Orbit

The Orbit tool is used to rotate the view around the model. To orbit the model click on the Orbit tool and then press the left mouse button and keep the button pressed as you move the mouse cursor, the view will orbit around the model.

Alternative ways to access the Orbit command are:

• Hold <Shift> key and move mouse while pressing the right mouse button
• Move mouse while pressing the centre mouse button/wheel (if you have one).
• Hold the <Ctrl> + <Shift> + O keys to start the Orbit command then hold left mouse button and move mouse.

Tip: It can be helpful to understand how the orbit command works to ensure smooth operation. When the orbiting command is started, DesignBuilder needs to calculate a centre point around which to rotate the view. To do this a ray is fired into the centre of the screen, which should ideally intersect with a part of the model that you want to see. If this is not the case and the ray to the centre of the screen instead finds a far distant point, then the centre of orbit will be that far distant point. The effect of this when you start to move the mouse to change views can be rather disconcerting as the model will tend not to orbit as expected. To avoid this sort of problem it is important to ensure that the object being viewed is in centre of the screen and that any holes between the building blocks are not in the centre. If you do encounter any strange effects with the Orbit command, an easy solution is to select a new view from the View Rotation drop list in the top right of the screen (e.g. the Axonometric option) or to use the Fit View command.