Tracks

“Tracks” are rows of information that can be displayed or hidden, as desired, in the Overview and Sequences view. Tracks can pertain to a header, footer, or individual sequence row. The following video provides a brief overview of how tracks are used in MegAlign Pro:

The following tracks can be applied, removed or (in most cases) edited:

• Ruler
• Features
• Reference
• Consensus
• Consensus Match
• Sequence Logo
• GC Content
• Gap Fraction
• Numeric
• Pairwise Match Bar
• Translation

The following table shows tasks that affect the display of tracks within the Overview and Sequences views:

Task	How to…
Create tracks	Track data can be imported automatically with some types of sequence data (e.g., Feature tracks), or can be calculated by the application itself (e.g., Ruler and Numeric tracks).
Display tracks in the views	To display any type of track, you must check the box next to the name of the track in the Tracks panel. This is the only condition needed to view a Ruler track. For any type of track other than a Ruler, you must also expand the track as described below.
Expand/collapse tracks for selected sequences	Do any of the following: Click the plus/minus sign to the left of the sequence name ( / ). To expand tracks for selected sequences, choose Sequence > Expand Sequence Rows or Overview > Expand Overview Rows; or right-click on the selection and choose Expand. To collapse tracks for selected sequences, choose Sequence > Collapse Sequence Rows or Overview > Collapse Overview Rows; or right-click on the selection and choose Collapse.
To expand/collapse tracks for all sequences in a particular view	Ensure that no sequences are selected. To expand tracks for all sequences, choose Sequence > Expand All Rows or Overview > Expand All Rows; or right-click in the view and choose Expand All. To collapse tracks for all sequences, choose Sequence > Collapse All Rows or Overview > Collapse All Rows; or right-click in the view and choose Collapse All.
Hide tracks	Do one of the following: To hide a specific track from all views, uncheck the box next to the name of the track in the Tracks panel. To hide a specific track in one view only, right-click on the track within that view and choose Hide Track. Alternatively, select a track and use Edit > Delete or press the Delete key. To hide all tracks in one view only, click the minus sign () to the left of the sequence name in that view, or use Analysis > Collapse Sequence Rows or Overview > Collapse Sequence Rows. To hide all tracks in all views, do a combination of the above.
Access the options for a particular type of track	Do either of the following: Open the Tracks panel, select the track of interest, and expand the Options section just below (). Right-click on a track in either view and choose Show Track Options.
Change the order of all tracks in a view	Open a sequence row to view its track. Then drag a track label (e.g. “Features”) to the desired position among the other tracks and drop it there. Note that if you turn off some tracks in the Tracks panel and add them again later, they will appear in the order in which their boxes were checked.
Increase/decrease the vertical height of a visible track	Hover the mouse over the bottom of the track in the Overview or Sequences view, then grab the resize bar and drag it up or down.
See how the zoom level can affect the appearance of tracks	See Customize the appearance and layout of views.