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name: diagram-design description: Best practices for creating research diagrams with Excalidraw MCP tools

Diagram Design Guide for Research

When to Create Diagrams

Create a diagram when your research findings involve:

• Comparing 3+ options — comparison table or matrix diagram
• Process with 4+ steps — flowchart or sequence diagram
• System with multiple components — architecture diagram
• Chronological events — timeline
• Hierarchical relationships — tree or mind map
• Data flows — data flow diagram

Excalidraw Workflow

1. Plan the diagram — decide type, elements, and layout before creating
2. Create elements — use create_element or batch_create_elements
3. Arrange — use align_elements and distribute_elements for clean layout
4. Inspect — use describe_scene to verify the diagram looks right
5. Adjust — use update_element to fix positioning or text
6. Group — use group_elements to lock related items together

Note: Do NOT export or share links — the user sees a live embedded canvas that auto-syncs.

Color Palette

Use consistent colors across diagrams:

Purpose	Color	Hex
Primary concepts	Blue	#1971c2
Positive / supported	Green	#2f9e44
Negative / limitations	Red	#e03131
Warning / caveats	Orange	#e8590c
Neutral / context	Gray	#868e96
Highlight / focus	Yellow	#f08c00

Layout Patterns

• Top-to-bottom: Process flows, decision trees, timelines
• Left-to-right: Comparisons, before/after, pipelines
• Radial / center-out: Concept maps, mind maps
• Grid: Feature matrices, comparison tables

Element Guidelines

Text

• Use short labels (2-4 words per element)
• Title font size: 20-24px
• Label font size: 14-16px
• Add detail in sub-labels, not element titles

Shapes

• Rectangles: Processes, components, entities
• Diamonds: Decision points
• Ellipses: Start/end points, concepts
• Rectangles with rounded corners: Groups, categories

Arrows

• Solid arrows: Direct relationships, data flow
• Dashed arrows: Optional paths, indirect relationships
• Label arrows to clarify the relationship

Spacing

• 40px minimum between elements
• 80px between groups
• Consistent spacing within a group

Diagram Types for Research

Comparison Diagram

[Option A]  [Option B]  [Option C]
   |            |            |
[Pros]      [Pros]      [Pros]
[Cons]      [Cons]      [Cons]
   |            |            |
   └──── [Verdict] ─────────┘

Architecture Diagram

┌─────────────────────────────┐
│        [System Name]         │
│  ┌──────┐  ┌──────┐        │
│  │Comp A│──│Comp B│        │
│  └──────┘  └──┬───┘        │
│               │              │
│          ┌────▼────┐        │
│          │ Comp C  │        │
│          └─────────┘        │
└─────────────────────────────┘

Timeline

[2020]──[2021]──[2022]──[2023]──[2024]──[2025]
  │       │       │       │       │       │
 Event   Event   Event   Event   Event   Event

Tips

• Always call describe_scene after creating elements to verify layout
• Use batch_create_elements for efficiency (multiple elements at once)
• Group related elements before aligning for cleaner organization
• Do NOT export or share links — the live embedded canvas auto-syncs for the user
• NEVER use create_from_mermaid — it produces invisible results. Always use batch_create_elements with element JSON instead