AssetNow NX User Guide

Content Management System

Revision 2, August 2005

Copyright © 1997-2005 Orbital Ltd.
Contents
4. AssetNow NX XHTML Editor 50
4.1. Toolbar 51
1. Introduction 3
4.2. Formatting Text 52
4.3. Bullets and Numbering 54
2. Sign-In 4
4.4. Images 55
4.5. Tables 64
3. AssetNow NX Tools 7 4.6. Hyperlinks 72
3.1. Start 9 4.7. Attachments 75
3.2. Content 11 4.8. Spellchecker 77
3.2.1. Content List 13 4.9. Custom Content 80
3.2.2. Editing a Category 16 4.10. Foreign Characters 81
3.2.3. Editing a Page 23 4.11. Abbreviations 82
3.3. Permissions 33 4.12. Widgets 84
3.3.1. Users 34 4.13. View Source 86
3.3.2. Groups 37 4.14. Screen Reader Preview 87
3.3.3. Roles 38
3.4. System 40
3.4.1. Modules 42 5. AssetNow NX Upload Applet 91
3.4.2. Codepad 43
3.4.3. Search 44
3.4.4. Logs 46
6. System Requirements 93
3.4.5. Links 46
3.4.6. Settings 47
3.4.7. Setup 48
3.4.8. Reset 48
3.5. Sign Out 49
3.6. Site 49
3.7. My Notes 49

2
 1. Introduction
Did you know?
AssetNow NX is a Content Management System used to publish and access information
on the Internet, intranets and extranets.
• W3C standards like XHTML future-proof
your content.
• You can drag and drop or copy and paste AssetNow NX is installed on a web server and formats and displays web pages to site
images and files from your desktop into the
AssetNow NX XHTML editor . visitors. Using web browser-based tools you create and manage site information, and
• The AssetNow NX XHTML editor perform administrative functions like user and group management.
automatically uploads images and files to
your server.
• You can preview content using your site AssetNow NX provides support for World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) standards
styles and templates even if the content is in including eXtensible Hyper-Text Markup Language (XHTML), Cascading Style Sheets
draft mode.
(CSS) and Web Accessibility Initiatives (WAI, Section 508, Common Look & Feel etc.).
• You can upload very large files (> 100MB)
using the AssetNow NX Upload Applet.
• The AssetNow NX Upload applet can scale Adopting web standards and standards-based designs for your website is easy with
(resize), and compress, jpg and png images
to preset dimensions to suit your site AssetNow NX because web standards are built in; you use them without any additional
templates. effort. The result is that you can build, publish, and maintain websites that really do
• AssetNow NX uses Unicode so information work better, cost less to maintain and serve, and reach more people and devices.
can be published in virtually any language
including Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and
right-to-left languages such as Hebrew and
Arabic. AssetNow NX is easy to use with practical tools focussed on getting the job done. No
more unnecessary features that just add frustration, clutter, complexity, and cost.

The AssetNow NX XHTML editor provides a familiar, easy-to-use solution for business,
non-technical, and technical authors to publish structured content which encapsulates
AssetNow lets you turn information and data into a
business Asset right Now. meaning by applying semantic markup.

An overview of AssetNow NX site and tool features please see Introduction to AssetNow
NX, available from our website.

3
1 2. Sign-In

1 Click the Sign In link. This will take you to the Sign in form.

AssetNow NX supports 4 levels of site access:

1. Public content is available to anyone with access to the web site.

2. Member content is displayed in summary format, comprising the content title,
teaser, and optional teaser image, until the member signs in, after which they
can access the entire content page.
3. Private content can only be seen and accessed after sign-in.
4. Tools access is available to users with AssetNow NX roles such as publishing,
approval and administration.

4
 1 Enter your username and password, optionally check the remember option.
Click the Sign in button.

2 If you have forgotten your username and/or password, enter your e-mail
address and click Send to have your sign-in details sent to you.

1
The remember option encrypts and stores your username and password on the
computer you are using. Only use this option when using your own computer. Never use
this option on a colleague’s computer, a shared computer, at a cyber café etc.

2
To delete the encrypted username and password from a computer use the web browsers
“delete cookies” option.

5
1 1 After signing-in click the Tools link to access the AssetNow NX tools.

If you do not have Tools access permissions your name will be displayed next to the
sign-out link.

Always sign-out when leaving your computer, especially if you have tools access.

AssetNow NX will maintain your sign-in indefinitely when you are accessing the tools. If
you are signed-in and accessing the site, or navigate from the tools to the site,
AssetNow NX will maintain your sign-in for 20 minutes. This means that if you do not
click a link or perform some site activity, such as refreshing a page, for a 20 minute
period, AssetNow NX assumes you have left your computer and not signed-out, and
terminates your sign-in. You will have to sign-in again when you return.

Tool options available to you depend on your role. AssetNow NX tools can be configured
to selectively enable options available to a user based on their role. This guide shows all
options as enabled for the Site Administrator role.

AssetNow NX is supplied with four predefined roles. Your Site Administrator can create
additional roles or customized the predefined roles to suit your requirements. The
predefined roles are:

1. Site Administrator, this role has global access permissions and can perform all
functions. Typically there is only 1 Site Administrator.
2. Group Administrator, this role has permissions to administer users within
specific groups. For a large site you may have a number of group
administrators.
3. Approver, this role approves content within assigned categories. You do not
have to have approvers if you do not require workflow.
4. Publisher, this role creates content. Publisher access can be restricted to
specific categories.

