When working with complex molecular systems, fine-tuning details like atom charges, bond orders, or node visibility is a common yet often tedious part of the modeling process. For many molecular modelers, the challenge is not just building a structure, but managing its many components efficiently. SAMSON’s Inspector provides a structured and responsive way to edit molecular node properties — simplifying a task that traditionally involves multiple steps and scattered commands.
In SAMSON, every document is composed of a hierarchical graph of nodes, including atoms, bonds, groups, and higher-level structures. The Inspector allows you to select multiple nodes and immediately view and edit their properties. It’s a central tool for those who want direct access to molecular data without scripting or command-line tools.
Viewing Node Properties
To open the Inspector, go to Interface > Inspector or use the shortcut Ctrl + 2 on Windows and Linux, or Cmd + 2 on Mac.
Once a node is selected in the document view or the viewport, its properties — such as element type, position, visibility, or custom attributes — are displayed in the Inspector. This significantly reduces the overhead of navigating multiple menus to find and change these settings.
Editing Multiple Nodes
One of the most powerful features of the Inspector is its ability to edit multiple selected nodes simultaneously. For example, if you select several hydrogen atoms and want to hide them from the viewport to focus on the backbone structure, simply toggle the visibility setting in the Inspector. The change applies to all selected nodes.
Similarly, specific tags or names can be batch-edited this way. This saves time for users who often prepare systems for analysis or simulation.
Filter Attributes Quickly
The Inspector also includes a filter bar that lets you instantly narrow down displayed attributes. Want to adjust only the charge of selected atoms? Type “charge” in the filter to view only the charge-related property fields. This helps in complex documents where hundreds of parameters could be listed.
Trajectory and Path Visualization
The Inspector is not limited to static properties. You can also use it to preview and control particle trajectories or animations. This is especially useful when visualizing the path of a molecule across simulation frames or when preparing animations for presentations.
Conclusion
The Inspector in SAMSON acts like a molecular dashboard, giving modelers full control over the properties of any component — be it manual editing, visualization tweaks, or fast data interrogation. It helps simplify workflows, reduce errors, and maintain clarity, especially in large or multi-layered molecular systems.
If you want to explore more about SAMSON’s interface and tools, visit the official documentation page.
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. You can get SAMSON at https://www.samson-connect.net.