Start Page Gadgets are mini-applications that work with the Google Start Page. Appirio CRM Dashboards gives you the ability to create gadgets that can be added to your Google Start page to create a complete CRM Dashboard.
With Appirio CRM Dashboards you can create start page gadgets in the following two formats:
Gadgets are most often added to a Google Start Page, but they can also be used with other Google capabilities (e.g. documents, spreadsheets, sites).
Creating a gadget for your start page is much like creating a report and dashboard in Salesforce. You define what information it should have, search criteria, set some preferences, add formatting and you are complete. The specific instructions walk you through each step of creating a chart or list gadget that can be embedded inside of a Google Start Page, Google Document or Google Site.
On the Chart Definition page, choose a chart type and select the object and fields to display in the X-Axis, Y-Axis, Wedget, and the Groupings sections of your chart. Charts require at least one field that contains a numerical value and can be summed, averaged, or counted and another field that must either be a picklist, multi-picklist, or a date.
Chart Type Select the type of chart to use. Negative numbers are supported on line, bar, and column charts (except for stacked charts)..
X-Axis - For Bar and Line Charts, the selected field must be a picklist, multi-picklist, or date. For Column charts, the selected field must contain a numerical value. Column charts will also require a Function to Sum, Count, or Average the numerical data.
Y-Axis - . For Column Charts, the selected field must be a picklist, multi-picklist, or date. For Bar charts, the selected field must contain a numerical value. Bar charts will also require a Function to Sum, Count, or Average the numerical data.
Groupings - For all charts, the selected field must be a picklist, multi-picklist, or date.
Values - The selected field must contain a numerical value and a function must be selected to Sum, Count, or Average the numerical data. This only applies to pie charts.
Wedges - Choose the type of data to display as wedges for your chart. The selected field must be a picklist, multi-picklist, or date. This only applies to pie charts.
On the Search Criteria page, choose the appropriate settings from the drop-down lists, then use the filter options to limit the report to records with specific data. Search criteria generally work like search criteria in Salesforce reports.
To enter search criteria:
On the Preferences page, specify the system and user preferences that limit the data that can be extracted from Salesforce. You can also specify if a user can modify these preferences inside of each gadget.
Preferences on gadgets can be set based on System and User Preferences. System preferences allow you or the end user to define how often to refresh the data in the gadget or limit the results based on date, rows, or permissions. User Preferences are based on Search Criteria that have been specified in the Gadget builder.
The configurable system preferences are listed below:
Preference |
Description |
Refresh Time |
Refresh the gadget based on a time interval (Specified in minutes). |
Limit Results |
Limit the amount of data that is be retrieved from Salesforce (Limited by rows). |
Show Only My Information |
Only show data that is owned by your user. |
Show Information in My Role |
Only show data that is owned by your Role. |
Show Information in My Profile |
Only show data that is owned by my Profile. |
Recent Data Filter |
Only show data that has been modified in the past N number of hours or show all data with no time restriction. |
On the Formatting page, specify and select the display and sorting preferences for the gadget.
Quick preferences allow you to take one search criteria that the end user can set, and promote it to the gadget's main page. Instead of editing preferences, user can simply select a value from the main page. Quick preferences are very useful for date fields. Instead of having to enter a specific date (e.g. close date = value), the quick preference would include common values (Today, This Quarter, This Month, This Year)
Data Limits – Charts often contain too much data to display well. Data limits ensure only the most relevant information is displayed. Refresh View – After selecting formatting preferences, click refresh on the right to see a preview of your gadget (you will have to click “Save” on the gadget to move from the preferences page to the main page)
Once you have completed creating the gadget you can add it to your Google Start Page with a few simple steps:
On the Fields page, choose an object and select the fields to display in the gadget
Main List – Choose up to a maximum of four display fields from one or more objects.
Tooltip Fields - Display fields can also be shown as tooltips on the gadget. There is no limit to the number of fields that you can add to the tooltip.
On the Search Criteria page, choose the appropriate settings from the drop-down lists, then use the filter options to limit the report to records with specific data. Search criteria generally work like search criteria in Salesforce reports.
To enter search criteria:
On the Preferences page, specify the system and user preferences that limit the data that can be extracted from Salesforce. You can also specify if a user can modify these preferences inside of each gadget.
Preferences on gadgets can be set based on System and User Preferences. System preferences allow you or the end user to define how often to refresh the data in the gadget or limit the results based on date, rows, or permissions. User Preferences are based on Search Criteria that have been specified in the Gadget builder.
The configurable system preferences are listed below:
Preference |
Description |
Refresh Time |
Refresh the gadget based on a time interval (Specified in minutes). |
Limit Results |
Limit the amount of data that is be retrieved from Salesforce (Limited by rows). |
Show Only My Information |
Only show data that is owned by your user. |
Show Information in My Role |
Only show data that is owned by your Role. |
Show Information in My Profile |
Only show data that is owned by my Profile. |
Recent Data Filter |
Only show data that has been modified in the past N number of hours or show all data with no time restriction. |
On the Formatting page, specify and select the display and sorting preferences for the gadget.
Display Fields – Choose the width of each column and the alignment of the text
Sort Fields – Select which fields can be used to sort the data
Quick Preference - Quick preferences allow you to take one search criteria that the end user can set, and promote it to the gadget's main page. Instead of editing preferences, user can simply select a value from the main page.
Quick preferences are very useful for date fields. Instead of having to enter a specific date (e.g. close date = value), the quick preference would include common values (Today, This Quarter, This Month, This Year)
Once you have completed creating the gadget you can add it to your Google Start Page with a few simple steps:
An existing gadget can be modified by clicking Edit beside it. The same wizard used to create the gadget also edits it. You can skip ahead multiple pages in the wizard by clicking the step icons in the header.
Gadget can be shared within your Salesforce organization, with your friends and colleagues via e-mail, and with the general public through the Appirio Gadget Gallery.
To share a gadget, click Share next to the gadget you would like to share. In the next screen, select one or more of the following options:
Gadgets can be used in several Google applications beyond the Start Page. The only information required is the gadget URL, which is available from the gadget list by clicking “Add to Start Page”.
Google applications supporting gadgets are listed below, along with some basic instructions for adding gadgets to them. For more information, refer to the documentation provided by Google for the specific application.