Selecting Using the Preselection Navigator

You can use two different methods to display the preselection navigator.

1. Click anywhere in the geometry area.

   1. Position your pointer over the object you want to select.
   2. Press any keyboard arrow (up, down, right or left) or Ctrl + F11.

      Tip: The Ctrl + F11 shortcut gives the focus to the geometry area and lets you use the preselection navigator when a dialog box is open. You can also press Alt + the left mouse button.

   The preselection navigator appears as soon as a keyboard arrow is pressed.

2. Now, select Tools > Options... > General > Display .

3. In the Navigation tab, select the Display the preselection navigator after ... seconds check box, set the spinner to the time delay.

4. Optional: Select one or many viewing options, e.g. Display immersive viewer for preselection navigator.

5. Click OK to close the Options dialog box.

6. Point to the part of the object you want to select.

   This time, the preselection navigator appears after the time delay you set in step 2.

You can use the keyboard arrows to navigate in the object and, depending on the options you set, you can also use the immersive list and the immersive viewer.

1. Click the up arrow of the immersive viewer (or press the up arrow key) to navigate "in-depth", in other words, from the front to the back of the object.

   This method is particularly useful for large parts because it lets you select, for example, edges, faces, etc. which are not visible or accessible near the front of the part.

   The cursor shape changes according to the type of the preselected element as shown below:

   point	edge
   face

   The identity of the preselected element is displayed under the Menu bar:

   
   
   

   Tip: When navigating with the keyboard arrows or when pointing at a too long element name in the immersive list, a tooltip is displayed to show the full name of the preselected element (which is truncated in the immersive list). If the name is short enough to be fully displayed, no tooltip appears. You can navigate between different objects, not just inside single objects. When one object hides another, the preselection navigator also lets you select elements belonging to the hidden object.

2. Click the down arrow to navigate in the opposite direction, towards the front of the object.

3. Position your cursor over the circle, then click with the middle mouse button to navigate inside the object.

   As you click, the corresponding element path is highlighted in the list displayed to the right.

4. Move the mouse over the list of element paths.

   The element corresponding to each path you point at is pre-highlighted in the circle. You can then click the desired path to select the corresponding element.

   Important: When pointing at an element in the circle or at a path in the list, you can right-click to display the contextual menu. The navigation is cyclic: when you reach the end of the selection path using the up and down keys, the preselection navigator automatically goes back to the starting point (i.e. the highest element in the hierarchy) and you can then re-start navigating.

5. Click the left and right arrows to navigate up and down in the object's hierarchy.

   Similarly, you can also press the left and right keys to achieve the same effect, and validate your selection by pressing Enter or using the left mouse button.

   When preselecting an edge, a prehighlight is also provided which is especially useful in case of overlapped elements:

   
   
   

6. Select Tools > Options > General > Display > Navigation.

7. Select the Display auxiliary viewer for preselection navigator and the Display immersive list for preselection navigator check boxes.

8. Click anywhere in the geometry area, then position your pointer over the object and restart navigating by clicking the up or left arrow.

   An additional window opens and displays the object with the element you have preselected. The list of all the elements you can preselect is also displayed in background:
   
   

   To hide the viewer, simply re-access the Navigation tab then clear the Display auxiliary viewer check box.

9. To validate your selection and exit the preselection navigator, use one of the following methods below, depending on the display options that have been activated:

   • Click the circle in the center of the immersive viewer
   • Click the desired item in the immersive list
   • Click the element directly on the object.

   The item is selected:
   
   

   The selection tool disappears, in any case, once a selection has been made, or if you point or click outside the selection activation area around the selection tool.