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File or link widget

Keep one file or one web link on a desk, with a preview that suits it: a picture, a PDF you can page through, a player, or a link card.

All plansUpdated

The File or link widget holds one thing: a file from your computer or a link to a web page. It shows a preview that suits what you put in it, so a PDF can be read in place, a video plays on the desk and a link shows the site it points to. Click it to open the file in its usual app, or the link in your web browser.

Use it for the single things a piece of work depends on: the signed contract, the brief as a PDF, a floor plan, a recording, or the link to an online document.

More about this widget Coming soon

Before you start

  • File or link is on every plan.
  • You need a desk open.

The quickest way is to drag a file from Finder or File Explorer straight onto the desk. Each file you drop becomes its own File or link widget, already filled in and named after the file. See Drop files, links and apps onto a desk.

To add an empty one and fill it in:

  1. Open the desk.
  2. Click Add widget in the centre of the header.
  3. Click File or link.

The Add widget menu groups widgets into columns by what they are for. File or link is in the Files & documents column. You can also type file or link in the search box at the top of the menu and press Enter to add it.

You can also right-click an empty part of the desk and choose Add object > Files > File or link, or press ⌘ K on a Mac or Ctrl K on Windows and choose Add File or link.

An empty widget says Drop a file or paste a link. Under that are a Choose file… button and a box for a web address with an Add button.

Put a file in it

Do one of these in an empty File or link widget:

  • Choose it. Click Choose file…, pick a file on your computer and confirm.
  • Drag it in. Drag a file from Finder or File Explorer onto the widget. A coloured outline shows when you are over it.

The widget holds one file.

The file is copied into your workspace and the widget's name changes to the file's name. Because it is a copy, the widget keeps working if you move or delete the original on your computer.

  1. Click the address box in an empty File or link widget.
  2. Paste or type the web address.
  3. Press Enter or click Add.

You can leave off the https:// at the start; PlexiDesk adds it for you.

The widget is named after the website, for example example.com, and shows a link card.

What you see

The widget chooses a preview to suit what it holds.

What it holds What the widget shows
A picture The whole picture. The first time, the widget resizes itself to the picture's shape, and after that it keeps whatever size you give it.
A PDF The PDF's pages in a viewer with its own toolbar, so you can scroll, page through and zoom without leaving the desk.
A video A video player with play, pause, a timeline and volume.
An audio file A music note, the file's name and an audio player.
Any other file, such as a Word file, a spreadsheet or a zip file A preview picture of the file when your computer can make one, otherwise a document icon. A strip underneath shows the file's name, its size and its type.
A link The website's icon, the link's name and the site's address. Open in browser appears when you point at it.
  • A picture or other file: click the preview. The file opens in your computer's default app for that type, for example your PDF reader, your picture viewer or Word.
  • A link: click the card. The page opens in your default web browser.
  • Right-click a link card for Open in browser and Copy URL, alongside the menu that every widget shares. See Right-click menus.

PDFs, videos and audio files play and page through inside the widget, so you can use them without opening anything else.

Large files

A file larger than 50 MB shows Over 50 MB — stays on this device across the top of the widget. It works normally on the computer where you added it, but its contents are not copied to your other devices, which see its name and type only. To have a large file on another computer, add it there as well. See Sync your work across devices.

The title bar

The title bar's buttons appear when you rest the pointer on the widget.

  • Rename (the pencil), or double-click the name, to give the widget a clearer name, such as "Signed contract". Press Enter to save or Esc to cancel. On a link card, the name you choose is also the card's title.
  • Pin keeps the widget in a corner of the screen while you move around the desk.
  • Expand offers Larger on desk, or Focus mode to read a PDF or watch a video in a whole pane. See Open widgets full screen and side by side.
  • × removes the widget from the desk. PlexiDesk asks Remove from the desk? first. If you remove one by mistake, undo it straight away. See Undo and redo.

See The controls on every widget for the rest.

The title bar starts with an AI button (the sparkle). File or link has no AI of its own, so this button opens the Plexii panel, where you can ask Plexii your question. See Use a widget's AI button.

Sharing

If you publish a live view of the desk, a File or link widget appears on it as a file, for people to see but not change. See Publish a live view of a desk.

To share a single widget rather than a whole desk, see Share a widget, document or file Coming soon.

Widgets from earlier versions

Desks made in earlier versions of PlexiDesk may hold widgets that were added before File or link could do all of this, such as widgets showing a web page or a picture from a web address. They keep showing what they showed before. New ones are added as File or link widgets, or as a Browser widget when you want a live web page.

Good uses

  • Keep the source to hand. Put the brief, the quote or the contract as a PDF on the desk where you do the work, and read it in place.
  • Link out to online documents. Add a link card for a shared document or a booking page you use for this work, one click from the desk.
  • Reference pictures at their real shape. A floor plan or a diagram keeps its proportions.
  • Recordings. Keep a voice memo or a short video next to the notes about it.

Common questions

What is the difference between this and a Browser widget? File or link shows a card that opens a link in your web browser. A Browser widget shows the live web page on the desk, so you can use it there.

How do I show a different file? Add a new File or link widget with the new file, then remove the old one with × in its title bar.

How do I add several files at once? Select them on your computer and drop them on an empty part of the desk. Each becomes its own File or link widget.

My picture changed the widget's size. The widget fits itself to a picture's shape once, when the picture is added. Drag the widget's edges to make it any size you like; it keeps that size.

Can I keep several pictures in one widget? Use a Gallery widget for a set of pictures.

Still need help? Contact support at [email protected].