Getting Started
DigFindR is a Windows program designed on the typical Windows Form layout. The main program window is sizable and hosts the map window, a button bar, program menus and other utilities. Numerous dialogs appear which are not sizable, and there are frequent messages that appear requiring the user's immediate attention.
DigFindR is a basic 2D GIS (Geographic Information System) that functions by way of a CAD (Computer Aided Drafting) design. It is primarily driven by the LiteCAD DLL (Dynamic Link Library) from Kolbsoft, written by programmer Oleg Kolboskin. DigFindR is compiled using the C# language and requires the Net 4.5 framework, or newer, to operate. It is compiled for 64-bit operating systems from Microsoft.
CAD programs generally are designed with precision in mind and DigFindR is no exception. Therefore the use of a mouse is highly recommended. While it may be possible to use an embedded pointer (typically found on laptops), a two button mouse with a mouse wheel will be of more use when editing the actual entities in the drawings. Users with touch screen capability may find it easy to pan and zoom the drawing/map, however, DigFindR was not intentionally designed for a touch screen or tested on such a system.
DigFindR also makes use of the keyboard and there are a number of Hot Keys available that can be used to zoom and pan around the map/drawing, as well as activation of certain functions. These functions are found in menus, but it is far more convenient in many instances to activate the function by using Hot Keys... for example, to mark the cursor position with its coordinates, a simple Alt+X Combination Hot Key press will execute the function. Otherwise, the user will have to release the cursor with a right-click of the mouse and drop the Tools menu to activate the function.
There are several reserved Function Keys in DigFindR, those being F1, F3, F7, F8, and F9. Also, the typical Windows Functions are preserved in DigFindR, those being Copy, Cut, Paste, Undo, Redo, and Help.
F1 |
Instantiate Help |
F3 |
Toggle Snap mode |
F7 |
Toggle Drawing Grid |
F8 |
Toggle Polar Tracking |
F9 |
Toggle Grid Snap mode |
Esc Key |
Un-select entity or drop selection: recover cursor |
+ Key |
Zoom In |
- Key |
Zoom Out |
Left Arrow Key |
Pan Left |
Right Arrow Key |
Pan Right |
Up Arrow Key |
Pan Up |
Down Arrow Key |
Pan Down |
Enter Key |
Execute or Left-Click |
Alt+X |
Mark cursor position in drawing |
Alt+E |
Mark up selected attribute as text label |
Alt+B |
Mark up selected line entity as a bearing and distance |
Alt+F |
Locate a label in the drawing |
Alt+Q |
Collect selected attributes |
Ctrl+X |
Cut selected entity(s) |
Ctrl+C |
Copy selected entity(s) |
Ctrl+V |
Paste the copied entity(s) |
Ctrl+Z |
Undo |
Ctrl+Y |
Redo |
Alt+Tab |
Swap programs or windows (some window forms in DigFindR can be minimized as needed; they can be restored using this Hot Key Combination) |
Ctrl+Tab |
Opens Command Window (not currently implemented in this release of DigFindR) |
Ctrl+F2 |
Use a World File to position an aerial image in the Map Window |
ALL of the entity edit functions are summoned via a right-click of the mouse or touchpad. There are no menus for the edit functions in DigFindR. Additionally, there are a number of functions that can only be summoned via a right-click in the Map Window including snap options and selection mode options.