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Navigating a Scene Using the Walk Viewer

The Walk Viewer lets you navigate by walking through the 3D scene, while maintaining a constant eye level.

For example, if you are looking at an architectural model, you can walk through it and view it from the inside. You can stop and look up at the ceiling or down at the floor.

To navigate in the Walk Viewer you use the Joystick, Tilt Knob, and Arrow Pad controls and the Seek tool shown in the lower portion of Figure 1-3. Once you're familiar with the viewer, you can choose to hide the controls and use keyboard shortcuts by deselecting "Show Dashboard" from the Options menu.

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Figure 1-3 : A Sample Walk Viewer Scene

The navigation controls are described in detail in the following sections:

Walking Around a Scene

The Joystick control shown in Figure 1-4 allows you to walk around in a scene by moving you forward, back, left, and right. Moving the Joystick to the left turns you in that direction. The Joystick is interactive; its position changes as you drag it. Step-by-step instructions follow.

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Figure 1-4 : The Joystick Control

  1. Choose "Walk Viewer" from the View menu.

  2. Press the left mouse button over the Joystick control and drag the cursor. The cursor changes to a hand.

    If the movement is too fast or too slow, you can change the speed by selecting "Move Faster" or "Move Slower" from the View menu. See "Displaying or Hiding the Dashboard Controls."

Shortcut: Press the <Alt> key while pressing the left mouse button anywhere in the scene and drag up, down, left, or right to move toward, away from, or to the left or right of the scene. Or press only the up, down, left, or right arrow key.

Looking Around a Scene

The Tilt Knob is on the right side of the Joystick, shown in Figure 1-5. You use the Tilt Knob to tilt the camera up, down, left, or right while remaining stationary.

For example, you can use the Tilt Knob to look at the ceiling or floor of a house. Or you can use it to look to the left or right of the scene without moving yourself. Step-by-step instructions follow.

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Figure 1-5 : The Tilt Knob Control on the Joystick

  1. Choose "Walk Viewer" from the View menu.

  2. Press the left mouse button over the Tilt Knob on the Joystick control and drag the cursor up or down. The cursor changes to a hand.

Shortcut: Press the <Alt> key while pressing the left and the middle mouse buttons and drag to tilt the camera up, down, or to the left or right of the model. Or press the <Ctrl> key while pressing the up, down, left, or right arrow key.

Panning Around a Scene

The Arrow Pad shown in Figure 1-6 allows you to control the position of the camera along the y-axis (up or down) and along the x-axis (left or right) without tilting or turning the camera. Step-by-step instructions follow.

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Figure 1-6 : The Arrow Pad Control in the Walk Viewer

  1. Choose "Walk Viewer" from the View menu.

  2. Press the left mouse button over the Arrow Pad control and drag the cursor. The cursor changes to a hand.

Shortcut: Press the <Alt> key while pressing the middle mouse button and drag to position the camera. Or press the <Alt> key while pressing the up, down, left, or right arrow key.

Moving to a Target Point Using the Walk Viewer

The Seek Tool, shown in Figure 1-7, allows you to move to a selected target quickly and easily without using the Joystick.

Click the Seek Tool and then click a target in the scene. The view moves smoothly to the selected target. When you reach the target point, the Seek tool turns off automatically.

If you wish to jump to the target instead of moving smoothly, select "Jump Cuts" from the Options menu.

Step-by-step instructions follow.

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Figure 1-7 : The Seek Tool in the Walk Viewer

  1. Choose "Walk Viewer" from the View menu.

  2. Click the left mouse button over the Seek tool. The cursor changes to a target.

  3. Place the cursor over the target to which you want to move and click the left mouse button. The view moves to the selected target.

Shortcut: Place the cursor over the target. Press the <Alt> key while pressing the <Shift> key and click the left mouse button to move to the target.


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