Start with the three essentials
The Cut Settings Editor changes depending on your laser type and Layer Mode, but LightBurn consistently puts the most important controls near the top: Speed, Power and Mode. Learn these before chasing advanced checkboxes.
Mode: what motion should the laser perform?
Line follows vector outlines. Depending on Speed and Power, the same Line operation may make a light score or cut through material.
Fill engraves the interior of closed vector shapes using parallel scan lines.
Offset Fill also fills closed shapes, but uses paths that follow the shape's contour rather than ordinary straight scan lines.
Image is used for raster images and adds image-processing controls.
Speed: how fast the head moves
Speed is not meaningful without its units. A value of 100 in mm/s is radically different from 100 in mm/min. LightBurn can display different distance/time units, so whenever you copy a recommendation, verify the unit system first.
In general, slower motion delivers more energy to a given area; faster motion delivers less, assuming the other settings stay the same. That does not make slow automatically better — the correct value depends on laser power, material, focus, desired result and other settings.
