The stretchable selection tool: An alternative to copy and paste

Abstract

Copy and paste, or cut and paste, using a clipboard or paste buffer is the principal facility provided to users for transferring data between and within application software. This mechanism is clumsy to use where several pieces of information must be moved systematically, for example, when filling a form or building a table. We present an alternative, more natural user interface facility to make the task less onerous, and to provide improved visual feedback. Our mechanism - the stretchable selection tool (SST) - is a semi-transparent overlay augmenting the mouse pointer to automate paste operations and provide information to prompt the user. Two prototype implementations are described, one of which functions in a collaborative software environment allowing users to cooperate on multiple copy/paste operations. We also present the results of an informal user evaluation contrasting the SST with traditional cut and paste, and with another multiple copy/paste system. © 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.