====== MP STUDIO 2 Phase 2 · Screen Layout ======

[[products:mp_studio:screen_layout|한국어]] | **English**

MP STUDIO 2 puts the ladder canvas in the middle of the screen and arranges the tools and information panels around it. The panels sit in columns on the left and right so that they do not cover the ladder, and you can show only the panels you need.

{{ :en-us_products:mp_studio:layout-overview-marked.svg?1200 |Figure 1. MP STUDIO 2 screen layout }}

^ No. ^ Area ^ Role ^
| ① | Top band | File and tool buttons, document name, device pill, and the Simulate, Connect, Monitoring and Download buttons |
| ② | Strip row | Menus, program tabs, command bar (find and zoom) and panel toggle buttons |
| ③ | Symbol rail | Buttons for placing contacts, coils and wires (''F2'' to ''F12'') and the Functions panel button |
| ④ | Functions panel | Function categories, search and the Mark (bookmark) list |
| ⑤ | Ladder canvas | Where you edit rungs and where monitoring values are shown |
| ⑥ | Inspector | Address, symbol name, comment, current value and uses of the selected cell |
| ⑦ | Watch card | Values of the addresses registered in the Data Table |

Depending on the situation, [[#status_pills|status pills]] are shown at the bottom of the right column.

===== Top Band =====

{{ :en-us_products:mp_studio:band-toolbar-marked.svg?1200 |Figure 2. Buttons and the device pill in the top band }}

  * **① File buttons:** New, Open, Save, Save As
  * **② Document name:** the name of the ''.mpl'' file you are editing
  * **③ Device pill:** connection state, model, and the scan time (SCAN) while monitoring
  * **④ Tool buttons:** Find&Replace, Used (used data), Symbol, Devices, Mnemonic, Communication, Options
  * **⑤ Run buttons:** Simulate, Connect (Ethernet connection), Monitoring, Download

Hover over a button to see its name and shortcut. **Connect** is shown only when the download channel is ''ETHERNET''.

==== Device Pill ====

The device pill shows the state of the connection to the device in one place.

{{ :en-us_products:mp_studio:device-pill-states.svg?1000 |Figure 3. Device pill states }}

^ Shown as ^ Meaning ^
| Not connected | No device is connected. |
| Blinking dot | Waiting for the Ethernet connection to be established. |
| Ethernet connected · address | Connected to the device over Ethernet. |
| Monitoring · port · SCAN | Monitoring; the device scan time is shown. |
| Monitoring · SIM | A simulation is running ([[:en-us_products:mp_studio:simulation|Phase 8]]). |
| Monitoring (fixed areas only) | The program check did not pass, so only the fixed memory areas are being read. |
| No response | The device stopped responding during monitoring. |
| Forced N | N points are forced. Click it to open the FORCE INPUT / OUTPUT window. |
| Device program differs | The ladder was edited after the download. The device is still running the previous program. |

===== Strip Row =====

{{ :en-us_products:mp_studio:strip-menu-tabs-marked.svg?1200 |Figure 4. Menus, program tabs and command bar }}

  * **① Menus:** Project, Edit, View, Search, Run, Setting, Help
  * **② Program tabs:** split the program into several tabs. Click **+** to add a tab.
  * **③ Command bar:** the address search box (''Ctrl+F''), the Zoom Out, Zoom In and Fit to Width buttons, and the zoom level
  * **④ Panel toggle buttons:** show or hide the Symbol Rail, Functions, Inspector, Watch, Command Bar and Status Pills. The rightmost button hides all panels.

==== Program Tabs ====

Click **+** (Add tab) to the right of the tabs to create a new numbered tab such as **Program 2**. Double-click a tab name to rename it in place. Right-click a tab to open a menu with **Rename Tab**, **Delete Tab**, **Duplicate Tab** and **Move Selected Rungs to This Tab**. The first tab is named **Main** by default.

{{ :en-us_products:mp_studio:program-tabs-menu.png?700 |Figure 5. The right-click menu of a program tab }}

  * Row numbers start from 0 on every tab.
  * The device receives a single program made of the tabs joined in order.
  * Switch tabs with ''Ctrl+PageUp'' and ''Ctrl+PageDown'', and move a tab with ''Ctrl+Shift+PageUp'' and ''Ctrl+Shift+PageDown''. You can also drag a tab to change the order.

