Goal Deep Linking
Attach drawing objects to a goal and fly the canvas straight to them in one click.
Goal deep linking connects one or more drawing objects to a goal so reviewers instantly understand which part of the design the goal refers to. Linked objects appear as clickable chips in the Linked Drawing Objects section of the goal dialog — clicking a chip selects that object and brings the canvas focus to it. Use deep linking during design reviews and client walkthroughs to move purposefully through the project without manually hunting for the relevant elements.
Open the Goals module
Open Goals from the project sections menu, then open the goal you want to connect to the design. Use Linked Drawing Objects in its dialog.
Scroll to Linked Drawing Objects
Inside the goal dialog, scroll down to the Linked Drawing Objects section. This section lists all entities currently linked to the goal as chips, and hosts the Link Object button. If no links have been added yet the section will be empty.
Open the entity picker
Choose Link Object. The picker loads the current project’s drawing-object index across pages. Use Search objects… to find a name or type. Already-linked objects are excluded. A load error or missing open project must be resolved before choosing an object.
Select the object to link
Choose an object to add its chip to the goal’s draft links. The picker stays open; choose other relevant objects, then dismiss it with Escape or an outside click and Save to commit the goal. Cancel leaves the draft link changes unapplied.
Link the most specific, meaningful object rather than a broad group. Linking the individual specimen tree rather than the whole planting bed produces more focused canvas navigation.
Navigate the canvas from a linked chip
Click a linked-object chip to navigate to the object and its relevant Goals information. If the dialog has unsaved changes, decide whether to discard them or keep editing before leaving. For objects on another drawing page, navigation loads the appropriate page before focusing the object.
Remove a linked entity
Use the remove control on a chip to remove that draft link, then Save. The drawing object itself is not deleted. Locked objects cannot be unlinked through this control. Cancel discards unapplied link edits.
Handle orphaned links
A link to a removed object can be displayed as no longer existing. It cannot open a live object. While the drawing loads, a missing object shows Loading object… and links stay read-only; saving preserves them. Once loading finishes, saving cleans up references to removed objects, so do not rely on an orphaned chip as a permanent historical record.
Goals with no linked entities are fully functional — they still appear in the Goals list with their title, theme, importance, and review status. Deep linking is an optional enhancement that adds navigation, not a requirement for goals to work.
An orphaned chip (marked "no longer exists") is a useful signal during design reviews: it indicates that the linked object is no longer available and the goal may need re-evaluating. Saving the goal cleans up links to removed objects, so review whether the goal still holds before saving.
Frequently Asked Questions
What kinds of objects can a goal link to?
Any drawing object in the project — plants, hardscape shapes, structures, water features, lights, and more. The entity picker lists every object in the project so you can attach whichever ones best represent the goal.
What happens to a link when the linked entity is deleted?
The chip can be shown as no longer existing and cannot open a live object. Saving the goal cleans up references to removed objects; it is not a permanent history record.
Can a single entity be linked to more than one goal?
Yes. The same drawing entity can be linked to as many goals as needed. This is common for a key feature — such as a signature tree or a main entertaining area — that simultaneously addresses multiple client objectives.
Can I link a goal to a saved view or camera position rather than a specific entity?
Not directly — deep linking targets drawing entities only. As a workaround, save the camera position as a Saved View, and link the goal to the entity that the view focuses on. Opening the view and clicking the chip together gives the full spatial context.
Is there a limit to how many entities I can link to a single goal?
No. You can link as many entities as the goal requires. For clarity during reviews, focus on the two or three objects that most directly address the goal rather than linking every related element.