Previously when I have used Inkscape, I have been able to select multiple objects by holding down control. I can no longer do this for some reason. I've drawn a few objects, and want to select them all to move together. If I select one and hold control, then click another, it deselects the first object and selects the second object.

Is there a way I can revert to the old behavior?

Hold Shift maybe?

Tried that, but no luck. When I'm using the select tool, it says down in the status bar to hold control to select multiple objects, so control does seem to be the correct key, it just doesn't work. It must be something to do with the file I'm working with, which is a PDF I imported. I tried a few different import settings, and tried saving it as an SVG file, but I still get the same behavior. I made sure everything was ungrouped. I've used Inkscape for PDF files before and never had trouble selecting multiple objects.

I've now tried the same file on two separate Inkscape installations and neither will let me select multiple objects. I like Inkscape's capabilities, but man is it frustrating when simple things just don't work. Time to hunt for some different software I think. I've tried everything I can think of here, and haven't been able to find any reports online of other users seeing the same issue.

Or maybe it's a raster image where you are trying to select single objects in?
Did you try 'unlock all'?
Did you try removing any masks and clips (just in case, AFAIK, that doesn't make a difference)

Or maybe it's just time to look into the manual? Something doesn't work? - Keeping an eye on the status bar can save you a lot of time!

Inkscape FAQ - Learning Resources - Website with tutorials (German and English)

EDIT: It is shift, after all. I am almost positive when I tried that previously it didn't work, but let's be honest, this was most likely user error

Thanks for the reply Moini. I have the English version, and when using the select tool, if I hold down control, it says in the status bar "Ctrl: click to select in groups; drag to move hor/vert"

I'm almost positive I've been able to use control this way in Inkscape as recently as a few weeks ago, but I could be mistaken.

It is a raster image, but I'm trying to select to objects I've drawn on top of it with Inkscape. Basically I've drawn two circles, moved them to where I want them to be in relation to each other, and now I want to select them both to move them at the same time while maintaining that relationship. The circles are described as "Circle in layer Layer 1"

I did try unlock all, but no luck there.

Epos7 wrote:if I hold down control, it says in the status bar "Ctrl: click to select in groups; drag to move hor/vert"

Ah, so that's where that came from. If you hold down nothing, it will tell you about the basic usage with Shift+Click.

Epos7 wrote:It is a raster image, but I'm trying to select to objects I've drawn on top of it with Inkscape. Basically I've drawn two circles, moved them to where I want them to be in relation to each other, and now I want to select them both to move them at the same time while maintaining that relationship. The circles are described as "Circle in layer Layer 1"

Can you upload the file? (or another one that has the same problem for you, if that file cannot be uploaded for some reason)
Then we can check if it's a problem with the file, or one with your settings.

Moini wrote:Can you upload the file? (or another one that has the same problem for you, if that file cannot be uploaded for some reason)
Then we can check if it's a problem with the file, or one with your settings.

Shift is working now, thank you. Most likely just user error on my part

Epos7 wrote:when using the select tool, if I hold down control, it says in the status bar "Ctrl: click to select in groups; drag to move hor/vert"

The status line is telling you the truth.

• With no modifiers held down you get the message about "Click, shift+click, or drag around objects to select". This tells you that you can select objects with a click (which only selects one), shift-click (which lets you multi-select) or dragging around objects ("rubberband" selection). It doesn't mention the Ctrl and Alt options, though.
  
• Holding Shift it says "Click to toggle select; drag for rubberband selection" - i.e. shift-click toggles the selection on/off of individual items. Shift+drag starts a rubberband selection without selecting or moving the object you start dragging on (vital for very complex drawings with overlapping objects).
  
• Holding Ctrl it says "Click to select in groups; drag to move hor/ver" - i.e. holding control lets you select objects from inside groups, without ungrouping them first. Holding it when dragging an object constrains movement to the horizontal or vertical axis.
  
• Holding Alt it says "Click to select under; drag to move selected or select by touch" - i.e. Alt-clicking lets you select objects that are below others (each click selects the next item down in the z-index at the point where you're clicking). "Drag to move selected" is a little misleading, but essentially it means you can move selected items by Alt-dragging anywhere on the canvas, not necessarily on the selected items - useful for moving small objects that the mouse pointer might obscure. With nothing selected, Alt-dragging lets you "touch select" - it draws a temporary red line as you move the mouse, and anything the line touches is selected when you release the mouse (it can be a useful way of multi-selecting in very crowded drawings).

I know that goes way beyond your original question, but I figured that while I was explaining what the Ctrl status line meant, I may as well deal with the others, in case it reveals other selection options that you might find useful in future.