# Select and copy just a part of message DC iOS & Android **URL:** \ **Category:** Feature Proposal\ **Tags:** android, ios, user-interface\ **Created:** [January 6, 2020, 3:41pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728 "2020-01-06T15:41:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Aviva](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/aviva/32/380_2.png) [@Aviva](https://forum.delta.chat/u/Aviva)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2020, 3:41pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/1 "2020-01-06T15:41:36Z")
Right now is only posible to copy all text of message received but sometimes you just need to copy or select a portion. For example here there is no way to select a part of text. ![image](https://support.delta.chat/uploads/default/original/1X/2b56b38edcba6b1309289bc51704adf9384d5ee0.jpeg) ---
**Author:** ![Atreyu94](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/atreyu94/32/472_2.png) [@Atreyu94](https://forum.delta.chat/u/Atreyu94)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2020, 2:22pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/2 "2020-01-07T14:22:15Z")
This could be a good suggestion for Android too!! ---
**Author:** ![r10s](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/r10s/32/1513_2.png) [@r10s](https://forum.delta.chat/u/r10s)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2020, 9:11pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/3 "2020-01-07T21:11:14Z")
not sure if this is really needed or worth the effort. if you do a copy+paste, typically the paste-target is some text-field where you can remove portions of the text that are not needed. on desktop, where you have typically finer selection tools, however, it is possible directly ---
**Author:** ![Aviva](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/aviva/32/380_2.png) [@Aviva](https://forum.delta.chat/u/Aviva)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2020, 12:31am UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/4 "2020-01-08T00:31:59Z")
When you have a short text it is not so important but sometimes the message is large and believe me it’s hard just remove the portion you aren’t needing. ---
**Author:** ![Simon](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/simon/32/287_2.png) [@Simon](https://forum.delta.chat/u/Simon)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2020, 6:13am UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/5 "2020-01-08T06:13:29Z")
_Selection stuff is always kinda hard on mobile IMO_ ---
**Author:** ![Aviva](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/aviva/32/380_2.png) [@Aviva](https://forum.delta.chat/u/Aviva)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2020, 6:15pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/6 "2020-01-08T18:15:38Z")
I am honest, I don’t know no mail app who doesn’t able to select a portion of text. I think to prepare DC to do this is worthy. ---
**Author:** ![r10s](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/r10s/32/1513_2.png) [@r10s](https://forum.delta.chat/u/r10s)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2020, 8:46pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/7 "2020-01-08T20:46:51Z")
on the other hand: i’ve tested several messengers on android and ios: _none_ of them are able to select a portion of a text 🙂 not saying, they do everything right, though 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Aviva](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/aviva/32/380_2.png) [@Aviva](https://forum.delta.chat/u/Aviva)\ **Post date:** [January 8, 2020, 11:38pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/8 "2020-01-08T23:38:51Z")
Good point! But remember the app not only works like a messenger, sending and receiving only from DC users. Sometimes just few contacts are using the app and some of them use to send large text. ---
**Author:** ![webratte](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/webratte/32/16_2.png) [@webratte](https://forum.delta.chat/u/webratte)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 5:22am UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/9 "2020-01-09T05:22:05Z")
AFAIK for desktop-client it works. But there I have a mouse. Select a part of text with my fingers is always dalliance. I don’t need very often only a part of text copied. If I need it, I copy the whole text and delete the not needed part by using the backspace button. So more important would be contextual reply. [https://support.delta.chat/t/reply-to-message/283](https://support.delta.chat/t/reply-to-message/283) This is the most case where I use copy and paste. ---
**Author:** ![Simon](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/simon/32/287_2.png) [@Simon](https://forum.delta.chat/u/Simon)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 6:39am UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/10 "2020-01-09T06:39:11Z")
> [@webratte](#): > > But there I have a mouse. 😄 ---