6
 1
3. AssetNow NX Tools

After clicking the tools link the AssetNow NX tools workspace is displayed. The
workspace comprises 3 panels:

1 Top panel displays the Main menu and is always available. The menu items
depend on the user’s role/s. The right side of the top panel displays status
information related to tool operations.
3
2 Left panel displays option specific to the tool selected from the main menu.

2 3 Right panel is the main workspace and displays tool specific options when
selecting options in the left tool menu panel.

After a user with tool access permissions has signed-in a “Tools” link is displayed.
Clicking this link takes the user to the AssetNow NX tools.

Main Menu

Start
This is the first screen displayed when you access the tools. Go back to this
screen at any time by clicking Start on the Main menu.

Content
Display the site Categories and Content tool. Select this option to manage the
site structure and content.

Permissions
Display the Users, Groups, and Roles administration tool. Select this option to
manage User accounts, and to assign users to groups and roles. This option is
normally only available to the Site Administrator and Group Administrators.
Typically Group Administrators do not have access to the roles related
functions.

System
Used to manage and configure tool and custom application modules, site
search management, log files and site configuration settings.

7
Sign Out
Click to sign-out and return to the site. Tool users should always sign out
when leaving their computer. AssetNow NX will maintain your session
indefinitely when accessing tools.

Site
Click to go to the site home page without signing-out. Return to tools by
clicking the tools link.

My Notes
Display your personal notes. Personal notes cannot be accessed by other users.
Click to display a list of your notes and to view, add, edit, or delete a note.
Notes may contain text and links only, images and files cannot be added to a
note. Use personal notes for to-do lists, reminders and snippets of information.

8
3.1 Start

Profile
The Profile option in the left panel allows the current user to manage their profile and
settings. Clicking the linked user name will display a pop-up form show the user profile
information.

Language
If the site is configured for multiple languages you can select your preferred
language for the tools user interface.

Notifications
Enable notifications to allow AssetNow NX to send automated notification e-mails.
Currently this option is used to send for approval notifications. This setting can be
used by custom applications.

Approval
If you have approval permissions and there are content items awaiting approval they will
be listed here. Items awaiting approval have a flashing blue icon. Click the title of an
item to review it. When reviewing an item additional options are available at the top of
the item:

1. Lock allows you to have exclusive access to the item. If you are unable to
complete your review, for example if you need to confirm some items, check
the lock option and click save. This will ensure other approvers with
permissions to approve the item cannot access it.
2. Approve will forward the item to the next step in the approval workflow. The
workflow steps are displayed below the options. If the current approval is the
last step in the workflow the item will be released and replace the active
revision.
3. Reject will move the item back to draft status and remove it from the approval
list.
4. Notes are used for collaboration. A note should be added if your reject an item
so the author knows what corrective action is required.

If you want a hard copy to markup print the item by clicking inside the main panel, then
right-clicking your mouse and select the print option.

9
Feeds
Tool users can keep themselves updated with approval and notes by using:
• A feed reader to subscribe to the feeds.
• A web browser that supports live bookmarks to book mark the feeds.
• A web browser to view the feed.
Feed readers and web browser that support live bookmarks update periodically so the
user does not have to take additional action to be notified. If you are using a web
browser to view the feeds you will have to refresh the page periodically to see the most
recent changes.

Both feeds require the user to login to review any items linked in the feed.

The Approval feed is updated whenever draft content is submitted for review and
approval.

The Notes feed is updated as new notes are added to categories and content.

Notes are used for collaboration and typically associated with categories and content by
clicking the Note icon available with the category/content item. A note associated with a
category or content item can be viewed by any other user with permissions to access the
item.

The Notes editor allows text and links. Images and files are not supported in the Notes
editor.

Users can also create personal notes using the Notes link in the tools main menu.
Personal notes are handy for to do lists, information snippets etc. and not accessible to
other users or linked to a category or content item.

Site Links
The site links provide quick navigation from the tools to any top level public categories
and any private categories the user is assigned to.

Views per Day

Clicking the Pages and Files links will display a chart of the average content usage.

Active Sessions
This is only available to the Site Administrator role. Active sessions shows the number of
clients (web browser or others) accessing the site.

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 3.2 Content

Click the Content option from the main menu to display the site tree. The site tree
consists of Categories. User permissions determine which categories a user may access.

1 The Site Administrator role has global permissions and can access any
category in the site tree.
1

2 Publishers and other roles can have permissions to access specific categories
in the site tree.

Search
Enter a single keyword or item ID number and press Enter, or click the search icon.
Any matching categories and content items within your permissions will be listed.
Search is the fastest way to find an item, especially in large sites.

Locked Content
Lists content items you have locked. If you are working exclusively on a content item
you should lock it to prevent of users from accessing and editing the item. By locking it
you will also be able to get to it quickly since it will be listed here.

Draft Content
Lists draft content items. Draft items are items that have not been submitted for
approval. Depending on how you installation is configured you may have a procedure
whereby only editors have permissions to create new content pages. An editor creates a
new page by adding a title, possibly some draft content, or a note outlining the content
requirement. The item is then available in draft mode for any authors/publishers, with
the appropriate category permissions to work on. The author/publisher selects a draft
2 item and locks it to ensure exclusive access.

