Build a Research Board

This guide walks you through setting up a structured research workspace in FlowJoe to compile academic, competitive, or design materials.

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Workflow Steps

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Step 1: Create a Research Node

1. Select your root node and press N (or Ctrl+N) to add a new child node.
2. Press F2 (or Enter when the tree has focus) and rename it to Research Hub.
3. Create more child nodes the same way for different sources (e.g. Web Articles, PDF Papers, Competitive Audits).

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Step 2: Import Reference Files

1. Open your system Finder/Explorer.
2. Select your PDFs, spreadsheets, or images and drag them directly onto the gallery surface of the PDF Papers node.
3. FlowJoe creates cards for each file. Double-click the PDF slots to read the articles inline.

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Step 3: Extract and Document Meaning

1. Open a PDF slot and write a brief summary in its notes, highlighting key citations.
2. Open the Node Summary Modal (Cmd/Ctrl+Shift+S) and write an executive summary of the branch.

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Step 4: Ask Joe for Analysis

1. Press Cmd+Shift+A / Ctrl+Shift+A to open the Joe panel.
2. Ask Joe: “Read the selected PDF paper slot and summarize its primary findings in three bullet points.”
3. Click Send to Notes on Joe’s card to write the summary directly into the slot notes.