Board Tools

Depending on your board access role within a board, you have a set of tools at your disposal to mark-up, change, and move content.

As an Editor, you can use all of the Conceptboard tools. As a Reviewer, you only have access to certain tools to be used for editing content and giving feedback. As a Reader, you do not have access to any of the tools on the board.

All your tools are located in the top toolbar. As you select a tool, more options will be shown in a floating toolbar close to the element. The floating toolbar initially shows the visual design properties for an element (color, line width, etc.). You can add and modify text by clicking on the text options. Click on the dot menu on the right side to find all action properties related to an element (e.g. delete, foreground/background, group).

Whenever you create an element by mistake, click on the trash can icon in the floating toolbar, or click outside of it or hit escape and click Command + Z on your keyboard to delete it quickly.

Zoom tool Z

By default you can zoom in and out of the board by scrolling with the mouse wheel or trackpad (Mouse Mode active). When you press Shift while  scrolling you will pan around the board instead.

If you prefer to pan around the board by default, you can change the default zoom behaviour for a board: Click the mouse symbol in the bottom left to uncheck the "Scroll to zoom" mode (Mouse Mode inactive). This means you will now have to hold Shift while scrolling to zoom.

You can also select the Zoom tool to select an area by clicking and dragging the mouse over a board area to which you want to zoom. Or click on the dropdown menu to select a percentage of zoom. To exit the Zoom tool simply click on another tool that you want to use, or press ESC on your keyboard.

To learn more about how to move around in a board, click here. 

Minimap

The Minimap shows a smaller version of your board including all items on it. A rectangle on the map always shows your current position and field of view.

When you click the + or - buttons you will zoom into the board, while keeping your current position in the board.

You can also toggle the Minimap by hitting M on your keyboard. 

Browse tool H

The browse tool allows you to move around the board, just by clicking anywhere and dragging the board.

In any tool mode, press and hold Spacebar while dragging to move around the board without having to switch tool modes.

Select tool V

You can use the Select tool to:

• Select, resize, and slice elements on the board
• Pin elements to the board or add them to the board outline
• Select multiple items to move, group, align, or delete
• Double click to change the text in any Comment, Shape or Sticky Note.
• To select pinned items, double click or hit Shift and click

Format Brush tool  F

Use the Format brush to quickly apply the same formatting, such as color, font style and size, and line style, to multiple items on your board. The Format brush enables you to copy all of the formattings from one object and apply it to another one – think of it as a "copying and pasting" for formatting.

To use it, select the object whose format you want to copy, and then click on the Format brush tool in the top left toolbar or press F. Then, select the object which you want to apply the settings to by clicking on it. 

Copying the format is only possible between objects or items of the same type. This means that you can only transfer a format style from a scribble to another scribble and not from a scribble to a sticky note.

Note: the Format brush tool F does not transfer the shape style across different shapes. This means that when using the Format brush tool to copy the format of a rectangle and apply it to a circle, the circle shape will remain, and only the color, opacity, line style and width, and the text settings will be transferred.

Format Brush infinite mode

You can also apply the formatting of an item (shape, text, line/arrow, highlighter, or sticky note) several times by activating the infinite mode of the Format brush. To use it, select an item in your board, double click the Format brush and apply the item formatting on multiple items several times.

Once you click on your board again, the Format brush infinite mode is deactivated.

Erase tool

Using the Erase tool, you can click to erase any item on the board. Click on the Erase tool via the drop down of the Select tool or press E on your keyboard. On the iPad, select the erase tool and drag your finger back and forth across all the elements you want to erase.

Scribble tool P

Use the Scribble tool to sketch out ideas, mark up your content directly on the board or create virtual hand-written sticky notes. Once you select the Scribble tool or press P, five Scribble presets are shown with default colors and line widths.

