The Text Editor and Its Formatting Options

The text editor in awork helps you structure your content cleanly and format it quickly - directly in description fields, comments, and docs.

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Key Benefits and Use Cases

• Cleanly structured content through headings, lists, dividers, and formatting options

• Write faster with slash commands (/) right from your keyboard

• Collaborate together through live editing in project and task descriptions

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How to Use the Text Editor

You can use formatting in the following areas in awork:

• Docs (Pages & Comments) - full feature set

• Project descriptions

• Task descriptions

• Project comments

• Task comments

Depending on where you are, not all slash commands are available.

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Collaborative Live Editing in Descriptions

Multiple team members can edit project and task descriptions at the same time. Here's how you can see what's happening:

• Live cursor shows you who's currently working in the description

• Color coding per person for the live cursor (can't be changed)

• Highlights in user color when someone selects text

• Status indicator at the top right showing "Updated" or "Syncing"

• Only available in details (project and task details), not through the Edit button

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Available Text Formatting Options

You can use the following formatting options, among others:

• Text sizes (header, title, subtitle, text)

• Text styles (bold, italic, strikethrough, underlined)

• Lists (numbered and bulleted)

• Section divider line

• Emojis

• Line and paragraph breaks

• Attach files

• Add links

• Display code with appropriate font

When your cursor is in an empty line, you can quickly add elements using the + button.

Insert Elements in Empty Lines

1. Place your cursor in an empty line

2. Click the + icon to the left of the line

3. Choose a formatting option to start the line (for example, title or list)

Format Selected Text

1. Select a word or passage

2. Use the formatting options above the selection

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Slash Commands

With slash commands, you create content faster: type /, choose a command, and add formatting, elements, or actions directly from your keyboard.

With slash commands you can while you're typing:

• Convert text formats (for example, heading, list, quote)

• Insert content (for example, images, emojis, files, tables)

• Perform actions from your keyboard

How Slash Commands Work

1. Type / in a supported text field

2. A popup opens showing available commands

3. Keep typing to filter the list

4. The first entry is always pre-selected

5. Navigate through the list with arrow keys (up/down)

6. Press Enter to execute the command you want

Slash commands work at the beginning of a new line and also in the middle of text. You can also convert existing lines to other formats.

Supported Commands and Formatting

Overview of available slash commands (🇬🇧 and 🇩🇪 are both supported equally):

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Text Editing with Keyboard Shortcuts

These shortcuts apply formatting to selected text. If nothing is selected, you'll continue typing in that format:

• ⌘ + B (macOS) or Ctrl + B (Windows) - Bold
• ⌘ + I (macOS) or Ctrl + I (Windows) - Italic
• ⌘ + U (macOS) or Ctrl + U (Windows) - Underlined
• ⌘ + Shift + S (macOS) or Ctrl + Shift + S (Windows) - Strikethrough
• ⌘ + E (macOS) or Ctrl + E (Windows) - Inline code
• ⌘ + ⌥ + 0 (macOS) or Ctrl + Alt + 0 (Windows) - Paragraph
• ⌘ + ⌥ + 1 (macOS) or Ctrl + Alt + 1 (Windows) - H1
• ⌘ + ⌥ + 2 (macOS) or Ctrl + Alt + 2 (Windows) - H2
• ⌘ + ⌥ + 3 (macOS) or Ctrl + Alt + 3 (Windows) - H3
• ⌘ + Shift + 7 (macOS) or Ctrl + Shift + 7 (Windows) - Numbered list
• ⌘ + Shift + 8 (macOS) or Ctrl + Shift + 8 (Windows) - Bullet list
• ⌘ + Shift + B (macOS) or Ctrl + Shift + B (Windows) - Block quote
• ⌘ + Shift + H (macOS) or Ctrl + Shift + H (Windows) - Apply last used highlight color
• ⌘ + ⌥ + C (macOS) or Ctrl + Alt + C (Windows) - Toggle code block
• ⌘ + Z (macOS) or Ctrl + Z (Windows) - Undo
• ⌘ + Shift + Z or ⌘ + Y (macOS) or Ctrl + Shift + Z or Ctrl + Y (Windows) - Redo
• Shift + Enter (macOS) or Shift + Enter (Windows) - Insert line break
• Tab (Windows) - Indent list or code block
• Shift + Tab - Outdent list or code block

More shortcuts for quick text creation and formatting:

• Activate H1 with # then space

• Activate H2 with ## then space

• Activate H3 with ### then space

• Write italic with *Example*

• Write bold with **Example**

• Write strikethrough with ~~Example~~

• Write code with `Example`

• Insert divider line with ---

Automatic Detection at the Start of a Line

At the beginning of a line, you can type character combinations to automatically format the line:

• Bullet list with - plus space

• Numbered list with 1. plus space

• Title with # plus space

• Section divider line with -- plus space

Line and Paragraph Breaks

You can in your text:

• Create paragraph breaks with Enter

• Create line breaks with Shift + Enter

Paragraph breaks create more space between lines and add a new element in lists.

Line breaks keep normal spacing. In lists, you can use them to write multi-line items.

Attach Files

In the text editor, you can:

• Upload new files through slash commands (see the Slash Commands section)

• Link existing files by typing @ and entering the file name

Select the file in the popup. Then it appears in the text field.

Save and Reset Input

In task and project details, you can edit descriptions "inline":

• Auto-save when you click outside the text field

• Save and close with ⌃ + Enter (macOS) or Ctrl + Enter (Windows)

• Close without saving with Esc (shows the state before editing again)

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FAQ

In which areas can I use formatting?

You can format in Docs (Pages & Comments) (full feature set), project descriptions, task descriptions, project comments, and task comments.

Why don't I see all slash commands?

Depending on where you are, not all slash commands are available. Also, slash commands don't work when text is selected and are disabled in code blocks.

Why can't I use attachments or @-mentions in dashboard notes?

All formatting options are available in dashboard notes. However, you can't upload attachments, use mentions (@), or use slash commands there.

Why can't I undo changes anymore?

Undo and redo only work while you're actively in the text field. Once you click outside the text field, they don't work anymore.

How do I save changes or discard them?

When you click outside the text field, it saves immediately. With ⌃ + Enter (macOS) or Ctrl + Enter (Windows), you save and close edit mode. With Esc, you close without saving and see the state from before you started editing.