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At the bottom left of the display by default, the Navigation Control provides various ways to move around the map and control your viewing position; in addition, it indicates the orientation of the map and the degree to which it has been tilted.

the Navigation Control has two modes. It first appears on the display in its Indicator mode. Indicator mode displays the orientation of the map, it's a dynamic graphic that shows you which direction represents North and the degree to which the map has been tilted. Note that the control is transparent and so the background you see on your map may be different. Here the Navigation Control displays over arid to semi-arid lands in North Africa:

No tilt | Tilt indicated

You can't interact with the Navigation Control when it is in Indicator mode; however when you move the mouse over its north arrow the control changes to display its Navigation mode; using the mouse you can interact with the Navigation Control in this mode to move around the map, change its orientation, and reset various aspects of the map to their original settings. Tooltips appear over each of the elements of the control when you are in this mode. You can disable the tooltips in the Options dialog box. Here are the elements that make up the Navigation Control when in Navigation mode and the actions you can perform using them:

| 1 | Click to tilt down
2 | Shows degree of tilt
3 | Click to move North*
4 | Drag to rotate
5 | Click to zoom in
6 | Drag to tilt up or down
| 7 | Click to move East*
8 | Drag to zoom in or out
9 | Click to move West*
| 10 | Click to move South*
11 | Click to tilt
12 | Reset tilt to initial setting
13 | Set North at the top of the map
| 14 | Display the full extent of the map
15 | Click to zoom out
| 16 | Tilt disc changes color when the observer position is beneath the surface
* | Note that if you click and hold the mouse down on any one of the cardinal direction buttons, you can move the mouse continuously in the direction indicated.

The Angle of Tilt indicated by the tilt disc shows the degree to which the Direction of View is offset from the Target Vector. When the angle is 0 and the disc appears as a circle at the center of the Navigation Control, then the Direction of View and the Target Vector are the same. The following diagram illustrates these relationships:

| 1 | North
2 | Target Vector
3 | Angle of Tilt
4 | Camera
5 | Target
6 | Direction of View
7 | Globe Surface

Notes All Navigator actions can be performed with the mouse and keyboard. If you want to disable Navigation mode or position the Navigation Control elsewhere on your screen, you can set these preferences in the Options group on the Display tab of the Ribbon.

You may find navigating using the keyboard or the mouse more conducive to the way you work and that these techniques provide a more satisfactory experience. Also, certain advanced navigation techniques are available by using the mouse or keyboard; for example, to move northwest, you can press the Up arrow and the Left arrow on your keyboard simultaneously or to start flying as if you were following a target in front of you can hold down the right mouse button and move the mouse in the direction you want to travel.

One additional technique you can experiment with to see if it works well for you is to use the Navigation Control and the keyboard at the same time. For example you might hold down the East arrow on the Navigation Control while pressing the + (plus) key. This will move east while zooming in.

Learn more about navigating with the keyboard
Learn more about navigating with the mouse