Support for multi-selection is strongly recommended for list and grid containers. However, this is not required if the only actions available are valid for a single selection (like a list of phone numbers, where calling is the only action), or if the context is strongly biased toward direct, single-item manipulation (like moving icons on Android’s home screen.)
Both long-press and two-finger touch may be extended by a drag gesture to select multiple items when initiating selection. Other items between the beginning and end points of the drag will be included in the selection. On desktop, a simple drag originating outside the bounds of all items may also be used to initiate multi-selection (for example, beginning a drag in the left margin of a list, and extending down and to the right to select items from that list.)
Once an initial selection is made, it can be altered through a number of user actions:
Text selection is indicated by highlighting the bounds of the selected text.
On mobile platforms, a selection handle is added to both the beginning and end of the selection. Standard actions related to the text appear in a popup menu that is ideally positioned immediately above (but ideally not overlapping) the selection.
Text selection is effectively a single-select context, as the selection must be one contiguous block. However, the bounds of the selection may be altered following selection through a number of user actions:
