Dashboard widgets

Most of your Dashboard content, such as lists of activities, friends, groups, or conversations, comes from widgets. For example, when you first log in to your site, you might have a "Site Activity" list (the [[configure the Activity Message List widget|Activity - Message List]] widget), which displays user activity for your site. This is a common Dashboard widget.

If your Dashboard has an Edit Page button in the top-right corner, you have the ability to [[Change pages via Edit Page mode|make changes to the page]]. These could include [[Dashboard page layout|layout changes]] or widget changes, which are addressed in this article.

Basics to know

• Your ability to edit your Dashboard page is determined by the permissions the community administrator has granted to your role (for example, "Registered User").
• The widgets that are available for you to use on your Dashboard are determined by your community administrator. Your role might have different widgets on different page layouts.
• Any widget that has a pencil icon on its configuration bar can be [[Widget configuration in Edit Page mode|edited]].
• Any widget that has an X on its configuration bar can be removed.
• You can't remove any widget that says "Locked" on its configuration bar. You can, however, move it on the page.
• You can revert to the default configuration for the page by clicking Revert to default. This option is present only if you've [[Change pages via Edit Page mode|saved a different version]] of the page.
• Information on the very top or very bottom of the page might not be available for you to edit. These are the page header and footer, respectively, and require different editing permissions.

Getting oriented

Edit Page view

Edit a page by clicking the Edit Page button.

You're then presented with a page view something like the following screen capture. The Edit Page view displays the [[Dashboard page layout|page layout]] and the widgets being used on the page.

Editing widgets

Available widgets

The widgets you have available to work with are all listed in the [[widgets by releases|Widget list]].

• You can scroll through the list to see all the widgets.
• You can search for part of a widget name in the search bar (and click Clear to start over).
• Hovering over a widget on the widget list displays a tool tip summarizing what the widget is for.
• You can find more in-depth documentation about widget uses and their configurations [[Widget configuration in Edit Page mode|here]].

Add a widget

1. Scroll to or search for a widget in the widget list.
2. Click the widget name in the list and hold down the mouse button. 
3. Drag the widget to the desired location on the page. As you move the widget, you'll see an outline form at the nearest available location respective to your mouse.
4. Release the mouse button. The widget will appear at that location.

Move a widget

1. Click the widget configuration bar with your mouse and hold down the mouse button.
2. Drag the widget to the desired location. As you move the widget, you'll see an outline form at the nearest available location respective to your mouse.
3. Release the mouse button. The widget will relocate to that location.

Example: Edit a widget's name

You can change a widget's name using the widget configuration. For example, you might want to change the name of the Friendship List widget to something more personal.

1. In Edit Page mode, click the pencil icon on the widget configuration bar.
   
   
   
   The configuration dialog box appears.
2. Click Change next to the Widget Title field.
3. Enter a different name. For example, in place of "Friendship List," you might enter "Buddies."
   
   
   
   
4. Click Save in the dialog box.
5. At the top of the page, click Save page. The edited version of the widget title will appear.
   
   

Example: Change the view type

Some widgets have different view options - such as the Blog - Post List widget, which can be shown in a simple view without any view options or page numbers ("Not filtered/Not paged list"), or a paged list that can be changed from a detailed view to an excerpt view ("Filtered/Paged"). The Not filtered/Not paged list view would be better for a single-column layout, but a double-column layout could accommodate a more detailed list with view options.

The current view of the widget is the simple Not filtered/Not paged list view.

1. In Edit Page mode, click the pencil icon on the widget configuration bar. The configuration dialog box appears (6.1 version configuration dialog box shown).
   
   
   
   
2. Under View type, select Filtered/Paged List.
3. Click Save in the configuration dialog box.
4. Click Save page. The widget appears with page numbers and view options. (In the following screen shot, the widget is in a two-column position.)