Review Content
A review date is set for every content page when the page is created. The review date
advance can be set by the Site Administrator. The default setting is 6 months after the
page creation date. When the current date matches or is later than the review date the
page is added to the review list. This means the item should be reviewed and
appropriate action taken such as advancing the review date, archiving the item, or
deleting the item. The Site Administrator has additional review options to advance the
review date for all review items by 1 day, 7 days, or 30 days.

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Archive Content
As the amount of content grows you need to periodically archive older items. Typically
you will do this when reviewing items. Archived content will be found by the site search
and by bookmarked or links to the item. Archiving allows you to remove content from
being displayed within a category, yet still maintain the item. For example old news
items can be archived on a regular basis. Using content scheduling, discussed later, you
can have items archived automatically at a scheduled time.

Site Tree
The site tree shows all the site categories is a hierarchical structure. Each category is
represented by a folder. Folders are active or disabled based on your permissions.

A category folder can be opened to reveal subcategories by clicking the + icon next to
the folder, or double-clicking the folder.

To close a folder, click the – icon or double-click the folder.

Collapse (close all folders), expand (open all folders), and refresh (update tree
and folder status) the tree by clicking the respective icon available at the top right of the
tree. Refreshing the tree does not clear the main panel.

You can also click the main menu Content link to reload the content tool and refresh the
tree display. This will also clear the main panel.

Changes made in the main panel do not update the left panel and site tree. For example
if you change the status of a category, or add a new page to a category, the site tree is
not updated. This avoids potential confusion that can arise from the left and main
panels updating together, however, due to network speed and panel load time
differences, not displaying the changes simultaneously. This approach results in faster
performance since the left panel is only updated when required.

Clicking an enabled category folder lists the selected category and associated
subcategories and content.

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 3.2.1 Content List

The listing provides immediate access to perform common tasks, and shows detailed
status information.

Providing more information in the listing makes managing the site and content efficient
since you do not have access each item individually to assess its status or perform
common tasks. You can also perform tasks including creating new subcategories and
pages, preview, edit the body content of a page, move, edit, delete, and read/add notes.

Two of the most common content publishing functions are previewing and editing the
main content body of a page. If you permissions and the status of a content item allow,
1
you can perform both of these tasks directly from the listing display.

1 Click the Status icon to preview a category or content item.

2
2 Click the Title of a content item to edit the main body content.

Click the Add Category icon to add a new category inside the selected category. See
Editing a Category below for details.

Click the Add Page icon to add a new content page in the selected category. See
Editing a Page below for details.

Click to edit an item. This will display a tabbed form. You add/change options using
the form. The tabs and options available depend on your permissions.

Click to delete an item. You will be prompted to confirm that you wish to delete the
item. Content pages are placed in the Recycle Bin when deleted. Deleted pages can be
restores from the recycle bin.

The delete icon is disabled if a category contains content. Delete or move content out of
the category before you can delete the category. Deleted content must also be emptied
from the recycle bin. This ensures that you can restore content to a category if required.

A link icon replaces the delete icon if the item is referenced in a content page. This
prevents broken links. Mouse-over the icon to display the ID/s of the item/s containing
the link/s.

13
Virtual Pages
AssetNow NX allows you to display a page in multiple categories without having to
create a copy of the page in each category where you want it to appear. You do this be
creating virtual pages.

When you create a new page it is a Master page. You can create as many virtual pages as
required from a Master page. You cannot create a virtual page from a virtual page.

Virtual pages only have a few properties. You can select a different template from the
Master page to display a virtual. You can set a different display mode, and you can
adjust the list order of the virtual. Templates and display modes are discussed later.

Click this icon to add a virtual page. The icon is only available for Master pages.
Clicking the icon displays the selected master page title and the site tree in a pop-up
window. Expand the tree and click the destination category folder where you want to
place the virtual page. After selecting the destination category the main panel listing will
update to display the destination category. You can then adjust the listing order of the
virtual if required.

Mouse-over this icon to find out which category contains the Master page for the
virtual. Click the icon to go to the category containing the Master page.

Notes
Notes are used for collaboration and associated with categories and content.

Click the Note icon to view/add/edit/delete a note. Notes can be viewed by any
other user with permissions to access the item. Only the originator of a note, and the
Site Administrator, can edit or delete a note.

The Notes editor supports text and links. Images and files are not supported in the
Notes editor. The first sentence of a note is used as the note title. Always ensure that
the first sentence of a note is brief and to the point.

Notes can be monitored by subscribing to the Notes feed from the Start screen.

Users can also create personal notes using the My Notes link in the tools main menu.
Personal notes are handy for to do lists, information snippets etc. Personal notes are not
accessible to other users or linked to a category or content item.

14
Moving Categories and Content
As a site grows and business needs change you need to revise the site structure and
move categories and content. AssetNow NX allows you to move a category and all its
content, including any subcategories and content pages, to another location within the
site tree.

Click the Move icon to move a category, subcategory or content item. Clicking the
icon displays the selected item’s title and the site tree in a pop-up window. Expand the
tree and click the destination category folder where you wish to move the item to. Note
that you cannot move a category into itself or any of its subcategories. The screenshot
opposite shows we are moving the Examples category. Consequently the Examples
category and all its subcategories are not selectable destinations.

A content page it can be moved to any category except the category it is currently in.

Ordering Items
The order of an item determines its display position of the item relative to other items in
the same category. Items are displayed starting with the top item first and the bottom
item last.

