Working with Icons

This section describes the mouse operations that can be done with icons, including selecting, dragging, and copying.

Selecting an Icon

To work with an icon you must first select it. Once an icon is selected, you can make a copy of it, change its name, or delete it.

All icons are surrounded by a box. When an icon is not selected, the box appears raised above the screen or window surface. When you select an icon, the box appears to sink into the screen or window surface. Icons also change color or shape when selected. For example, drawer icons change from a closed drawer to an open drawer when selected.

To select an icon:

1. Point to the icon, making sure the pointer tip is within the icon's box.
2. Click the selection button. The icon changes to show that it is selected.

If you click the selection button while the pointer is elsewhere on the screen or window, the icon is deselected and returns to its original appearance.

Selecting Multiple Icons

You can select several icons at one time. When multiple icons are selected, you can treat them as a single, entity, deleting, moving, or copying the entire group in one operation.

The two methods for selecting multiple icons using the mouse are drag selection and extended selection.

Drag selection uses the mouse to draw a box around all of the icons that you wish to select, as follows:

1. Move the pointer just outside of the outermost icon to be included in the box. That points is one corner of the box. Make sure it is not on an icon or gadget.
2. Hold down the selection button and move the mouse to place the opposite corner of the box. A dotted outline of the box is shown as you move the pointer.
3. When the box encloses all the icons to be selected, release the mouse button. All of these icons are now selected.

The extended selection method is for selecting icons that are not in a group that can be enclosed in a box, as follows:

1. Select the first icon.
2. Hold down Shift.
3. While holding down Shift, select each of the other icons.
4. Release Shift. All of the chosen icons remain selected until you select a different icon or click within a Workbench window while not holding down Shift.

Dragging an Icon

You can move icons within a window or to another window by dragging them.

To drag an icon:

1. Point to the icon.
2. Hold down the selection button and move the mouse. An image of the selected icon moves with the pointer.
3. Release the selection button when the icon is in position.

If you selected several icons, you can drag all of them at once. Hold down Shift, point to one of the icons, hold down the selection button, and move the mouse. All the selected icons move as you move the mouse.

Copy by Dragging

Copy a drawer, project, or tool to another disk by dragging the icon over the other disk's icon or into the other disk's window. The original icon stays on the original disk and a copy is created in the destination disk's window.

You cannot make a copy of an icon on the same disk with this method. To copy something onto the same disk, select its icon, and then use the Copy menu item.

You can copy several icons at once using drag selection or extended selection. When the icons to be copied are selected:

1. Hold down Shift.
2. Point to one of the selected icons and then drag it over the other disk's icon or into the other disk's window. As you drag one icon, the rest follow.
3. Release the selection button to copy the icons.