You can customize the presets the way you want at anytime by choosing your preferred line width, and line color. You can also choose the various color palettes available:

• Basic colors - includes 15 redesigned basic colors to work with.
• Board colors - includes the 25 recently used colors on the board.
• Light colors - includes 15 pastel nuances of colors.
• Grayscale - includes 10 shades of grey colors.
• Corporate colors (available for PRO accounts) - includes the corporate colors of your team, set up by a team administrator. To learn more about Team custom color branding, click here.
• Personal colors - define up to 25 colors of your personal choice or use the eyedropper tool to copy an already existing color on the board. Your chosen personal colors will be displayed on every board. 

Additionally, you can change the Scribble settings (line color, line width, and line style) using the floating toolbar that pops up once you scribble on your board.

Furthermore, you can scribble on Sticky notes whereby the individual objects will be grouped automatically. For the smoothest writing, use a stylus and check your zoom level when using the scribble tool - depending on your tablet you may have a better performance if you zoom in between 100-200%.

Hint: hold Shift while using the Scribble tool to draw straight lines.

Highlight tool X

Use the Highlight tool to highlight on top of your content. Once you select the Highlight tool or press X, a dropdown menu appears. It shows five Highlight presets with default colors and line width.  

You can smoothly customize the presets by choosing your preferred Highlight line width, and color. All presets are stored on your device, so you just need to set them up once. You will find the following available color palettes:

• Basic colors - includes 15 redesigned basic colors to work with.
• Board colors - includes the 25 recently used colors on the board.
• Light colors - includes 15 pastel nuances of colors.
• Grayscale - includes 10 shades of grey colors.
• Corporate colors (available for PRO accounts) - includes the corporate colors of your team, set up by a team administrator. To learn more about Team custom color branding, click here.
• Personal colors - define up to 25 colors of your personal choice or use the eyedropper tool to copy an already existing color on the board. Your chosen personal colors will be displayed on every board. 

You can change the Highlight tool settings at anytime (line color, line width, line style, and color opacity) using the floating toolbar that pops up once you highlight content on your board. 

Please note, when scribbling and highlighting on sticky notes the individual objects will be grouped automatically. 

Hint: hold Shift while using the marker to create straight highlights. 

Line tool L and Arrow tool A

Use the Line / Arrow tool to draw lines and arrows. You can select the Line / Arrow tool or press A or L. By doing so, a dropdown menu appears made up of five Line / Arrow presets with default line style (solid, dashed, or dotted), line width and colors.

You can smoothly customize the Line presets by choosing your preferred line style, line width, and color. You will find the available color palettes:

• Basic colors - includes 15 redesigned basic colors to work with.
• Board colors - includes the 25 recently used colors on the board.
• Light colors - includes 15 pastel nuances of colors.
• Grayscale - includes 10 shades of grey colors.
• Corporate colors (available for PRO accounts) - includes the corporate colors of your team, set up by a team administrator. To learn more about Team custom color branding, click here.
• Personal colors - define up to 25 colors of your personal choice or use the eyedropper tool to copy an already existing color on the board. Your chosen personal colors will be displayed on every board. 

Our hint: Lines can easily be changed into an Arrow, or vice-versa. To do that, select the Line/Arrow or hit L or A, click on "set line ends" on the floating toolbar that pops up, and choose your preferred arrow/line shape. 

Shapes tool S

Conceptboard offers the opportunity to create different kinds of Shapes. To create a shape, select the Shape tool in the main toolbar or hit S on your keyboard. To cycle through all of the Shapes, press Shift and S at the same time. After selecting the shape that you like, you can drag your preferred shape to your board. These are all the Shapes that you can create:

• Rectangle R
• Rounded Rectangle 
• Racetrack
• Oval
• Triangle
• Play Triangle
• Orthogonal Triangle
• Diamond
• Parallelogram
• Hexagon
• Signal in Arrow
• Chevron in Arrow
• Block Arrow
• Double Block Arrow
• Cloud
• Explosion

