Maptitude Help / Filters, Queries, and Selection Sets / Selection Set Basics

Selection Set Basics

When you use the selection tools or commands, the results are normally placed in a selection set named “Selection.” However, you are not limited to a single selection set. In fact, Maptitude lets you create any number of selection sets for each layer or dataview, and give each one a distinctive name. You can choose which selection set to use when using any of the selection tools or commands and you can choose whether to allow selection sets to overlap.

Different parts of Standard toolbar used for selection sets identified

You use the Selection menu commands, the tools in the Selection Tools drop-down (1) on the Standard toolbar, the tools in the Selection Management drop-down (2) on the Standard toolbar, the Current Selection drop-down list (3), and the Selection Sets dialog box to create, maintain, and delete selection sets.

Selection tool buttons on the Standard toolbar

You use the tools to:

Choose a Selection Set to Use with the Selection Tools
Pick tools to select features directly from a map
Clear a selection set
Create an empty new selection set
Select features based on a condition
Change the appearance of features in a selection set
Zoom to a selection set
Display only features that are in selection sets
Open the Selection Sets dialog box

You use the Selection Sets dialog box to:

Optional tools allow you to:

Optional Selection Sets running total and navigation buttons

Blue triangle selection icon To Choose a Selection Set to Use with the Selection Tools

Choose the selection set you want to use from the Current Selection drop-down list on the Standard toolbar.

From now on, the selection tools will work on the chosen selection set.

Blue triangle selection icon To Create a Selection Set

Click on the Standard toolbar. Maptitude displays the New Selection Set dialog box.
Enter a name for the new selection set and click OK.

— OR —

Choose Selection>Settings, or click in the Selection Management drop-down on the Standard toolbar to display the Selection Sets dialog box.
Click Add Set. Maptitude displays the New Selection Set dialog box.
Enter a name for the new selection set and click OK.

Blue triangle selection icon To Rename a Selection Set

Choose Selection>Settings, or click in the Selection Management drop-down on the Standard toolbar to display the Selection Sets dialog box.
Choose the selection set you want to rename from the scroll list.
Click Rename to display the Rename Selection Set dialog box.
Type a new name in the New Name text box.
Click OK. Maptitude renames the selection set and updates the map legend accordingly. You cannot rename the selection set named “Selection.”
Click Close to close the Selection Sets dialog box.

TIP: You can also display the Rename Selection Set dialog box by right-clicking on a selection set in the Display Manager and choosing Rename.

Blue triangle selection icon To Clear a Selection Set

Choose the set you want to clear from the Current Selection drop-down list on the Standard toolbar.
Click on the Standard toolbar.

— OR —

Choose Selection>Settings, or click in the Selection Management drop-down on the Standard toolbar to display the Selection Sets dialog box.
Choose one or more selection sets to clear from the scroll list.
Click Clear Set.

If you choose more than one selection set, Maptitude displays a Confirm dialog box. Click Yes.

Maptitude clears the selection set or sets and updates the number of records.

Click Close to close the Selection Sets dialog box.

TIP: You can also delete a selection set by right-clicking on a selection set in the Display Manager and choosing Remove.

Blue triangle selection icon To Rearrange or Delete Selection Sets

Choose Selection>Settings, or click in the Selection Management drop-down on the Standard toolbar to display the Selection Sets dialog box.
Choose one or more selection sets to move from the scroll list.
Make choices as follows:

To do this...	Do this...
Rearrange the order of sets	Click Move Up or Move Down. When a map feature is in more than one selection set, selection sets later in the list have priority over selection sets earlier in the list when Maptitude determines the style and label for that map feature. The selection set named “Selection” cannot be moved.
Delete the sets	Click Drop Set. Click Yes when Maptitude asks you to confirm that you want to drop the selection set.

Click Close to close the Selection Sets dialog box.