November 13, 2023
Introducing Creately VIZ for Microsoft Teams, Emoji Votes, Tags, Author History, New Color Palette Mode, and More!
Introducing Creately VIZ for Microsoft Teams: AI-Powered Visual Intelligence by Creately
We are introducing a MAJOR capability to Microsoft Teams with Creately VIZ. You can now simply speak to @creately and ask it to generate visuals and diagrams auto-magically within chats and meetings.
This AI-powered capability understands the conversation context, then translates dense discussions to easily understandable visuals in a snap. What’s more, Creately VIZ comes with multiple visual models and the expertise for them baked into the solution. Enabling you to have expert output in visual frameworks without even having to know anything about the frameworks.
What’s New For Creately in Microsoft Teams:
- One-Command Visuals
- Simply say “@creately generate me type of visual for context or scenario”.
- Multiple Visual models
- The first version of Creately VIZ is shipping with flowcharts, mind maps, Kanban boards, Lean UX Canvas, Business Model Canvas, SWOT, and SOAR diagrams, with more options shipping soon.
- It can understand your conversation context
- With simply saying “@creately generate me a Kanban board from this thread”, Creately will automatically identify key action points, and convert it into a real Kanban board that you can open right within Teams.
- Update EXISTING workspaces!
- This by far is the most exciting. You can also say “@creately update our pinned workspace with this action item” or “@creately update the brainstorming board with this idea” etc. This only works when you have pinned workspaces in the channel and it works really well as a place to put ideas that otherwise get lost in discussions.
Introducing ‘Flat’ and ‘Vibrant’ Color Schemes
Many of you love our bright and cheery color theme, but sometimes, you need to tone it down. So in comes the ‘Flat’ mode.
- Flat
- The ‘Flat’ color scheme is a muted color version that is perfect for a polished and professional appearance. It features subtle tones that are easy on the eyes and create a sense of sophistication.
- Vibrant
- The ‘Vibrant’ color scheme is designed to command attention and add vibrancy to your designs. It features bold hues that make your visuals stand out.
Note the following:
- Default Color Scheme: The default shape color scheme is now ‘Flat’ for a sleek look.
- Persistent Choices: Your color scheme won’t change unless you switch it.
- Automatic Application: New shapes will automatically adopt your chosen color scheme once changed.
Emoji Votes, Authors, Tags, Due Dates and More
We love this one! Now you can add emojis to any shape. Multiple users can pick any emojis they want to apply to a shape and it works like a voting system. So many different ways to use this when collaborating with others. Do give it a try…
You can also now add tags to any shape and they will show up on the shape in the neat little shape indicator. It also shows if you have any notes if there’s a task with a due date, comments, and more.
What’s More: All shapes now have Author tracking! Anyone adding or updating the shape or its notes will be captured and you can now see that in the indicator bar. This is super useful for collaboration sessions for you to know who added which sticky.
Hide and Show Shape Indicators
The shape indicators are hidden when you export your workspace as PDF, image, or SVG. On the canvas, if you want to hide them, you can toggle them off with the quick toolbar.
If shapes are inside a frame, you can easily set the setting at the frame level. Everything inside the frame will use the configuration.
Improved Kanban and Swimlane Shapes: Powered by the New Table Shape
Try the updated Kanban board or the swimlane shapes! You can now give cell-specific styles, insert columns or rows, and resize sections knowing all the items inside will stay where they are! It’s a simple-looking change, but oh boy it’s a lifesaver when you have that complex flowchart and want to insert something in the middle!
These new shapes are based on our hugely improved table shape! Now the table text editing, cell selection, and moving functionality are greatly improved.
- Customize the appearance of your tables with a variety of options, such as cell colors, column spacing, and padding.
- Convert tables into frames to create grid-based diagram structures.
- Merge and unmerge cells to create custom tables.
- Easily adjust rows and columns to create tables that fit your data and design.
- When you use the table as a ‘frame’, objects inside the frame stay in place as you move and adjust the cells.
- You can apply layouts to the table cells. It’s not only text that goes into Creately tables, any shape can too!
Additional History Option
Access the ‘History’ option in the main workspace menu for quick and convenient tracking of changes made within your opened workspace. Easily revert to previous states for efficient project management and collaboration.
Updated Data Fields in the Shape Notes Panel
Simplified property management with the addition of pre-defined property types, including Tags, Priority, Due Date, Estimate, and Owner. This update eliminates the need to create custom data fields for common properties, making it easier to manage and organize your Creately workspaces.
More Zoom Power for Your Projects
Maximum zoom level increased to 1000% while zoom out value remained at 5%. This gives you the best of both worlds: pixel-perfect precision for detailed editing and a comprehensive overview of your entire canvas for efficient navigation.
Improved Text Navigation in Table Shapes
We have fixed an issue where switching between cell texts in the table shape using the arrow keys was not working while in edit mode. This update will make it easier for you to navigate and edit your tables streamlining your editing process for increased efficiency and precision.