How Microsoft Loop integrates with Whiteboard

Microsoft Loop went into Public Preview in March 2023, and is currently integrated with four other Microsoft 365 applications: Outlook, Teams, Whiteboard, and Word for the web. In this video, we’ll go over everything Loop can do in Microsoft Whiteboard.

How Microsoft Loop integrates with Whiteboard:

• Add Loop components as Links or paste them in. [More…]
• Use Loop & Whiteboard as a project hub. [More…]
• Use Loop components with Whiteboard templates. [More…]
• Add reactions to a Loop component. [More…]
• Embed a Whiteboard in a Teams channel [More…]

We’ve also created a video to help guide you through the process:

Overview: What is Loop and why should I use it in Whiteboard?

Note: To use Microsoft Loop, it must be enabled in your Apps admin center. To do that, please read our complete guide:

How to enable and access Microsoft Loop for your organization

Microsoft Loop is a flexible collaboration tool that allows you to share pages and components. Components are elements or groups of elements that can be integrated into other Microsoft 365 programmes. Your team may then interact with and respond to changes you make in real time, resulting in a highly collaborative experience.

A Loop component in Microsoft Whiteboard will look like this:

Whiteboard offers a host of tools that are currently unavailable in Loop. Perhaps the most useful tool in Whiteboard that is notably absent in Loop, is the draw tool. With the draw tool, teams can write out their reactions with a pen and draw attention to specific areas of the component.

Let’s look in more detail at what we can and can’t do with Loop in Whiteboard.

How Microsoft Loop integrates with Whiteboard

The simple way to add a Loop component to a Whiteboard is to press Ctrl/command + V on your keyboard. But you can also do that by inserting a link:

• Start by clicking the plus icon on the left. [1]
• Then select “Links” from the list of options. [2]
• Next, paste the component’s link into the URL bar. [3]
• Then click “Insert.” [4]

You can resize the Loop component by dragging the circles in the corners to increase or decrease scale, or by dragging the sides.

Now that we know how to insert a Loop component into a Whiteboard, we can begin thinking about how to utilize multiple Loop components within a single Whiteboard. Here’s an idea for creating a project hub:

• Start by creating a new Whiteboard.
• Click the plus icon on the left.
• Select “Shapes” from the options.
• Then choose a “rectangle” from the list of shapes.

• Now click and drag to create a column.
• Then copy (ctrl/command + C) and paste (ctrl/command + V) it to create three columns.

• Paste another column, then click and drag the top or bottom to create a header.

• Repeat the process to create a header for each column.
• Then type the following into the column headers: Not started, In Progress, Completed.

• Click the first column and click the color selector. [1]
• Choose your preferred color. [2]
• Then repeat the process for all columns and headers.

Now follow the process in the previous section to insert your Loop components. Once inserted, you can resize them and drag them across the columns as they progress, like tasks in Trello. You can now monitor and modify all components of the project from a single location.

Similar to the process in the previous section, you can also drop Loop components into templates. To create a progress board like the one we just made, you can use a “Kanban” template.

• First, click the plus icon on the left. [1]
• Type “Kanban” into the search bar. [2]
• Then click “Kanban” in the results. [3]

• To add the template, click it — you don’t need to hold the click.
• Then move your mouse onto the board and click again to drop it.

In Whiteboard you can add reactions and comments anywhere on the page. You can also stick reactions to a Loop component so they remain in place while moving the component.

However, there are limitations. For example, some elements tend not to stick consistently. Also, the elements don’t stick to a specific place within the component, but rather hover over it — we’ll show you what we mean later.

Elements that stick consistently are reactions and pen drawings. If you want to group all other elements, you’ll need to use the select tool.

• Click the plus icon on the left. [1]
• Select “Reactions” from the list of options. [2]
• Then choose a reaction. [3]

When you scroll down or across the Loop component, the reactions and elements you add will not stay aligned with the content. The only way to resolve that is to resize the Loop component so that there are no scrollbars.

You may have noticed that when you type a / forward slash in a Loop component in Whiteboard, the option to add emojis is unavailable. Also, typing the : colon does not open the emoji list. There are some emojis that you can type out, such as:

• 🙂 🙂
• 🙁 🙁
• 😁 😀
• 😋 😛
• 😉 😉

To use other emojis, you will need to paste them from an external source. Try getemoji.com where you can easily copy a large selection of emojis into your Loop component.

To embed a Whiteboard into a Teams channel, start by opening your Whiteboard and copying the link from the browser’s URL bar.

• Next, open the web or desktop version of Microsoft Teams.
• There, go to “Teams” on the left and select a channel.
• In the channel, click the plus icon at the top. [1]
• If you can’t see “Website” in the dialog box, type “website” into the search bar. [2]
• Select “Website” from the results. [3]

• Add a name for your website tab. [1]
• Paste the link to your Whiteboard into the “URL” bar. [2]
• Finally, click the “Save” button. [3]

With Whiteboard, you can embed Loop components into a Teams channel, which is a valuable workaround, as Loop components are not currently available in Teams channels.

Conclusion

The scalability of Microsoft Whiteboard makes it an ideal space to add multiple Loop components as a means to keep track of complex projects.

Adding reactions is ideal since emojis are currently unavailable for Loop in Whiteboard. However, to ensure your reactions stick to the content, you should maximize the Loop component to remove scrollbars.

If you want to use emojis in your Whiteboard, we suggest using getemoji.com for the time being.

Thanks for reading!