If you’ve ever spent hours building a molecular model only to make one accidental change that unravels your carefully constructed scene, you’re not alone. Molecular modeling often requires experimentation, and mistakes are a natural part of a creative scientific process. The good news? In SAMSON, you’ll find built-in Undo and Redo capabilities that can give you back control over your molecular workflows.
Each SAMSON document has an independent history — a timeline of the actions you’ve taken. Whether you’re adjusting geometries, creating annotations, or applying force fields, most of these actions can be undone when needed. This history is local to the document, ensuring that changes in one model don’t affect others unintentionally.
Accessing the History View
The History view lets you visualize and navigate through your edits. You can find this panel under Interface > History. For quicker access, try the keyboard shortcuts:
- Windows / Linux:
Ctrl + 3 - Mac:
Cmd + 3
Within the History view, you can click on individual actions to jump back to a previous state. This gives you a clear visual reference of your workflow, which is extremely helpful when you’re testing different modeling approaches or comparing alternatives.
Keyboard Shortcuts for Undo and Redo
- Undo:
Ctrl + Z(Windows/Linux) orCmd + Z(Mac) - Redo:
Ctrl + Y(Windows/Linux) orCmd + Y(Mac)
These shortcuts can also be accessed from the Edit menu. You can combine history navigation with manual control to fine-tune your modeling flow.
Important Notes on Limitations
Note
While SAMSON supports undoing most operations, not everything can be reversed. If you perform non-undoable actions between undoable ones, the history may become inconsistent. This might prevent proper undoing and could result in losing some work. It’s always a good idea to save versions of your model frequently when doing complex tasks.
Why This Matters
Being able to experiment safely is essential in molecular modeling. The ability to undo or redo actions provides a mental safety net that improves productivity and confidence. Instead of worrying about making mistakes, you can now explore more freely, revisit past states, and avoid the frustration of having to restart modeling steps.
So next time you’re deep in a modeling session and realize something isn’t quite right, remember there’s no need to panic — your work isn’t lost. SAMSON’s history features are there to support your modeling process.
To learn more about working with undo and redo in SAMSON, visit the official documentation here.
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. You can download SAMSON at https://www.samson-connect.net.