Interaction libraries serve as convenient repositories of components within ProtoPie Cloud. These libraries allow you and your team members to effortlessly and swiftly utilize component instances in your prototypes.
There are three distinct types of interaction libraries available in ProtoPie:
- Team Libraries (Pro plan and Enterprise plan): Team libraries enable collaboration within a team. Any editor within the team can create and manage team libraries, allowing multiple team members to contribute and modify the components. The components stored in team libraries are accessible to all editors within the team, fostering seamless collaboration and consistency.
- Personal Libraries (all plans): Personal libraries are designed for individual use. You have the ability to create personal libraries within your personal space in the cloud. These libraries are exclusively available for your use, allowing you to organize and reuse components according to your specific needs and preferences.
- Public Libraries (all plans): Public libraries are accessible to all users and serve as standardized libraries for commonly used components. Examples of public libraries include Material Design and iOS interaction libraries. You can leverage the components from these libraries to streamline your prototyping process and align with established design patterns.
Creating Interaction Libraries
To create a new interaction library, follow these simple steps:
- Navigate to the Component Panel and locate the "Search Components..." section.
- On the right side of the "Search Components..." section, you will see a bookshelf icon. Click the icon, then click the "+" button to start the creation process.
- Provide a name for your library that accurately describes its purpose. Optionally, you can add a description to provide additional context or details about the library.
- Once you have specified the name and description, finalize the creation by clicking on the Create button.
A new library window will open and you will notice the Currently Editing label displayed in the component panel. At the top of the window, you will see a prominent banner. This banner serves as a visual indicator that you are in library edit mode.
Publishing Interaction Libraries
To ensure that you and your team can access the latest components in your interaction libraries, it is important to publish your changes to the cloud. Follow these steps:
- Save your changes: Before publishing, make sure to save any modifications or updates you have made to the interaction library.
- Locate and Click on the Publish button: You can find the Publish button in two different locations. It is positioned on the right side of the purple banner within the library window, or alternatively, in the top right corner of ProtoPie Studio. Once you have located the Publish button, click on it to initiate the publishing process.
Adding Component Instances
To add instances of a component to your prototype, follow these simple steps:
- Drag and drop: Begin by selecting a component from any interaction library in the component panel. Once you have chosen the desired component, simply drag it from the panel and drop it onto the canvas of your scene.
- Multiple libraries, multiple instances: You can also create instances of components from multiple interaction libraries.
Updating Interaction Libraries
To ensure that your prototypes remain up-to-date with the latest changes in the interaction libraries, follow these steps:
- Select the libraries to update: Click on the Update Library icon to open the Update Library window. Here, you can choose which interaction libraries you want to update to include the latest changes.
- Manual refresh: Alternatively, you have the option to manually refresh the libraries by clicking on the refresh icon located in the top right corner. This will allow you to check for any new updates to the libraries.
If any of the interaction libraries, which contain components used as instances in your prototypes, have been updated, you will receive a notification on the Update Library icon.
Export as New Library
Creating a library doesn't always require you to add components individually. If you already have a Pie with local components, you can conveniently export it as a new library in just a few steps:
- Click on File: Open the menu and navigate to the File option.
- Select Export as New Library: Choose the Export as New Library option from the menu. By exporting your Pie as a new library, you can effortlessly transfer all the components it contains into the library at once.
Export to Library
Besides exporting local components as a new library, you can export local components in a Pie to an existing library by clicking on the Export to Library icon in the Local Components section.
In the Export to Library window, you can easily choose one or multiple components that you want to export. Then, select the desired library to which you want to export these components. If you want to immediately make the exported library available for use, you can choose the option to publish it right after exporting.
Searching and Filtering Libraries
You can now search for specific libraries and select which libraries to display in the panel via the dropdown menu in the library settings modal. This enhanced functionality helps you locate and focus on the libraries you need with ease.
When multiple team members are simultaneously making changes to a team library in ProtoPie, conflicts may arise. If someone has already published their changes to the same library that you are currently editing, a warning message will be displayed. To handle conflicts, you have two options:
- Overwrite with your own changes: If you choose this option, your own version of the library will become the latest version, replacing the changes made by others.
- Update the library to the new version: If you select this option, the new version of the library, which includes the changes made by others, will be applied. Your own changes will be discarded in favor of the latest version.
