Blender User Preferences I Change

This page was last updated: 2017.03.17 22:31_UTC

All of the following changes are in the 'User Preferences' window. The changes listed below are not ordered by relative importance, but rather, in order of where they are located in the User Preferences window.

'User Preferences' changes affect all Blender projects, not just the project you have open when you make a change.

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1. Open Blender user preferences

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   This will open a brand new window on your desktop that is separate from the Blender program window.

   If it appears to you that the user preferences did not open, it may in fact be underneath the Blender main program window, so minimize the Blender main program window to see the user preferences window.

   Assuming your page-top 'editor-window' is set to 'Info' (which is that area's original default view), you will want to click the button "File", and then "User Preferences".

   Note: What you do Not want to do is to click on the furthest left icon in the page-top editor header, and then click "User Preferences". That would only change that editor-window to being 'User Preferences', and will not open up the separate 'User Preferences' window.

   [Ctrl][Alt]+[U]

   Page-top editor-window 'Info': Button "File" > Click "User preferences"

   If you are not seeing the user preferences window

   If you are not seeing the additional 'User Preferences' window, it may be hiding under your Blender main program window. Minimize the main program window, and hopefully you will see the new 'User Preferences' window.

   You must click the button "Save User Settings"

   You must click the button "Save User Settings" after you make any 'User Preferences' change, otherwise the change will only apply for as long as you have Blender running, and the change will be lost when you shut down Blender.

   
   

2. Rotate around selected object, instead of '3D View' area center-point.

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   After changing this setting, when you select an object in the '3D View' area, that object will stay where it was on your monitor, and you will rotate around it, indtead of the default of rotating around the center point of your scene.

   'User preferences' tab "Interface" > Middle-column, item four: "Rotate Around selection"

   Click the button "Save User Settings".

   
   

3. Undo points: Increase from '32' to '256' (max)

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   You can jump to a point in the past at which point you made a specific edit, but, by default, Blender only stores your last 32-edits.

   To see the undo list, [Ctrl][Alt]+[Z].

   These additional 'Global Undo: Steps' will use more of your RAM memory, but that will hopefully not be an issue for you no matter how complex your scene becomes.

   'User preferences' tab "Editing" > Left-column heading 'Undo:': Checkbox 'Global Undo' (leave checked - the default)': 'Steps': Change from '32' to '256 (the maximum)'.
   (Left-click-drag within the horizontal oval to increase/decrease)

   Click the button "Save User Settings".

   
   

4. Switch to left mouse-button for 'Select'ing

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   For almost everything else you do on your computer, the left mouse-button is used for selecting objects.

   Before you get used to the default condition of using the right mouse-button in Blender to select objects in the '3D View', reverse this to use the left mouse-button to select items, as is recommended by, and used by, the three Blender users I trust most. (Six, if you count 'me', 'myself', and 'I'.)

   'User preferences' tab "Input" > Left-column, about a 1/4 of the way down: 'Select With': "Left"

   Click the button "Save User Settings".

   
   

5. Use keyboard-top numbers to emulate default numberpad functions (for 'Compact' keyboards especially)

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   If your keyboard does not have a numberpad in addition to the other navigation keys (if you have 'compact' keyboard), and, so that you do not have to switch navigation key functions by using the 'NUMLK' key; or if you just want to set the numbers across the top of the keyboard to function as a substitute for the numberpad...

   'User preferences' tab "Input" > Left-column, about a 1/3 of the way down: "Emulate Numpad"

   Click the button "Save User Settings".

   
   

6. Change theme

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   'User preferences' tab "Themes" > 'Presets': Click the word "Presets" > "[Any theme in the list]"

   Click the button "Save User Settings".

   "Science Lab": Note to self: I am (you are) Currently using "Science Lab".

   • Reset to default theme

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     To return to the original default theme:

     At the tab "Themes", click the window bottom button "Reset to Default Theme".

   
   

7. Set new location for automatic 'temp' files (optional)

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   (This is highly 'optional', but functions to ease my backing up of selected folders with 'Karens Replicator'.)

   You must first create the folder you want to designate for temporary backup use by Blender. Then,...

   'User preferences' tab "File" > Left-column 'Temp': Click the 'browse icon' on the far-right of the 'Temp' line > Browse to the existing folder location on your computer > Click "Accept".

   Click the button "Save User Settings".

   Note: The default location is:
   C:\Users\[*USERNAME]\AppData\Local\Temp\

   
   

8. Increase the number of automatic scene backups

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   *.blend2, *.blend3, *.blend4, etc. in addition to *.blend1

   Increase the number of automatic backup scene files from '1' the default) to '10' so that each time you 'Save' your project it adds *.blend2, *.blend3, etc, under the default automatic *.blend1 in your project folder.

   Note: *.blend1 will always be the most recently saved backup.

   'User preferences' tab "File" > Right-column, 1/2 way down, 'Save Versions:' "10"

   Click the button "Save User Settings".

   
   

9. Increase/Decrease Blender window resolution

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   You can increase, or decrease, the resolution of the entire Blender window without having to make adjustments to other Windows system settings

   'User preferences' tab "System" > Left-column, top, 'General': 'DPI': From "72" to "?". ('90' for me)
   (Left-click-drag within the horizontal oval to increase/decrease)

   
   

10. 'userpref.blend' user preferences file location

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    The first time you change any user preference, the file "userpref.blend" is added to your computer, using Windows 8/10 as an example, in the folder 'config' at:

    C:\Users\[*USERNAME]\AppData\Roaming\Blender Foundation\Blender\[*2.78]\config\

    
    

Save, and close 'User Preferences'

You must click the button "Save User Settings", or your changes will not be saved for use the next time you open Blender.

Click the button "Save User Settings".

Click "X" to close User Preferences window.

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