The Material Explorer window is divided into four main areas shown in the picture below: the Categories area, the Viewing area, the Tool bar and the View bar. 

	View bar
	Categories list
	Preview area
	Toolbar

1. View bar

On the View bar, there is a Search field for searching for different materials. This will help you find your desired material from the Viewing area. Just type a part of the name of a material, and it will appear in the Viewing area. You can also change the way materials are previewed in the Viewing area. You can  display them as a Sphere or as a Plane. 

2. Categories List

This area displays all material categories, both predefined by CET Designer and the categories you create. You can create new categories in the Material Lab in the General properties section.

Material folders contain materials that are available in the Material Explorer. You can add your own folders as a complement to the CET Designer-defined material folders. Add a new material folder by clicking the Add a material folder button in the Material folders dialog and select desired folder.

Any .gm file types discovered in these folders will appear in the Material Explorer. Sub-folders are not searched and must be added.

Refresh will reload all materials from the defined material folders.

3. Preview Area

The Preview Area is where you view all materials predefined by CET Designer, those you have created in the Material Lab, and those loaded through material folders. You can change the size of your thumbnails in the drop-down menu.

4. Toolbar

From the Toolbar you can use the following tools: Change selected instantly, Pick and Material Lab.

Change selected instantly: Check this box to change the material of all layers of the selected component instantly when a material is selected. If no component is selected in the drawing, the floor will be painted.

Pick: Select a material from any component you have placed in the drawing and then use the material in the Material Lab.

Material Lab: Open to create or edit materials. Available properties to edit are Primary color, Specular, Reflection, Opacity and Bump.