#Features
Dynamic Island animation
Really fun animation and interaction made by Figmatelier.
I have finally finished my animation/interaction Dynamic Island with @figma .Thanks @rogie for your Noise & Texture plugin, I animated it. You can find the Figma Community link below in the thread. I hope you will enjoy it :) pic.twitter.com/JHU5Y170FJ
— Figmatelier (@Figmatelier) September 19, 2022
Halftone effects
Vijay Verma shares a few techniques for adding simple halftone effects in Figma. See also his experiments with Rogie’s upcoming NT plugin and how he achieved a frosted glass effect.
Yes, this is @figma. Simple halftone effects can be easily added to your photos and illustrations to give them a retro look.
— vijay verma ᵍᵐ (@realvjy) September 18, 2022
Another experimenting with @rogie NT plugin. Sharing techniques here 🧶 pic.twitter.com/X43m4oXSWg
A single set of height variables
Ridd with a pro tip on using Variants. Good prep work for the design tokens in the future!
Variants pro tip incoming 👀
— Ridd 🏛 (@Ridderingand) September 18, 2022
Create a single set of height variables.
And then apply them across all of your core "atoms" (buttons, inputs, etc.)
3 reasons why 👇 pic.twitter.com/McUW6B2Ua8
Paste Jira and Asana links as widgets
Auto-convert pasted text links to Jira and Asana tasks into FigJam widgets.
Recent files on the new tab page
Nice update to the desktop app making it easy to pick up where you left off.
We just shipped a small update to the @figma desktop app 🎉
— Robert Bye (@RobertJBye) September 20, 2022
On the new tab page we now show your recent files, making it easy to pick up where you left off.
Download the Beta to get access now! https://t.co/Lqd0vAwh6p pic.twitter.com/nkq51T5lGR
Google Calendar integration
Use the Figma for Chrome extension to attach Figma & FigJam files to your Google Calendar events.
3 new ways to use component properties
Molly Hellmuth with a detailed walkthrough of beta features and why they’re worth using right away.
💡 Figma Tip: Starting using the new BETA PROPERTY features now!
— Molly Hellmuth (@molly_hellmuth) September 20, 2022
This update is huge! There are 3 major ways it’s going to make using component instances much easier for your design team.
Keep reading to learn how.. pic.twitter.com/T0OOkkXRIO
Baseline #10 — Exposing Nested Instances, Preferred Values, & more
Joey Banks explains why new features are so important for the design systems’ work.
Effective use of composition
Sho Kuwamoto, Director of Product at Figma, on new features and applying the concept of “composition” from engineering to design systems.
One of the reasons I'm so excited about this new set of features is that it lets people use composition effectively.
— Sho Kuwamoto (@skuwamoto) September 20, 2022
I know that "composition" (used in this way) is an engineering term and not a design term, but I think it applies.
1/n https://t.co/SL5mNhoMNm
New features for component properties
New component property features in open beta: exposed nested instances for more customization, preferred values for more clarity when instance swapping, and simplified instances for more focus on relevant properties.
Mobile comments
“You can now review, respond, and leave feedback to comments from your phone or tablet.”
I'm excited to announce mobile comments are now available in @figma. This is a request I know many of you (myself included) have been waiting for.
— Greg Blaszczuk (@gregblaszczuk) September 13, 2022
You can now review, respond, and leave feedback to comments from your phone or tablet. And as always, we're always open to feedback. pic.twitter.com/B4HPRvSFzq
Creation vs. usage of components
Luis on why it’s important to optimize for the usage of components.
Something I'm see a lot is that we prioritise component *creation*, not *usage*
— luis. (@disco_lu) September 13, 2022
This usually ends with something like this (simple example). Building is easier, but usage harder
The "notification" component is buried in variant settings. It's also a different component! pic.twitter.com/R5s63ptJ4w
It’s nearly impossible to make legacy applications multi-user collaborative
Fantastic thread on why collaboration features in XD or Sketch would never match Figma: “In short, Adobe would have never caught up to Figma. It’s genuinely easier and cheaper for them to use Figma’s architecture to rebuild all of their existing applications than to try to make any of their existing apps as delightfully multiplayer as Figma.”
I'm not surprised that Adobe is acquiring Figma for $20B, nor that Wall Street doesn't understand it and $ADBE stock is down more than $20B today. It's a smart move for Adobe because it's nearly impossible to make legacy software applications multi-user collaborative. Thread: 🧵
— Amal Dorai (@amaldorai) September 15, 2022
How To: Unmoderated User Testing in Maze Using a Figma Prototype
“Coordinated, moderated usability testing takes time. Maze makes it faster and easier with unmoderated user testing! In this video, Pamela Porto provides a step-by-step tutorial on how to create a usability test in Maze with a Figma Prototype.”
Trim pass effect in Aninix
Beautiful demo of a powerful animation plugin Aninix.
Hello, @apple.
— Aninix (@AninixApp) August 31, 2022
This is an animation created with a trim pass effect that you can do directly in @figma using @AninixApp.
It's quick simple and beautiful:) pic.twitter.com/EdqoL8a6BQ
How to Hand-off UI Designs to Developers (Figma vs Zeplin)
Mizko with a new video comparing the design hand-off process using Figma vs Zeplin.
How to animate objects along the path in Figma Motion plugin
Pavel Babkin shows how to move objects along the path using the Figma Motion plugin.
Leading Trim
Trim text elements by nesting them within frames to remove space above capital letters and below the baseline. This removes the bounding box and makes text behave as every other element in your layout. See also this thread by Roman Shamin on how font metrics leading to equal space above and below the text can make digital design and development easier.
Zoom and opacity with the number keys
Anthony DiSpezio with a great tip on controlling opacity and zoom level with the number keys.
Incoming #figmatip
— Anthony DiSpezio (@adispezio) August 19, 2022
*Number keys for opacity* enabled:
- 0-9 to set 10% increments
- Tap two keys quickly for the exact %
- Tap 0 twice for 0%
- Hold shift for zoom keys⬇️
if disabled:
- 1 for 'zoom to fit'
- 2 for '...selection'
- 0 for '...100%'
- Hold shift for opacity keys⬆️ pic.twitter.com/82Et0GSV1w
Favorite keyboard shortcuts
Patrick Morgan asked designers about their favorite Figma shortcuts and shares the top 10 recommendations based on 220+ responses.
I asked designers for their favorite @figma keyboard shortcuts.
— Patrick Morgan (@itspatmorgan) August 15, 2022
220+ responses and hours of synthesis later...
Here are the top 10 keyboard shortcuts to supercharge your workflow: