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Motif and CDE 2.1 Style Guide Reference

Primary Transfer

Reference

Description

Primary transfer is a transfer mechanism by which the primary selection is transferred to a destination. The primary transfer operations are primary copy, primary link, and primary move. The following list describes these operations:

Primary Copy
An action choice that copies the contents of the primary selection to a specified location or to an object or objects displayed within the window.

Primary Link
An action choice that places a link to the elements contained in the primary selection in a specified location or in an object or objects displayed within the window.

Primary Move
An action choice that moves the contents of the primary selection to a specified location or to an object or objects displayed within the window.

When to Use

Required
If a scope uses primary selection, allow the selection to be used as the source of a primary transfer.

Required
If an element can be used as a target of a data transfer operation, support primary transfer to it.

Guidelines

Required
The source of a primary transfer is the primary selection.

Required
The target of a primary transfer is the control for which the primary transfer was invoked.

Required
The default operation for a TRANSFER button-based primary transfer is a copy, though it may be overridden with the Ctrl and/or Shift modifiers.

Required
When TRANSFER is bound to MB2, allow the user to click the TRANSFER button, optionally augmented with Shift and/or Ctrl, for primary transfers.

Required
If the user presses the TRANSFER button within a primary selection that can be dragged, initiate the drag.

Required
If TRANSFER is a separate mouse button from SELECT and the user presses the TRANSFER button outside of a primary selection, but at a position where both a drag can be initiated and data can be pasted by a primary transfer, then use the user-specified timeout and motion threshold in the following ways to distinguish drag initiation from primary transfer:

  1. After the user presses the TRANSFER button, if the motion of the pointer exceeds the motion thresholds, initiate a drag.

  2. If the user presses and releases the TRANSFER button within the timeout period, perform a primary transfer.

  3. When the timeout period expires, initiate a drag. But, if the user releases the TRANSFER button before exceeding the motion threshold, cancel the drag.

    4. Required
    Select the data transferred to a target scope as a result of a primary move operation if the target is using normal mode.

    Required
    A primary transfer must move the focus to the target control.

    Recommended
    Duplicate the selected data when the user invokes a primary copy in a linearly organized scope by one of the following:

    1. Using the TRANSFER button with the pointer at the edge of the primary selection

    2. Choosing the operation from a menu popped up at the edge of a primary selection

    3. Choosing the operation from the Edit menu, or pressing the shortcut key for it when the cursor is at the edge of the primary selection

      4. Essential Related Topics

      For more information, see the Data Transfer and Direct Manipulation reference pages.

      Supplemental Related Topics

      For more information, see the Mouse (Device) and Pop-Up Menu (Menu Type) reference pages.

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