Preferences

Under Preferences in the Menu there are options for you to customize how Flow works.

General

Play sound effects – When your device sounds are turned on, having this option checked will play sound effects from Flow.
Notify me about document changes – Receive push notifications when collaborators are editing shared documents
Pencil Case Mode – Automatically activate when both devices are open
Timelapse – Choose whether a timelapse is generated by the order in which you drew the content, or the layer order
Show Correction Pen – Choose whether the Correction Pen appears in your Tool Dock
Pen Sets – When this is enabled, documents will remember which Pen Set you used last
Sync with Flow web viewer – Keep your documents in sync with the Flow web viewer
Account Sharing – Ensure this is on to share your account automatically with Timepage and Actions
Restore Tools to Default – Tap this button to restore your Tool Dock to its original default setup

Fun Options

Some of the more playful settings, such as the virtual tool, ink drips and eraser debris, now live in their own Fun Options menu, rather than sitting among the general preferences.

Drawing and Gestures

Drawing and gesture preferences are available directly from the button on the top right of your documents or from the main menu.

Drawing

Apply smoothing when drawing with your finger
Use Barrel Roll with Apple Pencil Pro

Straight Lines and Shapes

Flow can detect what you have just drawn and snap it into a perfect straight line or shape. Hold still before lifting to straighten lines and detect shapes. See Lines and Shapes for the full guide.

| Setting | Default | What it does | | --- | --- | --- | | Enabled | On | Master switch for the whole feature | | Allow straight lines to drag | On | Keeps a snapped line attached to your pencil so you can drag its end point | | Snap alignment when close | On | Snaps a nearly horizontal or vertical line to be exactly aligned | | Smooth curved lines | On | Smooths deliberate curves instead of straightening them | | Add arrows to lines | Off | Shows a menu for adding arrowheads and dots to line ends | | Require holding still for longer | Off | Lengthens the pause needed before Flow snaps | | Auto select shapes after making them | On | Hands a new shape to the Lasso Knife so it can be moved straight away |

Allow straight lines to drag, Snap alignment when close and Require holding still for longer all depend on Enabled. Turning the master switch off disables them too.

Color

Eyedropper finds original tool color – when this is on, the eyedropper returns the color of the tool that made the stroke. When it is off, it returns the color as it appears on the page, which may be lighter or blended where strokes overlap. This is off by default.

Pressure Curves

You can choose from four different Apple Pencil pressure curves. The slider adjusts the corresponding influence that the curve has on your drawing.

Pencil and Finger Settings

Under the “Gestures” preference, you have a set of customizable actions to assign to gestures performed while in a document. These gestures are centered around inputs either with the Apple Pencil or your finger and have a multitude of options to choose from.

Below are the available selections. Note that some of these options are not available on iPhone because it does not support Apple Pencil.

Apple Pencil Double Tap

When using Apple Pencil 2, you can choose the action for double tap:

System Default (Switch to Eraser)
Switch to Eraser
Switch to Correction Pen
Switch to Lasso
Switch to Previous Tool
Switch Pen Set
Toggle Ruler
Open Tool Editor
Toggle Interface
Open Layers
Switch to Previous Layer
Arc Menu
Tool Designer
Nothing

Apple Pencil Squeeze

When using Apple Pencil Pro, you can set the squeeze gesture to any of the same actions available for Apple Pencil Double Tap (listed above). The default is Arc Menu.

Finger Settings

When using Apple Pencil to draw, you can choose how your finger interacts:

Pan Document
Erase Stroke
Correction Pen
Lasso
Draw
Lock Ruler
Colour Match
Eyedropper
Nothing

Finger Hold + Apple Pencil Draw

When holding a finger anywhere on the document and drawing with Apple Pencil you can choose the Action:

Pan Document
Erase Stroke
Correction Pen
Lock Ruler
Colour Match
Eyedropper
Nothing

One Finger Tap

Undo
Redo
Toggle Ruler
Toggle Interface
Switch Pen Set
Nothing

Two Finger Tap

Undo
Redo
Toggle Ruler
Toggle Interface
Switch Pen Set
Nothing

Three Finger Tap

Undo
Redo
Toggle Ruler
Toggle Interface
Switch Pen Set
Nothing