# Drop files, links and apps onto a desk > Drag files from your computer, links from your web browser, connected apps and widget tiles onto a desk, and file documents on desks from the open-items strip. Source: https://plexiidesk.com/help/canvas-drop-files Section: Desks and the canvas > Bring things in and connect them Plans: All plans Updated: 2026-10-10 The quickest way to put something on a desk is to drag it there. PlexiDesk looks at what you drop and makes the right widget for it, at the spot where you let go. Dropping works on every plan. You need a desk open, because whatever you drop lands on the desk in front of you. ## What you can drop | Drop this | You get | | --- | --- | | A file from Finder (Mac) or File Explorer (Windows) | A **File or link** widget for each file, showing its preview | | A tab or a link from your web browser | A **Browser** widget open at that page | | A web app from **Connected Apps** in the side menu | A **Browser** widget that uses that app's own sign-in | | A local app from **Connected Apps** | An **App launcher** tile that opens the app | | A tile from the tool rail's **Add widget** menu | That widget, placed exactly where you let go | | A document's tab in the open-items strip, dropped on a desk's tab | The document, put on that desk | ## Drop files from your computer 1. Open the desk you want the files on. 2. In Finder on a Mac, or File Explorer on Windows, select one or more files. 3. Drag them onto an empty part of the desk and let go. You get one **File or link** widget per file, centred on the spot where you let go and named after the file. If you drop several files at once, each one sits a little below and to the right of the one before, so none hides another. What each widget shows depends on the file: - **A picture** shows the image, and the widget takes the picture's shape the first time it loads. Click the picture to open it in your computer's default app. - **A PDF** opens in a viewer inside the widget, with a toolbar and page navigation. - **Video and audio** play inside the widget with the usual controls. - **Any other file** shows a preview where one is available, with the file's name, size and type along the bottom. Click it to open the file in its default app. PlexiDesk keeps its own copy of every file you drop, so the widget does not depend on the original staying where it was on your computer. > **Tip:** > A dropped PDF, Word file or spreadsheet can do more than sit there. Link its widget to a Page, choose **Transform it**, then click **Summarize** or **Extract action items**, and PlexiDesk reads the file and writes the result into the Page. See [Link widgets and set up wires](https://plexiidesk.com/help/canvas-link-widgets). Want to edit what is inside a file rather than keep the file itself? Use **Import file…** to turn a text, Markdown, CSV, JSON or Excel file into a Page or Table you can work in. See [Turn a file into a widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/desk-import-file). To keep a Word, Excel or PowerPoint file editable as a document, see [Open and save Word, Excel, PowerPoint and Visio files](https://plexiidesk.com/help). ## Drop a link or a tab from your web browser 1. Arrange your windows so you can see both your web browser and the desk in PlexiDesk. 2. In your web browser, drag a tab, or a link on a page, onto an empty part of the desk. 3. Let go where you want the page. A **Browser** widget opens at that page, centred on the spot where you let go. Only web addresses make a widget: if you drag plain text that is not a link, nothing is added. The new Browser widget uses the same sign-ins as the rest of PlexiDesk's built-in browser, so a site you are already signed in to in PlexiDesk stays signed in here. See [Browser widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-browser) and [Keep a site signed in on your desks](https://plexiidesk.com/help/browser-stay-signed-in). ## Drop a connected app Connected apps are the web apps and programs you keep at hand in PlexiDesk. With a desk open, they are listed under **Connected Apps** in the side menu, ready to drag. 1. Open the desk. 2. In the side menu, find the app under **Connected Apps**. Your pinned apps and the ones you use most are listed first. If you do not see the app, click **More apps** to show the rest. 3. Drag the app's row onto the desk and let go. What you get depends on the kind of app: - **A web app** becomes a **Browser** widget at the app's address. It uses the app's own saved sign-in, so once you have signed in to the app in PlexiDesk, the widget is signed in too, on this desk and on any other. - **A