Understanding Front's composer
Email composer
To compose a new email, click the pencil icon in the top left corner.
Once you click on the pencil icon, you will see the email composer in a new window. In an email composer, you have many options in terms of formatting. Click on Formatting options if you do not see the detailed editing options.
Want a detailed breakdown of the available formatting options? Here's a walkthrough on how to navigate the composer.
Font family
By default, Front uses Sans-Serif fonts. This can differ depending on the machine you're using. Front uses Helvetica and Helvetica Neue (macOS 10.10 and later) on Mac, and Segoe UI on Window Vista and later. Otherwise, it will default to Arial. Of course, there are many other options in the composer if you choose to change your font.
Font size
Front's default font size is normal (14px). There are additional options if you wish to use them.
Text color
Front's default font color is black, but that can be changed in this dropdown.
Highlight color
By default, Front does not utilize the highlight feature. You have different color options here if needed.
Font styling: Bold, Italic, Underline, Strikethrough
Emphasize different parts of text, as expected.
Lists
Format your email with bulleted and numbered lists, or right/left indent.
Insert link
Hyperlink a word or phrase in your email.
Insert image
Add an image to your email.
Quote
Adding quotes will add a vertical line in front of the text, and will change the font color to grey. You can also edit the font after making it a quote.
Remove formatting
If you copy and paste a line of text into an email, and the formatting isn't what you're looking for, click this option to revert back to the default style.
Chat composer
You will see a different composer when replying to a chat message. A chat message exists in these inboxes: Intercom, Smooch, Twilio SMS, and Facebook. In a chat composer, you're not able to apply custom formatting to your text, but an additional checkbox option for "Enter to send" will appear. You can simply send replies by hitting Enter. Conversations aren't archived when you use "Enter to send," so you can easily send multiple replies in the same conversation providing a real-time chat experience.
Use the up and down arrows to navigate your conversation list quickly. Hit "r" to open the composer and "esc" to close it.
Notes
Front doesn't support embedding videos into email. Instead, we suggest embedding an image or .gif with a play button added on top of it, and link out to the video.
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We would like to be able to modify the default font style - the options listed below are not showing up on our version:
" Set as default style
Select text, define the font, size and color and click on Set as default style. From now on, every message you send will use this style." -
Robin Thieme Hi! If you don't see this, please email us a screen shot so that we may assist you:
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In the previous version of Front, when a message was composed it would just appear in Front rather than a new window. Is there anyway we can change this setting so it does not compose in a new window?
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Frances Savage Hi Frances! This is actually a bug we're working on right now. We'll send you an email update once it's been fixed!
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The markdown toggle button disappeared in the new Front. Is it always markdown, or is that option gone now?
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Andrew Legrand Hi Andrew, yes, currently we don't have Markdown, but we do plan to build it. If you have any specific feedback or questions, please email us so we can direct it to the correct people on the team! support@frontapp.com
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Helena Li please, I am also interested on knowing how not to have it opened in a new windows! Could you tell me if it is fixed/how I can do it? Thanks :)
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Charlotte Baudet Hi Charlotte! The best way to report issues and get an update is to email support@frontapp.com so that we can properly triage and track them for your account. For this one, we're still working on it and I've made a note to email you when it's fixed! :)
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Thank you!
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Andrew Legrand Hey Andrew! Markdown is back on the composer, so just refresh and you'll see it :)
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Is there no keyboard shortcut to compose a new email? That is quite standard across all other mail apps.
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Hey Seth Viebrock the shortcut C will open a new composer window for a new email!
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Is there a way to indent a block of text? I see "Indent Right/Left" under the list menu but these are greyed out unless you're working on a list. If this is not an option it would be greatly appreciated to add this to the editing tools. Thanks.
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Hi Andy,
Not currently...however, we are making a lot of enhancements to our composer in the next couple of months, and this indenting fix will be part of it ,thanks so much for your continued patience!
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Kenji Hayward Great! Thanks for the reply.
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Andy Hund
Hi there,
A while ago, you reported issues with using our composer, and how track tabs + indent right/indent left, was impacted on your messages.
We recently released a change so that your reported issues should be fixed.
Please refresh your app to ensure you’re consuming the latest changes, and let us know if you continue to experience any issues. Thank you for your patience!
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Awesome! Thanks Front team!!
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Is it possible to add a font to the font family? We use Open Sans as a corporate identity but it is not in the basic fonts
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Karlijn Limpens We have this feature request in our backlog. I went ahead and added a +1 for you to that request. We will let you know as soon as we make this improvement to Front!
With that said, by default, Front uses Sans-Serif fonts. This can differ depending on the machine you're using. Front uses Helvetica and Helvetica Neue (macOS 10.10 and later) on Mac, and Segoe UI on Window Vista and later. Otherwise, it will default to Arial. Of course, there are many other options in the composer if you choose to change your font.
Hope that helps!
