8. Executing Commands
There are different ways to enter commands:
- All commands can be executed by selecting them in a pulldown menu. Commands that need arguments will ask for them using a dialog box.
- Users that prefer keyboard input can enter commands on the command line. Parts of commands that are unique are completed automatically. It is possible to also enter the command arguments on the command line. If no or only part of the arguments are given, a dialog box will appear.
- Some frequently used commands can also be found in the popup menu associated with the right mouse button.
- Some frequently used commands and command combinations can be executed by pushing one of the buttons on the right side of the drawing area.
- Some commands have keyboard accelerators. They can be seen in the pulldown menu. These commands can be executed by using the corresponding key combination anywhere in the main window.
- If you have the log window open (use the
UserInterface command to open it if it is closed), you can repeat previous commands by clicking on them in there.
- The program executes commands that it receives on standard input. This can be used to couple MOLMOL with other programs, e. g. by writing a program (shell script) that generates commands and then piping the output of this program into MOLMOL.
Instead of giving just a constant number, you can always use expressions for numerical command arguments. Commands that act on multiple items (like atoms or bonds) will evaluate this expression for each item seperately. See chapter "Expressions" on page 13 for a description of the expression syntax.