Sharing

Sharing lets you send a read-only view of part of your DeepGrooves library. Your collection is private by default. Nothing becomes public until you create a share link, image, or email from a specific scope.

Use sharing when you want to:

send a focused list to a friend,
publish a wishlist for gift ideas,
show a folder or Smart Collection,
make a visual image of records,
or review a collection slice in another browser without giving anyone account access.

Share dialog showing scope, preview, and share actions

What Viewers Can See

A share is read-only. Viewers can open the public page and see the records included in the share, but they cannot edit your data, change your collection, access Settings, or open private app controls.

Depending on the share type, viewers may see:

Shared data	What it means
Album title and artist	The basic record identity
Artwork	Cover art when available
Pressing details	Year, label, country, format, catalog number, or Discogs identity when included
Public notes or selected metadata	Details that help explain the shared list
Wishlist context	Wanted records only, when the scope is Wishlist
Smart Collection label	The saved view name or scope label

Avoid putting private information in fields you plan to share. Storage locations, notes, purchase details, and values should be reviewed carefully before sending a link.

Choose the Right Scope

The most important sharing decision is the scope. Scope controls which records appear.

Share scope picker showing collection, wishlist, folder, and smart collection choices

Common scopes include:

Scope	Use it for
Full Collection	A broad read-only view of owned records
Current filtered view	Sharing exactly what you are looking at after search, filter, sort, or grouping
Folder	Sending a hand-picked group such as "For sale" or "Listening party"
Wishlist	Showing records you want, without exposing owned-only collection records
Smart Collection	Publishing a rule-based view that updates from saved criteria
Favorites	Showing records you have marked as favorites

Before copying a link, check the preview and title. If the preview looks too broad, cancel and narrow the view first.

Create a Share Link

Open the collection view, wishlist, folder, or Smart Collection you want to share.
Open the share action.
Confirm the scope and name.
Create or refresh the link.
Copy the public link or open it in a new tab to review it.

Share dialog after a public link has been created

When you are testing locally, links opened from the app should use the same local browser origin and the /share/{slug} path. In production, links should use the live DeepGrooves web host.

Review the Public Page

Always review a share before sending it.

Public share page showing records without private app controls

Check that:

only the intended records appear,
the share title and scope make sense,
artwork loads or falls back cleanly,
no private editing controls are visible,
no owned-only records appear in a Wishlist share,
Smart Collection shares match the saved view,
and any item detail you open from the public page still stays inside the same shared scope.

If the public page is wrong, regenerate or remove the share and create a new one from the correct scope.

Regenerate or Replace a Link

Regenerating a share creates a new public link for the same sharing idea. Use it when:

you sent the wrong link,
the scope has changed,
you want to retire an older link,
or you are not sure who has access to the current link.

Share dialog showing regenerate link action

After regenerating, copy the new link and test it. If an older link remains available, treat it as a separate public page until the app clearly says it has been disabled.

Share Images

Share images are visual snapshots of a collection slice. They are useful for social posts, messages, printable checklists, or quick visual proof.

Generated share image preview with records and artwork

A good share image should:

show the expected records,
include readable titles or labels,
avoid broken artwork,
fit the selected format,
and clearly represent the selected scope.

If artwork is temporarily unavailable, generated share images should use a clean text tile for that record instead of a broken image icon. Very large share scopes may use a representative mosaic rather than every record cover so the image stays fast and reliable.

Email a Share

If email sharing is configured, DeepGrooves can send a link and visual share summary for you.

Email share dialog with recipient and message fields

Before sending:

confirm the recipient,
check the share scope,
review any message text,
and open the link yourself if the records are sensitive.

Share emails include the same public link and generated share image used by the app. Some email apps block images by default, so the email should always include a clear button or text link that opens the read-only share even when the preview image is hidden.

If email is not configured, the app should show a clear error or fallback so you can copy the link manually.

Share Analytics

Share analytics help you see whether a public share has been used. Analytics are shown per link, so open the ... menu for a share and choose Share analytics.

Analytics may include:

Metric	What it tells you
Views	Someone opened that public page
Copies	That link or share action was copied
Downloads	That share image or export was downloaded
Emails	Email activity was attempted or sent for that share

Treat analytics as helpful signals, not exact proof of who saw the share. Private browsing, blocked scripts, or network conditions can affect tracking.

Wishlist Sharing

Wishlist sharing is for wanted records. It should not expose owned-only collection records.

Wishlist share preview showing wanted records only

Use Wishlist sharing for:

birthday or holiday gift ideas,
wantlist swaps,
record-store hunting with a friend,
or publishing a clean list of records you are looking for.

If wishlist items have target prices, priority, or desired condition, review whether those details should be visible before sending.

Smart Collection Sharing

Smart Collection sharing sends a rule-based slice of your library.

Smart Collection public share labelled with the saved view scope

Smart Collection shares are helpful for:

high-value records,
recent additions,
records by genre or decade,
cleanup views,
favorite listening picks,
or wishlist items under a price threshold.

Because Smart Collections are rule-based, make sure the public share clearly labels what it represents. A viewer should not have to guess why those records are grouped together.

The public page, generated image, and item detail views should all use the same saved criteria. If a Smart Collection is named "High Value" or "Missing Runout," the public share should identify it as a Smart Collection rather than showing only the raw name.

Privacy Tips

Sharing is powerful because it is specific. Keep it that way.

Share the smallest useful scope.
Review public pages before sending.
Avoid private notes in shared fields.
Be thoughtful with storage locations and values.
Regenerate links when a link has gone to the wrong person.
Use Wishlist or Smart Collection shares instead of full collection shares when possible.

Troubleshooting

The link opens the wrong host while testing locally

When running on localhost, links created or opened from the app should use your current local origin. If a link points at production during local testing, refresh the app and create or copy the link again.

The public page shows too many records

You may have shared the full collection or an unfiltered scope. Return to the app, narrow the view, and create a new share from the intended scope.

A Wishlist share includes owned records

Confirm that the share was created from Wishlist scope, not Collection. Wishlist shares should show wanted records only.

A Smart Collection share does not match the Smart Collection

Open the Smart Collection in the app and confirm the saved criteria. Then create the share again from that selected Smart Collection.

Artwork looks broken

Temporary artwork fetch failures can happen, especially with remote images. Public share pages should retry slow or failed cover loads before falling back cleanly, and generated share images should use text tiles when artwork cannot be loaded quickly. If the same cover never appears, the record may need a different saved artwork image.

Email sharing fails

Copy the link manually and send it from your own email client. Then check Settings or configuration if email sharing should be available for your account. If the email sends but the image does not appear, the link should still work; many email clients hide remote images until the recipient allows them.