A couple of selection questions

[DavidMac]

After over two years of working with AP I am really finding ways round some of it’s quirks and limitations. But a couple of things still have me stumped.

 

1) It is easy to convert a path or shape to a selection. However has anyone found a way to convert a selection to a path? 

 

2) One of things I really miss in AP is the ability to easily combine selections to produce ‘compound’ selections. The commonest is adding individual selections to get a single combined selection. In PS this is a breeze just Cmd click the mask or layer thumbnails one by one while holding the Shift key. (Other key combos will subtract and intersect as well). I use this in PS all the time. It’s incredibly quick and useful. Sadly this doesn’t work in AP as the Shift is otherwise assigned. 

 

The best work around I have found is to load the selection from each layer or mask and then save it as a spare channel one layer at a time. By right clicking on them in the Channels palette one can then combine them as wished and then delete the channels. To call this slow and convoluted qualifies as masterly understatement. So has anyone found a better way?

 

I seem to remember, many moons ago, there were promises from the development team of introducing killer linking. Is this a figment of my imagination or is something on the drawing board?

 

This app is so, so good. But it could still get to be something really amazing. Please keep up the great work!

[toltec]

1 No, you cant.

 

2. If you group the layers you want, you can Ctrl (on a PC, command on a Mac) and make a compound selection from the group of layers.

 

The rub is, you will probably need to ungroup them again 

 

Still,I think it would be a bit quicker than the way you do it at the moment?

 

[DavidMac]

Yes. For additive compounds that is quicker. Thank you. For more complex I'll still have go the old route but that is much less common.

 

As you point out, however, I will still have to ungroup afterwards which in the case of discontiguous layers will change layer order which will then need restoring. Still pretty painful. I am amazed there appears to be no simple route for something so basic. 

 

A gentleman using Affinity

Thought selections should have addability.

But the harder he tried

The more it denied

Him this simple and basic facility.

 

[DavidMac]

10 hours ago, toltec said:

2. If you group the layers you want, you can Ctrl (on a PC, command on a Mac) and make a compound selection from the group of layers.

 

The rub is, you will probably need to ungroup them again 

 

Still,I think it would be a bit quicker than the way you do it at the moment?

 

Hi Toltec

 

I've been playing with this is idea a bit and moved it forward slightly ...... er ........ I think .......... 

 

The problem is discontiguous layers where grouping will destroy order when ungrouped. Here's plan B. Multiple select the layers whose selections you want to combine (contiguous or discontiguous) and Duplicate. The duplicates will stay selected so then simply group them. It doesn't matter where in the stack the new group appears since all we need to do now is load it's selection and delete it. The original layers remain untouched. Its fairly quick and easy. 

"That's a very handsome nut you have there Sir .................................. What kind of sledgehammer can I help you with?" 

[toltec]

Sounds like a good plan. Grouped, they make a sort of "superselector" layer.