A walkthrough of connecting to your data, what data sources are available and some basics on managing your data connections
Connect works with both manually entered data and your external data sources to drive the content of in-app widgets dynamically. Additionally you can filter your data to show only the items you want from your data set.
Before you connect your data sources you will need to have access to Connect. If you are unsure if you have access follow this link to learn more about Getting Started with Connect.
You can connect the following data types to a Connect App:
Connect to even more using Zapier or our REST API.
With existing connections in connect you can add the connection to a widget or multiple widgets in an app. To learn more about creating an app follow this link Creating an App from Scratch or Using Templates
While editing an App in App Builder, select a widget to add to your app from the left menu. Then select the widget on the canvas. On the right side of the window you will see a properties panel appear.
Click on Data to show the Data properties for the widget. Click on Connect to Data Source to connect to your data.
Click on the data type that matches your data source under the Create a Connection section to create a new connection to your data.
You will see different options depending on the data type chosen. For example for a URL connection or google sheet you will see a URL field to paste in your URL.
If your data source is a spreadsheet you will be asked to define columns and indicate if a column is a header, Each data type will give you the option to preview the data at this step in order to validate it is connecting properly.
Connect will try to automatically detect the data type of each column or element. You can make changes to the column type by clicking on the corresponding dropdown under Column type.
If you add a data source from a URL you can choose an interval for the data in your connection to refresh, this can be set to Never, Hourly, Daily or Weekly. You can change this setting when editing a connection. See editing a connection below for more details.
Data connections can be shared within your account for other apps. At this point an account is defined by each customer account so this could allow coworkers to use your data in other apps.
Data connections can be moderated either through approval where you select items to show in your connection or through removal where you select items not to include.
Once you have a connection selected the window will return to the app builder. The widget should automatically reflect the information in your connection. You should also see the connection name listed under the widget settings under Data.
Instead of using external data you can add all the data directly into Connect. Creating a manual table is required for using the Zapier and API Connections.
Click on Data to show the Data settings for the widget. Click on Connect to Data Source to add the existing connection to your data.
Click on Create a Table to create a new manual table connection, if you already have the data in a delimited format you can instead choose paste from clipboard and Connect will do some of the work for you.
Next choose the name for columns, add columns they data type of the column and whether or not it is a required field. Then click Continue.
Next name your Manual Data table and choose whether or not you want this data shared.
Once the Table is created you can click on the blue Edit your data button to start adding in data.
You also can manually enter data into the table by clicking on Manage Data in App Builder.
Double click on each item to edit the data.
Click the + at the bottom of the table to add more rows
Hover your mouse over a row position number you should see a disclosure arrow, for more controls.
From this menu you can insert, move and delete rows.
You also can edit the row in a form format. The form will show up to the right of the table, you can edit the record directly in the text fields and adjust moderation status.
If there are any problems with the table you will see the number of problems in the top of the table and an outline of the problem cell on the table in red.
Click on Save Changes to Save your table.
Create a new connection to your data source by starting in Connect and choosing Connections from the menu on the left.
Click on Create New Connection to create a new connection to your data source.
Click on the data type that matches your data source under the Create a Connection section to create a new connection to your data.
You will see different options depending on the data type chosen. For example for a URL connection or google sheet you will see a URL field to paste in your URL.
If your data source is a spreadsheet you will be asked to define columns and indicate if a column is a header, Each data type will give you the option to preview the data at this step in order to validate it is connecting properly.
Connect will try to automatically detect the data type of each column or element. You can make changes to the column type by clicking on the corresponding dropdown under Column type.
If you add a data source from a URL you can choose an interval for the data in your connection to refresh, this can be set to Never, Hourly, Daily or Weekly. You can change this setting when editing a connection. See editing a connection below for more details.
Data connections can be shared within your account for other apps. At this point an account is defined by each customer account so this could allow coworkers to use your data in other apps.
Data connections can be moderated either through approval where you select items to show in your connection or through removal where you select items not to include.
Starting in Connect click on Connections on the let menu.
Click on the connection you would like to edit.
Edit the details of the data connection by clicking on the settings tab, here you can change the name sharing and syncing settings. Changes to the data connection properties will be reflected in any connected app.
You also can manage your data connection from inside an app. By clicking on the connected widget then choosing Data then Manage
See a preview of the existing schema under the data grid tab.
Optionally you can download the existing data to your computer as a csv or json file by clicking on export.
Replace the data in the widget by choosing the Replace Data tab.
Select an existing data connection or create a new connection to use to replace the data connection. Follow this link more information on creating data connections
Once the replacement data has been chosen or created, you will be presented with a preview of the replacement data. Click on Looks Good, Continue to begin mapping the data.
Match what the appropriate replacement data columns from the replacement connection by clicking on each drop down field then click continue.
Click continue to finish replacing the data in the widget.
You also can adjust more settings of the connection by clicking on the Settings tab.
From here you can adjust sharing, add Columns to manual connections and change the moderation settings.
If you have a data connection from URL and wish to convert it to a manual connection you can choose to Disconnect the data connection from the data source.
There are two methods of moderation used when moderating a data source. Approval where you select items to show in your connection or Removal where you select items not to include. You can set moderation of a connection for either a linked data source or an uploaded document.
Start moderating in Connect by selecting the connection you want to moderate. From the Connections menu click on the connection.
Or from inside App Builder select a widget then from the right hand properties panel choose Manage under your data connection.
If your moderation type is set to Approval only items you select will be available in the connection. To approve an item click on the corresponding row number then choose Approve Record,
To see only approved items click on the Approved sort button above the table.
Click Save Changes in the top right corner of the window when finished.
If your moderation type is set to Removal all items by default will be included in the connection. Click on the corresponding row number to the item in the table then choose Remove Record.
To see only the items that have not been removed click on the Included sort button above the table.
Click Save in the top right corner of the window when finished.
To manage your connections in Connect. First select Connections in the left menu. You will see a list of your connections.
Click the Duplicate button to create a duplicate connection.
You will see a window for editing the new duplicated connection. By default the duplicate connection will be named with the same name as your connection with (Duplicate). The duplicate connection will not be connected to any apps.
Click on the Trash icon to delete the connection.
If connected to an app you will see a warning including any app that is using the data connection.
Click on the connections button to see any apps that are using the connection.
You will be presented with a window that lists any apps using the connection. You can click on the app name to edit the app in app builder.
Click on the Moderate button to make changes to the moderation settings.
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Add in Shapes and Text or Photos in Connect to customize your app design.
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