Part IV: Creating and Using Libraries
Turning on Toolbox and the Toolbox Browser
You can turn on Toolbox and the Toolbox Browser through the Tools ➪ Add-Ins dialog box. The
column of check boxes on the left indicates that the add-in will be active for the current session of
SolidWorks only. The column of check boxes on the right indicates that the add-in will be active
every time the software starts up, as shown in Figure 17.16.FIGURE 17.16Turning Toolbox on in the Tools ➪ Add-ins interface
Once the Toolbox Browser is turned on, you can use it by expanding the Task Pane at the right of
the SolidWorks graphics window and clicking the Design Library, which looks like a stack of
books. In this panel, you will see the Toolbox screw symbol. Expand icons until you find the fas-
tener or other hardware that you are looking for, and then drag the part into the assembly.Populating holes
Holes can be populated in several ways, such as dragging-and-dropping, populating multiple holes
at once, using the right mouse button (RMB) menu, and using feature-driven component patterns.
I discuss manual and patterning options here, and Smart Fasteners in the next section.Drag-and-drop
The simplest way to bring Toolbox parts into an assembly is to drag-and-drop them. Position
the part that the fastener goes into so that you can see the edge of the hole where the screw head
will go. Then browse to the correct fastener and drop the fastener onto the edge, as shown in
Figure 17.17.