Edit Ladder Elements
Only ladder elements that have fields on which the caret can be placed can be modified. If the Ladder element that is being edited is something other than an instruction field, the editing is done on the ASCII Command Line bar. For example:
- double-click on the Rung Selection region to edit the entire rung. This is done in ASCII or Neutral Text.
- double-click on the operand to edit the operand
- double-click on the Rung Comment to edit the rung comment
Even though the caret can be placed on the end rung and the rung can be selected, no editing can be performed on or with this rung. When the cursor is placed on the End Rung, all Ladder Editor editing operations are disabled.
To begin editing an editable field of a Ladder element:
- select any alpha-numeric key (selecting an alpha-numeric key overwrites what is currently in the Ladder element’s field with the character of the key that was selected)
- select the Enter key
- double-click the field (double-clicking on a Ladder element performs the same action as a single click on that Ladder element)
To add a comment to an instruction, use the menus or the properties dialog box for the Ladder element [F].
When entering a tag (that currently exists in the database) into an operand field of an instruction ladder element, the download fault files that belong to that operand field are automatically updated.
- the rail.
- Use the ASCII Command Line Bar to modify a branch.
Dragging and Dropping Ladder elements
The Ladder Editor allows you to drag selected Ladder elements by using the Mouse.
Using the mouse, you can left mouse click a ladder element and drag (move) the ladder element to another location. If you hold down the Control Key, the ladder element is copied to the new location.
TIP:
You can only copy operands.
When dragging one or more ladder elements, the Ladder Editor displays symbols representing available valid drop zones:
- (Green Circle) for anactive validdrop target.
- (White Square) for aninactive validdrop target.
There is only one active valid (green) drop zone at a time. This green drop zone is where the Ladder element is placed once the mouse button is released.
Even though drop zones are calculated for multiple rungs, drop zones only become valid on a "per-rung" basis. This means that a drop zone which the ladder editor sees as valid, may be farther away (on a pixel basis) than a potential drop zone on a different rung.
When dragging a Ladder element within the same routine, the default action is to move the Ladder element. When draggin a Ladder element into another routine, the default action becomes a copy.
Dropping a Ladder element into another view (same routine or not) does not set the focus to the window in which the Ladder element was dropped.
TIP:
Dropping a Ladder element does not set activation.
If a Ladder element is dropped in the same place it was, the Ladder Editor takes no action. The Ladder element is not copied/moved, and there is no undo/redo item.
Dragging and Dropping Instructions
Select a single instruction, then either drag the entire instruction or an instruction field. The caret placement determines the data to be dragged.
- If the caret is placed on the Instruction’s Mnemonic field (click on or navigating to the instruction with the keyboard), the entire instruction gets dragged.
- If the caret is placed on an instruction field, only the instruction field gets dragged.
If more than one instruction is selected, then it does not matter where the caret is; all the instructions are dragged.
Dragging and Dropping Rungs
To drag a rung, drag the Rung Selection Region of the rung. When dragging a rung, you can only insert the copied/moved rung in another location. This allows copying rungs or moving a rung to another location.
Dragging and Dropping a Left Branch Rail
Dragging a Left Branch Rail’s field allows you to move an entire branch level. This reorders the branch levels, puts the level on another branch, or puts the instructions on the level onto a rung.
Right Branch Rail
By default, dragging a Right Branch Rail allows you to move the Right Branch Rail of the branch on the rung. Holding the
Ctrl key
or the Alt key
down, drags the entire branch.For the keyboard user, using the menus can display the Move Branch Rail dialog box.
The Move Branch Rail dialog box allows you to type in a target of the right branch rail. The targets are marked by the green markers. Once you click OK, the right branch rail is moved.
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