===== Symbol Rail and Functions Panel =====

{{ :en-us_products:mp_studio:symbol-rail-marked.svg?420 |Figure 6. The symbol rail }}

The symbol rail buttons do the same as the function keys, and each button shows its function key below the symbol. The **Functions** button at the bottom opens and closes the Functions panel (''Alt+2''). The placement rules are described in [[:en-us_products:mp_studio:ladder_editing|Phase 3]], and the Functions panel in [[:en-us_products:mp_studio:functions|Phase 4]].

===== Ladder Canvas =====

The ladder canvas shows rungs row by row, with power flowing from the left power rail to the right. Click a row number on the left to select the whole row.

{{ :en-us_products:mp_studio:canvas-marked.svg?1200 |Figure 7. Row numbers, cursor, and error and warning cells on the ladder canvas }}

  * **① Row numbers:** start from 0 on every tab.
  * **② Cursor:** the cell that is currently selected.
  * **③ Error cell (red):** a cell with a problem that prevents downloading.
  * **④ Warning cell (orange address text):** a cell that can be downloaded but should be checked.

The vertical bar on the right side of the canvas shows small colored marks where error and warning cells are.

Zoom in and out with ''Ctrl+='' and ''Ctrl+-'', and return to 100% with ''Ctrl+0''. Select **View → Fit to Width** to fit one row to the width of the canvas.

===== Inspector =====

The Inspector shows information about the cell under the cursor.

{{ :en-us_products:mp_studio:inspector-card-marked.svg?480 |Figure 8. The Inspector with a contact cell selected }}

  * **① Element and address:** the element type of the cell (NO, NC, Coil, Fn and so on), its address, and its row and column
  * **② Address, Symbol Name and Comment:** the name and description registered in the symbol table. Click the pencil button to edit them.
  * **③ Add to Watch:** adds this address to the Data Table and the Watch card. An address that is already registered is shown as **Watching**.
  * **④ Used at:** a list of the cells that use the same address. Click a line to go to that cell.

During monitoring and simulation, the **Current value** is shown as well, and bit addresses get **Force** buttons (**ON** and **OFF**). If the cell has a problem, the reason is shown at the bottom of the Inspector.

===== Watch Card =====

The Watch card shows the addresses and values registered in the Data Table in a compact form in the right column. The watch list is remembered separately for each project file.

{{ :en-us_products:mp_studio:watch-card.png?480 |Figure 9. The Watch card with addresses registered }}

When there are no addresses to watch, **No addresses to watch** is shown. Click the **Data Table** button at the bottom right of the card to open the Data Table window.

===== Status Pills =====

The status pills show the connection state and model, the number of cells, the number of selected cells, the check result (**Check OK** or **N cells with errors**), the scan time (**SCAN TIME**) and firmware version while monitoring, and the open file name as small pills. They appear at the bottom of the right column when the Inspector is shown, and at the bottom right of the canvas when it is hidden.

{{ :en-us_products:mp_studio:status-pills.png?480 |Figure 10. Status pills during monitoring }}

The connection state and model are also shown in the device pill in the top band. How to move between error and warning cells is described in [[:en-us_products:mp_studio:download#program_check|Phase 6 · Program Check]].

===== Showing and Hiding Panels =====

You can show and hide panels from the **View** menu, with the panel toggle buttons at the right of the strip row, or with keyboard shortcuts. Which panels are shown is kept for the next launch.

{{ :en-us_products:mp_studio:view-menu.png?420 |Figure 11. Panel items in the View menu }}

^ Shortcut ^ Panel ^
| ''Alt+1'' | Symbol Rail |
| ''Alt+2'' | Functions |
| ''Alt+3'' | Inspector |
| ''Alt+4'' | Watch |
| ''Alt+6'' | Command Bar |
| ''Alt+7'' | Status Pills |
| ''Alt+0'' | Hide All Panels (press again to show them) |

{{ :en-us_products:mp_studio:panels-hidden.png?1000 |Figure 12. All panels hidden, showing only the ladder }}

===== Quick Actions =====

Press ''Ctrl+K'' to open the **Quick Actions** window. Type part of a menu item name to find it and press ''Enter'' to run it. Each match shows the menu it belongs to and its shortcut.

{{ :en-us_products:mp_studio:quick-actions.png?600 |Figure 13. "monitor" typed in the Quick Actions window }}

===== Related Pages =====

  * [[:en-us_products:mp_studio:ladder_editing|Phase 3 · Ladder Editing]]
  * [[:en-us_products:mp_studio:menus_settings|Phase 9 · Menus and Settings]]

[[:en-us_products:mp_studio|← Back to the MP STUDIO 2 User Manual]]