Once you have a contractor working on your project, they can upload draft versions of their Deliverables for you to review, comment on, and even mark up directly.
To review these files, go to the Deliverables screen, click on the Deliverable with files you want to review, then select the "Review" tab.
Review Tab Overview
By default, the most recent comment appears in the middle of the screen. If there are no comments, the rich text comment editor appears there instead.
If the contractor sent you a file for review from outside the AWEbase system, you can upload it into the system by clicking the “Upload File” button. (Here's a guide to what types of files to upload.)
Deliverable files appear on the right side of the screen, with the most recent at the top. Each file is marked with a number indicating the order in which it was uploaded. (The file labeled “1” is the first file uploaded.)
You can (a) click the "Download" icon to download the file, (b) click the "Trash" icon to delete it (if it has no comments), and (c) click the "Add Reaction" icon to add a brief text reaction to the file, such as "Approved" or "Refine." Click the Deliverable itself to open a larger version of it in the middle of the screen, where you can add mark-up and comments.)
Comments from you and the contractor appear on the left side of the screen. Only the first few lines appear, but you may click on any comment to bring up the full message in the middle section. You may also type directly into the editor to add a comment to the most recent Deliverable file, then click the "Add Comment" button to save the comment.
Comments
Whenever you or the contractor add annotations to a file, an associated text comment appears on the left side of the screen.
Only succinct versions of the comment are visible on the left. To bring up the full comment and the reply context, click the desired comment. The full comment will appear in the middle section of the interface.
Markers are visible when in the fullscreen view for a Deliverable file. Click on the desired file's thumbnail on the right to bring up the fullscreen view.
When you click on a marker on a file, the associated comment is brought into focus in the column to the left. You can navigate back to all comments associated with this file by clicking the "Back to Comments" button.
To add a comment to the active file (without marking it up), click the “Add Comment” button at the bottom of the fullscreen view (or at the top of the comments list in the "Review" tab) and enter your comment in the editor.
To review the comments for the entire Job, click "Job Comments" just above the comments list.
The Comment Editor
Different formatting options - bold, italics, underline, and different heading sizes - can be applied to your comment.
To create a link, enter the text you wish to use, then click the "Link" button. Enter the URL you wish to link in the dialog that pops up.
References are important tools for communication, and can be added directly to a comment to offer more context. Click the "Attach Reference" button to bring up a dialog that allows you to either upload a new Reference or select an existing one to attach. (Note that newly added References will be visible on the "Reference" tab for the Deliverable.)
Select emojis are available for use in your comments.
Anatomy of a Comment
Each comment is associated with a file number. When you click on the file number in a comment, the associated file is activated in the right hand side column.
If a file has any annotations, you can click on the "View Annotation" button to bring up the fullscreen view with the associated marker highlighted (If it's an audio, video, or 3D file, it will jump to where the marker is).
You may wish reply to a specific comment in order to quote that comment in your new comment, thus adding context to what you write. To reply to a comment, bring the comment into focus in the middle section and click the "Reply" button.
Click the "Edit" button to open and edit your comment. (You can only edit your own comments.)
Click the "Delete" button to remove your comment altogether. (You can only delete your own comments, and only so long as no one has replied to them.)
Click the "Add Reaction" button to add a short reaction text to your own, or someone else's comment.
Marking Up Image Files
If the file is an image file, you can click on the on the right side of the screen to view and edit its mark-up. Clicking reveals a larger version of image, and four options at the bottom of the screen:
Add Annotation: Clicking this opens the annotation tools and lets you add markers, as detailed below.
Add Comment: Clicking this brings up the comment editor in the left hand pane, and lets you add a comment on the file without adding a marker.
Edit Markers: Click this button to enter "edit mode," in which you can move and resize existing markers. Click it again to lock the markers in when you're done. (Note that you can only edit your own markers.)
View Markers: If the markers on the image are getting in the way of you seeing the image, click here to toggle them invisible, then click again to toggle them visible.
Adding Annotations
When you click the "Add Annotation" button, you can add markers the image using the tools at the bottom of the screen.
Pointer: Select a mark-up on the image to highlight its associated comment.
