> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.ntop.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Overview

<Frame>
  <img src="https://storage.googleapis.com/files-learn/lessons/ntop-essentials/sphere-cube-blend.png" alt="Cube and sphere blended with a smooth implicit transition" />
</Frame>

This course will take you through the basics of nTop to help get you started on your journey of exploration of the software. After completion of the course, you will have developed an understanding of the concept of implicit modeling, which is the basis of nTop's core technology. You will also gain familiarity with key operations and best practices that will enable you to work faster and more efficiently within our software.

**Prerequisites:** None

**What will be covered:**

* Introduction to nTop and the fundamentals of implicit modeling
* Working with blocks and notebooks to build workflows
* Key basic operations

### Before We Begin

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Before We Begin" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/before-we-begin-ntop-essentials" cta="Open">Introduction and course overview</Card>
</CardGroup>

### NTOP AND IMPLICIT MODELING

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Introduction to nTop" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/introduction-to-ntop" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Implicits and Fields" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/implicits-and-fields" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="A Tour of the nTop Instance" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/a-tour-of-the-ntop-instance" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Controls and Keyboard Shortcuts" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/controls-and-keyboard-shortcuts" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Knowledge Check: Implicit Modeling" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/knowledge-check-implicit-modeling" cta="Open" />
</CardGroup>

### The Notebook

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="What is the Notebook?" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/what-is-the-notebook" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Working with Variables" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/working-with-variables" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Notebook Management" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/notebook-management" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Toolkit and Custom Blocks" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/toolkit-and-custom-blocks" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Follow Along: Organizing a Workflow" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/follow-along-organizing-a-workflow" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="nTop Tips" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/ntop-tips" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Knowledge Check: The Notebook" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/knowledge-check-the-notebook" cta="Open" />
</CardGroup>

### Basic Operations

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Overview of Primitives, Transformations, and Modeling Operations" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/overview-of-primitives-transformations-and-modeling-operations" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Importing and Converting Parts to Implicits" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/importing-and-converting-parts-to-implicits" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Working with CAD Bodies" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/working-with-cad-bodies" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Boolean Operations" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/boolean-operations" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Evaluating Mass, Volume and Weight Savings" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/evaluating-mass-volume-and-weight-savings" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Exporting Parts" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/exporting-parts" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Follow Along: Spherecube and Gear" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/follow-along-spherecube-and-gear" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Knowledge Check: Basic Operations" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/knowledge-check-basic-operations" cta="Open" />
</CardGroup>

### Optional: Essentials Test Problems

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Optional: Essentials Test Problem" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/optional-essentials-test-problem" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Answer to Optional Test Problem" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/answer-to-optional-test-problem" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Optional: nTop Essentials Challenge Problem" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/optional-ntop-essentials-challenge-problem" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Answer to nTop Essentials Challenge Problem" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/answer-to-ntop-essentials-challenge-problem" cta="Open" />
</CardGroup>

### Exploring nTop

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Meshing" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/meshing" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Latticing" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/latticing" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Field Driven Design" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/field-driven-design" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Design Analysis and Topology Optimization" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/design-analysis-and-topology-optimization" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Automation" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/automation" cta="Open" />

  <Card title="Design for Additive Manufacturing (DfAM)" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/design-for-additive-manufacturing-dfam" cta="Open" />
</CardGroup>

### What's Next

<CardGroup cols={2}>
  <Card title="Resources" href="/lessons/ntop-essentials/resources" cta="Open" />
</CardGroup>