Mac OS 9 Lives

Classic Mac OS Software => Digital Audio Workstations & MIDI Applications => Pro Tools by Digidesign => Topic started by: mrhappy on November 04, 2015, 07:56:34 PM

Title: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: mrhappy on November 04, 2015, 07:56:34 PM
Was recording some vocals today and PT won't let me drag across adjacent tracks to select audio to edit... so to try and explain better...

For example: Say you have 3 takes and you want to edit off some noise at the beginning of all three...  normally I could 'click' at the start of the 1st/top track and 'Drag' the mouse to the right, while also pulling the mouse down at a 45 degree angle, which would then encompass the tracks below in the 'selection' ... the farther down you pull, the more tracks you select.

For some reason it won't do this anymore... now when I drag and pull down, the selection will only stay horizontally on the top track. This is driving me nuts!!

Has anyone had this happen before?? I was thinking I hit some key shortcut accidentally that disabled it... Can't figure it out. :-\ :'(

Using 5.1.3
Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: RTIInstaller on November 05, 2015, 05:38:28 PM
Was recording some vocals today and PT won't let me drag across adjacent tracks to select audio to edit... so to try and explain better...

For example: Say you have 3 takes and you want to edit off some noise at the beginning of all three...  normally I could 'click' at the start of the 1st/top track and 'Drag' the mouse to the right, while also pulling the mouse down at a 45 degree angle, which would then encompass the tracks below in the 'selection' ... the farther down you pull, the more tracks you select.

For some reason it won't do this anymore... now when I drag and pull down, the selection will only stay horizontally on the top track. This is driving me nuts!!

Has anyone had this happen before?? I was thinking I hit some key shortcut accidentally that disabled it... Can't figure it out. :-\ :'(

Using 5.1.3
Click and hold on the hand tool it will give you three choices, choose object, click that option then you will be able to do what you want as you described
Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: RTIInstaller on November 05, 2015, 05:45:09 PM
If you want to highlight just a portion of several tracks then select the waveform edit tool next to the hand tool. Hold down the shift key and then click each track sequentially top to bottom at the beginning of where you want to make your edit across all those tracks, then while still holding the shift key click the range to the right or left as the case may be on the top track everything between your first selection and the last will be highlighted.
Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: mrhappy on November 06, 2015, 10:48:09 AM

Click and hold on the hand tool it will give you three choices, choose object, click that option then you will be able to do what you want as you described

Thanks RT but I'm talking about when using the 'selector' tool (that you refer to as waveform edit tool)... normally I can 'click' to make a 'selection' and while continuing to hold the mouse down, 'Drag' to the right AND down at a 45 degree angle simultaneously... the 'selections' turn black to show you what you've selected... the further down you pull the mouse, the more tracks get encompassed in the selection and also turn black. It's basic Mac/mouse behavior that I'm trying to describe.

For some reason when I use my normal 'click/drag/pull down' technique, the mouse is just 'stuck' on the initial track 'clicked' on and won't make the jump to adjacent track... it goes horizontal just fine though. All other 'selecting' behaviors seems normal.

I was hoping it was some little known key command that I hit accidentally but I'm thinking it must be something else as I just did a fresh OS/PT install and it's still behaving in the same manor. Wondering if my install disk has some teenie corruption on it???

Previously tried PRAM zap, different keyboard/mouse, trashing prefs and now even a fresh install on a different computer!!! HOLY SHIT, I feel like I'm in a Twighlight Zone episode!! ::)


Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: GaryN on November 06, 2015, 03:44:24 PM
I know little to nothing about vintage PT but…it occurs to me that in many Mac apps (especially draw stuff) one can limit the cursor movements to specific angles (typically 45 or 90 degrees) by holding down the shift key while dragging. While I doubt you have a stuck shift key without knowing it, is there a pref somewhere to "restrict to horizontal" during waveform selection / editing or something similar?

Mmmm…you don't have a stuck key…right?
Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: mrhappy on November 06, 2015, 04:23:58 PM
Think the shift is ok... Did try alternate keyboard/ mouse with same results. Have been looking for some sort of pref but haven't found the 'horizontal' one yet!!
Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: GaryN on November 06, 2015, 07:47:32 PM
Here's another dumb question… is there anything about such things in the manual?

