One of the recurring challenges faced by molecular modelers is fine-tuning the structural details of their models without introducing inconsistencies. Whether you’re adjusting atomic positions, types, or making minor corrections in a structure, you often want surgical precision over your changes — especially when dealing with groups of selected atoms. This is where the Inspector in SAMSON can play a key role.
The Inspector provides a centralized way to view and modify the attributes (also known as properties) of any selected node — be it a single atom or an entire residue. Understanding how to work with these attributes efficiently, especially when multiple nodes are selected, can save time and avoid errors such as accidentally assigning the same position to several atoms.
Relative vs. Absolute Attribute Editing
When several atoms are selected, the Inspector shows the attribute values of the last selected atom. If you modify an attribute like position, this value will be applied structure-wide — but there’s an important distinction here: whether the change is relative or absolute.
By default, the Relative checkbox is enabled. This means that if you change one atom’s position, the rest of the selected atoms will update their coordinates by the same displacement (i.e., they all move together as a group — preserving their relative distances).
If you uncheck the Relative option, then the new value you enter will be assigned to all atoms uniformly (e.g., the same XYZ coordinates), which could force them to collapse into the same point in 3D space.
Note
You can always undo actions thanks to SAMSON’s built-in history mechanism. So experimenting is safe.
Filtering for Faster Modifications
Another advantage offered by the Inspector is the ability to filter the list of attributes. This is especially useful when working on complex structures that expose a large number of properties.
Start by selecting at least one atom. Then, in the Inspector’s search bar, type a keyword like position. You’ll immediately see only the attributes that match, allowing you to target specific properties without distraction.
Resetting Attributes to Default
Mistaken edits or exploratory changes are not a problem. If an attribute supports resetting, simply hover your cursor over an attribute’s label. When the cursor changes, double-click to revert the value to its default.
Why This Matters
Structural integrity is vital in molecular modeling. Mistakes in atom positioning or type assignments can affect simulations, interpretations, and visualizations. The ability to inspect, target, and batch-edit atom-level attributes without disrupting a model’s geometry allows for more confident and precise modeling workflows.
Whether you’re correcting imported structures, preparing initial configurations for simulation, or simply curating a better visual layout, the Inspector ensures that attribute changes are both visible and reversible.
Learn more in the official SAMSON documentation.
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. You can get SAMSON at https://www.samson-connect.net.