Move the first item to the bottom of the list.

Move the item down one step.
Move the item up one step.
Move the last item to the top of the list.

You can also change the order of an item to a specific position in the list when editing
the item. This is the quickest way to position an item, thereafter you can use the list
icons shown above to adjust the order.

Locked Items
AssetNow NX performs automatic locking when you edit an item. You can also lock
items for exclusive access. Automatic locking ensures that users do not inadvertently
edit the same item and overwrite changes. The Site Administrator can release exclusive
locks.

Mouse-over the lock icon to see who is locking an item.

15
3.2.2 Editing a Category

Clicking the edit icon for a category from the content list displays a tabbed
form used to create and manage the category.

Categories are best managed by an individual or small team, who understand

website architecture, navigation, and usability issues. Allowing all publishers
to create and manage categories can lead to duplicated categories,
inconsistent and confusing naming, and result in a poor experience for site
visitors.

Click the preview icon to view the category using the site template and
styles. The preview option displays the category in the main panel. A No
Frames link replaces the tool link in the site display. Click the No Frames link
to switch from the tools to site display.

Content Tab

Name (Required)
Enter the name of the category. Since categories are used for
navigation the name should be short and unambiguous. Adhere to
established conventions.

Title
Title is added to the page metadata title and used by search engines
when indexing your site. The title is displayed by web browsers in the
active window title bar (top). If the Title is left empty the name is used.

Teaser
Teaser is a short and to the point description of the category and/or
the content in the category. Teaser text is optionally displayed based
on the template used by the category.

16
Description
Description is added to the page metadata description used by search
engines indexing your site.

Keywords
Keywords are added to the page metadata keywords used by search
engines indexing your site.

Options
The Options field is available to developers for customization and can
be used for additional metadata.

Redirect URL
Enter a valid URL including protocol, eg:http://www.google.com.
When the category is selected the visitor will be taken to the url.

17
Properties Tab

Status
Set the status of the category:
• Off – the category and all subcategories and content will not be
displayed and cannot be accessed.
• On – the category and all active subcategories and active content is
available for display/access. The category is subject to the On
date/time. If this is in the future the category will only be available
from that date/time.
• Schedule – the category is available for the period set by the Schedule
On and Schedule Off date/time values.
• Hide – same as On however the category is not shown in navigation
menus and the site map.
• Auto – same as On however the category is only displayed if it
contains active content.

On / Schedule On
The category will be activated from the set date and time.

Schedule Off
Only applies is Status is set to Schedule. The category will be
unavailable after the set date and time.

Display Mode
Available for customization. Normal is the default mode. Additional
modes can be added as required.

Order
Adjust the list order of the category relative to other categories within
the same parent category.

Template
Select the display template. Designers and developers can add
templates to suit your site design.

18
Language
If the site is configured to support multiple languages you can select
the language for the category. The language setting is used to set the
site interface text and the category language code can be used by
designers/developers. For example you could switch the site visual
design based on the category language.

Feed
Enable xml syndication feed for content in the category. This can be
used by designers/developers to control display of the feed link.

Search
Enable search indexing of content in the category. If the category is Off
it will be excluded from the search. Check the Update Search Index
option to add/remove the category content from the site search index.
Note: with Update Search Index option checked saving the category can
take longer than usual, especially if the category contains many
subcategories and pages.

Cache
Enable caching of the category page. Generally you will enable caching.
However if the template you are using contains dynamic elements that
need to update every time the category is accessed set caching to No.

19
Assets Tab

The category assets tab allows you to upload image assets and add custom
markup which can be used by designers/developer in category templates.

For example you could upload an image that could be inserted in the category
template and matched to the site theme.

Upload
Use either the Browse option, or one of the six upload applet buttons,
to select and upload a file.

The applet buttons launch a java applet in a pop-up window. The

applet allows uploading of very large files and multiple files
simultaneously. The numbered buttons apply a preset scaling and
compression filter to jpg and png images. The scale preset values can
be configured by your Site Administrator and are typically configured
to suit the site visual design requirements.

Assets
Any assets that have been uploaded will be listed here. You can select
an asset to delete it. If the asset is referenced in the Code section the
delete option will be grayed out to prevent inadvertent deletion of an
active asset.

Code
Designers/Developers can add custom markup here which is made
available in the category template. How this markup is used depends
on the template design. For example you could use this markup with
the home template to add a welcome message or other content that
changes in frequently.

20
Permissions Tab

The permissions tab is used to set site access permissions to content in the
category, and tool user permissions. The permissions available to a group
depend on the roles, if any, assigned to the group. Roles are used to provide
tool access. If no roles are assigned to any users in a group the only
permission option available to the group is Read.

If users with roles are assigned to a group then the other permission options
are available. Note that the functions enabled by these options depend on how
the Site Administrator has configured the content tool for each role.

Public
Yes means the category can be accessed by anyone visiting the site.
No means the category is private and a login is required to access the
category.

Inherit
Set to yes to inherit the permissions from the parent category. If you
set specific permissions inherit is set to No.

Groups
Click the box to display a pop-up window for setting group
permissions (see details below).

Users
Click the box to display a pop-up window for setting user permissions
(see details below). Only available if at least one group has a minimum
of read permissions.

Approval
Available if groups or users have been set with Approve permissions.
Use the Approval option to set the approval order. Approval order is
sequential from lowest to highest order value. If two approvers have
the same order value either of them may approve an item.

