Engine Works
Under the hood of Alteryx: tips, tricks and how-tos.
Designer 2024.2 is here, and this release is packed with new customization features that you've been asking for! This update brings three exciting enhancements that give you more control: custom connection colors, custom tool defaults, and multi-line container titles. Let's dive into these new capabilities and how you can leverage them.
Custom Connection Colors
The color of individual workflow connection lines between tools can now be customized. Simply right-click on the connection and choose “Change Connection Color” to make your selection from the color picker. This can help you quickly distinguish between different data streams or highlight key connections, especially in complex workflows. Whether you're using colors to flag important data transformations or you're just looking to make your canvas a bit more aesthetically pleasing, this feature is like giving your workflow a fresh coat of paint—both functional and fabulous!
TIP: You can Ctrl+Click to select multiple connection lines to change connection colors in bulk.
Change Connection Color option in right-click menu
Workflow after changing individual connection colors
Custom Tool Defaults
When modifying a tool's configuration, you can now save your settings as a default. Once you have configured a tool to your liking, you can select the pencil icon in the lower left of the configuration window and choose “Set as Default.” The next time you use that tool, it will default to your custom configuration. To revert to system defaults, select the same pencil icon and choose “Restore System Defaults.”
This feature eliminates the need to configure frequently used tools repeatedly. It's perfect for anyone looking to set a default data type for new columns in the Formula tool, or to save formatting settings for tool containers. Imagine how much time you can save by avoiding repetitive configurations for tools you use daily!
TIP: This feature will save all parts of a tool configuration as default, so be sure to remove any formulas or text (e.g. container titles) that you don't want saved as default.
Multi-Line Container Captions
Container captions for tool and control containers can now be multiple lines, so reading your documentation is much easier. You can create new lines by using the return key while typing your captions. This can help keep your workflows looking compact and clean!
TIP: Use this feature in conjunction with Margins set to “None” for ultimate container compactness!
… And these aren’t only the customization-related features in Designer 2024.2! The full list of new features is even more exciting. To learn about those, or more about the features I described here, check out our help documentation. If you're ready to see how these features can improve your Designer experience, check out the newest version of Alteryx Designer!
