Welcome to the Elements.cloud platform!

This article overviews the basic navigational components of the platform. Bookmark or pin this page and refer to it as a guide when working in Elements to help understand how to navigate through the different screens, tools and windows.

NOTE: You will need to be familiar with the Elements.cloud terminology to best understand how to navigate through the platform - you can review the terms in this article. Be sure to Bookmark it!

Important Navigation Tips to remember!

There is no save button - When you click enter, your changes are saved in Elements.
By Default, a new tab is opened when working on an item, such as a Process map, and you click on the HOME icon. Although this may result in several redundant tabs being created, it prevents you from leaving a tab with unfinished work.

Use the table below to quickly jump to a topic

HOME PAGE	TOP TOOL BAR	PROPERTIES PANEL (Right)
CENTER WORK AREA	APP TOOL BAR (below the Top)	THE SUPPORT ICON
APP TOOL PANEL (Left)	APP PANEL (Left)

Main components of Elements.cloud Navigation:

1. The Home Page

The Home page, like the name suggests, is where you arrive when you first login to Elements.cloud. It has several components, menus and links which we will briefly describe in this article, but you can get more details from the articles in the links within in each section.

Find more information about the "Recently use Items" list in this article

2. Top Tool Bar.

The name of the CURRENT SPACE (in this example, its "Roberts Space") is displayed in the top left corner of the main tool bar on the top of the Home page.

The next item is the "Space Chooser" where you can select to view a different space. You can choose from a list of recently viewed or expand it to see all the spaces you have access to. When you choose a space, the contents of your home page will change, but the navigation components should remain the same.

The GEAR Icon will open the SETTINGS page in a NEW TAB: Depending on your permissions, you may have two types of settings available:

SPACE Settings(Gear Icon) : where you can set preferences and add components such as resources, data tables, and configure themes (UI) which can be used in the space.
CORPORATE Settings: where you can manage license allocation and user permissions.

The REPORTING ANALYTICS icon will open a list of SAVED REPORTS in a NEW TAB.

The alarm icon will open a list of Notifications.

The Briefcase Icon presents a list of TASKS.

If you click your profile picture (if you uploaded a Picture) you can choose to view details of your profile, or select Log Out.

The last icon on the right top tool bar is the Question mark icon which opens a new browser tab to the Support.Elements.cloud page.

3. App Tool Bar

3.1: The APP TOOL Bar is just below the Top Tool Bar, and changes depending on what tool you are using. However, the HOME PAGE is designed to provide quick navigation to your most recent work and resources. The menu bar is organized into three sections:

The Work Items box organizes your work into three tabs that list your recent and followed work items, and any items shared with you.
A Search box, so you can quickly filter the list of work items by type.
Quick links to RESOURCES that can quickly direct you to detailed support articles, training course, and product release notes.

There are three tabs on the left side of the APP TOOL BAR:

RECENTLY VIEWED:

The home page shows you the last 50 items you recently viewed in Elements. These items are space specific, so each space will have its own collection of your last 50 viewed items. You can find out more details in this article.

FOLLOWED ITEMS:

You can follow diagrams, requirements, stories, reference model nodes and URL library links so you can quickly access them from the home page, see the items that have most recently changed and needs your attention. You can also mark any of the followed items as favorites. See more details about FOLLOWING items in Elements in this article.

SHARED WITH YOU:

This tab lists any items shared with you by others. You may or may not have permissions to edit a diagram, map, or other resource, but you will be able to view it when selected from this list. Read about the sharing ability and setting permissions in this article.

*TIP if you don't see the "share" button, you may be in a Playground space. You will need to create a team space instead.

3.2 The Search Box

The Search box only appears on the RECENTLY VIEWED tab within the HOME page, and allows you to filter work items by type, as displayed above.

3.3 The RESOURCE LINKS

The Resource Links will direct you to the various support resources we provide our customers and partners.

Need Support: Links to our Support portal, where you can find answers to questions. Our articles are updated frequently, and you can rate the helpfulness of an article. Articles are organized into Collections that will help you find the related and relevant articles
Elements Academy: Links to our Academy, which is the source for all training and enablement. The Academy also provides testing and certification programs for our customers and partners. Email our Enablement team at enablement@elements.cloud if you need more information or have questions.
Release Notes: Directs you to the list of Release Note articles which contain details about every Elements release. We deploy releases regularly and the articles contain information about what features and functionality are affected, as well as any new feature.

4. The Support Icon

This icon is always visible within the Elements.cloud platform. It opens a new modal window where you can access our different support channels without leaving the Elements platform, so you can ask a question or search for an article at the time you need it, so you don't lose your place or the work you have done.

To close the window, click the DOWN ARROW icon in the lower right corner of the modal window.

Options for support are:

Messages: If you have asked a question in this channel, one of our CSMs or Support reps may have responded here. You can also submit a question here though our an AI-powered bot that automatically answers questions based on our support library content. You also have the option to speak to your team if desired.
Help: A search modal window where you can submit a search query or browse through our support articles.
Ask a Question: You can submit a question to our AI-powered bot, attach files and/or images or direct a question to our support team who can help you directly if available.
Elements Academy: Directs you to the Academy.Elements.Cloud home page in a new browser tab where you can browse through courses and modules to get detailed demonstrations of the features.

5. Center Work Area Here's an example of the Center Work Area when the Salesforce Orgs tool is selected:

The center area of the Elements app is a dynamic work space where you can select specific items to work on and expose properties and details of the item. It is in the center of the page, and the content changes depending on which tool you are using and the space you selected.

For example, on the Home page, the center work area provides a list of your work items within the selected space.

When selecting the Processes tool, the center of page lists the Process Maps that you have access to.

When you select a process map, the center space becomes your work area, displaying the details of the process map you chose, and the relevant tool bars for the Process mapping tool.

NOTE: Every tool has a PROPERTIES PANEL displayed on the right side of the main page, except for the CHANGES tool.

Refer to specific support articles or the Academy Getting Started course to find out more about each tool.

6. The App Panel

The App Panel (Left Side Vertical Menu)

In the home page, the left side panel displays the list of tools within the Elements platform. When selected, each tool icon opens an initial page where you can select the item to work on within you chosen space. The Center Work area will then display the details of the item you chose.

6. Properties Panel (Right Side Panel)

The properties panel is typically visible on every page within the Elements platform. The properties panel is dynamic and contextual, meaning that the panel's content will change depending on what space, tool and work item you selected.

For example, when using the Processes tool, the properties panel components change based on what you selected in the work area: An activity box, or a flow line.

Examples of the properties of an Activity box, and the right shows an example of a Flow Line are below.

BEST PRACTICE: Use your demo or playground Space to explore a Process Map, Architecture Diagram and Salesforce Org to get familiar with the different values that can be displayed for various components of a Space.

NOTE: The Right Properties panel is hidden by default when using an app, but visible in View or Edit mode.

ACTIVITY BOX PROPERTIES PANEL

FLOW LINE PROPERTIES PANEL

7. App Tool Panel (Left side)

Only visible when a component is in Edit mode, and Hidden by default. The Tool Panel is available in the Process and Architecture apps. The list of tool icons changes based on the App you selected. See examples below: The "Activity Box" tool is replaced by the "Card" icon on the Architecture tool panel.

Process (Map) Tool Panel