21
 Permission Values
Read permissions can be applied to any group or user accessing the
site. All other permissions apply to tool users only.

• Read
Group/User that may access category if it is set to private
(Public = No).
• Edit
Group/User can edit content pages. Enables edit icon.
• Add
Group/User can add new content pages. Enables add new
page icon.
• Delete
Group/User can delete pages. Enables delete icon.
• Restore
Group/User can restore a revision of a content page. This
means the user can enable previously approved revisions and
hence replace the current revision of a page.
• Approve
Group/User may approve content.
• Admin
Enable all other options including all category options; add
category, edit category, delete category, and content
management options including moving content and
adding virtual pages.

AssetNow NX permissions are very flexible and offer many configuration

alternatives. The choice typically depends on the size of your web content
team. For large teams you should consider creating workgroups by assigning
users to a group and then assigning each workgroup to a section of the site.
Other options include creating role specific groups; publishers, approvers etc.
Then assign users from these groups to sections of the site. You can also
create private categories exclusively for managing content, for example a draft
category for different sections of the site.

22
3.2.3 Editing a Page

Clicking the edit icon for a content page displays a tabbed form used to
create and manage the page.

The tabs available depend on your user permissions.

Click the preview icon to view the page using the site template and styles.
The preview option displays the page in the main panel. A No Frames link
replaces the tool link in the site display. Click the No Frames link to switch
from the tools to site display.

Make a copy of the page including all assets.

View notes added to the page. You can add notes and edit/delete notes
you have added.

Validate the page markup using an external service (optional).

Assess the page accessibility using an external service (optional).

Content Tab

Draft/Approved
Display Draft if the page has not been approved or Approved if the
page has been approved. Depending on your user permissions, if the
page has been approved, you have the option to create a new revision.

Lock
Click lock to retain exclusive access to a page for an extended period.
The page is locked automatically whenever it is edited.

23
Title
The title is displayed at the top of the page and also used for the page
metadata title used by search engines indexing your site.

Teaser
The teaser is a concise description of the page content. The teaser is
typically displayed with the title when pages are listed in a category.
An optional teaser image can be added via the Assets tab (see below).

Body
This is the main part of the page. Clicking the body will display a pop-
up window containing the AssetNow NX XHTML editor. The body
content can include text, links, images, file attachments, dynamic
content elements (widgets) and, for advanced users, scripting code.
The AssetNow XHTML Editor is covered in detail in section 4.

Description
Added to the page metadata and used by search engines indexing
your site.

Keywords
A comma-delimited list of keywords added to the page metadata and
used by search engines indexing your site.

Options
The Options field is available to developers for customization and can
be used for additional metadata.

Redirect URL
Enter a valid URL including protocol, e.g.: http://www.google.com.
When the page is selected the visitor will be taken to the url.

24
Properties Tab

Status
Status of the page:
• Off – the page will not be displayed and cannot be accessed.
• On – the page will be displayed. The page is subject to the On
date/time. If this is in the future the page will only be available from
that date/time.
• Schedule – the page is available for the period set by the Schedule On
and Schedule Off date/time values.
• Hide – same as On however the page is not shown in the category.
• Archive – the page is not shown in the category but is accessible by
url and site search if the category and page search option is enabled
(see below).

On / Schedule On
The page will be activated from the set date and time.

Schedule Off
Only applies is Status is set to Schedule. The page will be set to the Off
Action status (see below) after the set date and time.

Off Action
Action taken when a scheduled page expires on the Schedule Off
date/time. Note that a page set to be deleted on expiry is not placed in
the recycle bin; the page is deleted and cannot be recovered.

Display Mode
Available for customization. Normal is the default mode. Default
templates use Custom mode to display the body content in sidebars.
Additional modes can be added as required.

Order
Adjust the list order of the page relative to other pages in the category.

25
Template
Select the display template. Designers and developers can add
templates to suit your site design.

Execute CFML
Enable processing of scripting code in the page. Enabling this option
displays a [Code] link below the body content. Click the [Code] link to
launch a plain text editor (shown opposite).

Search
Enable search indexing of the page. If the category is Off, or the
category search set to No the page will be excluded from the search.
Check the Update Search Index option to add/remove the page from
the site search index. Note: with Update Search Index option checked
saving the page can take longer than usual.

Cache
Enable caching of the page. Generally you will enable caching. However
if the page contains dynamic elements that need to update every time
the page is accessed set caching to No.

Review Date
The review date is set automatically when you create a new page. The
default is 6 months ahead of the page creation date. The default
advance value may be changed by your Site Administrator. When the
review date arrives the page will be added to the Review list. Pages in
the review list should be checked to confirm that they should be
retained as active content, if so the review date is advanced manually.
Alternatively the page can be archived or deleted as appropriate.
Change the review date to advance reviewing.

26
Assets Tab

Assets refer to items used in addition to text to create a page, these include
images, files and links. The AssetNow NX XHTML Editor allows you to
drag/drop and copy/past assets directly into the page body. The Assets tab
lists all the page assets and provides a convenient interface to review and
manage page assets. The Assets tab also provides alternative ways to upload
images and files, and is the only way to delete assets files from the site server.

AssetNow NX stores assets for every page revision separately. This ensures
that there are no dependencies across revisions and you can roll-back or
delete a revision without affecting other revisions. To conserve server
disc/storage space AssetNow NX deletes all unused assets when a page is
approved.

