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Mouse and Canvas Controls
RailKernel is designed for direct interaction with the railway. Most drawing, editing, operation and diagnosis begins by pointing at the relevant object on the canvas instead of searching through a large table.
Direct interaction with the canvas
The meaning of a mouse action depends on the current canvas mode and the object under the pointer. In normal mode you inspect, select, edit and operate existing objects. In a drawing or definition mode, the same buttons place track or select the elements that belong to a feedback, accessory, block or route. The pointer and preview indicate the active operation.
Left-click: select, place and confirm
A single left-click normally selects or activates the object under the pointer. During drawing it places the current preview or selects a connector. During definition workflows it adds the clicked track element to the current selection. Dialog buttons and lists use the ordinary platform behaviour: left-click selects an entry or confirms a command.
Double-click: open the relevant editor
Double-clicking a feedback, block label, block or accessory opens its editor when that object supports direct editing. This is the quickest way to inspect or change an existing definition. If several visible objects overlap, use the context menu or the corresponding manager when the intended object is not the one selected by the double-click.
Right-click: context or completion
In normal mode, right-click opens a context menu for the object under the pointer. During a specialised operation it can have a more immediate meaning: it may finish a multi-element selection, cancel a temporary selection, or rotate and cycle through drawing proposals. Always interpret the right-click together with the active mode and the visible preview.
Navigate a large canvas
Use the scroll bars or normal mouse-wheel scrolling to move through a layout that is larger than the window. Drag with the middle mouse button to pan the viewport directly. Use Zoom In, Zoom Out and Fit to Window from the Grid menu when you need another scale. Fit to Window is especially useful after opening a project or when part of the railway is outside the visible area.
Mouse use while drawing track
After selecting an article from Draw, its preview follows the pointer. Left-click places the proposed article. Right-click rotates or cycles through alternative proposals when more than one connection is possible. With Flex Track, left-click the two open connectors that must be joined; the second selection creates the curve. Choose Draw > None to leave drawing mode.
Select track for a new accessory
After entering the accessory properties, RailKernel asks which track element or elements the accessory controls. Left-click the matching element on the canvas. The selected geometry must be compatible with the chosen accessory type: for example, a turnout accessory cannot be attached to unrelated straight track. A visual selection shows what will become part of the accessory. Follow the on-screen selection flow to complete it; right-click cancels the current accessory selection when applicable.
Select track for a new feedback
A feedback can cover one or more adjacent track elements. Left-click each element in physical travel order to add it to the feedback. RailKernel rejects a non-adjacent next element because a feedback section must form one continuous path. The highlighted selection updates after every click. When the complete detected section is selected, right-click to finish. If the geometry must later change, delete and define the feedback again; ordinary feedback editing does not silently replace its selected track path.
Operate the railway from the canvas
The canvas is also an operating panel. Accessories can be switched, trains can be selected or placed, and routes can be previewed or started through direct actions and context menus. Colour, labels and temporary overlays show occupancy, reservations, routes and selections. Before issuing an operational command, confirm that you clicked the intended object and that the physical railway agrees with the displayed state.
Selections, previews and temporary overlays
Selections are deliberately visible. Connector markers, highlighted track, route previews, block labels and coloured corridors tell you what the next command will affect. Many temporary previews disappear when you click elsewhere or close their dialog. If the canvas appears to remain in a special mode, finish or cancel the current operation, or choose Draw > None.