Release Notes

The updated Slack integration for Abstract Notebooks automatically shares notifications for notebook reviews to one or more of your Slack channels of choice, and unfurls Notebook links pasted into Slack.

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We have built a major new product: Notebooks, with built in data and insights on the work, and integrations into other design and development tools. This release is a public preview, and we are rolling out to waitlisted users over the next several weeks. 

Notebooks is a new designer-specific platform where cross-functional teams can gather requirements, review designs, and continuously measure what works, all in one thoughtfully-built space. 

What’s included in today’s release:

• A beautiful, rich text editor to capture context around any design effort. Fully supports Markdown syntax, emojis, and GIFs.
• A new Figma plugin, which integrates directly with Notebooks.
• ~Add and arrange designs directly from Figma into beautiful presentations that display your work and the context behind it. Any design elements can be added: individual components, frames, or entire pages. 
• ~Access all your Notebooks from within Figma, and publish any frames or components you’ve worked on in one click.
• ~Update all your work in Notebooks in a single click, without leaving Figma or having to rearrange or recreate presentations of your work for review.

• Drag and drop image support for most image file formats and GIFs
• Rich comment threads for both text and images help you capture feedback on specific elements within a Notebook.
• Invite important stakeholders to review your work, and get structured feedback in the form of approvals and change requests. 
• ~Create unlimited review requests per Notebook, which is helpful for designs that need multiple rounds of review, or different feedback from different audiences.
• ~Close a review once you’ve gotten all the feedback needed to get back to work.
• ~Use the built-in notification system to automate the review process so that you don’t have to remind reviewers for their feedback. 

• Set a range of statuses for a Notebook, which helps your collaborators know where you are in the design process across a project.
• A new, bi-directional GitHub integration connects design and development work together in a Notebook.
• ~See the status and other relevant information about GitHub Issues and Pull Requests in a related Notebook.
• ~Notebook links unfurl to show the Notebook name and project over in GitHub.

• Insights surfaces actions taking place across Notebooks; helping you keep track of the work your teams are doing. It includes:

• ~An attention block that tells you which Notebooks might need a review decision, a nudge, or are being reworked.
• ~Top-level counts that display Notebooks and reviews being opened and closed over the past 7 days.
• ~An overview of the spread of activity across busy Notebooks and contributors, helping you understand what’s working well and where there might be blocks.  
• ~A deeper look at the range of contributions your team is making, from creating and updating content to feedback and reviews

• Organize your Notebooks into unlimited projects, which represent major work streams or products in your organization.
• New users will see a brief onboarding experience when viewing Notebooks for the first time, to learn about how Notebooks work for design teams and their peers in engineering and product management.