3D model controls

Any three-dimensional visualizer in Group Explorer will have a panel like the one shown below for adjusting the properties of the three-dimensional object in view. Cayley diagrams and objects of symmetry are three-dimensional views.

The "Zoom level" slider determines how large the three-dimensional object will seem. It operates just like the zoom on a camera, with the left end being "zoomed out" and the right end being "zoomed in."

The "Line thickness" slider determines how strongly the lines in the three-dimensional scene are drawn. The left end is faint lines, the right end is very bold lines.

The "Node radius" slider determines the base size of any nodes (spheres) in the scene. Not all nodes will be the same size, but this is the base size from which all sizes are calculated. Left means smaller, right means larger.

The "Use this much fog" checkbox indicates whether fog should be turned on in the scene.

"Fog" is usually the term used in video games; in scientific applications, it is more commonly called "depth cueing," because a faint haze in the scene (which increases with depth) helps the viewer judge how far into the scene various objects (or portions of objects) are. The left end of the slider means very little depth cueing (or fog) should be used, and the right end gives very much fog.

Any changes made in a large visualizer using the controls on this pane can be undone (and then redone) using the Undo (and Redo) buttons in the toolbar. Furthermore, all these controls (as well as all other options for each large visualizer) can be restored to their defaults using the Reset button on the bottom right of hte visualizer window.