Handbook Version v2026.04.17.1 Released 2026-04-17

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2D Viewer¶

Goal¶

Help you handle the most important day-to-day work in 2D: inspect, select, locate, verify, and prepare exports.

Supported Platforms¶

iOS
macOS

Intended Audience¶

Users doing day-to-day board inspection in the workspace
Testers validating 2D interaction, object info, and export readiness

Prerequisites¶

A board document is already open in the workspace
The viewer has finished its initial preparation and published the first 2D frame

Steps¶

Use 2D to pan, zoom, and select objects in the current board view.
Open View Info from the context menu and review the object details you need.
Adjust visibility or filtering through Workbench, then return to 2D for final confirmation and export preparation.

Result¶

2D serves as the primary working view for precise inspection, object lookup, and export preparation.

2D Is the Main Working View in the Current Version¶

Inside the workspace, 2D handles most of the high-frequency work:

pan, zoom, box-select, and point-select
open View Info from the context menu
work with Workbench for visibility, filtering, and object targeting
review the current selection, coordinates, or frame metrics in the status bar
launch every export flow

Supporting Capabilities You Will See¶

Object info card: opened through View Info in the right-click / long-press menu
Mini viewer: when enabled in settings, shows the current viewport against the global scene
Crosshair guideline: when enabled in settings, follows the pointer
Status bar: the left side summarizes the current selection, and the right side shows coordinates or frame metrics

When 2D has a valid pick target, the current context menu can provide:

View Info
chat-related actions when chat capability is active

Whether or not an object is currently selected, the 2D context menu also supports:

copy current location
Fit All
toggle axis visibility
regenerate thumbnail

Division of Responsibility Across Views¶

2D: precise inspection, object info review, and export preparation
3D: overall structure review, only valid for the KiCad 3D path
Data: document, revision, statistics, runtime, and diagnostic summaries

How Export Relates to 2D¶

In the current implementation, export is only available from 2D:

the export button is unavailable in 3D and Data
PNG / PDF are capture exports
board-file export is split into two paths:
Original source export: returns the original DSN / KiCad / IPC-2581 / ODB++ / Gerber-Drill data stored for the current revision
Converted export: currently keeps DSN and KiCad 8

Recommendations¶

Narrow the visible scope with Workbench first, then use 2D for local confirmation.
When you need to record an issue, select the target in 2D first and then copy its details from the info card.
Before exporting, return to 2D and confirm that the visible layers, visibility state, and framing are correct.

Common Questions¶

Why can’t I interact with 2D immediately after opening a document?¶

During import or render preparation, the app may temporarily show the Data view or an import-blocking overlay. Interaction resumes once the first 2D frame is ready.

Why isn’t object detail shown in Workbench anymore?¶

The current design moves object detail into the floating info card in 2D. Workbench now focuses on visibility, filtering, and object browsing.

Why is the export button unavailable?¶

Because export only starts from 2D. It is also unavailable if you are currently in 3D or Data, or if another export task is already in progress.

Last Verified¶

2026-04-17