Widgets are boxes of content which can be rearranged endlessly. Widgets can contain information you enter directly (e.g. text, images, links), content from elsewhere in the intranet (e.g. birthdays, photos, blog posts), or external information (e.g. RSS feed, Exchange calendar).
Widgets must be added to a Site Home Page (i.e. the intranet Home Page or a team/department Site) or to a widget page. Learn more about Sites and widget pages.
Widget Categories
Your intranet site comes with many different types of widgets, grouped into these six categories:
- Navigation
Just like the name, this is used only to show navigation for a site. Learn more about Navigation Widgets. - Simple Widgets
Display straightforward content, including quick polls, daily tips, message box, images, and an image slider. Learn more about Simple Widgets. - Content Feed Widgets
Show content from other parts of your intranet. Widgets include application feed, blog feed, what’s new feed, site widget feed, site tags, and tags feed. Learn more about Content Feed Widgets. - User Widgets
Show information specific to individual intranet users. Widgets include my bookmarks & links, user login, my profile, and read/confirm reminders. Learn more about User Widgets. - Social Widgets
Connect intranet users by sharing their information with coworkers. Widgets include birthday, anniversaries, live chat, employee profiles, status updates, and wall posts. Learn more about Social Widgets. - External Content
Display content external to the intranet, including RSS feed, custom code, weather, and exchange synchronization. Learn more about External Content Widgets.
From the Intranet Connections Blog
Start to Edit a Widget or Widget Page
Editing widget pages happens “inline”, which means you can edit the widget page directly on the page and don’t have to go a separate screen.
If you have Admin access to a page you’ll see an Edit Page icon in your top Toolbar (non-admin users won’t see this). Click this icon to edit a widget page, or hover over the Admin icon and select Edit Page. The Build Tool box and edit options will display, with the type of widget showing at the top of this box.
You’ll know you’re in edit mode when you see the gray Save Changes bar at the bottom of the page. You can make several changes before clicking Save Widgets, though you do need to click it after adding a widget or the widget will not display. No changes are saved until you click this button.
Add Widgets
Widgets are arranged on a page in rows and columns of widget frames. If you’re on a new page with no widgets, you will have an empty row frame, as shown below, with the default layout of one widget in the row.
Add Widgets to an Empty Row Frame:
- Mouse over the empty row until it changes colour.
- Click the center icon to bring up the Build Tool window.
- Click on a widget category name to show the widgets in that category.
- Click on a widget name to select it.
- The Properties for that widget will display.
- Adjust the properties as needed, then click the X top right to close the Properties box.
- Your widget will show in the widget row frame.
If you’re finished on the page, click Save Widgets at the bottom to exit the editing mode.
Add Another Widget to a Row Frame:
- At the top of the row, click on the circle with the number of widgets you want in the row.
- Another widget frame(s) is added to the right of the existing widget. Follow the above instructions to add a widget to the new frame.
- If you change your mind, click on a circle with a lower number and the new/empty widget frame will disappear.
Delete Widgets
Removing a widget is quick and easy.
- Mouse over the widget you want to delete it will change color and show three icons.
- Click the trash can to delete the widget.
- A message box will appear, checking if you want to permanently delete the widget. Click OK.
- The widget is now gone and the frame remains. If you want to remove the widget frame as well, click the trash can in the top grey row, then click OK.
- If you’re finished on the page, click Save Widgets at the bottom to exit the editing mode.
Remember that there is no draft mode. When making significant changes to a home page, it’s suggested that you make a copy of the page, make all edits, and then switch the site to the new home page once you’re happy with the results.
Edit Widgets
Access the editing functions by clicking the edit pencil of a widget, top right, which takes you directly to the Properties for that widget. Adjust the properties for the widget as you’d like, then click Save Widgets at the bottom of the window to save your changes.
If you change your mind and don’t want to edit the properties for that widget, click the X top right to close the Properties box. You’ll still be in the editing view if you can see the gray editing bar at the bottom of the window, and you can make other changes on the page.
If you’ve made other edits on a page and are in editing mode:
- Mouse over the widget you want to edit, to show three icons.
- Click the pencil to edit the widget.
- Make any needed changes in the Properties box, then click X to close.
- If you’re finished on the page, click Save Widgets at the bottom to exit the editing mode.
Arrange Widgets, Rows & Columns
Widgets are displayed on a page in frames of rows and columns. Each row frame in the main page area can hold 1, 2, or 3 widgets, as shown in the image below. You can also add a right column, and may be able to add widgets below your navigation on the left depending on your page setup. This flexibility lets you get creative with how you display widgets on your page.
Arrange Widgets
You can move a widget on a page anywhere that a frame exists.
- Mouse over the widget you want to move.
- The widget area changes color and three icons appear.
- Click and hold the middle crosshairs icon and drag the widget where you want it to move.
- If you want the widget to switch places with another widget, drag it over the other widget and release. They’ll swap positions.
- If you want the widget to move to an empty frame, drag it to the empty frame and release.
- If you want the widget to move to a new space where no widgets have been, first add a row or column frame, then move the widget.
Arrange Rows
You can rearrange the order of rows, add new rows above or below an existing row, or delete a row.
- Click the edit pencil in the top gray bar of the row you want to change. The Properties box of a widget will open click the X to close it.
- Mouse over to the right side of the row widget frame.
- If you want to add another row, choose either Add a new row below or Add a new row above. Choosing above or below the row becomes more important when you have more widgets on a page.
Style Widgets
When you edit a widget, in the Build Tool box you can click on Theme Options. This shows options for the header colors, widget border, etc. Note that available color options are from your home site theme.
You can make a design change for just one widget, or if you click Apply to All it will affect all of the widgets on the page. Remember to click Save Widgets before leaving the page, so your changes will stick.
Change Widget Title or Header
Widgets have a default header color and title, which is added when the widget is created. You can easily change the header by editing the widget and:
- changing the title of the widget which shows in the header (1) - this is in the Properties section of the Build Tool box; you can remove all text which will produce an empty colored header bar
- changing the color of the header (2) - select one of your site theme colors in the Properties section of the Build Tool box
- removing the header (3) - click the red box with diagonal line in the Properties section of the Build Tool box
