Visual Space manual, Live Apps, Find Create And Open Live App Files

Use this walkthrough to move from a space area into the right Live App, find or create an item, and confirm both access and persistence before you begin substantial work. You will reach the editor with a clear expectation of what can return after you leave.

Choose the App and the Right Area

Live App files belong to a space area. Start from the space, subspace, or activity where the work should live so the explorer opens in a useful context.

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Open the owning area - Go to the space area where you expect to find the item or where a new one should belong. Access to that area controls which files you can discover and open.

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Open Apps - Select Apps, then choose Canvas, Frames, Layouts, Poly, Blueprints, or MathPad according to the work you want to do.

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Confirm the explorer context - Check the area shown beneath the app name. On a larger screen, use the area panel to move among available subspaces and activities. Open a folder when the item belongs inside it, and use Close Folder to return to the area level.

The Apps launcher keeps all six standalone Live Apps together above the current space workspace.

The explorer is the browsing surface. Editor tools remain hidden until you open an item, which helps you confirm its location before making changes.

Decide What Must Survive

Before opening the editor, decide whether you are beginning durable work or a current-session draft. A visible item or reusable link does not always mean its editor contents are saved.

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Canvas - The file and its substantive layered project state persist, so you can reopen the document for further editing.

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Blueprints - The file and its editable design snapshot persist. It is suitable when the technical design itself needs to return after reopening.

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Frames - The project identity persists, but timeline content and other editor changes are currently session-only.

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Layouts - The layout identity persists, but plan content such as walls, rooms, openings, labels, and measurements is currently session-only. Publishing is not saving and does not preserve the current plan.

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Poly - New drafts and current scene edits are session-only. Do not treat a draft in the explorer as a durable 3D project.

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MathPad - The current formula and its editing history are session-only, even when you can reach the formula workspace again.

For session-only work, plan to finish the useful editing pass without refreshing or leaving. Review the relevant app overview before you invest substantial time so you know which export or capture options can preserve a useful result.

Find and Open Existing Work

Use the explorer to confirm both the item's owner area and its type before entering the editor.

The standalone explorer shows the owning area and available files before the editor opens.

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Browse the area - Move through the available areas and folders until the explorer shows the relevant app files. Each app filters the view to its own files, alongside folders you can open.

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Choose the item - Select the Canvas document, Frames project, Layout, Poly scene, Blueprint file, or MathPad formula you want. Visual Space opens the app's editor for that item.

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Check the transition - Confirm that the explorer has been replaced by the expected canvas, timeline, plan, viewport, design workspace, or formula editor. Check the visible item name and owning context before editing.

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Verify the persistence expectation - If you opened Canvas or Blueprints, continue with the app's normal saved-work guidance. If you opened Frames, Layouts, Poly, or MathPad, treat the current editor contents as session-only and avoid leaving until you have preserved any useful output the app supports.

An empty explorer does not necessarily mean the file is gone. Check the selected area and any folders first, then confirm that you opened the same Live App in which the item was created.

Create When Your Access Allows It

Creation requirements are not identical across all six apps. They can depend on the app, your app access, and your role in the selected area, including Coordinator access in some flows.

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Select the create action - Use the action shown for the chosen app: New canvas, New Frames project, New layout, New scene, New blueprint, or New formula.

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Follow the visible prompt - Enter a title or confirm any requirement when the app asks. Do not assume that access to one Live App grants creation access to another.

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Resolve access before retrying - If Visual Space shows an app-access or role prompt, follow that guidance. If the creation action is absent, ask an appropriate space owner or Coordinator to confirm the access needed for that app and area.

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Confirm the new editor - Successful creation opens the new item in its editor. Verify that you are in the intended app and area before adding content.

You may still be able to open accessible shared work even when you cannot create a new item. Reading an existing file and creating or editing one are separate access decisions.

Open a Direct Link Safely

A direct link can be the fastest way back to an item with a reusable identity, but it keeps the same access boundary as the explorer.

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Open the shared link - Sign in with the account that belongs to the owning space, then follow the link.

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Confirm the destination - Check that the expected app and item open. If you reach an access message instead, return to the owning space area and verify your membership there.

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Keep private work protected - A link to an item in a private area does not make it public. Only people who already have access to that area can open it.

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Separate the link from saved content - A link can return to a Frames or Layouts item without restoring its session-only editor content. Poly and MathPad drafts or edits may not survive a later session at all. Use the persistence decision above, not the existence of a link, as your safeguard.

Canvas and Frames can also be selected in supported activity meetings. That meeting journey has its own choices and does not change whether the app's work persists, so use this guide for the standalone Apps path.

Confirm You Are Ready to Edit

You are ready when the correct app editor is open, the item belongs to the intended area, and you understand whether its contents are durable or limited to this session.

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For durable work - Use Canvas or Blueprints to understand the editor and its saved project or design behavior.

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For session-oriented work - Read Frames, Layouts, Poly, or MathPad before a substantial editing pass. Their overviews explain the current boundaries and available ways to take useful work out of the session.

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For the complete comparison - Return to Live Apps when you need to reconsider which workspace fits the outcome.

Fix Common Opening Problems

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The app is missing from Apps - Your current access may not include it. Confirm the app or app-pack requirement with the person who manages access for your space.

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The create action is missing or blocked - Opening shared work does not guarantee creation access. Follow the visible prompt or ask an appropriate space owner or Coordinator about the required role and app access.

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The file is not listed - Check the selected space area, open the expected folder, and confirm that you chose the correct Live App.

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A direct link is denied - Join or request access to the owning space area. A copied link cannot bypass a private-area boundary.

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The item reopens without expected content - Recheck the app's persistence model. Frames and Layouts can retain identity without retaining editor content, while Poly and MathPad work is currently session-only. Publishing a Layout does not recover or save its plan.