Navigating Echoview

Echoview makes extensive use of Microsoft Windows navigation and presentation conventions. Toolbars, menus and dialog boxes all work in a manner which will be familiar to users of applications such as Microsoft Word or Excel. In addition, customized shortcut keys are used for common tasks and to make using Echoview as ergonomic as possible.

We recommend using one hand on the keyboard for tasks such as scrolling and zooming echograms, while the other hand makes selections with the mouse, particularly when working with large data sets.

Context-sensitive menus

Menus and menu choices in Echoview vary according to the context. For example, the Fileset menu appears when a filesets window is active, and the Echogram menu appears when an echogram window is active.

Echoview also makes extensive use of the Shortcut (right-click) menu to give quick access to frequently-used commands.

Right-click menus offer direct shortcuts to open the same data in another compatible view. For example, on an echogram you can choose Table; in a table you can choose Echogram; and when you right-click a variable in the Dataflow window you can open Table, Graph, or Echogram. Only valid options are shown, and the target view opens focused on the same data/selection—making it faster to switch between echograms, cruisetracks, tables, and graphs.

Shortcuts

Shortcut keys have been widely implemented in Echoview, permitting rapid navigation and reducing mouse travel.

Toolbars

The Echoview window offers a number of toolbars that provide quick access to useful features and actions.

Toolbars can be displayed or hidden using View menu > Toolbars > Toolbar name. In addition, toolbars can be moved (with the mouse pointer) to any position on the screen.

The following toolbars are available:

Note: Windows can have an associated icon that is used on tabs or in menus.

Workspace and docking

The Echoview application opens an Echoview window. You can arrange Echoview display elements within the Echoview window. You can also arrange Echoview display elements outside the Echoview window (on the desktop or extended desktop). Collectively the workspace can be saved by Echoview so that when you open the EV file, your workspace is reinstated.

The docking system used by Echoview allows you to arrange Echoview display elements in a number of ways to suit your workflow.

	Echoview display element
Action	Windows Echograms, Scenes, Dataflow, Fileset, Graphs	Dialog boxes e.g., Variable Properties, EV File Properties, etc...	Utility dialog boxes Messages, Region browser, Live viewing, Details, Console, Properties Information, Dataflow Toolbox
Dock to Echoview window (sides)			P
Dock to pane	P
Tab to a panel	P
Float	P	P	P

Panels, panes and windows

Understanding how windows, panels, and panes behave in Echoview will help you customize your workspace layout efficiently.

A window is a self-contained interface element in Echoview that displays a specific type of information or tool. For example, an echogram, a graph, or a scene. A panel is a container that can hold one or more windows. If multiple windows are added to the same panel, they appear as tabs. A pane is a sub-area within a panel that displays a single window. A panel may consist of one or more panes, each hosting one window. Think of a panel like a bookshelf, and panes are the shelves holding different windows.

Example of Echoview workspace with windows, panels, panes, and utility dialog boxes

Figure: Example of docked windows arranged across multiple panels and panes, including stacked panes, tabbed panels, and utility dialog boxes.

Docking and arrangement behavior

When you drag a window, docking guides (transparent overlays) appear in your workspace or panels, helping you position it:

Dock to pane: Add the window to an existing panel (either split or tabbed).
Dock to workspace: Create a new panel docked to the Echoview window.
Float: Keep the window as a separate, movable element (not docked).
Tabbing: Drop the window onto a panel's center guide to add it as a tab.

Demonstration of docking guides when dragging a window in Echoview

Figure: Demonstration of docking guides as they appear when repositioning a window.

Managing layout

Use the Window menu options:
- Arrange All: Automatically repositions all panels and panes.
- Arrange Panes: Optimizes window layout within a selected panel
- Close All: Closes all open windows of a particular type.
Resize panels and panes by hovering over the edge until the resize cursor appears.
Press Ctrl while dragging to temporarily disable docking.

Specify how a new window is opened, to dock or float, with:
File menu > Configuration > Interface > set When opening a new window.

Echogram information

The nature of the data under the mouse pointer is displayed or can be acquired from these places:

Where	Type of descriptors
Echoview status bar	Information about lines, range/depth, beams, geographic position, time, data file.
Information toolbar	Ping, range/depth, data value, display minimum.
Details dialog box	Details can include: General, Target, Transect, Navigation, Range, Ping, Beam, Rendering, File, Color display, Calibration, Grid, Analysis, Data, Notes.
Messages dialog box	Displays information, warning and error messages that are generated during the course of Echoview's operation.