Guide to interactive widgets in Nextcloud Hub

An ultimate shortcut between the apps

In Nextcloud Hub 8, we introduced interactive widgets, a completely new feature that lets you share, access and interact with items from various apps in a compact widget format throughout your platform. Now you can share documents in Talk to to browse and edit them in the chat, embed calendars in your Text files, or add entire deck boards to Collectives — and those are just a few examples.

Let us explain how interactive widgets work, what items can be shared as widgets, and what apps support them.

What items you can share as widgets

With Nextcloud Hub 8, you can already use the interactive widget feature for several items across the Nextcloud Hub ecosystem: Office files (text documents, spreadsheets, presentations, Text files), Deck boards, and calendars in the Calendar app.

To add a widget, you just need to paste a link to the item to a location that supports widgets (e.g. a Talk chat), and a widget will be embedded automatically. Users will be able to access and browse content right away, without a need to switch between the apps. In different apps, we added individual widget actions and parameters to make the interface run smoothly and without interruptions.

Files

Interactive file widgets let you view, edit and even collaborate on the files via mini editor window. Although they are not meant for full-featured editing, the widgets come in handy when you need to quickly browse or update a file.

Use widgets in Talk to streamline your team tasks. Collaborate on a To-Do in the team chat, review a content plan while having a video meeting, or add qick meeting notes — you name it! In Text, you can embed one file into another to keep your drafts, notes, sheets, schedules, documentation and any resources at hand. And finally, you can embed documents in Deck card descriptions and Collectives pages to make notes, schedules, reports, sheets, and any other related files easily accessible.

Deck boards

Deck widgets let you add your boards where you need them. Previously, you could already use previews to quickly view the linked cards, and now you can embed entire boards to browse and manage your planning.

Add boards to Text files, ensure quick access to planning on any Collectives pages, or discuss your tasks while browsing them during team meetings in Talk. Deck widgets give you more than just scrolling: you can adjust view settings as you desire, search items, and even open your cards to access the details.

Calendars

Embed your calendars in other apps to let users browse events and planning with ease. The Calendar widget gives access to an entire calendar in read-only mode, allowing you to navigate dates, scroll events and do even more.

Now you can plan events and check availability while working on your other tasks or having a team call. Less tabs and less clicks!

How widgets work in different apps

Nextcloud Talk

When you paste a link in a chat, Talk loads the widgets for all supported items automatically. File widgets are displayed in view-only mode by default, and you can click Edit to edit the document.

Nextcloud Text

Widgets in Text let you preview items in-line, with an opportunities to hide widgets to display the link only. Now you can also hide previews for items such as Deck cards, web pages, and more.

Nextcloud Collectives

Widgets in Collectives give way to more informative and rich pages. Enable the “Full width” view to browse linked calendars and Deck boards with even more comfort. Just like in the Text app, you can disable any link widget selectively.

Nextcloud Deck

Add widgets to Deck cards in the Description field to link important assets associated with your tasks and workflows. The widget can be collapsed when you need a compact description.

Regain control over your time with Nextcloud Hub 8

Interactive widgets are only one of the exiting new features in Nextcloud Hub 8. From new AI tools in Nextcloud Assistant to new apps and serious performance improvements throughout the platform, there are many reasons to upgrade to the latest Nextcloud Hub.

New to Nextcloud? There’s no better time to try it out! Get control over your data today with the most secure open-source collaboration platform.

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