What are the basic mouse and keyboard controls for manipulating models?

The mouse provides intuitive controls for selecting, panning, rotating, and zooming models in CATIA V5:

• Left-click > selects a part
• CTRL + left-click > selects or deselects additional parts
• Hold the middle button and drag > pans the model
• Hold the middle button + right/left button, then drag > rotates the model
• CTRL + hold the middle button and drag > zooms in or out
• Double-click a part > zooms to the selected part
• Double-click in the graphics area > zooms to fit the entire model

Keyboard shortcuts provide precise control over model orientation and movement:

• To pan the model > press CTRL + arrow keys.
• To rotate about X or Y axes > press SHIFT + arrow keys.
• To rotate about the Z axis (axis perpendicular to the screen) > press CTRL + SHIFT + arrow keys.

You can even adjust rotation increments for keyboard controls:

• Go to tools > options > general > display > navigation.
• Set the rotation increment value.
• For example, entering 9 divides a 90° angle into 9 steps, resulting in 10° rotations per key press.

Additionally, the compass provides a fast way to align models:

• Click on the X, Y, or Z labels on the compass to align the model to that axis.
• Drag and rotate the compass to achieve custom orientations.