Documentation | Help File | UI | 2D Mode | Menu | Edit | Copy Special

Clicking on the Edit/Copy Special menu item provides the means for copying shapes from a vector layer to the temporary clipboard layer in a custom (advanced) manner. This operation does not remove the shapes from the source layer.

To copy a shape or a group of shapes to the temporary clipboard layer in a custom way

1. Activate (highlight) the layer from which the shapes are to be copied. Do this by clicking on its name in the Legend.
2. Use any of the following selection methods to select the shapes: Localize, Select by Point, Select by Line, Select by Polygon, Select by Circle, Select by Rectangle, Select by Line Free, Select by Clipboard, Select by Query, Select All.
3. Click on the Edit/Copy Special menu item - this invokes the Copy Special dialog box.
4. Within the Copy Special dialog box, choose one of the Source options to define how the selected shapes are copied from the source layer.
5. Choose one of the Copy type options to define the way in which the copied shapes are stored to the temporary clipboard layer.
6. Click on the OK button.

or

1. Activate (highlight) the layer from which the shapes are to be copied. Do this by clicking on its name in the Legend.
2. Expand the context menu by clicking with the right mouse button on the layer name in the Legend and click on the Open layer data item - the Data panel will appear at the bottom of the Editor window.
3. In the Data panel, click on the GIS_SELECTED property checkboxes of the desired shapes - this operation selects these shapes.
4. Click on the Edit/Copy Special menu item - this invokes the Copy Special dialog box.
5. Within the Copy Special dialog box, choose one of the Source options to define how the selected shapes are copied from the source layer.
6. Choose one of the Copy type options to define the way in which the copied shapes are stored to the temporary clipboard layer.
7. Click on the OK button.

• Selection - copy only the spatial selection figure. This applies to the Select by Line, Select by Polygon, Select by Circle, Select by Rectangle and Select by Line Free selection methods. If none of these selection methods is used, this option will be inactive.
• Selected shapes (individual) - copy all selected shapes individually as separate objects (exactly as they were in the source layer).
• Selected shapes (union) - copy all selected shapes as a single fused object (as when using the regular Copy feature).

• Intersection ( * ) - places on the temporary clipboard layer the shapes that are common between the newly copied objects and the shapes that were already in the temporary clipboard layer.
• Difference ( Clipboard - Source ) - leaves on the temporary clipboard layer the shapes that are not common with the newly copied shapes.
• Difference ( Source - Clipboard ) - places on the temporary clipboard layer the part of the newly copied shapes that is not common with the shapes already present in the temporary clipboard layer.
• Symmetrical difference ( XOR ) - places on the temporary clipboard layer the part of the newly copied shapes and the part of the shapes already present on the temporary clipboard layer that are not common.
• Replace - replace all shapes present on the temporary clipboard layer with the newly copied shapes.
• Add - adds selected shapes to the temporary clipboard layer, does not change the previous content of the temporary clipboard layer.

Copy Special dialog box.

• The icon on the Standard toolbar.
• The Copy Special item in the Map area context menu.

• To transfer all shapes from the temporary clipboard layer to a vector layer, use the Paste feature.
• To save all shapes stored in the temporary clipboard layer to a new vector layer file, use the Save Clipboard feature.

• To move selected shapes to the temporary clipboard layer, use the Cut feature.
• To copy selected shapes to the temporary clipboard layer, use the Copy feature.

• The temporary clipboard layer is a virtual object (stored in memory) automatically created by the Copy Special feature and is not file type specific.
• The Copy Special operation concerns only the shape's geometry, and not the attributes.