Tabbed Views are great. I think it can be improved by allowing Tabbed Views from different Tables.
Currently Tabbed Views only works for views from the same table, which limits its true usefulness.
My solution was to create a helper table with several canvas columns, each displaying a view from a different table. It’s not ideal, but it let me build a compact interface that shows data from multiple tables on a single page.
This would be an amazing feature.
Could you elaborate on what you mean by this?
You may have a look at this page which I just created with sample data.
Step 1 — Create the Dashboard table
Create a new table called Dashboard with Canvas columns — one per view you want to show. Add a single row.
Step 2 — Embed a view in each canvas cell
Expand a canvas cell, type /, search for the view you want, and select it. Repeat for each canvas column.
Step 3 — Create a tab per canvas column
Add a new Detail view for each canvas column. Hide all other columns, and name the tab to match. Repeat for each tab.
Result: Each tab shows one focused panel - like 4 different dashboards in one table.
Is there a reason you do it with columns instead of multiple rows?
I use a similar system for that. I use 2 tables: DB Dashboards and DB Sub-Dashboards.
Dashboard views always use the Detail mode to give you a canvas column where you can build.
The Sub-dashboard is used in situations where I want to have a Detail View inside a Dashboard, so I can have nested dashboards.
I prefer using multiple rows instead of multiple columns for similar or equal functions, because this makes more sense in the way I build systems. Also is easier to understand.
When I want a new dashboard, I add a new row to DB Dashboards and build the views inside the canvas column, then I go to the page I want to insert the dashboard and adjust the filters for the rows I want. (Tip: Use a select list instead of text on the title of the dashboard; this will make your life easier when setting filters and also prevent you from having multiple dashboards with the same title.)
You can use this with tabbed views, so you can have multiple tables.
Dashboard with sidebar: You will use this when you have too many tables to go on and when it is not that efficient having tabbed views for a lot of tables.
Dashboard without sidebar: You can adjust the filters to have more than 1 row showing, so when you are with the sidebar disabled, you can jump to another row just using the arrows at the bottom of the detail view. (I don’t recommend more than 3 rows per tab, because it will cost too many navigation clicks to get where you want.)
Extra feature: By using this methodology, you also unlock reusable dashboards/views. You can use then in any page of your doc; this is similar to the synced block on Notion.
If the explanation got too confusing for you, reply to me if you want a demonstration doc to try this feature.
Using rows or columns depends on the user case and preferences. @YouGamified explained it pretty well for using rows. I personally use it primarily if I need a swipe navigation on mobile for as much as 3 rows per dashboard/column