Whiteboard tools reference & glossary

Use the whiteboard toolbar to add and edit content.

Draw, erase & add shapes

Tool	How to use it	Availability
Draw	Choose a pen and color and use your finger or a stylus to draw.	All platforms
Erase	Tap the eraser and erase with your finger or a stylus. You can also use the eraser that comes with your Jamboard device. Touch and hold the Erase tool to show the Clear Frame option.  The eraser only works with drawings made using a pen. To delete an object, select ittap More Delete.	All platforms
Handwriting recognition	Tap the tool and use your finger or the stylus to write text. The tool converts your handwriting into printed text.	Not supported on web browsers
Shape recognition	Use this tool and your finger or a stylus to draw a shape. The tool converts your drawing into a shape object.  Draw from one shape to another to add a line that connects the shapes.	Not supported on web browsers
Autodraw	Use this tool to draw shapes and objects that can be recognized and transformed into images.	Only on Google Meet hardware devices and Jamboards
Select	With the Select tool, use your finger or a stylus to outline a drawing. You can then drag it to a new location or pinch to resize it. No drawing strokes are created when using the Select tool.	Not supported in the mobile app
Laser pointer	Tap the laser pointer and use your finger or the stylus to highlight items.  Other users who are looking at the board can see the highlights, including in meetings.	All platforms

Add Drive files, images & notes

Icon	How to use it	Availability
Add a Drive file	You can add a file to a Jamboard from Google Drive.  For details, see add Drive files to a whiteboard.	Mobile app only
Search web	Use this tool and enter text to search for information.	Jamboards only
Search images	Find copyright–free images online.	All platforms
Insert sticker or stencil	Add images to your whiteboard. You can resize and move stickers.	Jamboards only
Insert note	Add a text note to your whiteboard. Double-tap a note to edit the text or change the color.	All platforms
Take photo	Use your camera and add images to your whiteboard.	All platforms

Jamboard glossary

Term	Definition
drawing strokes	Anything that's written or drawn by using the pen tools. The drawings appear on top of the objects in the frame.
frame	The current screen of the whiteboard, equivalent to a page. Each jam can have up to 20 frames. You can view frames in the frame bar.
frame bar	A thumbnail view of the frames in your document. Appears in the top center of your whiteboard. Use the frame bar to switch between frames. You can also use it to reorder frames, view what frames collaborators are currently on or view, and duplicate and delete frames.
Handwriting recognition	A tool that transforms your handwriting into printed text.
jam	A jam is a set of frames saved from a live whiteboard session. You can also use the app or a web browser to create whiteboards. Each whiteboard jam is automatically saved in Google Drive once you sign in and give the jam an owner.
Jamboard	A digital whiteboard for Google Workspace customers. It consists of a custom 55-inch, 4K touch display that runs custom Jamboard software as its operating system. Integrated with Google Drive. Learn more about Jamboard hardware and software specifications.
Google Admin console	The page where you can manage and access Jamboards in your organization.
Jamboard app	The whiteboard app that runs on web browsers, smartphones, and tablets.
Jamboard software	The software that runs the whiteboard features in web, mobile and hardware devices.
laser pointer	A tool to temporarily highlight items using your finger, a cursor, or stylus.
live session	A whiteboard session in realtime with participants.
objects	Any defined visual or text content, such as the font, converted shapes, or images. The object most recently touched or created appears on top of previously touched or created objects. Objects always appear behind the drawing layer. You can delete objects by tapping them with 2 fingers and dragging them to the bottom of the screen. You can enlarge objects by tapping them with 2 fingers and dragging outward or pinching open.
search images	A tool where you can enter any term to see and access a gallery of images or maps from the web. Tap and drag any image to drop the image into a frame. Only copyright-free images appear, which you can use for presentations.
shape recognition	A tool you use to create shapes.
sticker and stencil gallery	A preset of images. Tap any sticker to drop it into a frame. You can think of stickers like objects and can work with them as such.
stylus	A tool that lets you draw, add shapes, and use menus. Devices recognize the difference between the stylus and your finger.
toolbar	A menu that contains the drawing tools.
web snapshot	A function of the search web tool. Used to open a browser to search for web content to include in a frame.