> ## Documentation Index
> Fetch the complete documentation index at: https://docs.oryx.mechatronstudio.com/llms.txt
> Use this file to discover all available pages before exploring further.

# Channels

> Create, name, color, reorder, hide, duplicate and delete channels.

A project takes up to **16 channels**. The timeline draws **4 at a time**, in
the order they are in; you reach the rest by paging with the arrows.

## Creating

Three routes lead to the same place:

* The **Add Channel** button at the foot of the actions column.
* The **Add channel** button inside the organizer.
* The `Shift + C` shortcut.

Every new channel is born with the **mode's default color** —blue in digital,
magenta in analog— which you set in General Settings.

Once all 16 are in use, the buttons say so: *"All 16 channels are in use"*.

## The channel organizer

Opens from the **Channels** button in the header, which shows how many you have
out of the maximum. Inside, one row per channel with everything you can do:

| Control         | What it does                      |
| --------------- | --------------------------------- |
| **Drag handle** | Move the channel in the order     |
| **Name**        | Rename it                         |
| **Color**       | Change the signal color           |
| **Eye**         | Show or hide it on the timeline   |
| **Duplicate**   | Copy it with its signal           |
| **Delete**      | Remove the channel and its signal |

At the bottom, the count: *"N of 16 channels"*.

<Note>
  There must always be **at least one channel**, and at least one **visible**. The
  buttons that would break that rule are disabled with the reason in the tooltip.
</Note>

## From the timeline

Each channel has its own name card on the left and its gear on the right.

### On the name card

* The **name**, edited in place.
* The signal **color**.
* The **grid subdivision (÷n)**: how many grid lines are drawn per step. With 1
  there is one line per step; with 2, subdivisions at half a step; with 3, at a
  third, and so on.
* The **offset in steps**: shifts the drawn waveform horizontally, in fractions
  of a step between −1 and 1. The slider **snaps in 1/subdivision increments**,
  so the offset always lands on a sub-grid line.

<Warning>
  The offset **does not touch the data**: it moves the drawn trace. The signal you
  export and the one that travels to the device are the usual ones.
</Warning>

### In the gear

| Action         | Shortcut    | What it does                                        |
| -------------- | ----------- | --------------------------------------------------- |
| **Repeat**     | `Shift + R` | Repeats the channel signal as many times as you ask |
| **Invert**     | `Shift + I` | Flips the whole signal: 0→1 and 1→0                 |
| **Toggle**     | `Shift + A` | Sets the whole channel all high or all low          |
| **Duplicate**  |             | Copies the channel with its signal                  |
| **Count Div.** |             | Shows or hides that channel's count dividers        |
| **Rep. Div.**  | `Shift + D` | Shows or hides the repetition dividers              |
| **Hide**       |             | Takes the channel off the timeline                  |
| **Delete**     | `Shift + W` | Removes the channel                                 |

The gear is marked when the channel has hidden dividers, so you can tell its
view has been changed.

## Duplicating: how the copy is named

The copy takes the original's name with an `-n` suffix. If `Channel 1-2` already
exists, the next one is `Channel 1-3`: it **continues from the highest number in
use**, so two copies never share a name even if you deleted one in between. The
name is trimmed to 24 characters including the suffix.

The copy's color is **the first one neither the original nor its other copies
are using**, so you can tell the copies apart at a glance. The offset, the
subdivision and whether it is hidden come out the same as the original.

## Hiding

A hidden channel leaves the timeline but **keeps its signal**. On export there
is a checkbox that decides whether it goes into the file.

Between two visible channels, the hidden ones in between are marked with a
dashed line and their name. If there are several in a row, the marks stack; and
if they do not all fit, it sums up as *"N hidden channels"*.

## Paging

With more than 4 channels the page arrows appear. The tooltip tells you where
each one goes —*"Go to page 2 of 4"*— and when there is nowhere to go it says so:
*"You are already on page 1 of 4"*.

The `1` to `4` shortcut jumps to the channel in that position within the page,
at the same step.

## Row height

By default, **fixed channel height**: every page draws channels at the same
height, even if a page holds fewer. Turning it off in General Settings makes a
page with a single channel stretch it to fill the screen.