A mural is a place for you to share your ideas with your peers. In each mural, you have a set of tools as well as a canvas on which you can use those tools. Let’s take a quick look at those tools and the canvas itself to get you started.
Note: Does your canvas look different than what you see in our screenshots? Switch to the new Mural experience by clicking the “twinkle toggle” in the top right of the page.
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Contents
Top bar
The “top bar” of a mural refers to the list of icons that stretch across the top of your screen when you’re looking at your canvas. The options you see here help you manage your mural, and it’s also where you find Facilitation Superpowers® to help you lead a meeting or working session.
Note: The options you see in the top bar will vary depending on whether you’re an owner of that mural or if the owner has granted you Facilitation Superpowers. |
Let’s walk through each section of the top bar.
Top bar section | Description |
Mural name/settings (A) |
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Download/Find (B) |
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Facilitation Superpowers (C) | Click any of these icons to access the following features:
Note: Anyone can access the voting session feature, but only mural facilitators can access the other Facilitation Superpowers. |
Collaboration options (D) |
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Avatar and user options (E) |
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Left sidebar
The “left sidebar” is also sometimes called the “visual thinking toolbar.” This is where you’ll find objects to actually add to your canvas.
We have another article that gives you an introduction to objects. And for those who might want some extra credit (we’re not actually grading you…), you can find a full deep-dive in our Objects in Mural article. But for now, here’s a list of what you’ll find in the left sidebar.
Left sidebar icon | Description |
Sticky notes (A) | Click here to access sticky notes. Drag and drop them directly onto your canvas. |
Text (B) | Click here to access easy ways to add text to your canvas, including:
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Shapes and connectors (C) | Click here to access other ways to illustrate your ideas, including:
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Draw (D) | Click here to turn your mouse pointer into a drawing tool that lets you create your own works of art directly on the canvas. |
Icons (E) | Click here to search and add icons to your canvas for a little extra sparkle and personality. |
Images (F) | Click here to access a library of GIFs and images from the following sources:
Or, you can import your own images from your computer, Google Drive, Dropbox, or OneDrive. |
Frameworks (G) | Click here to access frameworks, which can add pre-configured structure and organization to your canvas. |
Table (H) | Click here to create custom-made tables to sort your ideas on the canvas. |
Content library (I) | Click here to access your own content that you’ve saved for future use. |
More tools (J) | Click here to access the Import files function, where you can upload files to your canvas. You can upload files from:
Note: You can quickly add images, files, or links to your canvas by dragging them from their source directly onto the canvas. |
Navigation
Now, the top bar and left sidebar are always in the same place, but your mural can be as big as you want it, which means you need a way to get from one place to another. For that, you have a few options in the bottom right corner of your mural.
Here’s a breakdown of every navigation option in the bottom right of your canvas.
Navigation option | Description |
Move mode (A) |
Note: You can also quickly access move mode at any time by holding the Shift key on your keyboard. |
Navigation settings (B) | Click this to access navigation settings where you can switch between trackpad mode or mouse mode. |
Mini-map (C) | Click this icon to open a miniature image representing your canvas and its content. A highlighted box shows what you are currently viewing. Click and drag inside the mini-map to move your view around the canvas. |
Zoom (D) |
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For more information, see our Navigating your mural and canvas article.