Freeform is getting a new navigation feature called Scenes in iOS 18 and macOS 15
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In iOS 18 and macOS 15, Apple's Freeform app will get a brand new navigation feature called Scenes, as well as new object alignment options. Here's what to expect.
Freeform is Apple's version of the collaboration app with an infinite canvas that gives users the ability to create virtual boards with images, links and text. The application, introduced in 2022, is available on iOS, iPadOS, macOS 15, as well as on VisionOS. Thanks to the new feature “. Freeform Scenes will make it easier to navigate between different board sections. These sections or scenes can be edited, saved, exported as PDF files, or printed directly from the application's user interface.
Users will also be able to collaborate or present scenes to others as this feature will be compatible with iCloud. People familiar with the feature revealed specific details about its design, allowing us to create detailed mockups of the app's user interface and illustrate the functionality of the feature.
Freeform scenes will make managing complex projects and large boards much easier, allowing for quick navigation between specific areas. Simplifying the navigation process will lead to improved creative flow, while minimizing distractions and interruptions, allowing users to maintain a chain of thought.
This feature will be especially useful for planning and creating detailed concepts or layouts. Users in business or education could present and explain their ideas or projects to others, or correct mistakes, with just a few clicks—as opposed to the endless scrolling required in the current version of Freeform.
Users will also be able to collaborate and customize individual scenes as this feature promotes collaboration through iCloud compatibility. This means designers, artists, marketers, teachers and other business professionals will be able to work on the same area of the board, allowing them to make changes on the fly.
What will the user interface for freeform scenes look like?
In preview versions of Apple's operating systems, the freeform scenes user interface is located at the bottom left of the app window, next to the zoom controls.
As shown in an earlier report, the new user interface can be toggled by tapping or clicking the new sandwich panel icon. This will present the user with basic navigation controls in the form of two arrows with a square icon between them.
The new Freeform Scenes feature will allow you to navigate between specific areas of the board
Tapping the square icon opens up additional options for saving, exporting, and navigating between scenes. When first opened, the new UI element will display a short description of the Scenes feature to explain its general purpose and functionality.
In the same UI element, users will find a dedicated button to save the current area of their board. Whenever a new scene is saved, it will populate the list in the app.
This means that scenes can be navigated in a number of ways – either by using the two arrow icons mentioned earlier, by scrolling through the list of saved scenes, using the menu bar, or using the keyboard. shortcuts in macOS 15.
Freeform Snap To Grid feature will make precise object alignment possible
On the Mac, scenes will be accessible via the menu bar. Users will find navigation options for scenes in the View section in macOS 15, as well as another feature called Snap To Grid.
This feature will adjust the placement and alignment of objects relative to the existing board grid. When enabled, users will be able to precisely align objects and elements so that they coincide with the nodes of the board.
Snap to Grid is an option widely available in various design-related applications. Products such as Adobe Photoshop, Microsoft Excel, and Archicad all contain this feature in some form.
With the Snap to Grid feature, users will be able to precisely align various elements such as images, text boxes, and shapes on the board. This would be ideal for complex concepts and projects that require close attention to detail, such as design projects or precise diagrams.
Other Upgrades for Freeform
Internally, Apple has also developed an integration between Freeform and an app called “Generative Playground.” As explained in one of our previous reports, Generative Playground is an image creation and editing tool associated with the company's Greymatter AI project.
This means Apple could update Freeform with generative AI, allowing users to add AI-generated images to their boards. However, it remains to be seen whether this feature will become available to end users or be released.
Freeform is Apple's built-in tool for creating an infinite canvas.
People familiar with the matter told AppleInsider that Freeform will gain support for vertically aligned text fields .
Vertical text field alignment will be especially useful for detailed projects with numerous elements. This feature will give users more options for labeling various processes in a structured business plan or, for example, labeling roads in a simplified city view.
There will also be a mysterious feature called “Magic Lists”. However, at the time of writing, it's not entirely clear what Magic Lists will actually do.
Not all software features that pass early testing make it into the final versions of Apple operating systems. The company has been known to delay new features and improvements in subsequent OS releases or cancel them outright, so there's always a chance we won't be able to see these features at WWDC — or in general — for one reason or another.
An updated Freeform app is expected to debut at WWDC, along with Apple's new GreyParrot calculator, updated Calendar, Music, Notes, Photos, System Preferences, and Voice Memos apps ”
The company plans to announce the next generation of operating systems on June 10, when we will see the first developer betas of iOS 18, iPadOS 18 and macOS 15. With a big focus on AI.
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