The Text Editor and Its Formatting

The text editor in awork helps you structure your content cleanly and format it quickly - right 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 (/) directly from your keyboard

• Collaborate in real-time 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 the location, not all slash commands may be available.

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Real-time collaborative 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 in 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 on an empty line, you can quickly insert elements using the + button.

Inserting elements on empty lines

1. Place your cursor on an empty line

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

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

Formatting 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 writing:

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

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

• Execute actions via keyboard

How slash commands work

1. Type / in a supported text field

2. A popup opens with 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 start 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 (both 🇬🇧 and 🇩🇪 are equally supported):

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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 the corresponding 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 recently 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

Additional shortcuts for quick text creation and formatting:

• Activate H1 with # followed by space

• Activate H2 with ## followed by space

• Activate H3 with ### followed by space

• Write in italic with *Example*

• Write in bold with **Example**

• Write strikethrough with ~~Example~~

• Write code with `Example`

• Insert divider with ---

Automatic detection at the beginning of a line

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

• Bullet list with - plus space

• Numbered list with 1. plus space

• Heading with # plus space

• Section divider line with -- plus space

Line and paragraph breaks

In your text, you can:

• Create paragraph breaks with Enter

• Create line breaks with Shift + Enter

Paragraph breaks create more space between lines and start a new item in lists.

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

Attaching files

In the text editor, you can attach files by:

• Uploading new files via slash commands (see the Slash commands section)

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

Select the file in the popup. It will then appear in the text field.

Saving and resetting 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 the location, not all slash commands may be 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 slash commands in dashboard notes.

Why can't I undo changes anymore?

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

How do I save or discard changes?

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