Briefs

Briefs are polished documents for sharing your analysis. Unlike raw notebooks with exploratory code and dead ends, briefs show only what matters—connected to the work that produced it.

Creating Briefs

From the Briefs page:

1. Click New brief
2. Enter a title
3. Optionally link to a source notebook (enables artifact embedding)
4. Click Create brief

You'll land in the rich text editor.

The Editor

The brief editor is a block-based writing environment:

• Type anywhere to start writing
• Press / to open the command menu
• Use the floating toolbar for formatting

Block Types

Type / and choose from:

Formatting

Select text to see the bubble toolbar:

• Bold – Ctrl/Cmd + B
• Italic – Ctrl/Cmd + I
• Strikethrough
• Code – Inline code formatting
• Link – Add a URL

Drag and Reorder

Click the grip handle (⋮⋮) on the left of any block to:

• Drag it to a new position
• Access block actions (delete, duplicate, etc.)

Embedding Artifacts

When your brief is linked to a notebook, you can embed outputs directly.

Insert from Command Menu

1. Press / and select Artifact from Notebook
2. Choose a cell with outputs
3. Select the specific output (chart, table, image, or text)
4. The artifact appears in your brief

Insert from Toolbar

1. Click Insert Artifact in the top toolbar
2. Browse your notebook's outputs
3. Click to embed

Notebook Preview Slideover

For faster embedding:

1. Click Notebook Preview in the toolbar (or press Ctrl/Cmd + Shift + N)
2. A side panel shows your notebook
3. Click Insert on any output to add it

How Artifacts Work

Artifacts maintain a live connection to your notebook:

• Each artifact stores the cell ID and output ID
• Viewers see the output as it was when last saved
• Re-run your notebook and save to update artifacts

Saving

Briefs auto-save as you edit:

Press Ctrl/Cmd + S to force an immediate save.

Previewing

Click Preview to see your brief as readers will see it—without editing controls, in read-only mode.

Sharing

Briefs can be shared publicly:

1. Click the Share button
2. Toggle Public on
3. Set a URL slug (letters, numbers, hyphens)
4. Optionally add a public title and description
5. Copy the public link

Your brief is now live at:

marginfordata.com/@username/briefs/your-slug

What Viewers See

Public brief viewers see:

• ✅ Your narrative text
• ✅ Embedded charts, tables, and images
• ✅ Markdown formatting
• ❌ Your notebook code
• ❌ Your raw datasets
• ❌ Other notebooks or private work

Making Briefs Private

Toggle Public off in the share modal. The public URL stops working immediately.

Tips for Great Briefs

1. Lead with the insight – Put conclusions up front
2. Use headings – Break up long analyses into sections
3. Show, don't tell – Embed charts instead of describing them
4. Keep it focused – This isn't your exploratory notebook
5. Add context – Briefly explain what viewers are looking at

Next Steps

• Learn about sharing in depth
• Upload datasets for your analysis
• Master notebooks for better outputs