The canvas is where you actually build diagrams in livediagram. It is an open, scrollable surface you can pan and zoom freely, with the palette pinned across the top of it for adding elements and switching tools. Everything works straight away, no sign-in required, so you can open a fresh canvas and start placing shapes in seconds.
The Palette
The Palette is a strip pinned to the top centre of the canvas, holding everything you add to it. It starts with the canvas tool (Select, Hand, Laser and the other selection modes), then the palette's categories by name, each opening a panel of its elements as you rest on it, and ends with Search for finding any element by name. See Toolbar Layout for the details.
In the top-left corner, beside the strip, the menu button opens the Explorer, and on a computer the mode switch (Diagram, Draw, Illustrate and Plan) sits beside it.
Adding Elements
Most elements are added straight from the palette, whose categories sit along the strip by name. In Diagram mode they are Shapes, Draw (text, notes and comments, then the pens and arrows), Build (mind nodes, lanes, frames, tables), Concepts (pyramids, funnels, cycles and the Sankey), Icons, Tech and Media. Rest on one, or click it, and its elements open in a panel underneath. Each mode offers its own set: Components, Devices and Data (charts) belong to Illustrate mode, for example. Clicking an element arms a combined gesture: a tap drops the element at your pointer, and a drag sizes it as you go. Single-key shortcuts skip the palette altogether, such as R for a rectangle, T for text and N for a sticky note. See Adding Elements for the full walkthrough.
Moving Around
The canvas is effectively infinite, so you are never boxed in. Use the Hand tool, a middle-click drag, two fingers on a trackpad, or hold Space and drag to pan, and Cmd / Ctrl + scroll, a pinch, or the zoom controls in the bottom-right corner to scale the view. The Panning and Zooming article covers every way to navigate.
Each tab has its own backdrop and theme. The Theme & canvas button beside the zoom controls opens the Tab Style dialog, where you can change the canvas background or pick a theme.
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