Cutting automation data is different from
deleting it, and yields different results (although both change the existing automation data).
Copying automation leaves the original automation data intact.
You delete automation data by selecting a range of breakpoints and pressing Backspace (Windows) or Delete (Mac). See
Deleting Automation for details.
You cut automation data by selecting a range of breakpoints from an automation playlist and selecting the
Cut command.
When you cut automation data and when you paste it into a new location, anchor breakpoints are added to the beginning and end points of the data. This is done to preserve the true slope (of continuous controls, such as Volume faders or pans) or state (of switched or stepped controls, such as Mutes) of the automation data both inside and outside the selection.
The following illustrations show the difference between cutting and deleting automation data. In the following figure, a track is set to display volume automation, and a range of automation data is selected.
If the Cut command is chosen, anchor breakpoints are created at each end of the selection, and the automation slope on either side of the cut data is preserved, as shown in the following figure.
If the data is deleted by pressing Backspace (Windows) or Delete (Mac), the automation data is removed, and automation values span the gap between pre-existing breakpoints, as shown in the following figure.
In addition, if cut or copied data is pasted elsewhere in a track, breakpoints are created at the end points of the pasted data to preserve its “neighboring” (incoming and outgoing) automation value and slope, as shown in the following figure.