Widgets and Live Text overview
Widgets and Live Text enables users to see and act on automatically recognized Live Text in a Notes® document using widgets created specifically for their use. For example, a user can see a specially highlighted Live Text string (for example, a flight number) and instantly act on it (for example, look up a flight status) by opening a third-party flight status widget that is linked to that Live Text. Widgets and Live Text also enables power users and administrators to create and edit widgets, and deploy them to users to engage a Notes form, view, or document or third party services such as Web page, feed, or Google Gadget as well as deploy an existing feature or plug-in from an Eclipse or NSF-based update site.
A widget is a tool that can consist of one or more components and actions. An action can optionally contain a wired content type and recognizer to define the Live Text pattern to act on and specifically how to act on that Live Text.
A widget can also be designed to provision items to client systems. For example, a widget can be used to install and update a stand-alone or third-party feature by calling a feature update site to either initially deploy or later provision updates to a client plug-in.
The Domino® server contains desktop policy settings to control Widgets and Live Text functionality, and an application template, toolbox.ntf, to provide the basis for the widget catalog.
- The Widgets desktop settings policy tab contains settings applicable to Widgets and Live Text feature access, server and catalog access, and catalog categories.
- The catalog is based on the toolbox.ntf template Widget Catalog, which is installed with and resides on a Domino server and houses all widgets. Administrators and power users create and publish widgets to the catalog. Widgets are provisioned to users automatically based on user policy and widget category name.
- Administrator can also use the desktop settings policy tab to push a managed setting
during plug-in deployment or client install easily enter managed settings
in the format of
pluginID/preferenceID=preferenceValue.
The Widgets and Live Text feature is designed for three main user types -- end user, power user and application developer, and administrator. Policy and preferences control various access levels. Roles often overlap.
- Administrators create and manage the widget catalog and assigns Widgets and Live Text access capabilities using a combination of Domino server-managed policy and Eclipse preferences. Administrators can also create and configure widgets to deploy features and plug-ins to an existing Notes or IBM Lotus® Expeditor client install. Widgets and the widget catalog play a central role in client management in the areas of feature and plug-in deployment and provisioning for clients in the enterprise, in conjunction with Domino policy and Eclipse preferences.
- Power® users typically create, edit, and deploy widgets for specific end users. A wizard is available to assist power users in creating new widgets and optionally wiring content types and recognizer elements to actions within those widgets. Power user and administrator user capabilities often overlap.
- End users typically act on auto-recognized Live Text in their open Notes document, or select text to act upon, and engage widgets or widget actions that have been created for them. They may also have the ability to see and add widgets to their My Widgets sidebar panel and/or their sidebar. End users may not actually see the widgets that have been created for them yet can still engage those widgets to act on their Live Text.