Dot: Make a dot on the image.
Circle: Draw a circle of any size to call out a certain portion of the image.
Line: Draw a straight line connecting two points on the image.
Arrow: Draw a straight arrow pointing towards a location on the image.
Pencil: Draw a freehand line anywhere on the image.
Color: Click on the color picker to change the color produced by the other tools.
When you're done marking up the image, enter a comment click the "Add Annotation" button to save your markers and post the comment.
Marking up video files
If the file is a video, you and the contractor can both click on the thumbnail on the right of the screen in order to watch, listen, and annotate the file along its timeline.
Click the "Play" button to watch the video. Click it again to pause it.
Click the "Add Annotation" button to pause the video. Clicking this opens the annotation tools and lets you add markers, as detailed above. Doing so also places a marker on the video's timeline.
The marker appears on the timeline. You may click on it to highlight its associated comment and advance the timeline to that point.
Click the "Edit Markers" button to enter "edit mode," in which you can move and resize existing markers. Click it again to lock the markers in when you're done. (Note that you can only edit your own markers.)
If the markers on the image are getting in the way of you seeing the image, click "View Markers" to toggle them invisible, then click again to toggle them visible.
Click the "Add Comment" button to add a comment without adding markers to the video image.
Marking up Audio Files
If the file is an audio file, you and the contractor can both click on the image in the middle of the screen in order to listen to the file and add comment markers along its timeline.
Click the "Play" button to listen to the audio file. Click it again to pause it.
Click the "Add Annotation" button to place a marker on the timeline of the audio and add its associated comment.
Click the "Add Comment" button to add a comment to the audio without it being associated with a marker.
The marker appears on the timeline. You may click on it to highlight its associated comment and advance the timeline to that point.
Marking up PDF or DOCX files
If the file you wish to review is a PDF or a text file in DOCX format, you and the contractor can both review the file, highlight elements of the file, and add comments.
You can comment on the file in general, specific text, a general area of the file.
Comment on the file
Click the "Add Comment" button to add a general comment that isn't associated with any specific part of the file.
Comment on text
Click the "Add Annotation" button, then click the "Text Select" button.
Highlight any portion of text in the file.
Click "Add Comment" to leave a comment on that text.
Comment on an area
Click the "Add Annotation" button, then click the "Area Select" button.
Highlight an area of the file by dragging your selection tool across it.
Click "Add Comment" to leave a comment on that area.
Marking up 3D files
If the file is a 3D object file, you and the contractor can both click on the thumbnail on the right of the screen in order to view the file and add comments to it.
When viewing a 3D object, you can click and drag your mouse to rotate the object in three dimensions, and use the mouse wheel to zoom in and out.
Click "Add Annotation" when you want add a marker and leave a comment. (The screen is outlined in orange to show that it's in annotation mode.)
While in annotation mode, click on a point on the 3D model to place a marker at that point and add its associated comment. The marker now appears on the 3D model, and will appear whenever anyone reviews the file. When anyone clicks on the marker, the "camera" will move to the position it's in when you placed the marker.
You may also add a comment without a marker by clicking, "Add Comment".
To adjust the appearance of the 3D space, click the "Scene Settings" button.
On the "scene settings" panel, you can adjust the brightness, the lighting environment, and the style of lighting in order to best see the details of the 3D model.
Reviewing Other File Types
When you click on the right-hand thumbnail, if the file is not an image, audio, video, PDF, or 3D file, it's downloaded onto your computer for local review. (This is useful for propriety digital files.)
Reacting to Comments and Files
"Reactions" are quick canned responses to comments or files. There are ten reactions to choose from and are customizable through the "Customization" settings. (Note that it requires the appropriate permissions to access). To add a reaction, click the "Add Reaction" button located in the upper right of the thumbnail or comment. From there, select the reaction you wish to add and click again. The reaction is placed below the comment or file you reacted to along with your avatar. If multiple people add the same reaction, a number will appear instead of the avatar (with a tooltip listing all of the people).
To remove a reaction, hover over a reaction you added and click the "X" that appears instead of the avatar or number and click.
