A molecular model can look convincing while an animation is playing, then become difficult to inspect or reuse afterward. If you need to capture where atoms moved during a presentation, the key is to record their trajectories—not just the motion you see on screen. In SAMSON, the Record path animation adds a track that records atom positions as the presentation runs.
This is useful when a presentation already contains animations that change atomic positions. For example, you might want to capture the result of an Assemble, Dock, Move atoms, or Simulate animation. Record path can work alongside these animations, so the resulting positions can later be added to the document as a Path node.
Put the recorder after the motion
The most important setup detail is the order of animations. The Animator executes animations from top to bottom, so place Record path below the animations whose movements you want to capture. If it appears before them, it may not record the positions produced by those animations in the intended order.
Add the effect by double-clicking Record path in the Animation panel. Its keyframe is placed at the current frame. You can move that keyframe if the recording should start at a different point in the presentation. Keyframes are movable, so you can adjust the timing without having to treat their initial placement as final.
Read the track before exporting
The track gives you a quick visual check of recording progress. A green segment means positions have been recorded for that part of the timeline. A red segment means positions have not yet been recorded, or that the recorded positions have become invalid.
This distinction helps avoid a common workflow mistake: assuming that adding the animation is the same as capturing the path. The presentation needs to be played so the recorder can collect positions. Before creating a Path node, check that the Record path track is fully green. If it is partly red, the path is not yet fully recorded or some recorded positions are no longer valid.
Record while developing; pause when you are done
Recording can be enabled or disabled from the animation’s Inspector, or by right-clicking the animation in the Animator and changing Enable recording. Disabling it can be useful for performance while you are still working on a presentation, or after the path has been recorded and is no longer changing. When recording is disabled, the animation controllers appear darkened.
A practical sequence is: arrange the animations that move atoms, place Record path after them, play the presentation to capture the motion, and inspect the track for any red sections. If you change the presentation later, check the track again; sections may need to be recorded again if their positions have become invalid.
Turn the recording into a document node
Once the presentation has been played and the Record path track is fully green, create the corresponding Path node. You can do this in either of two places: click Create path in the animation’s Inspector, or right-click Record path in the Animator and choose Create path.
Keeping the recording step distinct from the export step makes the workflow easier to check: first confirm that the animation has captured the trajectory, then create the reusable Path node. For details, see the Record path documentation.
Note: SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. Get SAMSON.