local app**, a program on your computer, becomes an **App launcher** tile. Click the tile to open the program. See [App launcher widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-app-launcher). To add an app to the list, click **+** beside **Connected Apps** (its tooltip says **Add a connected app**). See [Add and use connected apps](https://plexiidesk.com/help). **Connected Apps** shows in the side menu only while a desk is open. To add, pin or remove apps from anywhere, open **Settings** > **Advanced** > **Connected apps**. ## Place a widget exactly where you want it When you click a widget in an **Add widget** menu, PlexiDesk places it beside the widget you last worked on. To choose the spot yourself, drag it instead. 1. Point at the tool rail on the right edge of the desk (the strip with the construction icon) so it opens. 2. Click **Add widget**. The **Add to this desk** menu opens. 3. Find the widget you want. If you do not see it, type its name in **Search widgets and objects**, or open **Advanced** at the bottom of the list. 4. Drag its tile onto the desk and let go where you want it. You can also right-click an empty part of the desk and choose **Add object**, then a group and a widget. The widget appears where you right-clicked. > **Tip:** > If you have dragged the tool rail to the top or bottom edge of the window, it shows only icons and has no **Add widget** menu. Double-click an empty part of the rail to put it back on the right edge. For every way to add a widget, see [Add a widget to a desk](https://plexiidesk.com/help/add-a-widget) and [The tool rail on the right of a desk](https://plexiidesk.com/help/desk-tool-rail). ## Put a document on a desk from the open-items strip The open-items strip near the bottom of the window has a tab for each desk and document you have open. You can drop a document onto any desk's tab without opening that desk. 1. Open the document, so its tab is in the strip. 2. Make sure the desk you want also has a tab in the strip. If it does not, open the desk once, then go back to the document. 3. Drag the document's tab onto the desk's tab. The desk's tab is highlighted while you hold the document over it. 4. Let go. A message confirms that the document was added to the desk, with an **Open** button that takes you there. This works for documents, spreadsheets, slide decks, diagrams, designs and artwork. The widget on the desk shows the document itself, not a copy, so a change you make on the desk and a change you make in Office are the same change. There are two other ways to do the same thing: - **Right-click the document's tab** in the strip. Under **Send to desk**, click the desk. This list includes every desk, not just the ones you have open. - **Drag a document from Office**, for example from the **Recent** list on Office Home, onto a desk's tab in the strip. See [The open-items strip](https://plexiidesk.com/help/open-items-strip) and [Put a document, spreadsheet or deck on a desk](https://plexiidesk.com/help). ## Common questions ### I let go, but nothing appeared. What should I check? - **Is a desk open?** Drops land on the desk in front of you. On Home or in Office there is no desk to drop onto. - **Did you let go over an empty part of the desk?** Let go on the desk itself rather than on top of another widget. - **Was it a link?** Plain text that is not a web address does not make a widget. Drag the link or the tab itself. - **Is the connected app listed?** The **Connected Apps** section appears only while a desk is open. Check **More apps** if your app is not in the first rows. ### Can I undo a drop? Yes. Press `⌘` `Z` on a Mac or `Ctrl` `Z` on Windows straight away to remove the widget you just added. If you dropped several files, press it once for each. See [Undo and redo](https://plexiidesk.com/help/undo-redo). ### Why does my Excel or CSV file show up as a file and not as a table? Dropping keeps a file as a file. To turn its rows into a Table you can sort and edit, use **Import file…** instead. See [Turn a file into a widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/desk-import-file). ## Related tasks - [File or link widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/widget-file-or-link): everything you can do with a dropped file. - [Turn a file into a widget](https://plexiidesk.com/help/desk-import-file): import text and data as a Page or Table. - [Link widgets and set up wires](https://plexiidesk.com/help/canvas-link-widgets): connect what you dropped to other widgets. - [See what runs on its own on a desk](https://plexiidesk.com/help/canvas-automations): the desk's automations in one list.