Create actions that modify plugins

You can create actions that enable workbook elements to trigger effects within a plugin. For example, an action like selecting a table cell can trigger a specific plugin effect. This document explains how to create actions that trigger plugin effects.

To configure your plugin code to support actions, see Configure plugins to work with actions. For more information about actions in Sigma, see Intro to actions.

User requirements

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The following requirements apply to users who configure actions. Users who access and interact with a workbook can typically trigger all existing actions within it. Any restrictions are noted in this document.

The ability to configure actions requires the following:

• You must be assigned an account type with the Full explore or Create, edit, and publish workbooks permission enabled.

• You must be the workbook owner or be granted Can explore¹ or Can edit workbook permission.

1 If you’re granted Can explore workbook permission, you can configure actions but cannot save changes to the workbook’s published version.

Prerequisites

• You must configure your plugin to be compatible with actions. See Configure plugins to use as target elements.

Modify a plugin

Create an action that modifies a plugin.

1. Open a workbook in Explore or Edit mode.
2. Select the trigger element (the element users must interact with to initiate the action), then click Actions in the side navigation.

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To avoid causing an infinite loop, do not configure an action sequence containing the same plugin as both the trigger and target element.

3. In the Actions panel, click Add action in an existing sequence, or click Add action sequence to create a new one.
4. In the Action modal, configure the required fields to define the response:

5. If the trigger element is a table, pivot table, or input table, configure additional settings that determine when and how user interaction triggers the action sequence:

• To trigger the action sequence only when a user selects a cell in a specific column, click the When selecting cells in column field and select the column. To trigger the action sequence when a user selects a cell in any column, select Any column.
• [optional] To control whether keyboard navigation within the element can trigger action sequences on the element, click More in the Actions panel, then select Allow keyboard to trigger actions. When the option displays a checkmark, keyboard navigation and pointer events (e.g., mouse clicks) can trigger the action sequences. When the option doesn't display a checkmark (default), only pointer events can trigger them.

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  Keyboard navigation as a trigger interaction can disrupt the user experience. For example, if the element's action sequences include actions that open links or other workbooks, a user can be unintentionally navigated away from their current task. This can be particularly disruptive if the action sequence can be triggered by selecting a cell in any column.

  Consider allowing keyboard navigation to trigger actions only when it facilitates the configured action sequences and is unlikely to interfere with usability.

6. [optional] To execute the action sequence only when a specific condition met, click More in the action sequence, then select Add condition and configure the criteria. For more information about conditions, see Define an action condition.