Upload Image
Use the “Browse” button to select a image and upload it using your
web browser. You can upload a number of images at once by placing
them in a ZIP archive file. The ZIP file will be unzipped by AssetNow
NX. Click the Click the (?) tip to see allowed file types as set by the Site
Administrator.

Alternatively you can use the java upload applet to upload images and
scale (resize) and compress jpg and png format images.

Click the upload applet icon to launch the AssetNow NX java

upload applet. Select or drag/drop a file or multiple files into the
applet. The applet will upload the files and provides a true progress
bar indicator.

The AssetNow NX upload applet processes files on your machine. It

requires the Sun Java Virtual Machine. The Sun JVM must be installed
on your local computer to use the applet. The applet may take a short
time to load initially.

27
The upload applet does support the teaser checkbox or zip file
options. You can set an uploaded image to be the teaser image after
uploading via the applet.

Click any of the scaling upload applet buttons to launch

the AssetNow NX java upload applet with one of 5 scaling presets.

Scaling is only available for jpg and png images. The scaling values
can be set by your Site Administrator. Typically the scaling presets are
configured to suit the site template size requirements allowing
publishers to upload digital camera images and have them resized
and compressed to fit the site templates size requirements.

Teaser
Check this option to set the image you are uploading to be the page
teaser image. This option is only used by the Browse upload method.
You can set any image to be the teaser from the Images list. A teaser
image is a small image displayed with the page title (see opposite)
and teaser text when listing pages in the site category.

Images
Lists all assets uploaded to the page images directory. Set the teaser
image and delete any images that are not active in the page body. If
an asset is referenced in the page body the delete checkbox for the
item is disabled. Click the icon next to an image to preview the image.

Upload File
Use the “Browse” button to select a file and upload it using your web
browser. Click the Master checkbox if you wish to set the file you are
uploading to be the page master file. Click the (?) tip to see allowed
file types as set by the Site Administrator.

Master
Check this option to set the file you are uploading to be the page
master file. This option is only used by the Browse upload method.

28
You can set any file to be the master from the Files list. A link to the
master file is displayed with the page title making it easy to create
lists of files in a category (see screenshot on previous page).

Click the upload applet icon to launch the AssetNow NX java

upload applet. Select or drag/drop a file or multiple files into the
applet. The applet will upload the files and provides a true progress
bar indicator. With a suitable network connection the applet can
reliably transfer very large files (>100MB) to the server. Trying to
upload large files using the Browse option is not reliable since the
browser upload technology is not designed to transfer very large files.

Files
Lists all assets uploaded to the page files directory. Set the master file
and delete any files that are not active in the page body. If an asset is
referenced in the page body the delete checkbox for the item is
disabled. Click the icon next to a file to preview the file, right-click
and select download to download the file.

Links
Lists all links referenced in the page body together with the element
that is linked, text or image. Mouse-over the Type to see the link
markup, this is useful for checking linked images. Click the link to
verify the destination.

29
Approval Tab

For a page to be active and available on the site it must be approved. Even if
the page status is set to On, if it is not approved, it will not be available on the
site.

The approval process is determined by the permission settings of the category

containing the page, and the permissions of the user editing the page.

Category and user permissions can allow immediate approval of the page. In
this case the user editing the page can change the page from Draft to
Approved themselves.

It an approval workflow has been set, and if the user editing the page does not
have approval permissions, the page must be sent for Review by selecting the
Review option. The approval workflow is shown below the Review option.

Once the page has been submitted for review it can only be changed if it is
withdrawn by changing the Approval status back to Draft.

If there is a version of a page under Review and new revision cannot be

created. The current revision must be approved before a new revision can be
created.

Always use the page Notes to provide information relating to approval

workflow actions. For example if you wish to draw reviewers attention to
specific items in the page or if actions are taken during workflow you should
use the page Notes as your preferred collaboration method.

30
Revisions Tab

The Revisions tab shows all revisions of the page and, if enabled, access to the
page Change Log.

You can roll-back/roll-forward to a specific revision by setting the Active

revision. There can only be one active revision at any time.

Revisions
Click the preview icon to review any revision. Click the delete
icon to delete a revision.

Change Log
Click the Change Log icon to display a pop-up window listing edit
actions. The change log can be downloaded or deleted from the pop-
up window. The change log contains details of save actions. It does
not track specific edit changes.

31
Permissions Tab

AssetNow NX allows you to set page specific permissions. Page permissions

are a subset of the permissions set for the category containing the page. Page
permissions can only be set on Master pages and not Virtual pages.

Permission Values
Read permissions can be applied to any group or user accessing the
site. All other permissions apply to tool users only.

• Read
Group/User that may access the page if the category
containing the page is private. If the category is public,
setting a group for read permissions will make the page
member content. The title/teaser of a Member page is
available to all visitors; however a login is required to access
the complete page.
• Edit
Group/User can edit the page. Enables edit icon.
• Add
No applicable.
• Delete
Group/User can the page. Enables delete icon.
• Restore
Group/User can restore a revision of the page. This means the
user can enable previously approved revisions and hence
replace the current revision of a page.
• Approve
Group/User may approve the page.
• Admin
Enable all options for the page.

Assigning permissions to many pages can become complex to manage.

Always consider using category permissions if there are a number of pages
with the same permission requirements.

