Slow Controls: Basic Features and Hotkeys

In this tutorial you will learn the basic features of using slow controls, i.e. the Controls Dashboard application

1. Open up the Controls Dashboard application. If you do not see this application on your desktop, see the Adding Desktop Icons tutorial.
2. You will automatically be in EditMode, which when you hover over the Editor Panel you will see various widget icons and features.
1. If you would like to change the basic aesthetic options of the grid color and/or background color of the layout, you can click on the squares that indicate the current Grid/Background color and pick new ones
2. Use default values to go back to the original colors
3. The on/off switch next to the the color features allows you to remove the grid lines

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3. You’ll notice above the editor panel that there is a gray box with coordinates.

1. You start the application in the middle at (0,0), but you can use your cursor to grab and move the plane to different coordinates, which is helpful for creating a web of multiple widgets and finding their location.

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4. If you move the plane to a different coordinate and want to save where that coordinate is, perhaps it’s the location of a widget, you can go under the Quick Views tab at the top and click on one of the preset hotkey shortcuts, which sets the location to the current location and you can use the Shift + # shortcut to toggle between preset coordinates.

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6. Click on the folder icons to navigate to where you would like to open or save a new page.

1. To save a new page, click the blue Save button and you’ll get a popup that allows you to name and add notes to your new page.
2. Click Save as Controls Page
3. You also have the option to check “Make accessible to public.”

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5.The File tab in the top left allows you to save your Controls widgets and configurations in private and public “Pages,” or files.

Related Tutorials:

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Next: Slow Controls: Adding, Modifying, and Creating Widgets

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