Molecular modelers often work with complex structural data and need precise control over elements within their models. One common challenge is managing labels, which are graphical elements used to annotate models. If you’ve ever struggled with making labels visible, hiding them, or selecting specific ones, SAMSON’s Node Specification Language (NSL) has tools to streamline these tasks through label attributes.
In this post, we’ll look at the label attribute space in NSL, its key components, and how you can leverage these attributes to efficiently manage labels in your molecular designs.
What Are Label Attributes?
The label attributes belong to the label attribute space (short name: la), which specifically applies to label nodes in your model. They let you describe, select, and refine label nodes in ways that make your modeling workflow more efficient.
Key Label Attributes to Know
Here’s a summary of important label-related attributes and their functionalities:
| Attribute Name | Short Name | Possible Values | Examples |
|---|---|---|---|
| hidden | h |
true, false |
la.h, not la.h |
| name | n |
Strings in quotes | la.n "A", la.n "L*" |
| selected | (no short name) | true, false |
la.selected, not la.selected |
| selectionFlag | sf |
true, false |
la.sf, la.sf false |
| visibilityFlag | vf |
true, false |
la.vf, la.vf false |
| visible | v |
true, false |
la.v, not la.v |
How These Attributes Help You
Imagine you need to make a node’s label hidden during a presentation or visualization, or to programmatically select labels with certain names. Here’s how these attributes can simplify such tasks:
- Visibility Management: Use
la.horla.vto control the appearance of labels in your visualization dynamically. - Selection Control: The
la.selectedandla.sfattributes empower you to filter, pick, or exclude nodes efficiently. - Name Matching: With
la.n, you can precisely target labels based on naming conventions or patterns (e.g., using wildcards likela.n "L*").
Getting Started
To begin using these attributes effectively, check out the label attribute space in the Node Specification Language documentation. There you’ll find detailed examples that provide a step-by-step approach to handling label nodes.
For further details, visit the original documentation at this page.
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. Get SAMSON at samson-connect.net.