How to Use the Quad Cursor in BricsCAD BIM

Quick answer: The Quad cursor menu is an alternative to the Command line or toolbars, offering a rich set of tools with fewer clicks and without cluttering the screen with grip glyphs, the same Quad covered on this hub’s Quad cursor menu page from earlier. Rollover tips show a limited set of properties when you select or hover over an entity.

Toggling the Quad and Rollover Tips

Quad: click the QUAD field in the Status Bar, press F12, edit QUADDISPLAY in the Settings dialog, or type QUADDISPLAY at the Command line and choose an option.

Rollover Tips: click the RT field in the Status Bar, or type ROLLOVERTIPS at the Command line and set a value.

How the Quad Layout Works

• Based on the highlighted entity type, the Quad shows the most recently used tool for it, along with the entity’s name. Press Tab to cycle through entities when several are under the cursor.
• With Rollover Tips on (and SELECTIONPREVIEW set to 1 or 3, the same requirement covered on this hub’s selection methods page), a limited set of the highlighted entity’s properties displays, and their values are directly editable, for example, changing an arc’s color right from the Rollover Tips. Click the Quad’s title bar after expanding it to bring Rollover Tips into view.
• Move the cursor over the Quad, and tool tabs appear at the bottom; QUADWIDTH controls how many columns display, defaulting to 6.
• Hover over the General quad tab, and its tool group expands, revealing more options like UNISOLATEOBJECTS, alongside ISOLATEOBJECTS and HIDEOBJECTS. The number of groups and tools available depends on the entity type under the cursor.
• The No Selection Quad appears by holding the right mouse button down longer over an entity, or by right-clicking when nothing is selected or highlighted.
• Selecting an entity while another is highlighted adds a “+1” in parentheses next to the entity type in the title bar; this count increases with every selection regardless of type, expand the Quad to reveal exactly which types are hidden there.

Rollover Tips by Entity Type

The Quad adapts its Rollover Tips content to what you’ve selected:

• Edge: shows length, slope, and elevation.
• Solid face: shows surface area.
• Boundary: shows perimeter and area.
• Solid: shows color, layer, and elevation.

Using the Quad

Make sure the Quad and Rollover Tips are both on, and SELECTIONPREVIEW is set to 1 or 3.

1. Hover over the entity you want to manipulate; it highlights, and the Quad shows a single icon (the most recently used tool for that entity type) along with a limited set of its properties.
2. Right-click to launch that recent tool directly, or move the cursor to the icon to expand the Quad and choose from the available tools instead.
3. Move the cursor over the blue field to expand it further, revealing every tool group for the current workspace; click an icon to use a tool, or move to a different group.

Frequently Asked Questions

Can I edit an entity’s properties directly from the Rollover Tips, without opening the Properties panel? Yes, values shown in Rollover Tips are directly editable, changing an arc’s color is one example.

What does the Quad show me when I select a boundary versus a solid? A boundary shows its perimeter and area; a solid shows its color, layer, and elevation instead.

How many columns does the Quad display when expanded? Controlled by QUADWIDTH, defaulting to 6.

How do I bring up the Quad when nothing is selected or highlighted? Right-click with nothing selected to display the No Selection Quad, or hold the right mouse button down longer while hovering over an entity.