Feature Request/Suggestion (modifier key magnetics)

[scottstack]

This applies to all platforms.

Regarding background shapes:

I often just want them to be magnetized when I'm moving them. When I'm not, I don't generally care if they are magnetized or not, except when I want to do a group select within the background shape. In that case, magnetized is a hindrance.

The feature I would like to see is a modifier key that causes background shapes to be temporarily magnetized such that you can use this modifier key and click drag to move a group. This is momentary, when the modifier key is released the shapes are no longer magnetized (unless they were magnetic to start with).

So in case I didn't make sense there, this would be analogous to click-drag copying using ctrl. However, because non magnetized shapes are more difficult to select for dragging (having to click the edge first), it would probably be easier to program and use if the modifier just magnetized all shapes while pressed so that you could click drag the shape using the background space of the shape.

In that sense the modifier would strictly speaking be modifying the background shapes directly, and not directly modifying the click drag.

While there are existing alternate ways to achieve this functionality, all require multiple steps that are frustrating/annoying when done frequently. This feature would increase the "stays out of my way" factor of the software.

Thanks,

--Scott

[AmberV]

While there are existing alternate ways to achieve this functionality, all require multiple steps that are frustrating/annoying when done frequently. This feature would increase the "stays out of my way" factor of the software.

That part doesn't sound right to me. Shapes are draggable (and selectable with a single click) from any area inside their borders, regardless of whether they are magnetic. The only thing that setting impacts is whether notes overlapping it also come along for the ride. Or in other words, the only reason one should ever want to make a shape magnetic is to carry the notes above it (so the talk only having it magnetic while moving it is odd to me since while-moving-it is the only difference that should matter)

Likewise, to refer to an earlier point, there should be no difference in how you are selecting interior notes, between shapes that magnetic or not. In both cases if you click anywhere in the background or click and then drag, you'll be operating on the shape---but if you hold down Shift, in both cases you'll go straight to marquee selection mode and the background shape will be ignored. So you don't have to toggle a shape to magnetic in order to select interior notes.

One last thing, have you checked the shortcut for toggling magnetic? It is Shift-Ctrl-M, so you can use that quickly in cases where you generally don't want a shape to be magnetic but want it to be just this once. Given the design of the program, that should be something much more unusual than what you are describing though, which is what I've been getting at. Maybe I'm misunderstanding something.

[scottstack]

My mistake on the having to click the border comment. I must have been thinking a different program.

I did not realize the shift drag accomplished what I was looking for, thanks for the tip.

--Scott