************* Tabs & Panels ************* Tabs ==== .. figure:: /images/game-engine_physics_introduction_tab-header.png Horizontal tab header. .. figure:: /images/interface_window-system_tabs-panels_tabs.png :align: right Tools tab (selected), Create, etc. Tabs are overlapping sections in the user interface. The Tabs header can be vertical (Tool Shelf) or horizontal (Properties Editor, User Preferences). Switching/Cycling ----------------- Vertical tabs can be switched with the :kbd:`Wheel` within the tab header and :kbd:`Ctrl-Wheel` changes tabs from anywhere in the region. You can also cycling through tabs with :kbd:`Ctrl-Tab` and :kbd:`Shift-Ctrl-Tab`. .. container:: lead .. clear .. _ui-panels: .. _bpy.types.Panel: Panels ====== .. figure:: /images/interface_window-system_tabs-panels_panels.png :align: right Tool Shelf panels. Orange: Panel Headers. The smallest organizational unit in the user interface is a panel. Panels can be collapsed to hide its contents. They are used in the *Properties Editor*, but also for example in the *Tool Shelf* and the *Properties region*. In the image on the right there are three panels: *Transform*, *Edit* and *History*. The *Edit* panel is expanded and the other two panels are collapsed. Collapsing and Expanding ------------------------ A triangle on the left of the title shows the expanded (▼) and collapsed (►) state of the panel. - A click with the :kbd:`LMB` on the panel header expands or collapses it. - Pressing :kbd:`A` expand/collapses the panel under the mouse pointer. - A :kbd:`Ctrl-LMB` click on the header of a specific panel will collapse all other panels and make this the only expanded one. - Dragging with :kbd:`LMB` over the headers will expand or collapse many at once. Position -------- You can change the position of a panel within its region by clicking and dragging it with the :kbd:`LMB` on the grip widget (\:\:\:\:) in the upper right corner. Pinning ------- Often it is desirable to view panels from different tabs at the same time. This has been solved by making panels pinnable. A pinned panel remains visible regardless of which tab has been selected. You can pin a panel by :kbd:`Shift` clicking its header, or by :kbd:`RMB` clicking on the header and choosing *Pin* in the context menu. In the image shown to the right, is an example of the *Mesh Options* pinned in the tools tab. Zoom ---- The zoom factor of a whole region with panels can be changed by :kbd:`Ctrl-MMB` clicking and moving the mouse anywhere within that region or use the :kbd:`NumpadPlus` and :kbd:`NumpadMinus` to zoom in and out the contents. Pressing :kbd:`Home` (Show All) will reset the zooming at the screen/panel focused by the mouse pointer. Alignment --------- The alignment of the panels in the *Properties Editor* can be changed between vertical and horizontal. To do this click with :kbd:`RMB` somewhere within the main region of the *Properties Editor* and choose either *Horizontal* or *Vertical* from the appearing menu. Keep in mind though that the panels are optimized for vertical alignment.