topic CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click in Discussions

CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

hogi — Mon, 09 Feb 2026 15:21:01 GMT

edit:

I have to confess - I am an Efficionado *)
*) from / @jules

It's no wonder that I encourage everyone to use JMP!
In JMP there are thousands of hidden "easter egg" efficiency hacks.
Many of them are even harder to find than the shortcut to start @jules 's Microwave.

So, here is an overview of many **) efficiency hacks in JMP :
what will happen when you CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click on some spot in JMP?

**) Many tricks are still missing. So please post any secrets you know and I will add them to the list.

[More like this]

General
	the red triangle menu is your friend
	Right-click is your best friend
Select a range of adjacent items: rows, columns, legend entries ...	Press Shift and click the first and last item sometimes: click and drag.
Select or deselect non-adjacent items	Press Ctrl and click each item
Paste a list of column names from the clipboard into a dialog column list box (e.g. X,factor)	Right-Click into the dialog and click on paste


Graphs / Graph Builder
use a column for the graph	drag it into the plot area or: drag it into a dropzone
use 2 columns in a common subplot [ordinal column]	drag them onto the X or Y axis or: drag the second column almost into the same dropzone (the dropzone with position towards the graph) (*)
create a hierarchy on the X or X axis	drag an additional column almost into the same dropzone (the dropzone further away from the graph)
create a hierarchy in the Group X or X region	drag an additional column into the corner of the Group X/Y DropZone
sort an axis by a second column [numeric column]	drag the second column almost into the same dropzone (the dropzone with position towards the graph) (same as in *, but numeric column)
use 2 columns in separate subplots	drag them onto the X or Y axis (while pressing Shift) or: drag the second column onto the the same axis, next to the first region
use 2 columns as color	drag both columns into the color drop zone or: drag the second column into the corner of the Color dropzone
Select points in a rectangular region.	Click and drag the arrow tool.
Select points in a non-rectangular region.	use the lasso tool
extend the selection	press Shift and select.
remove data points from the (partial) selection	press SHIFT + CTRL and select
toggle data points (selected ones get unselected, unselected ones get selected)	press CTRL / ⌘ and select
select points via the legend	click on an entry in the legend
remove data points from the (partial) selection	press CTRL / ⌘ and click (2x will trigger selection) or press Shift + CTRL / ⌘ and click (2x won't have an effect)
extend the selection	press CTRL / ⌘ and click (eventually twice - first to deselect (partial selection))
toggle data points	?
select points in an interactive HTML	click on a point or a legend entry
remove data points from the (partial) selection	press shift and/or CTRL / ⌘ and click (2x will trigger selection)
extend the selection	press shift and/or CTRL / ⌘ and click (eventually twice - first to deselect (partical selection))
Change axis settings.	Double-click or press Alt and click the axis.
Add a reference line	Double-click the axis at the desired position - the corresponding value will show up in the axis/reference line menu.
Change axis range	click and drag and axis along the axis to move the center perpendicular to the axis to change the range Press Shift to prevent Jmp from changing the Ticks settings
Change the binning of a Histogram Plot	Use the grabber tool: , select one bar of the histogram and drag it up/down (# bins) left/right (offset)
Reset the zoom to the original ) plot ) either defined by the script or last state before using the magnifier the first time	double click into the graph (alternatively: Alt + click) (with magnifier tool)
change the color/marker etc. settings of a specific legend entry	hover over the legend entry, right click and change the setting
change the color/marker etc. settings of all legend entries referring to the same rows (lines and markers at the same time)	select on of the legend entries by clicking, right click and change the setting
change the color/marker etc. settings of multiple legend entries without affecting other legend entries for the same rows (so, selecting entries in the legend is no option)	double click on the legend to open the legend menu. Select the entries and apply the settings via right-click	Thanks Sven :)
clear label selection	click on one of the selected items
Show excluded data points / categories.	Press Shift, click the red triangle icon, and click on Show Excluded Rows
change parallel merge settings	Press Shift, click the red triangle icon, and click on Show Excluded Rows
change the type of summary statistics	Right-click on the caption box, click summary statistics and change the type. CTRL / ⌘Right-click to change the type in all subplots simultaneously
Let a 3D Scatterplot spin	Press Shift and drag it with the mouse
scale subplots individually	resize the label (go from the label to the side, till the mouse changes to an arrow) - not the framebox!
Change/sort X Group labels	Right click - Configure Levels ...
synchronize parallel axes	Shift click red triangle / Parallel Axis Merging
add an additional plot theme to the Plot	Shift click into another plot theme icon on the top
add/remove plot themes to/from individual subplots	Ctrl click into the upper/center/lower left/center/right region of the respective plot theme icon corresponding to the location of the subplot
change tick labels	click on a tick label and hold the mouse button for a while, edit the label and press ESC
pin Crosshair	right click - then (left) click on the window title
extend crosshair over other subplots	Press CTRL