32
3.3 Permissions

Click the Permissions option from the main menu to display the Users, Groups and Roles
tool.

Users are sign-in accounts and typically assigned to an individual.

Groups are containers for Users and make it easier to manage a number of users with
common permissions and within a business unit. Without Groups you would have to
manage each user individually. AssetNow NX requires that all users belong to at least
one group. If a user is not assigned to a group the user account cannot be activated.

Roles are used to assign AssetNow NX tools to users. Custom roles can be used for your
own custom application requirements.

The Site Administrator has access to all functions in the Permissions tool. Group
Administrators have access to the Users and Group functions only. Additionally the
Users and Groups they can manage are restricted to those the Group Administrator
belongs to. Sites with large numbers of users can have multiple Group Administrators
with permissions to manage specific users groups.

Search
Enter a single keyword or item ID number and press Enter, or click the search icon.
Any matching users (first name, last name, company), groups and roles will be listed.

Users
Click the Users icon to list all users. Click a folder below the Users icon to list users with
a specific status.

Groups
Click the Groups folder to manage user groups. Click a users icon below the Groups
folder to list the users belonging to a specific group.

Roles
Click the Roles folder to manage roles. Click a users icon below the Roles folder to list
the users assigned to a specific role.

33
3.3.1 Users

Click the add icon to create a new user account.

Clicking the edit icon to display the tabbed form used to create and
manage a user account.

Properties Tab

Courtesy Title
Select the courtesy title for the user.

First Name
Enter the first name or initial of the user.

Last Name
Enter the last name (surname) of the user.

Email Address
E-mail address of the user. This is the e-mail address a user must
enter to recover their sign-in details.

Username
Username used when signing in. Most organizations adopt a
convention for assigning username such as combinations of the user’s
first and last name, the user’s e-mail address etc.

Password
Password used when signing in. AssetNow NX will generate a unique
password using a mask set by the Site Administrator. You can change
the generated password if required.

34
Language
Sets the tools interface language for tools users. Available for
developers, for example to send e-mails in a user’s preferred
language.

Status
Status of the user:
• Off – the user cannot sign-in.
• On – the user can sign-in.
• Schedule – the user account is active for the period set by the
Schedule On and Schedule Off date/time values.
• Cycle – Not used at present.
• Delete – The account is set to delete status and remove any group
and role assignments. AssetNow NX never deletes a user account
entirely. This prevents data integrity violations. The Site
Administrator can recover deleted accounts if required.

On / Schedule On
The user account will be activated from the set date and time.

Schedule Off
Only applies is Status is set to Schedule. The user account will be
deactivated after the set date and time.

Notifications
Enables sending of e-mail notifications, currently only used by
workflow notification e-mails. This setting is available for developers
for applications such as newsletters and feeds.

35
Details Tab

Enter general user details including Company, Job Title, Phone number, Mobile
phone number, Fax number, and Address.

The default country can be set by the Site Administrator.

Permissions Tab

Groups
A user must be assigned to at least one group to be activated. Check
the group/s to assign a user.

Roles
Roles are used to set tool access and determine which tools and tool
functions are available to a user. Typically a user will only be assigned
to a single role.

36
3.3.2 Groups

Click the add icon to create a new user group.

Clicking the edit icon to display the form used to create and manage
groups.

Group
Enter the name of the Group. Groups usually relate to a business
relationship (member, associate, partner etc.) or organizational unit
(sales, accounts, human resources etc.).

Description
Enter a description of the group. This is helpful for other users who
need to manage groups or administer the site.

Status
Status of the group:
• Off – the group and all users assigned exclusively to the group
cannot sign-in.
• On – the group is active and all users assigned to the group can
sign-in.
• Schedule – the group is active for the period set by the Schedule
On and Schedule Off date/time values.

On / Schedule On
The group will be activated from the set date and time.

Schedule Off
Only applies is Status is set to Schedule. The group will be deactivated
after the set date and time.

37
3.3.3 Roles

Click the add icon to create a new role.

Clicking the edit icon to display the tabbed form used to create and
manage roles.

Properties Tab

Role
Enter the name of the role. Roles usually relate to a content
management function (Site Administrator, Group administrator,
Approver, Publisher etc.). Custom roles could relate to business
functions.

Description
Enter a description of the role. This is helpful for other users who
need to manage roles or administer the site.

Status
Status of the role:
• Off – the role and all users assigned exclusively to the role cannot
access functions assigned to the role.
• On – the group is active and all users assigned to the group can
access functions assigned to the role.
• Schedule – the role is active for the period set by the Schedule On
and Schedule Off date/time values.

On / Schedule On
The role will be activated from the set date and time.

Schedule Off
Only applies is Status is set to Schedule. The role will be deactivated
after the set date and time.

38
Modules Tab

Modules provide specific application functions. The default AssetNow NX

modules are used to provide the AssetNow NX tools. Each of these tool
modules is represented by a link in the main tools menu.

AssetNow NX supports multiple instances of a module. Each instance can have

a different set of options, allowing you make specific tool options available to
specific roles. Modules are discussed in section 3.4.

Modules
Check the module/s you wish to assign to the role.

39
3.4 System

Click the System option from the main menu to display the systems tool. The
system tool contains a number of individual tools.

The system tools are for advanced users only and typically only accessed by
the Site Administrator. Setting system configuration parameters and modules
incorrectly can disable the site or your ability to access the site tools.

