When you select an element, a + button appears on each of its sides. Clicking one opens the quick-add menu, a strip of actions for that side: Duplicate (copy the element to that side, connected), Arrow (drag out an arrow), Pencil (sketch freehand) and Text (add a label beside it, with no connector). Quick-add on Hover changes how that menu opens, so you can reach it without a click.
Some elements put their own actions on the +: a mind node leads with Add Child and Add Sibling, a table offers Add Row and Add Column, and a timeline offers Add Point.
What it does
With the setting on, hovering a + opens its menu straight away, and the menu stays open while your pointer is over the + or the menu itself. Move away and it closes on its own after a moment, long enough to cross the gap between the two. When you are adding several connected elements in a row, it saves a click each time.
The + buttons still only appear on the element you have selected, and clicking a + still works exactly as before, so turning this on only adds the hover shortcut; it never takes the click away. Dragging a + still skips the menu and starts an arrow from that side, either way.
Hovering needs a mouse or trackpad. On a touch screen there is no hover, so you tap the + as usual.
Turning it on
It is off by default, since menus that open on hover can feel twitchy if you didn’t ask for them. Switch on Quick-Add on Hover in Settings, under Editor.
The setting is saved with your other settings. When you are signed in it follows you to your other devices; as a guest it stays with this browser.
Was this article helpful?