We’ve teased it, we’ve given glimpses of it, and now we’ve released it: the next generation of Klip editing is here!
What happens to existing Klips?
In the words of Douglas Adams, "Don't panic." All the new features we've release only serve to enhance and improve existing Klips. In fact, it's going to be easy to update existing Klips using the new features available in the Klip Editor.
New improvements to Klip editing
The entire experience of creating Klips has been improved. It is now much easier to create Klips with multiple components associated with them and control how those components are arranged within a Klip. This means you have more flexibility when creating data visualizations with an editing environment that is much easier to use.
Here’s a list of what’s new:
Build a Klip from scratch
When building a Klip, you will now have the option to start with Blank Klip. Think of the Blank Klip as a canvas on which you can create any type of visualization and use any combination of components within a Klip.
Context Menus
We've added right-click context menus to allow you to quickly perform simple tasks in the Klip Editor, such as copying and pasting components within a Klip. These menus are a quality of life improvement that Klip builders will truly appreciate.
Component Palette
The Component Palette allows you to drag and drop any visualization into your Klip and arrange those visuals any way you want. You can also access new design elements like separators, labels, and the Layout Grid.
Controls Palette
This is a simple menu that contains controls that apply to the specific component you are editing. These controls are useful for working with charts (to add or remove series), for tables (to add columns or rows), or for gauges (to add ranges).
Layout Grid
The Layout Grid is a new component that allows you to arrange multiple components vertically or horizontally within a Klip. This Grid will allow you to fully customize the layout of components within a Klip to give you unparalleled control of Klip design.
Layout Panel
Each cell of the Layout Grid component has properties that can be adjusted in the Layout Panel. This provides complete control over design elements like padding and borders. On the Layout panel you can specify cell width, height, padding, span, and alignment.
Label Component
The Label component is great for creating section headers and adding descriptions to your Klips. It is a simple, flexible component that displays text, numbers, and mini charts.
Separator Component
The Separator component is a line that you can insert between components. It controls white space around components, and differentiates between components. The Separator can be positioned vertically or horizontally, dashed or solid, and includes options for setting thickness and color.
Image Component
The upgraded Image component allows you to better control image scale and set images to fill the width available to them. The Image Properties tab provides pixel-perfect control when resizing images and allows you to specify the exact region, size, and alignment within the Klip.
User Input Controls
Input Control components now scale horizontally to fit the width available to them. The default for Input Controls is to take up available horizontal space; however, you can set the size in the Properties tab.
Padding
We’ve rethought Klip and component padding in this release. We’ve also exposed the ability to adjust padding to give you pixel level control of white space on your dashboard.
Table Component Border
Table components now have a border and padding around them. This change may be the most noticeable one to component padding in this release, but it’s a positive change that will be important when building Klips with multiple components or viewing the dashboard on a mobile device.
