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# Using the Visualiser

If this is the first time you have used the Visualiser, switch to the visualization perspective by selection Window -> Open Perspective -> Other… and then “Aspect Visualization”.

The visualization perspective opens:

You can switch between the Java and Aspect Visualization perspectives using the perspective icons in the top right of the menu bar (or left-hand margin in Eclipse 2.1.x).

To start visualizing, click on a project or package in the projects / packages views to see a visualization for that project / package. The aspects affecting the selected item appear in the Visualiser Menu. You can turn them on and off in the view by selecting and deselecting them.

Double-clicking on a stripe on one of the bars opens the editor on the advised type at the appropriate point.

The icons in the Visualiser toolbar perform the following functions (in left to right order) :

- Zoom in
- Zoom out
- Lock the content - selection changes in the package explorer will not change which bars are showing, although the stripes may change, e.g. with a rebuild.
- Toggle fit to view mode, which attempts to fit the visualization into the window as long as minimum bar width and stripe height is upheld.
- Toggle limit mode, which limits the visualization to only those classes / packages (depending on whether you are in class or package mode) affected by an aspect
- Package view – each bar represents a package in the project
- Class view – each bar represents a class (or aspect or interface) in the project / package

If a project contains any errors or warnings caused by AspectJ "declare error" or "declare warning" statements, these will show up in the Visualiser as red and yellow stripes respectively. If the aspect that declared a particular error or warning is unchecked in the menu, the corresponding stripe will not be shown. You can also hide all declared errors and/or all declared warnings using the icons on the toolbar of the Visualiser Menu view.

In addition the Visualiser has a preferences page that can be used to configure bar width, stripe depth and since 1.2.0 M1 color palette and rendering options.

For more information see the Visualiser's online help.