The Reference mode menu lets you select between Global, Local, and Additive Reference modes. The Additive Reference mode is only available when you are in Rotation mode.
Reference modes affect how an object’s translation, rotation, and scaling values are displayed. Refer to Reference modes for detailed information on these modes.
To select a Reference mode, click the Reference mode icon, and select one of the three modes:
Viewer window A. Reference mode menu B. Reference mode icon
Activates Global Reference mode, so the selected object’s transformation values are displayed relative to the center of the scene (the global axis).
Activates Local Reference mode, so that the selected object’s transformation values are displayed relative to the center of the object, or from the center of its parent, if it is parented.
If the selected object does not have a parent, the values of Local mode are the same as Global mode.
Additive Reference mode is available when you are in Rotation mode. In addition, it cannot be used when you have selected a Control rig effector while in Full Body or Body Part keying mode.
Activates Additive Reference mode so that the selected objects transformation values reflect its actual coordinates on the current layer only. This is useful when you are working with FCurve values.