How to Use Toolbars
Quick answer: Toolbars group related commands as clickable icons, and can be resized, expanded via flyouts, or opened and docked wherever you want. Right-click any toolbar or blank toolbar area to open, close, resize, or dock them. Not every command works on every licence level, so some toolbar buttons may be unavailable depending on yours.
Setting Icon Size
Three sizes: Small (16×16), Large (32×32), or Extra Large (64×64). The choice is saved per workspace, in the TOOLBUTTONSIZE system variable.
- Hover over a toolbar and right-click.
- Choose Toolbar size, then pick a size.
Using Toolbar Flyouts
A small black arrow in the bottom-right corner of an icon means a flyout is available, a group of related tools tucked behind that one button. Press and hold to expand it and pick a tool; whichever one you last chose stays visible on the collapsed button afterwards.
You can also tear a flyout off into its own separate toolbar: press and hold to drag the visible icon into the drawing area, then release to place it.
Opening a Toolbar
The right-click location differs slightly by platform:
- Windows: hover over a toolbar or blank toolbar area, then right-click.
- Linux/Mac: hover over a blank part of the menu bar, status bar, or toolbar area, then right-click.
From the context menu, choose Toolbars, then pick the main CUI file (typically BRICSCAD) or a partial CUI file if you have any loaded. This shows every toolbar available in that file, already-open ones are ticked, and if the list is too long to fit, there’s a More option at the bottom. Some related toolbars are grouped together in their own flyout menu, like 3D.
Click a toolbar to open it; clicking an already-open one closes it instead. To dock it, drag it to any edge of the window; hold Ctrl while dragging if you want to keep it floating instead. To undock a docked toolbar, drag it by the dotted grip on its left edge (horizontal docking) or top edge (vertical docking).
On Linux specifically, docking a toolbar vertically requires its Position property to be set to Left or Right first.
Locking Toolbar Positions
Once you’ve got your toolbars arranged the way you want, the LOCKUI system variable locks their location and size, along with dockable panels, so they don’t shift accidentally. Click the LOCKUI field in the Status Bar to toggle it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is one of my toolbar buttons greyed out? Command availability depends on your licence level; some commands only work on Pro or higher, for example.
How do I get a flyout tool as its own permanent toolbar? Press and hold to drag its visible icon into the drawing area, then release.
Does opening a toolbar work the same way on every platform? Almost. The difference is where you right-click to start: on a toolbar or blank toolbar area on Windows, or on a blank part of the menu bar, status bar, or toolbar area on Linux/Mac.
How do I stop my toolbars from moving around accidentally? Turn on LOCKUI, either via the system variable or by clicking the LOCKUI field in the Status Bar.