There are different methods you can use to paint down tiles in NWMap. The simplest way is to select individual tiles from the pallete, and place them on the map one at a time. This is called normal mode . Using normal mode, it can be cumbersome to paint something like a building, because you have to position and rotate its corners and edges, and then fill in the middle pieces. That's what group modes are all about.
Smart modes are very useful for drawing things like roads, rivers, hallways, walls and fences.
Enter select mode by clicking on the tool button with an arrow in a red box. Next, drag a rectangle in the map to define the region to be cut or copied. I don t like the grid lines. Yes, select Grid from the View menu. You can make it a bit easier by using group mode to draw rectangular portions, but you have to connect them with normal mode.