manual/_manual/04_ardours-interface/02_basic-gui-operations/03_selection-techniques.html

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layout: default
title: Selection Techniques
---                        
  
<p>
  Ardour follows the conventions used by most other computer software
  (including other DAWs) for <dfn>selecting objects</dfn> in the 
  <abbr title="Graphical User Interface">GUI</abbr>.
</p>

<h2>Selecting individual objects</h2>
<p>
  Clicking on an object (sometimes on a particular part of its
  on-screen representation) will select the object, and deselect other
  similar objects.
</p>

<h2>Selecting multiple (similar) objects</h2>
<p>
  A <kbd class="mod1 mouse">left</kbd> click on an object toggles its 
  <samp>selected</samp> status, so using <kbd class="mod1 mouse">left</kbd>
  on a series of objects will select (or deselect) each one of them. You can
  construct completely arbitrary selections with this technique.
</p>

<h2>Selecting a range of objects</h2>
<p>
  In cases where the idea of "select all objects between this one and that
  one" makes sense, you can select one object and then click
  <kbd class="mod3 mouse">left</kbd> on another to select both of them as
  well as all objects in between.
</p>

<h2>Time range selection</h2>
<p>
  To select a time <dfn>range</dfn> in the Editor,
  click <kbd class="mouse">Left</kbd> and drag the mouse. 
  A <kbd class="mod1 mouse">Left</kbd> drag then lets you create other
  ranges and a <kbd class="mod3 mouse">left</kbd> click extends a range
  to cover a wider area.
</p>

<h2>Selection Undo</h2>
<p>
  The set of objects (including time range) that are selected at any one 
  time is known as the selection.
  Each time you select or deselect an object, the new selection is stored in an
  undo/redo stack.
  This stack is cleared each time the content of the timeline changes.
  If you have built up a complex selection and then accidentally cleared it,
  choosing <kbd class="menu">Edit &gt; Undo Selection Change</kbd> will restore your
  previous selection.
  If you then decide that you had in fact made the correct change, choosing
  <kbd class="menu">Edit &gt; Redo Selection Change</kbd> will take you back
  to where you were before you chose <kbd class="menu">Edit &gt; Undo Selection Change</kbd>.
</p>