When working with complex molecular systems, molecular modelers often need to alternate between creating, modifying, and analyzing structures. SAMSON provides a modular approach to streamline this workflow through the concept of editors: dedicated tools that let you perform specific interactive tasks like generating nanotubes or applying transformations.
One of the first questions new users often ask is: why can’t I activate multiple editors at once?
This is not a limitation—it’s an intentional design decision that significantly improves usability and reduces unexpected behavior.
What are editors in the first place?
SAMSON editors are interactive tools designed to respond to user inputs such as mouse clicks or keyboard presses. They can do many tasks—from creating new geometries (e.g., nanotubes, atomistic models) to modifying existing parts of the scene or selecting sets of atoms.
Typical examples include:
- A nanotube generator that constructs a whole nanotube in seconds
- A rectangle selection editor that helps you quickly select groups of atoms
- A deformation editor that bends molecular structures while preserving rigidity
- A rigid-body transformation tool to reposition a model in space
These are highly specialized tools, and activating more than one at a time could cause overlapping or contradictory behaviors. For example, what would happen if you tried to generate a nanotube and simultaneously apply a transformation to something else? That’s exactly the kind of ambiguity the one-editor-at-a-time approach avoids.
How to switch between editors
You can find the list of available editors in the left-side menu of the viewport. The currently active editor appears in the top-left of the viewport where you can also quickly toggle or access its specific commands.
Want a faster way to change editors without navigating through menus? Just use the Find everything search box at the top of the interface. Typing the editor’s name often brings it right up for quick access.
Flexibility through extensibility
SAMSON comes with a set of editors installed by default. However, if you need something more specific, you can always download additional editors through SAMSON Connect. This makes the platform highly customizable—without overwhelming the interface, since only one editor is ever active at a time.
Want to create your own editor?
If you have a unique workflow that demands a custom tool, you can develop your own editors using the SAMSON Extension Generator. You’ll find everything you need at the Documentation center to get started with your own interactive tools.
Having just one active editor at a time helps keep your work focused and your interactions predictable. It’s a quiet design choice that prevents a lot of headaches in molecular modeling workflows.
To learn more about editors in SAMSON, visit the official documentation.
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. You can download the platform at https://www.samson-connect.net.