Tips and shortcuts

Touch

Gesture	What it does
Tap a topic	Select it
Tap a selected topic	Edit its text, with the cursor where you tapped
Double-tap a topic	Edit it straight away
Double-tap empty canvas	Start a new, separate map right there
Long-press topics	Select several
Press and drag a topic	Move it onto another topic, or between two siblings
Tap the round handle beside a topic	Collapse or expand its branch
Tap empty canvas	Clear the selection, or finish editing
Pinch	Zoom
Flick	Pan, and the map glides to a stop

The minimap in the corner shows where you are on a large map. The zoom buttons beside it include one that fits the whole map on screen.

Note

With Reduce Motion turned on in your device’s settings, the map stops when you lift your finger instead of gliding.

Keyboard

With a keyboard attached to a tablet. On Android, use Ctrl wherever this table says ⌘.

Building the map

Keys	What it does
Tab	Add a child
Return	Add a sibling after
⇧ Return	Add a sibling before
Space or F2	Edit the selected topic
Ctrl Space	Collapse or expand the branch
Delete	Delete the selected branch
Arrow keys	Move the selection to the neighbouring topic
⌘A	Select every topic
Esc	Clear the selection

Ctrl, not ⌘, for folding

On a Mac, ⌘Space opens Spotlight before Smart Mind sees it, so use Ctrl Space to fold. On an iPad either one works.

While typing in a topic

Keys	What it does
Return	Finish this topic. Press it again to add a sibling
Tab	Finish this topic and add a child. Repeat to keep going deeper
Esc	Undo your typing. A new topic you haven’t typed in is removed

With a keyboard, Return finishes the topic. On a touch keyboard, return moves straight on to the next topic, because that’s faster when you’re typing on glass.

Everywhere

Keys	What it does
⌘Z / ⌘⇧Z	Undo / redo
⌘C / ⌘V	Copy and paste a branch, or text while you’re typing
⌘F	Search the map
⌘= / ⌘- / ⌘0	Zoom in, zoom out, fit the map
⌘N	New map
⌘\	Show or hide the library beside the map

In a note

Keys	What it does
⌘B / ⌘I	Bold / italic
⌘K	Link
⌘E	Switch between Edit and Preview
Esc	Close the note

Trackpad and mouse

Input	What it does
Scroll	Pan the map
⇧ + scroll	Pan sideways, with a mouse wheel
⌘ or Ctrl + scroll	Zoom around the pointer
Pinch	Zoom around the pointer
Right-click a topic	The topic’s menu, at the pointer
Right-click a map or folder in the library	Its menu, at the pointer

In the outline

• Return at the end of a row adds the next one. In the middle of a row, it splits the row in two.
• Return on an empty indented row moves it out a level.
• Backspace on an empty row deletes it, with a hardware keyboard.
• Drag a row sideways to indent or outdent it.
• Long-press the bullet to move a whole branch up or down.
• Long-press the text to select several rows.

Settings worth a look

Setting	What it does
Theme	Light, dark, or follow the device, for the app itself. Maps keep their own theme
Language	Ten languages, switched instantly with no restart
Topic text size	80% to 140% on every map
Show canvas grid	A faint grid behind the map
Default layout and stylesheet	What new blank maps start with
Haptic feedback	Small vibrations on selection and drag
Confirm before deleting	Turn off to delete without being asked. Undo still works
Send crash reports	Under Your data. Turn off to send nothing when the app crashes

Related

• Edit and rearrange
• Organize: outline view, search and folders