Preferences

Open Edit → Preferences. Switching categories retains pending edits. Apply saves without closing, OK saves and closes, and Cancel discards changes since the last Apply.

General

• Language: choose the interface language; restart Perastage to apply it.
• Units: choose distance and weight units. Unit changes apply immediately.
• Updates: Check on startup (recommended) checks at most once every 24 hours. You can suppress reminders for a specific version. Manual only disables startup checks; Help → Check for Updates still checks on demand.

Cache

General → Cache shows the read-only cache location and current disk usage. Open Cache Folder opens the folder in your system file manager. Clear Cache... asks for confirmation and immediately deletes regenerable Perastage caches, independently of Apply, OK or Cancel. Geometry is rebuilt as needed; the GDTF catalog downloads again when online. Configuration, logs, credentials, libraries, GDTF files, dictionaries and projects are preserved. If some files cannot be deleted, Perastage reports the failure and updates the shown size. Persistent caches live under the per-user application data directory in cache/, rather than beside source assets.

Import

Rider Import controls Auto patch after import, automatic layers by position or fixture type, and default LX heights, positions and margins. Distance fields follow your unit settings. See Create from Text.

Viewer

3D Viewer

Choose the rendering presentation and Performance → Model detail:

• Standard (default) displays available geometry first and prepares reduced detail while idle.
• Low simplifies heavy models more aggressively and always uses navigation proxies.
• High shows all available authored detail.

Use a simplified proxy while navigating is enabled by default in Standard and automatic in Low. High preserves full static detail; you can disable its navigation proxy for full-detail inspection. Available proxies temporarily simplify unselected fixtures during fast navigation, then restore the chosen detail. Large scenes fill in progressively so you can start navigating before every model is ready. Apply changes on the next redraw without reopening the project. Source geometry, GDTF resources, 2D symbols and exported geometry remain unchanged.

During loading, the bottom-left status bar shows completed resource requests, the total and a percentage. New geometry appears automatically, without moving the camera. Loading pauses during navigation and resumes from the same position afterwards. A separate preparation message covers navigation proxies; Ready appears after the final scene update. If a resource is unavailable, the status bar points to the Console when loading finishes.

Closing the application pauses viewport work before asking whether to save. Cancel resumes pending loading; confirming the close discards remaining runtime preparation.

Selection & Movement

Choose which object types move their containing root group during mouse, Console and Magnet transforms. Grouped trusses move their group by default; fixtures, supports/hoists and scene objects move independently. Direct group selection moves the group. Table edits affect only the edited object.

Show anchor references while moving or inserting elements displays compatible Magnet anchors during movement or insertion. These guides are not scene or export content. Changing movement preferences does not change the project's hierarchy or mark it as edited.

Formats

GDTF resources

GDTF preferences manage Share credentials. Perastage automatically stores fixture-wide Top/Front/Side/Bottom symbols in PSTG. Save the project to retain generated symbols and user overrides; they do not become GDTF or MVR resources. The Fixture Editor inspects authored SVGs per Model and preserves their bytes and offsets. Explicit physical-property edits remain available.

MVR Import / Export

Truss geometry export mode offers:

• Standard MVR representation (default): preserve imported symbol references where possible.
• Direct Geometry3D for truss symbols: expand truss symbol references for receiving applications that need direct geometry.

Both write MVR 1.6-compatible output. Project saves keep the standard representation. Import choices are described in Opening MVR Files.