CommonSpot Introduction

1
CommonSpotIntroduction
2
In This Tutorial

• Content management
• Authoring at Colby
• Terms
• Interface
• Building blocks
• Editing your page
• Publishing your changes
• Creating a new page
• Managing pages

3
Content Management
4
Challenges and Solutions
LESS time, FEWER people to do MORE FASTER

• Information challenges include
• Currency
• Relevancy
• Complexity
• Maintenance
• Timeliness

• Information solutions must be
• Easy to learn
• Browser-based
• Based on templates and tools
• Consistent in look feel
• Use automation

5
So, Why CommonSpot?Enduser View

• Meets the Goal
• Increased flexibility and ease of use
• By providing
• Publish from Anywhere
• Browser-Based
• No need for client software, technical training
  or complex scripting
• Separate Design from Content
• Template-Driven
• Versatile, predefined page layout options
• Consistent look and feel while allowing
  customization of templates for departmental
  content
• Focus on Value not Quantity
• Quantity How a thing is displayed Value What
  is displayed
• Authors concentrate on value with over 50 data
  formatting elements lists, tables, images, etc.

6
Why CommonSpot?The Development View

• Meets the Goal
• More service and support with fewer people
• By providing
• Standards-based development
• Improved site compliance
• Direct support for publishing content to devices
  such as PDAs, phones, etc.
• Industry Standard publishing support
• WYSIWYG Editor
• Mac Support
• Context-Sensitive Help
• Content Reuse
• Quality Control
• Easy Upload of Rich Media
• Preview Mode 
• Collaborative Authoring

7
Authoring at Colby
8
Operational Requirements

• Pop-Ups
• CommonSpot uses pop-up windows for dialogs
• Pop-up blocking must be disabled
• Windows
• Tools gt Pop-up blocker gt Turn off
• Mac
• FireFox gt Preferences gt Content gt Block Popup
• Browsers
• Mac MUST be FireFox V1.5
• Windows MUST be Internet Explorer
• Credentials
• You MUST be logged in to access authoring

9
Setting Up Your Environment

• Launch your browser
• Log in
• Turn off pop-up blocking

10
Authoring System (1)

• www.colby.edu /
• Normal user view
• No access to authoring or publishing
• author.colby.edu /
• Authoring view
• Access to authoring and publishing functions

11
Setting Up Your Environment

• Type in the URL for your CommonSpot page
• Remember to go to the AUTHOR system

12
Terms
13
Commonly Used Terms

• Content well
• Area to the right of the left navigation bar
  where content is displayed
• Above the fold
• The part of the content well that can be seen by
  a user without scrolling
• Ghost text
• Grayed-out text on pages that direct the user to
  where content can be inserted or edited

14
Types of Content

• Pages
• All sites are made up of individual pages
• Each page is formatted to match the underlying
  template of the site
• Images
• Graphical form of content
• Images are part of page content and are also
  stored in the image gallery
• The image gallery is a central repository of
  image files
• Uploaded Files
• CommonSpot can also manage non html content
• Users can easily upload images, PDFs, PowerPoint
  presentations, video clips, Flash and other rich
  media directly to the Web site
• External Pages
• Those not created by CommonSpot

15
Interface
16
CommonSpot Page Layout
1.

1. Title BarThe text at top of browser window
2. Activation StatusWhen you want page published
3. BreadcrumbsYou are Here
4. TitleThe text at top of page
5. Table of ContentsLeft navigation list
6. Content WellInformation you want on the page
7. Above the FoldVisible without scrolling

2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
17
Icons

• Status Bar
• Activation button
• Activation interrupt
• Menu Icons
• Display menu
• Role menu
• Page menu
• Published Page
• No status bar

18
Icon Menus
You will usethese the most
Knowledge Maps
View Modes
Page and TemplateManagement
19
Knowledge Maps

• Used to manage pages
• See module Managing Your Site

Knowledge Maps
20
View Modes

• What you can do on a page
• Read
• Cannot change anything
• Used to test look and feel and link displays
• Author
• Where you will do most of your work
• Allows creation and deletion of elements
• Edit
• Allows only editing of existing elements
• Version History
• Displays previous versions of the page
• You can go back to another version if you need
  to

View Modes
21
Getting Into Author Mode

• Click on the View Modes icon
• Click on Author

22
Page and Template Management

• Page-Level authoring tasks
• Most commonly used
• Create New Page
• Creates a new page from current template
• Rename Page
• Changes the name of the page
• Delete Page
• Removes page
• My Pages
• Lists pages on site that you have created

Page and TemplateManagement
23
Viewing Your Pages

• Click on the Page and Template Management icon
• Click on My Pages
• Click on the icon in front of My Pages and My
  Uploaded Documents

24
Ghost Text

• CommonSpot provides directions and pointers on
  the page itself
• Grayed out text will tell you where to click to
  insert elements
• Called Ghost Text

25
Building Blocks
26
Elements

• Chunks of formatted information
• Template-driven
• Most common
• Text
• Titles
• Paragraphs
• Lists
• Images
• Pictures
• Charts, illustrations
• Hyperlinks
• Links to other pages or documents

27
The Elements Selection Form

• Scroll to the bottom of your page
• Click on Ghost Text to insert new element
• Click elements to open and close expanded lists
• Click Cancel

28
Editing Your Page
29
Publishing Your Changes
30
Creating a New Page
31
Creating a Page (1)

• Display the Role Menu
• Click on Author
• Display the Page Mgt. Menu
• Click on Create New Page

32
Creating a Page (2)

• Click Next to create the page directly under
  your home page

33
Creating a Page (3)

• Select Colby Generic Templates
• If your department has specific templates listed,
  select your departmental template listing

34
Creating a Page (4)

• All generic templates display
• Click on a template that best suites your needs
  for this page

35
Creating a Page (5)

• Name
• URL-appropriate
• Lowercase, no spaces
• Title
• Display name on page
• Click on orange arrow to populate remaining
  information
• Enter keywords for search
• Set confidentiality
• Optional
• Publication date
• Expiration
• Reminder
• Click Next

1.
2.
3.
4.
6.
5.
6.
7.
36
Creating a Page (6)

1. Leave this dialogas is
2. Click Finish

37
Creating a Page (7)

• Your new page is created
• Note the green status bar
• Uncheck Activate when published
• Add content

38
Managing Pages
39
Managing Pages (1)

• In the Page Mgt Menu
• Click on My Pages
• My Pages displays
• Pages
• Uploaded documents
• Action buttons

40
Managing Pages (2)

• Cancel
• Stops whatever action was underway
• Move
• Reopens the Create Page dialog
• You can only move pages to sites you have
  permission for
• Delete
• Deletes the selected page

41
Managing Pages (3)

• Click on My Pages to expand the list
• Click on a page to open it in a browser
  windowOR
• Click on the action iconsOR
• Click on an action button

42
Questions? Comments?Contact Mel
RegnellMel.Regnell_at_colby.eduext. 4217