When should I switch to manual editing?

Target Audience: Non technical users

TL;DR

Transition from the AI assistant to manual editing for granular control over chart configuration, complex logic, and visual styling.

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When to use this

Use this page to determine when the AI assistant has reached its functional limit and manual intervention is required to finalize an analytics component.

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Scenarios for Manual Editing

Manual editing is required when a visualization or dashboard needs specific adjustments that fall outside the scope of natural language prompting.

1. Visual Refinement

• Granular Formatting: Adjust specific chart properties, such as precise axis scaling, unit formatting, or color palettes.

• Layout Control: Modify the positioning and sizing of components within a dashboard to achieve a specific visual hierarchy.

• Chart Type Selection: Manually override the AI assistant's choice to select a more specific visualization subtype.

2. Complex Business Logic

• Custom Calculations: Define complex metrics or data transformations that require specific SQL-like logic or multi-step processing.

• Advanced Filtering: Apply intersecting or conditional filters that are not easily captured in a single text prompt.

3. Operational Constraints

• Editing Existing Assets: The AI assistant cannot modify the configuration of a chart once it is saved to a dashboard; these changes must be performed in manual mode.

• Security & Compliance: Manually audit and document data steps to ensure alignment with organizational data governance standards.

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Workflow Recommendation: The Hybrid Approach

Toucan.ai supports a non-destructive transition between creation modes.

1. Initiate with AI: Use the AI assistant to generate a functional draft of a chart or dashboard.

2. Refine Manually: Toggle to Manual Edit mode to apply final styling, logic, and branding.

Constraint: Switching from manual mode back to the AI assistant may result in the loss of certain manual formatting overrides if a new prompt significantly alters the underlying data query.