The Canvas
The canvas is the main workspace in Knovis. It's zoomable, pannable, and has no fixed boundaries. Items can be placed anywhere, at any size, in any arrangement.
Panning and zooming
Middle-click drag pans in every navigation mode, and Ctrl + scroll wheel zooms in every mode. In view mode you can also pan by dragging the background. The rest depends on the navigation mode below.
Navigation modes
Knovis supports three navigation modes to match how you prefer to work. Switch between them in the View menu or under Preferences › Workspace › Navigation mode.
| Mode | Pan | Zoom | Zoom in (Land) | Zoom out (Takeoff) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | Drag background | Ctrl + scroll wheel | Ctrl + left-click background | Ctrl + right-click background |
| Knovis (Mouse + Keyboard) | Hold Ctrl and move the mouse (no button needed; the further from the blue dot, the faster) | Hold Shift and move the mouse | Ctrl + left-click background | Ctrl + right-click background |
| Knovis (Mouse Only) | Right-drag | Scroll wheel | Left-hold, then right-click | Right-hold, then left-click |
Middle-click drag always pans in any mode, useful as a quick override.
Takeoff and Landing
Takeoff and Landing are preset zoom levels you can jump to instantly. Takeoff pulls back to show your full environment. Landing zooms into a detailed view. Both can be customized per environment in the View menu.
Selecting and moving items
Selecting, moving and deleting items happen in edit mode (Ctrl+E). Click an item to select it and drag it to move it. Hold Shift and click to select several, then drag to move them together. In the Knovis navigation modes, dragging across empty background draws a selection box.
In view mode, double-click an item to open its target (a file, link, or media content). In edit mode, double-clicking opens the item's settings instead. Shift + double-click zooms the canvas to the item.
Zoom and detail
Items in Knovis render at different levels of detail as you zoom in and out. Thumbnails are sharp at close range and simplified when the canvas is pulled back. This means you can have hundreds of items in one environment without it feeling cluttered at a distance.
Context menu
In edit mode, right-clicking the canvas background offers New Item..., Add Existing..., Copy from Item..., Create from Template..., Add/Edit Waypoints..., Waypoints, Add/Edit Playlists... and Playlists. In view mode it offers the waypoint and playlist entries, the side-panel toggles and Fullscreen.
In edit mode, right-clicking an item opens item options such as editing, copying, deleting and Apply Template. In view mode, right-clicking an item shows its DataTags (in the Nav Panel's Info tab when the panel is open).
The background image is set with File → Change Background..., not from the context menu.
The Nav Panel
The Nav Panel is a side panel, docked on the right, that gives you quick access to your waypoints and playlists. It has three tabs: Waypoints, Playlists and Info. Open it with View → Show Navigation Panel (Ctrl+\), from the background right-click menu, or with the View button on a gamepad. Ctrl+B hides or shows the side panels. The panel can also be undocked into its own window.
From the Nav Panel you can:
- See all waypoints in the current environment and click one to fly there
- Pick a playlist entry to cue it, and play or pause the playlist with the Play/Pause button
- Read the DataTags of an item in the Info tab
- In edit mode, open the Waypoint Editor or Playlist Editor with Edit Waypoints... and Edit Playlists...
To step through waypoints or playlist entries, use Alt+←/→, Page Up/Page Down, or LB/RB on a gamepad. The panel can be hidden entirely so your audience only sees the environment.