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what this document says, but the agreement does not have any bearing on learning how to use the software other than the fact that it allows for a Home Use License. Many users find this part of the license agreement helpful. The primary user of the license at work is also allowed to use the license at home or on a portable computer. This is often a good option for learning techniques, doing additional practice, or completing the design of that deck or soapbox derby car. If your employer uses floating licenses, the rules are somewhat different. Contact your reseller for details.

Viewing the Welcome to SolidWorks screen

The Welcome to SolidWorks screen, shown in Figure 1.2, is the next thing to greet you. This helps you establish what type of tools you would like to see in the interface and gives you some help options. You may not get the chance to see this dialog box if someone else, such as an IT person, has installed and done an initial test on your software for you.

If you make a choice that you would like to change later, the options presented in this dialog box are also available elsewhere. Although you will not see this dialog box again, the interface is highly customizable and options exist for most things you might want to change. Chapter 2 covers interface customization in more detail.

FIGURE 1.2

The Welcome to SolidWorks screen

Using Quick Tips

The Quick Tips setting enables balloons with tips to help you get started with several tasks. For example, the first Quick Tip you see may be the one shown in Figure 1.3. When you begin to create your first document in SolidWorks, a Quick Tip helps guide you on your way.

FIGURE 1.3

The SolidWorks Document Quick Tip

As you continue working, Quick Tips displays a box, shown in Figure 1.4, at the lower-right corner of the Graphics Window that offers context-sensitive help messages. As you work with the software, these messages change to remain relevant to what you are doing.

You can turn Quick Tips on or off by clicking the small square on the Status Bar in the lower-right corner, as shown in Figure 1.5. You can turn the Status Bar on or off in the View menu; however, the Status Bar serves many useful purposes for all users, so I recommend you leave it active. You can also turn Quick Tips off in the Help menu by deselecting Quick Tips. The on/off setting is document-type sensitive, so if you deselected Quick Tips off in part mode, you will need to do it again for assemblies and drawings, as well. Quick Tips are a great way to get going or to get a little refresher if it has been a while since you last saw the software.

FIGURE 1.4

The main Quick Tip window

FIGURE 1.5

Turning Quick Tips on or off

Creating a new document

To start a new SolidWorks document, click the New icon in the title bar of the SolidWorks application. With standard functions such as creating a new document, SolidWorks works just like a Microsoft Office application, and the icons even look the same.

The first time you create a document, SolidWorks prompts you to select units for your default templates, as shown in Figure 1.6. This is an important step, although you can make changes later if needed. SolidWorks stores most of the document-specific settings in document templates, which you can set up with different settings for each type of document — parts, assemblies, and drawings. More information on part and assembly templates can be found later in this chapter. Drawing Templates are described in detail in Chapter 14.

FIGURE 1.6

The default template units selection

One of the most common questions new users ask is how they can change the default so that new documents come up with a certain type of units every time. Units in new documents are set within the templates. To create a part with inch units, use a template with inch units. You can have as many templates as you want, and can have a different template for each type of units you might use.

ISO (International Organization for Standardization) and ANSI (American National Standards Institute) standards use different