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Documents

A document is where your group writes things down — notes, plans, scripts, budgets — and keeps files. Documents live inside an initiative, and many of them can be edited by several people at the same time, live.

Kinds of document

When you create a document, you choose a type:

Type What it's for
Text document A rich-text page — like a word processor — for notes, plans, and write-ups.
Spreadsheet A grid of cells with formulas, for numbers, lists, and tables.
Whiteboard A free-form visual canvas for sketching ideas and diagrams.
Smart link An embedded view of something hosted elsewhere (a YouTube video, a shared file, and the like).
Upload A file you upload — PDF, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, text, images, and more.

File uploads have a size limit

Uploaded files can be up to 50 MB each. For very large files, link to them with a Smart link instead.

Creating a document

  1. In an initiative (or from My Documents), choose Create Document.
  2. Pick the document type.
  3. Give it a title and confirm the initiative it belongs to.
  4. Optionally start from a template.
  5. Start writing (or upload your file).

Creating a document

Show: the "Create Document" dialog with the document-type choices and the title field.

Save as en/images/documents/create-document.png, then use: ![Creating a document](../images/documents/create-document.png)

Writing a text document

The text editor has the tools you'd expect:

  • Formatting — bold, italic, underline, strikethrough, superscript, subscript, and inline code.
  • Blocks — headings, paragraphs, quotes, and code blocks.
  • Lists — bulleted, numbered, and checklists.
  • Alignment — left, center, right, justified.
  • Insert — images, tables, a horizontal divider, and embedded videos.
  • Undo / redo for when you change your mind.

Everything autosaves as you type, so there's no "save" button to remember.

The document editor

Show: a text document open with the formatting toolbar visible and some content.

Save as en/images/documents/editor.png, then use: ![The document editor](../images/documents/editor.png)

Working in a spreadsheet

The spreadsheet supports the everyday essentials:

  • Formulas like SUM, AVERAGE, MIN, MAX, COUNT, IF, and ROUND.
  • Formatting — fonts, colors, alignment, and number formats (plain, number, currency, percent, date).
  • Freeze rows or columns so headers stay put as you scroll.
  • Import and export as CSV or Excel (XLSX).

Editing together, live

Documents are built for collaboration:

  • Real-time editing — when two people open the same document, they see each other's changes appear as they happen.
  • Autosave keeps everything current without anyone hitting save.
  • Offline-friendly — if your connection drops, you can keep editing; your changes sync up when you're back online.

You'll see who else is here

When others are viewing or editing a document with you, Initiative shows who's present, so you won't accidentally talk over each other.

Comments and mentions

Open a document's Comments to discuss it without changing the content. You can reply to build a thread, and edit or delete your own comments.

To pull someone (or something) into the conversation, mention it by typing @:

  • @name — notify a person.
  • @task, @doc, @project — link directly to a task, document, or project.

Mentioned people get a notification, so it's the right way to say "hey, take a look at this."

File documents and version history

For uploaded files, Initiative keeps a version history. When a file is updated, you can upload a new version while the older ones stay available, each marked with its date. That way you can always get back to an earlier copy.

Attaching documents to a project

A document can be attached to a project so the relevant reference sits right next to the work. From a project, choose Attach existing to link a document you've already made (or create a new one to attach).

Document settings

Open a document's settings for:

  • Details — tags and metadata.
  • Access — who can view, edit, or own it (see Sharing). Access levels are Viewer, Editor, and Owner.
  • Advanced — save as a template, duplicate it, copy it to another initiative, or delete it.

Templates

Made a document layout you'll reuse — a meeting-notes format, a project brief? Save it as a template and start fresh copies from it any time. Templates are copied, not edited directly, so the original stays pristine.