How do you add objects in Maya?

To add objects to your current selection in Maya, you primarily use drag selection combined with modifier keys like Shift and Control, as detailed in the selection methods.

Adding objects in Maya can refer to creating new objects or adding existing objects to your selection. Based on the provided references, this answer focuses on how to add existing objects or components to your current selection using drag selection techniques. These methods are crucial for efficiently selecting multiple items in your scene.

Adding to Selection with Drag Select

Maya offers intuitive ways to add more items to your selection without losing the items you've already selected. The methods involve holding down specific keys while dragging a selection box around the desired objects or components in the viewport.

Here are the primary methods derived from the references:

• Shift-Drag over Unselected Items:

  • Holding down the Shift key while dragging a selection box over objects or components that are not currently selected will add them to your active selection set.
  • This is a common and quick way to accumulate selections.

• Ctrl + Shift-Drag over Unselected Items:

  • Holding down both the Ctrl (or Cmd on Mac) and Shift keys simultaneously while dragging a selection box over objects or components that are not currently selected will also add them to your selection.
  • Both Shift-Drag and Ctrl+Shift-Drag serve the purpose of adding unselected items to your selection.

Important Note on Shift-Drag Behavior:

The behavior of Shift-drag can change depending on whether you are dragging over selected or unselected items, especially when the 'Drag select' option is active in Maya's settings.

• When 'Drag select' is on, Shift-dragging over selected objects or components will remove them from the selection, rather than adding them.
• This dual functionality of Shift-drag allows for both adding to and subtracting from your selection using the same modifier key, depending on what you drag over.

Summary of Drag Selection for Adding

The most direct ways to add objects or components to an existing selection using drag selection, based on the references, are:

• Shift-drag over unselected items
• Ctrl + Shift-drag over unselected items

Here's a quick overview:

Action	Modifier Keys	Target Items	Result	Note
Add to selection (Drag)	Shift + Drag	Unselected items	Adds to selection
Add to selection (Drag)	Ctrl + Shift + Drag	Unselected items	Adds to selection
Remove from selection (Drag)	Shift + Drag	Selected items	Removes from selection	Only when 'Drag select' is enabled

Practical Application

When working in Maya, you often select an object, then need to add several others to that selection to perform an action on all of them simultaneously (e.g., moving, scaling, applying materials).

1. Select your initial object(s) using a click or drag.
2. Hold down Shift.
3. Drag a selection box around the next set of objects or components you want to add. Release the mouse button and then the Shift key.
4. Repeat step 2 and 3 as needed, or use Ctrl + Shift-drag which also adds.
5. If you accidentally drag Shift-drag over items you already selected and 'Drag select' is on, they will be removed, requiring you to re-add them. Using Ctrl + Shift-drag specifically for adding can sometimes be clearer as it doesn't have the 'remove' function over selected items.

By mastering these simple modifier-key combinations, you can efficiently build complex selections in Maya, speeding up your workflow significantly.