Profiler
change factor settings	Alt + click into one of the profiler graphs

Reports
add a column to a report	drag it from the column list into the report (just works if the variable is is dropped exactly into the drop zone)
apply a Platform Preset to a new report	[JMP 18] drag the Platform Preset symbol from the source report onto the target report
get a hover explanation.	draw a small circle with your mouse
remove the Header Bar of the OutlineBox	delete the title of the OutlineBox
access the red triangle menu without a red triangle	Even when the outline is hidden, there is a tiny hotspot for the red triangle menu in the upper left.
add columns to Distribution Platform	Drag the columns from the columns menu of the table
Turn numeric report output into a data table.	Right-click somewhere in the report and select *Make into Data Table.* for Reports with BY: *Make combined Data Table.*
broadcast a command to all similar reports in the current window.	Press Ctrl / ⌘ and apply the command to one of the reports. e.g. - click on the red triangle icon, and then select the command - right click into a graph and apply a command
collapse similar outline boxes	Press Ctrl / ⌘, and click on the grey triangle
Select multiple report options.	Press Alt (^ and Option) and right-click a disclosure icon
Select multiple analysis options	Press Alt / Option and click a red triangle icon
Resize all similar graphs in a report.	Press Ctrl/ ⌘ and resize one graph.
change the formal of an entry	double click the entry
Select multiple bars in a Distribution/Pareto plot.	Press Shift or Ctrl/ ⌘ and click the bars. (differs from the "typical" explorer-like behavior: (Ctrl/ ⌘ to select inividual entries, Shift to select all entries in between) which is used for row, legend entries, ...)
Deselect multiple bars in a Distribution/Pareto plot.	Press Ctrl and click the bars.
Create a subset of the data table from a histogram/Pareto Plot.	Double-click / Press Shift,select the bars that you want to subset, and then double-click / Select one or more bars, right-click, and then select Subset.
Change the scale of a slider in the Contour Profiler.	Right-click the slider. (mac: Press ^ and click the slider.)
Specify or lock a factor value in the Prediction Profiler.	Press Alt and click inside one of a factor’s panes.
Transpose the factors in a two-factor interaction LS Means plot.	Press Shift and select the LS Means Plot command.
Specify the alpha level when saving mean or individual confidence intervals.	Press Shift, click the red triangle icon, and then select the command.
Specify theta (for exponential), beta (for Weibull), or sigma (for lognormal) parameters for WeiBayes analysis.	Press Shift and select Exponential, Weibull, or Lognormal Fit from the Product-Limit Survival Fit red triangle menu.
Lock a factor (in a profiler)	Press Alt and click into the respective plot, then select Lock Factor Setting
Show Tree Structure of a Report	Ctrl+Shift+Right Click the top left corner

