Is it at all possible to hear the audio while dragging a section for deleting, etc.? This would be very like tape editing, which I was used to at the BBC, and where the cueing was very easy. With Audacity there’s a lot of guesswork! Any advice gratefully received.
Audacity does not support scrubbing yet, but there is someone working on that feature so hopefully it will be available in a future release.
Zooming in/out to an appropriate level is a big help.
Also, you can start playback instantly from any point by clicking on the Timeline (at the top of the track window).
(see here for more information about the Timeline: Audacity Manual)