--first you may want to see the usual max-menubar again. you can do this by choosing "menubar" from the ho_sts titlemenu.

it is normaly recomendet to edit acts with a loaded ho_st since you can test everything on the fly.

-- if you want to edit an act you need to open it from the finder or with the (max-) file>open menu.

if an act is opened from the act-menu (from another max-patch), all #0-names used for send/receives and coll-names
are replaced by random numbers (#0.freq becomes something like 2761.freq for example). this provides the possibility to open multiple patches(acts) of the same source keeping local send/receives and other parameters.
( also refer to Max46TutorialsAndTopics.pdf page 420 )

if you edit an act opened from the act-menu and then save this (usually you would replace it in the lloopp.act-folder), this capability is lost. so again, open the act from the finder and then start editing (make sure you see "#0.receives").

--there are 2 basic levels in acts:

the main-patch (which appears when you open it)

the (main-) subpatch of the act.

the main-patch can be edited by choosing "titlebar" from the act's title-menu. then in the titlebar click the grow-button and then
unlock the patch. usually there are all the userinterfaces, the actmaker, pattrstorage, the colls holding act-specific informations on the parameters (par-properties) and some pvars (for UIs that are not appearing in the clientlist of pattrstorage).

the subpatch can be opened directly (without unfolding the main-patch) by selecting "subpatch" from the act's title-menu. in here happen ALL the at-specific things....