Map
A map is the spatial/visual view of a subset of a project’s Database.
The Database is the home of every entity in a project. A Map shows whichever elements and relations the user has placed on it — that subset can be anything from one element up to all of them. An entity can exist in the Database without being on any Map. An entity cannot be on a Map without being in the Database.
A project can have multiple Maps. Each Map is a different arrangement and visual configuration over its own subset of the Database. Different Maps can show different subsets of the same data — they are not separate copies.
Layout modes
Freedom — freeform, user-placed. Elements are positioned wherever the user places them on the map.
Grouped — elements are arranged by a user-defined single-select property. The property’s values become swimlanes or groups. The user chooses which property to group by; the map renders accordingly.
What maps are not
Maps are not separate copies of the data. Placing an element on one map does not duplicate it — the element lives in the Database, and each Map surfaces a view of it. Removing an element from a Map does not remove it from the Database.
Vocabulary note
“Map” replaces “canvas.” Never use “canvas” when talking about the visual view.
Related
- Database — the home of all elements and relations; Maps view subsets of it
- Element — what appears as nodes on a map
- Connection — what appears as lines on a map
- Project — the container that holds the Database and the Maps