Three changes shape April: markdown support inside the editor, live collaborator avatars that show who’s on the page right now, and a friendlier outline panel when you start a fresh document. Together, they lean into how you write and how you work alongside your team.
Markdown support
If you copy a chunk of text from a README, a Slack message, or your own notes, paste no longer flattens it. Headings stay headings, bullets stay bullets, links stay links — Documate recognises the markdown syntax and turns it into proper rich text on the way in.
You can also type the same shortcuts directly. Start a line with # for a heading, wrap a phrase in double asterisks to bold it, hit - and a space to start a list. The formatting kicks in as you type.
💡 Pro tip: sometimes you genuinely want plain text — pasting raw code, or quoting a chat verbatim. Use Cmd+Shift+V (Ctrl+Shift+V on Windows) to paste without any markdown conversion.
Live presence
See exactly who’s on a page with you. The avatars in the top bar update in real time — when a teammate opens the same page, their face appears; when they leave, it disappears.
Click an avatar to jump straight to where that person is working. Their caret pulls into view so you can pick up the conversation right there. The visual state tells you who is actively editing and who is just reading along.
💡 Pro tip: in long pages, clicking a colleague’s avatar is the fastest way to find the section they’re discussing in chat — no scrolling, no searching.
Outline placeholder
Turn on the outline panel from a page’s settings, and the right rail now shows a small outline icon with a quiet hint: Add headings to see the outline. It’s a gentle nudge that the panel is ready as soon as you start structuring your content. Add a heading — by typing ## at the start of a paragraph, or picking a heading level from the block menu — and your sections appear in the outline immediately.
💡 Pro tip: the outline is per-page, so you can switch it on for long reference docs and leave it off for short notes.
A few more improvements
🛡️ Unsaved-changes guard: if you try to navigate away from a page while edits are still syncing, Documate now warns you first. No surprises after a flaky network moment.
📊 Tables fixed: an error that could appear when adding rows to or selecting cells in tables is gone.
📄 PDFs in slash commands: PDFs inserted through the slash menu now open in the inline viewer alongside other attachments.
🎨 Top bar polish: tighter spacing and smoother transitions when you resize the pages drawer.
🖼 Close buttons closer to the edge: the X on full-screen images and embeds now sits near the corner where you’d expect to find it.
We want your feedback!
Markdown shortcuts, real-time presence, and a smarter outline all landed together in April — we’d love to hear how they fit into your daily writing. Are the keyboard shortcuts something you’ll use? Does seeing your team’s cursors change how you collaborate? Get in touch and let us know.