The values of interactive components can be changed by pressing a specific key (set up in the component Value tab) on your keyboard. You can change the value of interactive components during simulation and analysis and view the effect immediately.

For example, changing a 100 kΩ resistor to the next smaller resistor may alter the results more than desired, but with Multisim, you can use a variable resistor and reduce its value gradually while watching the changes to the simulation, until you reach the desired result.

  If you press a key, the value of all interactive devices on the schematic that are mapped to that key in their Value tabs will change. If you wish to change the value of a specific component only, hover the cursor over that component to display a control element. For example, if you hover the cursor over a potentiometer, a slider bar appears that you can slide to raise or lower the potentiometer's setting.

Interactive components include such devices as the potentiometer, variable capacitor, variable inductor, and switches.