BITS U103 · Reference
Fusion shortcuts & navigation
Autodesk's default keys, verified against their own reference. Prints onto one or two sheets — worth having next to the laptop for the first fortnight, after which your hands will know them.
Learn the eight below, use S for everything else, and let the rest arrive naturally through use. Shortcuts are worth exactly as much time as they save — sitting down to memorise forty keys is a way of feeling productive without modelling anything.
- S — Model Toolbox. Type any command's name. Replaces knowing where anything is.
- E — Extrude. The one you'll press most.
- D — Sketch Dimension.
- L — Line, R — Rectangle, C — Circle.
- Q — Press Pull. Push a face directly; quick edits without opening a feature.
- F — Fillet.
- V — Toggle visibility of whatever's selected. Endlessly useful.
- I — Measure. Check a distance without guessing.
Sketch
| Key | Command |
|---|---|
| L | Line |
| R | 2-point Rectangle |
| C | Centre Diameter Circle |
| D | Sketch Dimension |
| T | Trim |
| O | Offset |
| X | Toggle Normal / Construction geometry |
| P | Project (bring existing edges into the sketch) |
| Shift | Held while sketching: coincident constraint at midpoint |
Solid modelling
| Key | Command |
|---|---|
| E | Extrude |
| Q | Press Pull |
| H | Hole |
| F | Fillet |
| M | Move |
| J | Joint · Shift+J As-built Joint |
| I | Measure |
| A | Appearance |
| V | Toggle Visibility |
| S | Model Toolbox (command search) |
| Del | Delete |
| Ctrl/Cmd+B | Compute All |
Selection
| Key | Command |
|---|---|
| 1 | Window Selection |
| 2 | Freeform Selection |
| 3 | Paint Selection |
File & panels
| Windows | macOS | Command |
|---|---|---|
| Ctrl+N | Cmd+N | New Design |
| Ctrl+O | Cmd+O | Open |
| Ctrl+S | Cmd+S | Save (a new version, to the cloud) |
| Ctrl+Shift+S | Cmd+Shift+S | Recovery Save |
| Ctrl+Z | Cmd+Z | Undo |
| Ctrl+Y | Cmd+Shift+Z | Redo |
| Ctrl+Tab | Cmd+Tab | Cycle open document tabs |
| Ctrl+Alt+B | Opt+Cmd+B | Show/hide Browser |
| Ctrl+Alt+V | Opt+Cmd+V | Show/hide ViewCube |
| Ctrl+Alt+P | Opt+Cmd+P | Show/hide Data Panel |
| Ctrl+Alt+R | Opt+Cmd+R | Reset to default layout — the panic button when the UI goes strange |
Navigating the view
Not keyboard shortcuts but the thing you'll do most often, so it matters more than any key on this page.
| Action | Mouse |
|---|---|
| Pan | Hold the middle button (scroll wheel) and drag |
| Orbit | Shift + middle button, and drag |
| Zoom | Scroll wheel |
| Fit everything on screen | Double-click the middle button |
| Snap to a standard view | Click a face, edge or corner of the ViewCube (top right) |
| Get un-lost | Click the small house icon by the ViewCube — Home view |
Fusion's default trackpad gestures are awkward and are a real source of early frustration on a MacBook. Open Preferences → General and set the navigation style to match software you already know. Ten seconds, and it removes a daily irritation for the rest of the semester.
A mouse with a real middle button is genuinely worth having for this course — not essential, but the cheapest speed-up available.
Shortcuts are customisable, so your installation might not match: hover any command in the toolbar to see its current key, or open Preferences → Keyboard Shortcuts to see and change the lot.
Autodesk changes defaults between releases. This card was verified against Autodesk's published reference in August 2026. If a key here does nothing, trust the software over the card — and reach for S.