Editing Cut, copy, and paste (section)

==Cut and paste==
[[File:Sequence diagram of cut paste-en.svg|thumb|The sequence diagram of cut and paste operation]]
Computer-based editing can involve very frequent use of cut-and-paste operations. Most software-suppliers provide several methods for performing such tasks, and this can involve (for example) key combinations, pulldown menus, pop-up menus, or [[toolbar]] buttons.
# The user selects or "highlights" the text or file for moving by some method, typically by [[Drag and drop|dragging]] over the text or file name with the pointing-device or holding down the [[Shift key]] while using the [[arrow keys]] to move the [[Cursor (computers)|text cursor]].
# The user performs a "cut" operation via key combination {{keypress|[[Control key|Ctrl]]|x}} ({{keypress|[[Command key|⌘]]|x}} for [[Mac (computer)|Macintosh]] users), menu, or other means.
# Visibly, "cut" text immediately disappears from its location. "Cut" files typically change color to indicate that they will be moved.
# Conceptually, the text has now moved to a location often called the [[Clipboard (software)|clipboard]]. The clipboard typically remains invisible. On most systems only one clipboard location exists, hence another cut or copy operation overwrites the previously stored information. Many [[Unix|UNIX]] text-editors provide multiple clipboard entries, as do some Macintosh programs such as Clipboard Master,<ref>{{cite web |title=Clipboard Master |work=Clipboard Master 2.0 by In Phase Consulting, July 1994|url=http://forums.info-mac.org/viewtopic.php?f=243&t=14244&sid=739ce1119f88340c52dc2aed3c788fff |access-date=14 September 2009}}</ref> and Windows [[clipboard manager|clipboard-manager]] programs such as the one in [[Microsoft Office]].
# The user selects a location for insertion by some method, typically by clicking at the desired insertion point.
# A ''paste'' operation takes place which visibly inserts the clipboard text at the insertion point. (The paste operation does not typically destroy the clipboard text: it remains available in the clipboard and the user can insert additional copies at other points).
Whereas cut-and-paste often takes place with a mouse-equivalent in Windows-like GUI environments, it may also occur entirely from the keyboard, especially in UNIX [[text editor]]s, such as [[Pico (text editor)|Pico]] or [[Vi (text editor)|vi]]. Cutting and pasting without a mouse can involve a selection (for which {{keypress|Ctrl|x}} is pressed in most graphical systems) or the entire current line, but it may also involve text after the [[cursor (computers)|cursor]] until the end of the line and other more sophisticated operations.

The clipboard usually stays invisible, because the operations of cutting and pasting, while actually independent, usually take place in quick succession, and the user (usually) needs no assistance in understanding the operation or maintaining mental context. Some application programs provide a means of viewing, or sometimes even editing, the data on the clipboard.