**Author:** ![Simon](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/simon/32/287_2.png) [@Simon](https://forum.delta.chat/u/Simon)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 6:41am UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/11 "2020-01-09T06:41:22Z")
Maybe we can just have an option, select part of this message that opens a fullscreen text field of the message where you can select and copy stuff out, that would be a quick way to implement it. ---
**Author:** ![r10s](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/r10s/32/1513_2.png) [@r10s](https://forum.delta.chat/u/r10s)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 2:06pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/12 "2020-01-09T14:06:32Z")
i also thought about a _select-in-new-window+copy mode_ at some point, but i did not like that. it solves some problems with some corner cases but raises the overall number of options and complexity, things to maintain etc. also, these corner cases can be solved in another way (by deleting the portions that are not needed, see above), so i discarded the select-in-new-window+copy idea. also, depending on the os, the virtual keyboard may help selecting things, eg. long-press on space or cursor keys or whatever. and this keyboard is available naturally only on pasting. ---
**Author:** ![Aviva](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/aviva/32/380_2.png) [@Aviva](https://forum.delta.chat/u/Aviva)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 3:33pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/13 "2020-01-09T15:33:39Z")
I don’t know the rust languaje but I wonder if there is no way to give the textbox some permission like lecture mode to able just copy a part of text and the user would decide if reply or whatever he wants. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![adbenitez](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/adbenitez/32/2323_2.png) [@adbenitez](https://forum.delta.chat/u/adbenitez)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 7:24pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/14 "2020-01-09T19:24:55Z")
good point, why don’t you just make the bubble text selectable and users can select as they do with everything else ---
**Author:** ![Simon](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/simon/32/287_2.png) [@Simon](https://forum.delta.chat/u/Simon)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 7:55pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/15 "2020-01-09T19:55:38Z")
> [@Aviva](#): > > ere is no way to give the textbox some permission like lecture mode to able just copy a part of text and the user would decide if reply or whatever he wants. Rust is only for the core, copy paste and selection is responsibility of the ui. > [@adbenitez](#): > > good point, why don’t you just make the bubble text selectable and users can select as they do with everything else not sure if this is possible without completely implementing it. ---
**Author:** ![adbenitez](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/adbenitez/32/2323_2.png) [@adbenitez](https://forum.delta.chat/u/adbenitez)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 8:07pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/16 "2020-01-09T20:07:48Z")
I don’t know how this is implemented in DC/Signal but seems pretty simple: > **[Make TextView selectable, select and copy](http://android-er.blogspot.com/2015/12/make-textview-selectable-select-and-copy.html)** > > Android developer blog: learn programming for Android ---
**Author:** ![Simon](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/simon/32/287_2.png) [@Simon](https://forum.delta.chat/u/Simon)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 8:28pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/17 "2020-01-09T20:28:22Z")
and on iOS? ---
**Author:** ![adbenitez](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/adbenitez/32/2323_2.png) [@adbenitez](https://forum.delta.chat/u/adbenitez)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 8:49pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/18 "2020-01-09T20:49:24Z")
Don’t have any idea, I don’t know anything about iOS even have seen such devices like once or two times in my life 😃 ---
**Author:** ![adbenitez](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/adbenitez/32/2323_2.png) [@adbenitez](https://forum.delta.chat/u/adbenitez)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 8:50pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/19 "2020-01-09T20:50:21Z")
but maybe replacing “TextView” with whatever is equivalent on iOS and do a web search will return something useful ---
**Author:** ![r10s](https://forum.delta.chat/user_avatar/forum.delta.chat/r10s/32/1513_2.png) [@r10s](https://forum.delta.chat/u/r10s)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2020, 11:25pm UTC](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728/20 "2020-01-09T23:25:46Z")
we’re not using just TextView on android, so this is probably a bit more complicated. i do not think it is really worth the effort. maybe we can rethink this when everything else is implemented 😉 [Next page](https://forum.delta.chat/t/select-and-copy-just-a-part-of-message-dc-ios-android/728.md?page=2)