Once you select the Shapes tool, shapes presets are shown with default colors, color opacity, and line width. You can easily customize these presets by choosing your preferred color, line width, and other settings. The following color palettes are available:

• Basic colors - includes 15 redesigned basic colors to work with.
• Board colors - includes the 25 recently used colors on the board.
• Light colors - includes 15 pastel nuances of colors.
• Grayscale - includes 10 shades of grey colors.
• Corporate colors (available for PRO accounts) - includes the corporate colors of your team, set up by a team administrator. To learn more about Team custom color branding, click here.
• Personal colors - define up to 25 colors of your personal choice or use the eyedropper tool to copy an already existing color on the board. Your chosen personal colors will be displayed on every board. 

All presets are stored on your device, so you just need to set them up one time. 

You can also change the Shapes tool settings at anytime (line color, line width, line style, and color opacity) using the floating toolbar that pops up once you drag a shape to your board.

Shapes can hold text. To add text to a shape, simply double-click on the shape and insert your text. You can edit the text options or the shape style using floating toolbar that pops ups once you add or edit the shape.

Our hint: Shapes can also be added as a Board Outline/Section, and the text will automatically become the Outline/Section name. To do that, select your Shape, click on "more options" in the floating toolbar, and select "Add to sections". For more information about the Board Outline, click here.

How to add personal colors to your board

You can customize 25 colors to your own account. These personal colors can be applied to most of your board tool functions (scribble, highlight, line/arrow, shapes, text, sticky notes) and even icons! Here's how to add personal colors: 

1. When selecting the board function, select to 'Set color'
2. From the dropdown arrow, choose 'Personal colors'
3. Click (+) Add color
4. Pick your desired color

Eyedropper

The eyedropper can be found via the color menu of shapes or other board elements and allows for:

• Selecting colors from a color spectrum
• Adding hex codes of user-defined colors
• Identifying hues of media on the board and apply them to other elements

Read the step-by-step guide.

Table tool D

Use tables to display data visually for better display and comparison. Once you select the Tables tool or press D, the default settings are shown: cell colours and text properties. You can customise these settings the way you want at anytime by choosing your preferred variants.

Tables are created with 3 rows by 3 columns by default, but it is possible to add new rows and columns, customise their size and remove them when no longer needed. To find out more about this tool, check out this article.

Sticky Note tool N

Use the Sticky note tool to easily collaborate, or write down your ideas. Create a Sticky note by selecting the tool and clicking or dragging it to your board. Then type or paste a text and click outside of it when you are done. You can also simply scribble onto your Sticky notes by selecting the Scribbling mode first. Tip: Use Conceptboard on a touch device for the best Scribbling outcome on your Sticky notes.  

Once you select the Sticky note tool or press N , a dropdown menu appears made up of five Sticky note presets with default colors, and text style. You can customize all the presets by choosing your preferred Sticky notes settings. You will find the available color palettes:

• Basic colors - includes 15 redesigned basic colors to work with.
• Board colors - includes the 25 recently used colors on the board.
• Light colors - includes 15 pastel nuances of colors.
• Grayscale - includes 10 shades of grey colors.
• Corporate colors (available for PRO accounts) - includes the corporate colors of your team, set up by a team administrator. To learn more about Team custom color branding, click here.
• Personal colors - define up to 25 colors of your personal choice or use the eyedropper tool to copy an already existing color on the board. Your chosen personal colors will be displayed on every board. 

You can also edit the text options, or the Sticky note style, using the floating toolbar that pops up once you drag a Sticky note to your board.

All Sticky notes can be added to your Board Outline/Section. To do that, select your Sticky note, click on "more options" in the floating toolbar, and select "Add to sections". For more information about the Board Outline, click here.

When using Sticky notes in touch mode, the scribbling tool will be selected automatically. After you scribble or highlight on your sticky note an auto group of the several objects will occur, in order to make it easier to drag the notes around the board. 