Tables
Copy and paste columns with their properties (e.g. formulas)	use Copy/paste Column via right click on the column headers
let JMP calculate the value for a cell	type "=" followed by the equation :)
you selected some columns and want to get the columns selected in the data grid - without interfering with the column / row selection	use Tab (2-4 times) to navigate to the data grid
change property of multiple columns in columns manager	select multiple columns and press CTRL when changing the setting (will prevent JMP from resetting the selection)
Jump to a column in the data grid	Click on the column in the column list on the left. < v19: double click
search (select) a column in the column list on the left	select any column - type the name
resize a column	double click the divide line for multiple columns: select the columns first
keep a column visible all the time	Select a column, click Col Menu/Scroll Lock
Deselect rows and columns.	Click the top triangular region in the upper left corner of the data grid to deselect columns. Click the bottom triangular region to deselect rows.
shortcut to the rows/columns menu	. right click : lower left / upper right [functionality was removed in JMP19]
add columns/rows	double-click the top/bottom triangular menu in the upper left corner
add a single column /multiple columns ... 1 row / multiple rows	double-click in the table right to the last column (further to the right for more columns) ... same for rows
enter a new column name	click on the column name on the top of the table and start typing
Copy a list of column names to the clipboard	Select the columns in the column list on the left of the data table and press CTRL/ ⌘ + C
change several column names at once	copy the column names to the clipboard select the columns in the menu on the left, paste the new names [functionality was removed in JMP19]
fill all cell of a column with the same value	select the column header - no row selection - Ctrl/ ⌘ + V NOT: overwrite the column name (!)
Repeat values or a sequence of values in a column.	Right-click on selected cells. Select Fill and the appropriate command.
Fill empty values with previous entries of that column.	select a column and some rows, Right-click on an entry and press Replace missing
Generate a subset of the current selection	right click on Selected and click on Data View
move column(s) to another position in the data table	select the column(s) (on top of the table or in the columns list on the left), keep the mouse button pressed and drag the column(s) to the new position
Merge column(s) from a summary table into the main table	select the column(s) (on top of the summary table ). Click again, keep the mouse button pressed and drag the column(s) to the main table.
Edit a Table Script	Double-Click the script [functionality was removed in JMP19, is now: edit script name]
Copy a table script	select the script and press CTRL / ⌘ + C
Paste a table script	click into the script panel and press CTRL / ⌘ + V [functionality was removed in JMP19]
Edit the name of a Table Script	Select a script, then click again [functionality was removed in JMP19]
copy a column script	Right-Click on the column header and click on Copy Columns
copy a column script - including the values	select all rows, Right-Click on the column header and click on Copy Columns
copy a column script - including the values of N specific rows	select the rows, Right-Click on the column header and click on Copy Columns (strange:values will be applied to the first N rows)
define multiple value labels at once	copy value & label pairs from a table, point at the field with value-label pairs and paste (instead of entering them one by one)
adjust the column width to the content	[JMP 18] double click the separator line
Intersection of current selection and entry in Header graph.	Ctrl/ ⌘ + click on an entry in a header graph [functionality was removed in JMP19]

JSL Editor
Select a non-rectangular block of text	Click and drag the cursor.
Select a rectangular block of text	Press Alt and drag the cursor over the text.
Select multiple rectangular blocks of text	Press Ctrl and drag the cursor over a non-rectangular block of text. Move the cursor to a new location and repeat. Copying, cutting collects the text in the order in which each block was selected.
type synchronously at multiple positions in the text	Press Ctrl and click on multiple positions, then start typing.
Open JSL command in Scripting Index	Press Alt and double-click on a command
Run a script with a specific data table	copy the script and paste it into the table script menu
Select the code between brackets	Doble-click one of the brackets
... marke the command in front as well	... press Shift and click on the first letter of the command or: press CTRL + Shift + arrow left (N times)
copy a line of code	place the cursor into the line ( no need to select anything) and press CTRL/ ⌘ + C

Formula Editor
Terminate running code	Press Esc
Build Match function conditionals	Select a column from Table Columns list. Press Shift and select Match from Conditional formula list.
replace something in the formula with something else	select the item to replace (-> blue rectangle) Double-click the new item (column, constant, variable, parameter)
Swap two expressions in a formula.	Drag one expression on top of the other expression.

Column List Box
Add a column to the list	drag the column into the list
Remove column from a list (Platform menu, Column Switcher etc.)	double click the column entry in the list

Data Filter
Add a filter	double click on the column
Add multiple filters at once	select multiple columns and click
numeric data filter: change the upper/lower limit	drag the fence, click onto the number and enter a new value
numeric data filter: move the range	click the shaded pass region and move it to the new location

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

jthi — Fri, 18 Nov 2022 13:58:08 GMT

Quick Reference Card is one place where you can find some of those. Quick Reference Card can be accessed from JMP's help menu

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

hogi — Sat, 25 Nov 2023 16:32:38 GMT

Thanks @jthi :)

Starting with these 9 pages, let's see how far we can get collecting also the easter eggs from the better hidden places ...

I will collect all posts in one table.

edit: table moved to the 1st post

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

P_Bartell — Wed, 18 Jan 2023 13:36:34 GMT

During my tenure as a Senior JMP Systems Engineer I told my JMP/JMP Pro customers, "When in doubt, move the cursor/I beam over the thing you are most interested in, and right click. Chances are good this will uncover a pathway to do whatever it is you are trying to do." Or as my colleague @gail_massari was fond of saying, "Right click is your friend."

