Select

Select

Structures can be moved or edited by using the Select function. Select is activated in one of three ways:

by choosing 'Select' from the Edit Menu

by Right clicking the Mouse and choosing 'Select' from the Popup menu

by using the keyboard shortcut key (F2)

When Select is activated, the mouse pointer will change shape to a cross-hair form and the Edit menu item will be checked. You can then draw a box around the region of interest in the molecule in the same manner as is used for Box Fragmentations. On release of the mouse button, all of the atoms in the selected region will be drawn with red dots to indicate that they have been selected, and the cursor will change shape again to indicate movement capability.

Once one or more atoms has been selected, you can either use the mouse pointer to drag the selected atoms to a new location relative to the remainder of the molecule (for example to adjust the position of a substituent), or you can press the <Del> key on the keyboard. If you press <Del>, the selected atoms and all bonds in which they are involved will be deleted, and the remainder of the molecule will reorganize itself as necessary. Once it has been chosen, Select will remain active until you turn it off. You can turn off Select by clicking on the Edit/Select menu option or the F2 key again, or by pressing the <Esc> key. NOTE: you should avoid choosing Select and then accessing other items such as menu options, etc., since this may generate unpredictable behavior by MSC. Once Select is active, you should choose one or more atoms in the structure and act on them, then deactivate Select as described above.

Select can also be used for moving an entire molecule to a different location on the screen; simply draw a box around the entire structure, and then drag the enclosing box to the new location with the mouse as described above. However, an easier way to move an entire molecule on screen is to use the Move speed button.