Tools

Tools provide a flexible way to select, create, and modify data through direct manipulation. Users choose tools to create frames, draw elements, and set or modify selections. Tools typically change the shape of the cursor and act on the data directly under the cursor. Because they have visual representations, tools are accessible for modification and customization. Users can group tools into palettes or organize them by task or Place representation.

Developers can write an independent tool to work on instances of a common data type, such as text. Such a tool provides new capabilities (like highlighting) wherever text is found in the user's data. As an alternative, developers can create a suite of interrelated tools organized around a single data type.

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