Whether you're brand new to CAD and looking to simplify your experience, or you're an expert looking to design more quickly, customizing the SOLIDWORKS interface can help!
Full disclosure... there are A LOT of things you can customize in SOLIDWORKS. This post is going to focus on the CommnadManager. By default, it displays 8 of its 18 tabs.
You can easily add or remove tabs as needed, and you can add or remove the commands found on each tab.
As an experienced user, I'm familiar with a very large number of the commands and use a great many of them when I design. When I think back to when I first learned CAD, though, and when I think about others who are just starting to learn CAD now, I feel like a subset of those 8 default tabs may be more appropriate.
Don't get me wrong, I love the power, capability, versatility, expansiveness, and customizability of SOLIDWORKS, and personally, I can't live without it. ...but I realize that's the experienced user in me speaking.
When I think about what a new user is presented with when they first get started, I can't help but wonder if there's a more appropriate default for them. With a focus on essential part modeling, I came up with this Command Manager layout with just two tabs:
What do you think? Did I go to far? If so, what tabs and/or commands would you add back?
Are there even more things you would have removed for the beginning user?
Check out this video to hear my reasoning for why the "Evaluate" and "Lifecycle and Collaboration" tabs are missing:
...and then let me know your thoughts.
I'm also curious if/how you'd simplify the Assembly and Drawings CommandManagers. I can't wait to read your comments.
