Option duplicate

[etweed]

From time to time, the abilty to hold "option" and drag to make a duplicate stops working. It goes in spurts and becomes very aggrivating. Anyone else had this problem?

[Guest]

I haven't noticed this -- can you give us some more details?

-What platform, configuration, and OS version are you using?

-Is there anything in particular that we can do to make the problem happen?

-Does it sometimes happen right away, or does it only happen after you've been running VectorWorks for a long time?

-Does it happen more, or only, with certain files?

Thanks.

[etweed]

After more experimentation, I have come to the conclusion that Mr. Miller is mostly right (Although I am on a Mac). I had gotten accustomed to pressing the option key and letting go before letting up on the mouse. Now that I am in VW-9, I will just have to get used to holding the option key down until the task is finished.

If anyone could post a reply verifying that the release order affects this function, (Especially on Mac) I would be grateful and will rest easier.

[Andrew Bell@NV]

I believe the behavior of the dragging has changed such that it only matters whether the ctrl/option key is pressed when the mouse button is released. Note that the cursor changes depending on whether the key is down (the little + symbol appears if it's going to create a duplicate), so you do get visual feedback of what's happening. So you can drag what you want to duplicate without holding any keys, and then press the key just before you release the mouse button. You don't need to hold it the whole time.

------------------

Andrew Bell

andrewb@nemetschek.net

I am not an official spokesperson for NNA

[etweed]

Andrew is right, by 1st dragging and then pressing option right before releasing the mouse, it duplicates. Thanks.

NNA, I do appreciate the addition of the + under this circumstance.

Am I crazy or was it different in VW8?

[Guest]

I can't speak to the sanity issue, but yes, the behavior did change between VectorWorks 8 and VectorWorks 9. One advantage of the VW9 method is that you can change your mind about whether to move or copy the object you're dragging. This may be a disadvantage if you're the sort of person who has trouble with the "Paper or plastic?" question at the grocery store, but I think most folks will benefit from the ability to switch between move and copy behavior after they've started the drag.

Note that you can also completely cancel a drag operation by pressing either the escape key or command-period.