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In this little post, I'd like to recommend that creators consider using LongText columns to display images via "img scr=" tags. To do so, you need to participate in the "Rich Text Formatting - in Preview Program":
https://www.googlecloudcommunity.com/gc/Announcements/Rich-Text-Formatting-in-Preview-Program/m-p/74...
Advantages of this method
- No need to add more image columns (allows one to add multiple images via a single LongText column).
- Images are now resized automatically to fit the width of the screen on the user's device. This is particularly good for portrait images (see example below). By contrast, an "image" column puts your portrait image in a vertically tiny box, which can make such images almost unusable.
- "img scr" tags can be embedded in "a href" tags (you can turn an image into a clickable link)
Disadvantages
- Images usually take some time to load. The user may be confronted with blank space while the image is loading. In regard to this point, traditional image columns are superior.
- Traditional image columns allow zooming which is not possible with images placed in LongText columns. If you want to be able to zoom, you need to add a link to open your image in the device's browser.
- Image columns make it much easier to add images. Obviously, you need to know a little (not much, but a little) HTML to add images to LongText columns but, even after you learn the HTML, there are more steps involved than using image columns.
- You need to have some sort of external server for your images. Anyone, however, can get around this with a service like OpenDrive. I have my own server but in some situations I find it quicker and easier to use this service. It also accommodates mp3s but I've found that mp3s files work better from my server.
Here's a screenshot from my phone to show how a fairly large (800 x 1192) portrait image displays in a LongText column on my phone.
