Selecting

For many options in EX3 you are required to select aspects of an entity on the screen while creating and editing the model, for example:

• Geometry, for editing, applying liners, restraints, etc.
• Support (e.g. bolts, liners, piles), for editing
• Loads
• Vertices

Here are some useful tips to remember when selecting.

General Rules

When an entity is selected, it will temporarily change colour or line style, to indicate that it is selected. For example, selecting any geometry changes the selected vertex, edge, surface or entity to an orange colour.

Selection Mode

There are several Selection Mode options available in the toolbar or Edit menu you can use to capture the desired entity, face, edge or vertex. Only Geometry Entities can use the face, edge or vertex selection options.

• Entity Selection : Select the entire entity.
• Faces Selection : Select a plane on a Geometry Entity.
• Edges Selection : Select a line on a Geometry Entity.
• Vertices Selection : Select a point on a Geometry Entity.
• Face, Edge, Vertex Selection : Select the closest face, edge or vertex to your cursor. If you are not hovering over a Geometry Entity, the selection will default to Entity selection mode. If you double-click a Geometry Entity you will select the entire Entity .
• Disable Selection : no further item in the program will be selected, but you will not lose the previously selected items.

Clear Selection

You can also clear all selections using the Clear Selection option in the toolbar or Edit menu.

Selection Window

Entities can be selected by drawing a rectangular Selection Window around them with the mouse (i.e. click and drag to define a window). This is useful for selecting multiple entities. When selecting entities with a window, there are two modes available that are activated by the direction you created your Selection Window:

1. click and drag from left to right: Select Inside Only - this requires that items must be COMPLETELY within the window to be selected.
2. click and drag from right to left: Select Inside or Crossing - this will select items within or crossing the window.

You will find the two window selecting modes to be useful in different situations, experiment with them to see how they work.

Selection from Visibility Pane

You can select any Entity in the Visibility pane.

Notes:

• When you select entities this way, it will automatically be an Entity select.
• In the Groups tab of the Visibility pane, you can use the checkboxes to the right of any entity or simply click on the entity name to select the Entity. The entities are arranged according to their application type such as Geology, Groundwater, Displacement/Restraints, etc.
• In the Tree tab of the Visibility pane, you simply click on the entity name to select the Entity.