Configure widgets: template, preview, and fields

At the end, every widget shows what it should: the text its wording, the weather its place, the menu board its menu. And in the editor, you can already see how the widget looks in its frame.

Steps#

Open the settings window#

1. Select a widget on the stage or in the Layers panel. The floating toolbar appears above the stage.
2. Click the gear icon Settings. The window shows the Preview on the left and the fields on the right, with Placement below them.
3. Change what you need. The preview shows every change immediately, and the scene stays unchanged until you apply.
4. Apply writes all changes into the scene in one step. Cancel discards them.

Choose a template#

Widgets with several templates show the Template section at the top of the form: one tile per template with shape, name, and starting size. The active template is marked.

1. Click a tile. The template's content, such as “with hours” or “with days”, applies immediately in the draft.
2. If the template has a different shape from the current frame and the widget sits freely, it gets the template's frame when you apply, centered on its previous position. The preview shows this frame beforehand. In a slot, a template sets only the content, and the size belongs to the slot.
3. If the content differs from the template, customized appears next to the heading. Reset at the bottom left returns to the active template.

Read the preview#

1. As in the scene shows the widget in exactly the frame it has in the scene. Test sizes shows it on a trial basis in the shapes Square, Wide, Tall, or Bar, without changing the scene.
2. Below the preview you see the frame and shape, such as “Frame 600 × 300 · Wide”. If the widget hides content that is switched on in this frame, you see, for example, Hidden in this frame: Next days. The same note appears under the content's switch. With more space, the content appears on its own.
3. Widgets with sample states offer Data in the preview: Live data or a state such as rain or night. That way, you see beforehand how the widget looks in that situation.
4. If the widget takes its place from the Display location, choose under Preview for display which display the preview fetches its data for. The choice applies to the stage and the window as long as the editor is open.

Make an input take effect#

1. Type the new value into the field.
2. Leave the field with Tab or by clicking elsewhere. Only then does the change take effect in the draft.

That way, the preview does not flicker with every keystroke.

Options#

Place: display location or fixed place#

Widgets such as the weather ask for a place. Display location uses the place of each display's location. That way, one scene is enough for all locations. Below it, you see which displays do not have a location with an address yet. For these displays, you can choose a Fallback place for displays without a location. Otherwise the widget shows a note there. Fixed place shows the same place everywhere.

Advanced#

Rarely used fields sit in a collapsed group such as Advanced. A click on the heading expands it. If a field inside has an error, the group opens by itself.

Quick fields on the toolbar#

The settings you change most often while placing are right in the floating toolbar: for app widgets, the Template and up to two fields of the app, such as the Background. The Template selector separates Fits this frame from Sets a new frame. Every change on the bar counts as one step for Undo.

Widgets from apps#

The Apps area shows only widgets of installed apps. When you install an app, its widgets appear on their own the next time you open the editor. When you uninstall an app, its widgets disappear from the list of available widgets, and widgets already placed turn into an integrity issue. If an app is waiting for consent to new permissions, its tile appears with the note Update waiting.

Check the result#

• The stage shows the new content in the frame that the preview announced.
• There is no note about hidden content below the preview, or you left it there on purpose.
• The status line reports ✓ No issues and changes to All changes saved.

If something goes wrong#

Related#

• My apps and the page of an installed app
• Place and arrange widgets on the stage
• Save, publish, versions, and conflicts