Our hint: if you need to export a board with CJK (Chinese, Japanese, Korean) scripts please switch the font to Arial first in text boxes, sticky notes, or headlines.

Text Box tool T

Create a Text box by selecting the tool icon, and click or drag it to your board. Type or paste a text, and click outside of it when you are done.

Once you select the Text box tool or press t, a dropdown menu will appear with a Text box preset with default color, and text style. You can customize the preset by choosing your preferred Text style. All Text presets are stored in your device, so you just need to set them up one time. You will find the available Text color palettes:

• Basic colors - includes 15 redesigned basic colors to work with.
• Board colors - includes the 25 recently used colors on the board.
• Light colors - includes 15 pastel nuances of colors.
• Grayscale - includes 10 shades of grey colors.
• Corporate colors (available for PRO accounts) - includes the corporate colors of your team, set up by a team administrator. To learn more about Team custom color branding, click here.
• Personal colors - define up to 25 colors of your personal choice or use the eyedropper tool to copy an already existing color on the board. Your chosen personal colors will be displayed on every board. 

You can also edit your Text options  at anytime by using the floating toolbar that pops up once you add a Text box in your board. You can change the text color, font, size, alignment, and other settings.

A Text box is created as a shape without borders and fill. Therefore, you can change the Text box to any Shape you like. To do that, simply select the Text box, and click on "Change shape" to open the shape options, and then finally on the Shape of your choice. 

All Text boxes can be added in your Board Outline/Section, and the text written will automatically become the Section's name. To do that, select your Text box, click on "more options" in the floating toolbar, and select "Add to sections". For more information about the Board Outline, click here.

Our hint: if you need to export a board with CJK (Chinese, Japanese, Korean) scripts please switch the font to Arial first in text boxes, sticky notes, or headlines

Comment tool C

Create a Comment

• Select the comment tool in the tool bar or click C on your keyboard, then click and drag to create a comment. Make sure the arrow points to something useful as comment alerts from @mentions include a small image preview.
• Type '@' and a user’s name to @mention them in the comment and send them an alert. You can either mention someone from your contact list or click on the "search in whole team" option to choose a team member that is not a participant on the board yet. 
• Hover over a comment and click the task button to mark it as a task. Any @mentioned users will have the task assigned to them.

Remove a Comment 

• Made a comment by mistake? Click outside of it or hit escape and click cmd / ctrl + Z on your keyboard.
• To delete the whole comment, select it, and hit Delete or Backspace on the keyboard.
• To delete only your comment, click edit, select all, and hit delete/backspace on your keyboard. Click save. An empty comment box automatically disappears.

Collapse Finished Comments

Once a decision has been made or a task is ready to be assigned, collapse the comment via the right up arrow on the bottom of the comment box. This will leave only the initial task and final decision visible and let's you see which conversations are finished while reducing the number of elements on top of your content.

It doesn’t matter how long your discussions get, it’s always good to be able to revisit a complete conversation and see the thought process behind a decision.

Pinning Items to the Board

All elements are created unpinned with the option to be pinned. Pinned elements are essentially locked and therefore protected against accidental selection, modification and movement.
There are different options to pin or unpin the item and then edit the item:
1. Double click on a pinned item, use the selection tool to draw a selection area around the desired area or simply press Shift while clicking on the item

2. You can also select the item that should be pinned and hit cmd/ctrl + L. In order to unpin it, hit cmd/ctrl+shift+L.

 

Object Alignment

Select multiple items on your board and choose the Object alignment in the floating toolbar to align them the way you want. You have different alignment options, including a grid layout where you choose the number of columns and rows you want.

Crop Images

You can easily crop images: Select the image, you want to crop. Use the crop-handle and move it to crop the image the way you like.

You can also crop and duplicate a defined part of pictures on your board. To do so, select the picture, click on the crop button in the floating toolbar and select the area you want to crop. Now you can drag the duplicated, cropped picture away, while the original one stays unaltered.