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Insert/Remove Time

Insert Time

The Insert Time window
The Insert Time window

The Insert Time window allows to insert blank space in the timeline, on the selected track(s). It is accessed through the Track > Insert Time menu.

The Insert Time window not only allows to set the time inserted, but also some fine tuning options:

Insert Time starting at: Sets the point in the session where the time will be added. By default, it is the playhead's position
Time to insert: Duration of the blank space inserted
Inserted regions should: A choice as to what happens to regions that exists at the Insert Time set above. See below.
Apply to all the track's playlists As a track can have multiple playlists, the insertion can happen either only on the active playlist or on all the plylists of this track
Move glued-to-musical-time regions (MIDI regions) Defines if MIDI regions in selected tracks are affected by the operation
Move markers As a marker can be locked or glued to bars/beats, this option and the two subjascent ones allow to shift the time position of those markers
Move tempo and meter changes The tempo and meter markers, that can be used to change the tempo along the session, can also be shifted in the process. Though, moving the tempo markers while e.g. keeping the MIDI regions unaffected can create oddities.

Both the two time fields have a useful context menu, that allows to copy/paste the time and change the display among one of the clock modes. The Insert Time field also has two options to Set from Playhead (to get the insertion time from the playhead, which is what happens by default) and Locate to This Time which moves the playhead to the time field value, useful if the field has been manually edited to better visualize the insertion point.

By default, inserting time only results in shifting positions of the regions beginning after the insertion point. The "Inserted regions should" dropdown menu allows to choose what happens to the regions that exist at the insertion time :

stay in position (default)The crossed regions are not affected by the time insertion
moveThe crossed regions are shifted in time
be splitThe crossed regions are split, and the section that is after the time insertion point are shifted in time

This last mode allows a brute force insertion, creating a blank space in all the selected tracks, and replacing multiple operations.

Note: One interesting option is, if a range selection (created with in Range Mode) exists, it is used as the default parameters in the window, instead of the playhead, for both the start time and duration.

Remove Time

The Remove Time window, accessed through the Track > Remove Time menu, is very similar to the previous, and its options are very similar. Only the "Inserted regions should" option is not present

The range selection note above can be especially useful in this context.