figmaJun 27, 2022

What’s new in Figma: June 2022 | Figma Blog (opens in new tab)

Figma’s June 2022 updates focus on making the platform more collaborative, extensible, and accessible. The major launch is widgets—interactive canvas objects that teams can use together—alongside easier access to plugins, improved API documentation, and expanded availability for students through Google Chromebooks. Together, these changes position Figma as a broader platform for design, development, education, and teamwork. ## Collaborative Widgets in Figma - Widgets are interactive objects embedded directly on the Figma canvas. - Unlike plugins, which primarily support individual automation, widgets enable real-time team interaction. - Potential uses include: - Voting and polls - Time tracking - Design annotations - Status indicators - Task management - Featured widgets include: - **Asana** for discussing tasks and adding follow-up actions - **Jira** for turning designs into development tasks - **RAG Status** for showing red, yellow, or green project status - **Navigate** for guiding stakeholders through designs ## Easier Access to Extensions - Figma made plugins and widgets more discoverable within the editor. - Users can now search for and install extensions directly from the Figma toolbar. - Updates to the Figma Community also make it easier to try and explore available extensions. ## Redesigned API Documentation - Figma introduced redesigned developer documentation to simplify building on its platform. - Improvements include: - New navigation - Better organization of resources - Copyable code blocks - Additional code samples and practical guides ## Expanding Access Through Chromebooks - Figma partnered with Google for Education to bring Figma and FigJam to Chromebooks. - School districts can deploy and manage Figma Organization licenses through Google Admin Console. - The program is offered free to participating schools, potentially reaching tens of millions of U.S. students. - Schools could apply for the beta beginning in summer 2022. Figma’s update recommends exploring widgets and community extensions for collaborative workflows, while the redesigned developer resources provide a clearer path for building custom tools and integrations.

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figmaJun 6, 2022

Figma and Chromebook: Empowering the next generation of designers | Figma Blog (opens in new tab)

Figma’s partnership with Google for Education brings Figma and FigJam to Chromebooks, making professional design and collaboration tools available to millions of students at no cost to participating schools. The initiative aims to remove financial, hardware, and geographic barriers to design education while preparing students for a digital-first workforce. Figma argues that design skills—especially visual communication, collaboration, problem-solving, and creativity—should be accessible to everyone, not only students with specialized degrees or expensive equipment. ## Bringing Design Tools to Chromebooks - School districts can deploy and manage free Figma Organization licenses through the Google Admin Console. - Figma and FigJam will be available on Chromebooks, the most common personal computing devices for students. - Students can design, brainstorm, and collaborate from their own school devices rather than relying on limited computer-lab sessions. - Schools can apply for the beta program beginning in summer 2022. ## Removing Barriers to Design Education - Specialized degrees, costly hardware, and expensive creative software can prevent students from gaining design experience. - Cloud-based Chromebooks make design tools more affordable and accessible. - Figma’s founders designed the product to be free because they had seen how expensive creative tools could be for college students. - The broader goal is to give students access to opportunities in design and software regardless of their financial background. ## Why Design Skills Matter - The shift from physical to digital work, accelerated by the pandemic, has increased the importance of digital design and visual communication. - Design education develops: - Complex problem-solving - Collaboration - Creative expression - Communication and critical thinking - These skills are valuable across disciplines, not only in traditional design careers. - Figma cites research suggesting that design-focused companies outperform their peers by a factor of two. ## Teachers’ and Students’ Experiences - Teachers report higher student engagement and enthusiasm in class. - Students with no previous exposure to design have become interested in pursuing it after graduation. - Some students use Figma at home for personal projects simply because they enjoy creating. - Teachers use FigJam for icebreakers, collaborative exercises, and classroom activities. ## Learning Through Play and Projects - Dylan Field emphasizes play, hands-on work, and project-based learning as important ways to develop design skills. - He describes his own project-based high school, where science concepts were reinforced through engineering projects. - That curriculum reflected a design process: - Explore broadly and generate possibilities - Narrow the options and choose a direction - Execute the selected idea - This approach helps students learn by making, experimenting, and solving concrete problems rather than relying solely on instruction. Figma’s Chromebook initiative is intended to make design education a normal part of students’ everyday learning. Providing free, accessible tools—combined with hands-on, collaborative projects—can help more students build the creative and technical skills needed for the future.

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