Share a Link to Your Timeline
To share a timeline, copy its URL. Timelines set to Secret URL, Password Protected, or Public can all be shared this way. Private timelines cannot, so change the timeline's visibility first if it is still private.
There are two ways to get it:
- Copy the URL from your browser's address bar.
- Click Share > Link and copy the link from there.
Either way, you'll get a URL like this one for a Secret URL timeline:
https://www.preceden.com/timelines/752569-example-timeline-with-secret-url/43dbc32502bb305d
The 16-character code at the end is what lets other people open a Secret URL timeline, so always share the link in full. Without the code, the link won't open for them. Password Protected and Public timelines have no code, so their links end with the timeline's name.
The number in the URL is required too. The timeline name is not: remove it and the link still works, as long as a Secret URL link keeps its code:
https://www.preceden.com/timelines/752569/43dbc32502bb305d
Renaming your timeline changes the "example-timeline-with-secret-url" part of the URL, but links you've already shared keep working because the number is what identifies your timeline.
What People Can Do With the Link
Anyone who opens the link can view the timeline, but they can't edit it. They can also download a copy: the PDF and Image buttons beside the timeline's name open the same PDF and image download options you get from Share in the editor. There is no option for them to download it as a spreadsheet.
Every layer starts out expanded for them, even ones you've collapsed, and hidden layers don't appear at all.
Small vs Large Screens
On screens narrower than 768 pixels, such as a phone held upright, the timeline isn't drawn. Instead, people see its name and description followed by a list of its events, grouped by layer. To see the timeline itself, they can open the link on a laptop, desktop or other wider screen.
On larger screens, your shared timeline is interactive: hovering over an event shows its details, just as it does in the editor:
