I think Coda could successfully introduce additional formatting without diluting their product.
My idea is introducing ‘Containers’. In web-dev, containers are well known. In case you’re not a web-developer or designer, I’ll explain what a container is. A container is a defined space within a web-page that contains content. An example would be a clock widget. The widget is defined by borders, and within those borders the design and functionality [a clock] are clearly different than any other piece of the web-page, but it still works with the webpage.
Why do I think containers would be a good addition? Coda’s innovation is wonderful and I love what they’ve done with documents. In staying with traditional Coda fashion, I think an alternative to generic PDF templates, coda could bridge the gap between web and document design with containers.
Think “Wix for Docs”. A container would allow clear separation between Doc sections where embeds and/or columns don’t quite work.
Some example use cases are:
‘Container blocks’, like a Coda column with borders that contains a [Coda table] canvas
‘Container backgrounds’, like a PDF with color or a website with clear separation
Here are some visual examples:
