Compile Mask

The Compile Mask dialog.

Summary

This dialog allows the designer to specify the properties of a Compile Mask object. A compile mask is a design directive. It is used to effectively hide the area of the design it contains from the Compiler, allowing you to manually prevent error checking for circuitry that may not yet be complete and you know will generated compile errors. This can prove very useful if you need to compile the active document or project to check the integrity of the design in other specific areas, but do not want the clutter of compiler-generated messages associated with unfinished portions of the design.

Access

The Compile Mask dialog can be accessed prior to entering placement mode, from the Schematic – Default Primitives page of the Preferences dialog. This allows the default properties for the compile mask object to be changed, which will be applied when placing subsequent compile masks.

During placement, the dialog can be accessed by pressing the Tab key.

After placement, the dialog can be accessed in one of the following ways:

• Double-clicking on the placed compile mask object.
• Placing the cursor over the compile mask object, right-clicking and choosing Properties from the context menu.
• Using the Edit » Change command and clicking once over the placed compile mask object.

Options/Controls

• Fill Color - click the color sample to change the fill color for the compile mask, using the standard Choose Color dialog.
• Border Color - click the color sample to change the color used for the border around the compile mask, using the standard Choose Color dialog.
• Location X1/Y1 - the current X (horizontal) and Y (vertical) coordinates for the bottom-left corner of the compile mask. Edit these values to change the position of this corner in the horizontal and/or vertical planes respectively.
• Location X2/Y2 - the current X (horizontal) and Y (vertical) coordinates for the top-right corner of the compile mask. Edit these values to change the position of this corner in the horizontal and/or vertical planes respectively.

Properties

• Collapsed and Disabled - enable this option to display the compile mask in collapsed (small triangle) mode. This corresponds to the mask being disabled. Disable this option to display the mask in expanded (full frame) mode. This corresponds to the mask being enabled.
• Locked - enable this option to protect the compile mask from being edited graphically.