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

John_Powell_JMP — Fri, 23 Jun 2023 13:59:14 GMT

@hogi, Thank you for adding information about selection in Interactive HTML (and JMP Live).

More information on how to interact with Interactive HTML content can also be found here:

https://www.jmp.com/support/help/InteractiveHTML/17/ShareJMPReports.shtml

Thanks,

~John

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

hogi — Fri, 23 Jun 2023 16:16:29 GMT

Thanks @John_Powell_JMP for the link.
I added an easter egg link.

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

hogi — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 07:12:58 GMT

nice plenary talk by @John_Sall on

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

jschroedl — Wed, 20 Mar 2024 13:41:43 GMT

With the release of JMP 18 imminent, I'll add one from there. Have you ever opened a data table with the column titles wrapped or cut off just a bit making them hard to read? In JMP 18, select the affected columns and double-click on one of the divider lines between column headers to have JMP auto-size the columns making them more readable. This can also be done in the menus using Cols > Reset Display Width. If there's just a single column to fix up, double-click the right edge of its title box and it'll reset the width.

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

hogi — Fri, 08 Aug 2025 07:11:02 GMT

by @Jeff_Perkinson

→ just added to the overview

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

hogi — Sun, 16 Nov 2025 06:51:03 GMT

JMP 19: click on a column in the column list to get it into view in the data grid :)

[replaces the double click]

A new era of interactivity!

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

hogi — Tue, 14 Oct 2025 19:15:24 GMT

At the same time, many beloved functions were removed.

marked with:
[functionality was removed in JMP19]

some of them belong to the "hidden secrets", maybe too hidden?

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

MarkDayton — Thu, 25 Sep 2025 18:00:20 GMT

JMP, [expletives deleted] please restore:

Edit a Table Script: Double-Click the script [functionality was removed in JMP19]
Paste a table script: click into the script panel and press CTRL / ⌘ + V [functionality was removed in JMP19]

(also added to JMP Wish List)

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

hogi — Thu, 25 Sep 2025 19:33:05 GMT

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

hogi — Tue, 14 Oct 2025 19:16:55 GMT

let JMP calculate the value of a single cell?

just write "=", followed by the formula:

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

hogi — Sun, 16 Nov 2025 06:58:13 GMT

cool motivation from @jules / Everyday Efficiency:
[a link to the plenary talk is in the main post]

How many clicks are required, and what is the typical frequency per day?
This is an area where efficiency can be increased significantly, e.g. by reducing the number of clicks from four to one.

Not every click is equal: for example, to open the control panel in Graph Builder, you have to click, move the mouse and click again.
To hide or show the legend, you have to click on the red triangle, in the right click menu that pops up, you have to find the submenu "show" and open it - and then click a third time on "Legend". So, as well as mouse clicks, precise mouse movements are necessary.

The number of clicks is one thing, but the frequency per day is another factor. Many JMP users close and open the control panel and the legends dozens of times a day. This is a huge lever!

This finding triggered the development of the GraphBuilder Toolbar - with its two first shortcuts *):

just try it out and track your time savings ....

*) After several years of development, there are now many more icons in the toolbar - try them as well and give feedback:

Re: CTRL/Alt/Shift + click/select/double click/right click

hogi — Mon, 17 Nov 2025 12:55:41 GMT

Several time-saving features were implemented in the DataGrid with JMP19! So Cool!

However, some features were lost.

In JMP18, a double-clicking on the name of a table script was enough to open the Table Script for editing.
In JMP19, a double click allows the user to change the name of the table script.

It's not a huge issue, but when scaled up to the number of JMP users who script on a daily basis, it represents a significant loss of efficiency per year. (in general, editing/inspecting the script is needed much more often than changing the name of the script).
Vote here to restore the functionality:

The story reminds me of my Microwave. It doesn't have keys with numbers, so I don't have the shortcut:
press 3 - wait -> microwave starts for 3 minutes
But there is a huge button which can be pressed and turned.
Pressing the button triggers: "Set the time" (unfortunately not: set the timer).

*) Perhaps the change was intentional
... either to synchronize the different platforms: "Double-Click to edit the name" [of a table, of a column, of a table script ...]
... or to hide the scripts from the majority of (non-Scripter!) JMP users - who run scripts but should not have write access to them.
In that case, a Shift/Alt/Ctrl-click shortcut could be implemented [and maybe shared secretly with the scripters?].