Mmmm…you do have the manual(s)…right?
Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: mrhappy on November 06, 2015, 09:29:32 PM
Been scouring the manual too!
Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: GaryN on November 07, 2015, 03:40:42 PM
No no… scouring removes the ink - you must read grasshopper…

Tried dragging while holding various command keys? I know that wouldn't explain why it just worked before, but it's the way I would have written the app…
Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: RTIInstaller on November 11, 2015, 02:21:43 PM
Unfortunately, Click and drag does not work they way you want it to in this version of tools. I have always been bummed about this as well.
Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: mrhappy on November 11, 2015, 04:13:31 PM
Yes I've been reading that but it HAS been working on my system that way!!...HOLY SHIT... I'm REALLY feeling like I'm in a twilight zone episode now!!!  :o :o
Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: mrhappy on November 11, 2015, 04:17:33 PM
I was just gonna post to see if anyone can do this on 5.1.... I guess the gov't conspiracy has worked... As I'm now believing that I've lost my mind... NO SHIT!!!!  :'(
Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: mrhappy on November 11, 2015, 05:02:26 PM
RTI... Ok... if 5.1.3 can't operate this way I agree... It's a bit of a bummer, but the worst part is that I would have bet my LIFE that I've been editing this way on my system... and if pressed, probably still would!!! HOLY FRIGGIN' SHIT!!! ;D ;D

I can pass off the past 3 days of uninstalling/initializing/reinstalling as time getting to know OS9 better! ;D  I know this... If it wasn't for the MacTron/DieHard/Nova/whoever else 'ASR Restore Software' download here on OS9Lives I'd have takin' the bridge by now!!! Thanks Guys and sorry for wasting anyone's time with this! ::)
Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: RTIInstaller on January 02, 2016, 12:05:25 AM
RTI... Ok... if 5.1.3 can't operate this way I agree... It's a bit of a bummer, but the worst part is that I would have bet my LIFE that I've been editing this way on my system... and if pressed, probably still would!!! HOLY FRIGGIN' SHIT!!! ;D ;D

I can pass off the past 3 days of uninstalling/initializing/reinstalling as time getting to know OS9 better! ;D  I know this... If it wasn't for the MacTron/DieHard/Nova/whoever else 'ASR Restore Software' download here on OS9Lives I'd have takin' the bridge by now!!! Thanks Guys and sorry for wasting anyone's time with this! ::)
I went through the same research torment, having worked with other DAW's as well as PT platforms that permit this.  I found a digi document a long while back said in almost a rude way that No this feature is not available in this version of tools. It was almost like some parting gift from digi meant to entice you to upgrade.
Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: Knezzen on January 02, 2016, 03:37:59 AM
What's this feature you're talking about? :P
Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: mrhappy on January 02, 2016, 08:01:55 AM
Knez... I tired to explain it above... you're opening up my wounds!! Haha!  I just hope the nightmares don't start happening again!!! ;D ;D

It was almost like some parting gift from digi meant to entice you to upgrade.

I know what you mean... I was feeling like it was intentionally disabled and I stumbled upon a 'secret' key combination that toggled it on and off!!! If I could only remember what it was!!! ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D

Title: Re: Can't 'drag/select' multiple tracks with mouse???
Post by: RTIInstaller on January 08, 2016, 11:21:50 PM
I don't remember if I mentioned this before but.

Click and hold on the hand tool. From the menu tree choose "OBJECT" Now hold the shift key and select multiple tacks.

The problem with this is it will only select tracks, it will not select a range from multiple tracks, as in being able to cut or copy from multiple tracks.

So what I do is choose the "waveform" / "range" selection tool and while holding the shift key click the beginning of your edit point on the first track and then click the next track below that and so forth until all the tracks I want to edit are selected, now while still holding the shift key click the exit point of your edit in the bottom right of the lowest track, this will highlight the entire area you want to edit.

Clunky but it works.

Oh I see I already posted this a while back  :P