Add New Track OTHER than at bottom...

[steve]

So, and I’m being sincere since I can not understand the difference, what exactly is the point of a track having the focus if the selected track will have any actions performed upon it anyway?

Q1. What’s the difference between focused and selected?

As you have seen, when performing an edit (“paste”) it is the selected track that is altered. The same is true when applying effects.
That’s the difference.


Q2. Why is track focus necessary at all?

Imagine that you are unable to use a mouse, touchpad or other “pointing device” and can only operate Audacity via a keyboard (as would be the case if you were blind, or possibly had severe arthritis). “Focus” allows you choose which tracks to select or un-select.

[CharlieSummers]

“Focus” allows you choose which tracks to select or un-select.

Got it, and thank you for the elegant explanation.

(Still embarrassed I never noticed the yellow border, which of course now I can’t not see…

[procrastinator427]

I wrote a plug-in to add a label track directly below the current track and posted about it in this other thread: Why Are New Tracks Always Added to the End? You Should be Able to Add Them After the Selected Track, including some thoughts on how to change the plug-in to add a different kind of track. Figured I’d post back here since this was how I found the other thread!