Molecular modelers often need precise control over the visibility and properties of their models. One common task is isolating and highlighting specific elements within a visual model. This is where the selected attribute of the Visual Model Node Specification Language (NSL) can make a significant impact, simplifying workflows and enhancing productivity.
The selected attribute belongs to the visualModel attribute space (short name: vm) and determines whether a node in the model is selected or not. This can be particularly useful when analyzing or manipulating complex molecular structures.
How Does the selected Attribute Work?
The selected attribute is inherited from the node attribute space, but it does not have a short name. It can take two possible boolean values: true or false. These values represent the selection state of a visual model node. For instance:
vm.selected: This checks if a node is currently selected.not vm.selected: This checks if a node is not selected.
When to Use the selected Attribute
Molecular modelers often need to focus on specific atoms, residues, or other structural components while leaving out the rest of the model. Here are a few use cases:
- Targeted Modifications: Use the
selectedattribute to modify only the selected subset of nodes in your model, ensuring precision in your changes. - High-Performance Rendering: You can identify and operate exclusively on selected nodes to enhance performance when dealing with large models.
- Isolated Analysis: By querying
vm.selected, you can easily extract and focus on the parts of the model that are currently relevant to your analysis.
Practical Examples
To illustrate how the selected attribute works, let’s look at a couple of simple NSL expressions:
vm.selected– Find and interact with all currently selected visual nodes in your model.not vm.selected– Identify nodes that are not currently selected, allowing you to invert selections or isolate unselected elements.
Getting Started with NSL
If you’re new to the Node Specification Language (NSL) in SAMSON, the selected attribute is a great entry point for exploring its capabilities. By mastering selection queries, you can dramatically enhance your molecular modeling workflow.
For more details and to explore related features, visit the original documentation page: Visual Model Attributes in NSL.
SAMSON and all SAMSON Extensions are free for non-commercial use. You can get SAMSON here.