Choose what a canvas gesture means, use direct manipulation without calling the model, annotate or discuss exact regions, and preview real behavior without accidental edits.
Where: Designer top bar → Edit / Draw / Comment / Preview.
Key ideas
- Canvas mode and assistant mode are independent: Edit/Draw/Comment/Preview control canvas gestures. Design/Plan/Ask control the assistant’s tool permissions. Being in Preview does not make Ask writable, and choosing Design does not change a click into Edit.
- Edit is local and direct: Edit selects, drags, resizes, and tunes elements without calling the model. Selection opens the floating property bar; live text editing replaces it with a text-format bar.
- Permissions fail closed: Edit and Draw require edit permission. Comment requires comment permission. A session that lacks the requested permission falls back to Preview, while the document store independently refuses unauthorized writes.
Steps
- Choose Edit to select an element. Shift/add to selection where supported, or use Layers for hidden/nested elements.
- Drag or resize the selection and use the floating property controls; enter live text editing to use the text-format bar.
- Lock the property panel when you need its current target to stay stable while moving between nearby elements.
- Choose Draw and mark the intended region. The drawing becomes visual input for a follow-up change; it does not mutate the page by itself.
- Choose Comment, click the target/region, write the note, and use replies, move, resolve, or delete according to your role.
- Choose Preview to run links, scrolling, hover/click interactions, media, and motion as the page behaves.
- Return to Edit before attempting a direct selection. Refresh when you need to restart runtime state without reverting the document.
- Clear stale selections or annotations before a broad assistant request so the intended scope is unambiguous.
Mode meanings
- Edit — select, drag, resize, tune, and edit text; never calls the model.
- Draw — mark the canvas, then describe the requested change.
- Comment — page-scoped pins with collaboration actions.
- Preview — actual supported page behavior; no authoring gesture interpretation.
Contextual overlays
- FloatingPropertyBar for normal selection
- TextFormatBar during live text editing
- DrawController in Draw mode
- CommentLayer when comments are active/present
- LogoPanel on Logo pages regardless of canvas mode
- Exposed fields are docked below the top bar, not floating over the canvas.
Tips
- Use direct Edit for a known small correction and the Design assistant for a structural or multi-element change.
- Resolve comments when the decision is made; page-scoped pins persist with the shared project when the host supports them.
Limitations and important notes
- Draw marks are context, not automatically executed edits.
- Preview does not prove a public export, email client, or external data source will behave identically.
- A commenter can comment without receiving document edit access.
Troubleshooting
Clicking a button navigates instead of selecting it.
You are in Preview. Switch to Edit or select the element through Layers.
Edit or Draw immediately returns to Preview.
Your project role does not currently have edit permission. Ask an owner/editor to change access.