Blog
The Blog feature allows authorized users to post text and images for the rest of the portal community to review.
Key Concepts of the Blog Feature
The Blog feature lets you and other authorized users post blog items. As shown below, the typical blog post might include a headline, body text, and optionally one or more images.
 |
By default, the feature instance displays the headline and the opening text of each post, and users must click through to read the entire item.
In general the information contained in each feature instance is specific to that instance—in the default and minimized views of the feature—though this feature also includes a “My Subscriptions” view. With this view, individuals can use any Blog feature instance to subscribe to posts from other feature instances, and they can read all relevant posts from within a single feature instance.
When adding a post to an instance of the Blog feature, the author of the post has several options.
The person posting the item can include (or exclude) their name under the item’s headline.
The author can mark a post as being of high priority.
Depending on the configuration of the feature instance, the author can select the roles that are allowed to see the post.
Depending on the configuration of the feature instance, the person posting the item can enable commenting for the post. When commenting is enabled, a DISCUSS link is added to the item. Users can click this link to leave a comment and review other people’s comments. Note, however, that the usability of this feature varies depending on whether an administrator has configured the feature instance to allow any roles to add comments.
When configuring the Blog feature, you as an administrator have several options:
You can enable a Blog feature instance to generate RSS feeds, as described in Enable or Disable RSS Feeds.
In any given feature instance, you can set default values for options available to authors when they post blog items, as described in Change the Default Settings for Authors.
You can specify the layout of the feature instance, as described in Modify the Layout of the Feature Instance.
You can specify the maximum number of items to display on the opening screen of the Blog feature instance, as described in Specify the Maximum Posts to Display.
As described in Managing Permissions for the Blog Feature, for each instance of the feature, you can allow roles to do any of the following:
Post blog items.
Administer the feature instance.
Comment on posts.
When configuring the Blog feature, you as the faculty member have several options:
You can enable a Blog feature instance to generate RSS feeds.
In any given feature instance, you can set default values for options available to authors when they post blog items.
You can specify the layout of the feature instance.
You can specify the maximum number of items to display on the opening screen of the Blog feature instance.
For each instance of the feature, you can allow roles to do any of the following:
Post blog items.
Administer the feature instance.
Comment on posts.
For any instance of the Blog feature, you can enable an RSS feed. With this functionality, people can use an RSS reader to view items posted in the feature instance. The RSS reader will display the 20 most recent items from the feature instance.
By default, the XML for RSS feeds sent by the Blog feature include a string in the header that says “Powered by Jenzabar.” This string is stored in the FWK_Globalization table with the Text_Key TXT_RSS_COPYRIGHT. If you want to customize this text, just change the Text_Key of this string.
Note that when you enable RSS feeds, the options available to authors change slightly. That is, normally an author could specify which roles can display their post. However, when RSS feeds are enabled, authors cannot restrict the availability of the items they post—all users with the ability to display the feature instance, including guests, can also display all posted items.
Log in to the portal as a member of the Administrators role or as someone with Can Admin privileges for the appropriate context. Navigate to the Blog feature instance that you want to configure.
Maximize the feature instance.
Click Setup.
The system displays the Setup screen.
As appropriate, select or deselect the Enable RSS checkbox.
Scroll to the bottom of the screen and click Save.
If you choose to enable RSS functionality, the system adds a subscription URL to the Subscribe area of the feature instance (which users can access by clicking the Subscribe link at the bottom of the feature instance). If you disable RSS functionality, the system removes this link.
When a user posts a blog item, that user has several choices. The author can specify the following:
Whether to enable commenting on the item (though the usefulness of this choice might be limited depending on whether an administrator has allowed any roles permission to post comments. For details see Allow Roles to Comment).
Whether to include their name under the item’s headline.
Which roles can view the post (but note that if RSS is enabled, this choice is not available).
When authors post items in the feature, certain defaults are set up for each of these choices. You as an administrator can dictate what these defaults are. Note that people posting blog items can change any of these choices for their posts.
To change the default settings for authors:
Log in to the portal as a member of the Administrators role or as someone with Can Admin privileges for the appropriate context. Then navigate to the Blog feature instance that you want to configure.
Maximize the feature instance.
Click the Setup link.
The system displays the Setup screen.
In the area of the screen labeled Default Values, make any of the following changes as appropriate:
To control whether commenting is enabled by default, select or deselect the Enable Comments checkbox.
To control whether the author’s byline is displayed by default, select or deselect the Include your name as the author checkbox.
In the Show To area, select any roles that should, by default, be allowed to display blog posts.
Scroll to the bottom of the screen and click Save.
By default, the Blog feature displays the headline for each post and the first part of the body text. However, this is configurable. You can choose from the following three layout options:
The default, called the Summary option, displays each item’s headline and the first 250 characters of the text. With this option, a maximum of five items are displayed on the initial view of the feature instance (before it is maximized). You can also specify that fewer posts will be shown, as described in Specify the Maximum Posts to Display.
With the Headline Only view, the feature instance list headlines but no body text. With this option, a maximum of 10 items are displayed on the initial view of the feature instance (before it is maximized). You can also specify that fewer posts will be shown, as described in Specify the Maximum Posts to Display.
The Full Item view displays the heading and full text of the newest posts in the instance. With this option, a maximum of two items are listed on the main page of the instance (before it is maximized). You can also specify that fewer posts will be shown, as described in Specify the Maximum Posts to Display.
To specify the layout of the feature instance:
Log in to the portal as a member of the Administrators role or as someone with Can Admin privileges for the appropriate context. Navigate to the Blog feature instance that you want to configure and maximize it.
Click the Setup link.
The system displays the Setup screen.
In the area of the screen labeled Main Screen, select the layout style you want to use.
Scroll to the bottom of the screen and click Save.
By default, the Blog feature instance is set up to show only the five most recent posts in the non-maximized view seen on the main page.
When the user maximizes the feature instance, the instance might show a greater number of posts than it did in the initial non-maximized view, but it still will probably not show all of them (depending on how many exist). Users can click the Older Items button (shown below) to display more posts.
 |
Using the Blog feature instance’s Setup screen, you can specify the exact number of posts that you want to display in the maximized view. This number can be between one and 100. The number of posts displayed in the default view of the feature will always be one of the following, whichever is smaller:
The default number determined by the layout style of the feature instance (described in Modify the Layout of the Feature Instance).
The number that you specify, using the Setup screen, for the maximized view.
So, for example, suppose you have chosen to display a maximum of four posts on the maximized view of the feature instance. If you are using the headline-only layout style for the feature instance (which dictates a maximum of 10 items for the initial view), the instance will bypass the default maximum and use your choice of four, because it is smaller. If you are using the full-item layout style, which dictates a maximum of two posts, the system will go with the default for that style.
To specify the maximum posts to display:
Log in to the portal as a member of the Administrators role or as someone with Can Admin privileges for the appropriate context. Navigate to the tab or subsection that contains the subsection you want to rename to the Blog feature instance and maximize it.
Click Setup.
The system displays the Setup screen.
In the area of the screen labeled Main Screen, locate the field labeled Number.
Enter the number of posts that you want to display on the maximized view of the feature. Bear in mind that the number you enter here can also limit the number of posts displayed in the initial view of the feature.
Scroll to the bottom of the screen and click Save.