool this behavior allows you to begin a new bevel and immediately haul the inset and shift values. With this method you can quickly apply a series of bevels, each with its own inset and shift values.

Constrain Parameters

Definition: Constrains multiple parameters of the geometry creation tool simultaneously.

Example: When creating a sphere, holding down the Ctrl key constrains all three axes to the same value creating an equally sized sphere.

Curve Tools

Click	Middle-click	Right-click	Shift+click	Ctrl+click
Create new curve node	Delete Node	None	Drag Node+Child Node	Move Constrained

Create New Curve Node

Definition: Click with a curve-type tool (Curve, Bezier, Tube, etc) creates a new curve point after the currently-selected point. To add a point between two existing points, first select the point that you intend to be “behind” the new point. Click+dragging on a curve point edits the location of that point.

Example: The Tube tool allows you to click repeatedly in the 3D viewport to define new tube control points. Clicking on an existing point selects it so that you can add new points in the middle of the tube.

Delete Node

Definition: Middle-clicking directly on a curve handle deletes it immediately.

Example: When working with the Curve tool you may add more nodes that you need. Simply middle-click on a node deletes it from the curve.

None

Definition: Right-click has no direct action when editing curves.

Drag Node and Child Nodes

Definition: Holding down the Shift key while clicking to move a curve node also moves any nodes that are “children” of that node.

Example: When using Solid Sketch you may want to move an entire “branch”. To do this, simply hold the Shift key while click+dragging the node.

Move Constrained

Definition: Ctrl+clicking a curve control point constrains your movement along the first axis you drag toward.

Example: When using the Tube tool, hold the Ctrl key down and click on a control point in the tube. Dragging along an axis constrains the move to that axis so that you can not adjust the position of the point on the other axis.