Using the GUI

Overview

Dissolve’s user interface comprises three main areas:

Run Controls

Run controls on the left-hand side of the main window

Controls to start, stop, and step the current simulation within the GUI can be found on the left-hand side of the main window, along with the main simulation loop counter.

Content Tabs

Content tabs displaying aspects of the current simulation

The important content of the simulation - species, configurations, layers etc. - is shown in separate tabs in the central area. The majority of set up, editing, and monitoring is performed via these tabs. Note that some main menu items are enabled / disabled based on the content of the currently-selected tab.

Tab	Content
	Forcefield tab - contains common forcefield parameters such as master terms and pair potentials
	Species tabs - display / edit individual species
	Configuration tabs - display / edit individual configurations
	Layer tabs - display / edit sequences of modules
	Module tabs - show keyword options and output from individual modules (the icon reflects the module type)
	Workspace tab - display a custom selection of modules and their options / output

To rename a tab, double-click on the tab itself. This also changes the name of any object that the tab represents (e.g. the displayed Species). Closing a tab will delete that object from the simulation (you will be asked by Dissolve if this is really what you want to do).

The order of tabs is fixed, and represent how the simulation is built-up within Dissolve. Forcefield terms are used to describe species which then make up configurations, and layers do useful things to our configurations.

Messages Box

All of Dissolve’s output (information, warnings, errors, and, of course, good things) is printed to the messages box. Keep an eye on the content here to make sure the correct things are happening. Especially, check here for clues as to why simulations aren’t running, for instance.