Modules
Modules are configurable components accessed via the AssetNow NX
application framework. All the tools are AssetNow NX modules and
configurable via the modules tool.

Developers can add custom modules to AssetNow NX and use the AssetNow
NX users, groups and roles permissions framework.

Codepad
The Codepad is used to test ColdFusion scripts and interact directly with
AssetNow NX and subsystems.

Search
The Search tool is used to create and manage the Verity search indexes
(collections). The tool will list collections for each language that AssetNow NX
has been configured for. Search indexing can also be scheduled via the search
tool.

Logs
AssetNow NX maintains log files of various events including search criteria,
sign-ins, scheduled events, reverse-look ups, in-bound and out-bound links
and any processing exceptions.

40
Settings
The Settings tool provides detailed listings of all AssetNow NX settings, server
disk space usage, session activity, site tree status and server variables,
including operating system, web server information and ColdFusion server
information.

Setup
The Setup tool allows changing of global AssetNow NX settings including
general site e-mail addresses, caching, white space management, languages
etc. These settings as stored in the AssetNow NX xml configuration file.

Reset
The Reset resets all AssetNow settings and effectively perform a soft restart,
as opposed to hard restart (restarting the server), of AssetNow NX. You can
chose to reset the site (AssetNow), clear the AssetNow cache, and reset the
average view count.

41
3.4.1 Modules

Modules are an advanced topic and we only cover general module settings
here. For detailed information see the AssetNow NX Developers Guide.

Modules are applications, for example each of the AssetNow NX tools is a

module. Developers create modules, by registering the module you can use
features of the AssetNow NX framework in your module. These include user,
group, and role based permissions, support for instances of the modules with
different settings, and controlling enabling of the module and any instances.

When you click the Modules folder AssetNow NX scans the AssetNow
applications directory and finds all application modules with a valid
configuration file. Any new modules that have been uploaded with a
configuration file are registered. You can update the registered module details
from the module listing, any changes are saved in the module configuration
file.

After module is registered an instance folder will appear below the Modules
folder in the left panel. To use a module you must create at least one instance
of the module. Clicking the instance folder for the module will list all
instances.

Click the new instance icon to create an instance. When creating the
instance you can enable/disable and of the module options you specified
when registering the module. You can also assign the module to roles as
required.

42
3.4.2 Codepad

The Codepad is for advanced users and typically restricted to the Site
Administrator. For detailed information see the AssetNow NX Developers
Guide.

The Codepad is used to test and process ad hoc scripts. Since the Codepad
runs inside AssetNow NX you can access and use AssetNow NX parameters,
configuration settings, and functions in test code.

43
3.4.3 Search

AssetNow NX has an integrated site search. The search uses the powerful
Verity Search technology available in ColdFusion MX. Clicking the Search item
in the left panel displays a list of Search Collections. Collections are the
indexes used by the Verity technology.

AssetNow NX uses a separate collection for each language. If your site is

configured for multiple languages additional collections will be shown in the
list.

Click the edit icon to manage the collection.

Click the delete icon to delete a collection.

Clicking the edit icon displays a tabbed form used to manage the collection.

Properties Tab

Create
The first time you access a collection you need to create the collection
index. Check the create option followed by Save or Done. Depending
on the amount of content in your site this process may take some
minutes.

Optimize
Use this option is search appears slow to optimize the collection.

Repair
If you have a very large site and the search fails, use the repair option.
If this fails delete and recreate the collection.

Refresh
Add new and updated content to the search collection. This should be
performed periodically, whenever you want new content to be
searchable, or scheduled to be performed at off-peak times.
44
 Purge
Remove any content that is not longer valid from the collection.

Schedule Tab

Schedule
Yes to enable the schedule event to automatically refresh the
collection.

Start
Set the start date/time for the scheduled event.

Repeat
Select the number times you want the event to repeat.

45
3.4.4 Logs

AssetNow NX logs numerous items including search keywords (criteria)

entered by visitors, user sign-in activity, in-bound and out-bound links, and
processing exceptions.

Log file data is stored in comma separated value (CSV) format allowing
downloaded files to be processed using a spreadsheet.

Click the download icon to view the log file, right-click the icon to download
the file.

Click the delete icon to delete a log file.

3.4.5 Links

Displays a paged list of all links contained in pages. This administrative tool is
used to check links and identify bad or inappropriate links.

46
3.4.6 Settings

Displays detailed AssetNow NX configuration and server parameters including

disc space usage and site tree size and content volume.

47
3.4.7 Setup

For detailed information about the setup parameters see the AssetNow NX
Installation Guide.

Setup displays a form used to update the AssetNow NX site configuration file.
You can also set options for caching and white space management.

3.4.8 Reset

Clicking the Reset item will display a number of reset options. Select the
option/s required and click Save.

Reset Site will display a confirmation dialog. Select OK to reset the site and
clear the cache. Resetting reloads all AssetNow NX configuration parameters.
It does not affect site users.

Clear Cache will delete all cached templates.

Reset Views will reset the average view count. It does not reset revision and
other counts.

To reset all counters to zero you must enable the reset_counters option for
the systems tool and then select the option under Reset. Typically you will
only do this when you first launch the site so as not to delete historic data.

48
3.5 Sign Out

Click the Sign Out menu option to sign out of the tools and taken to the site
home page. To access the Tools you will have to sign in again.

3.6 Site

Click the Site menu option to go to the site without signing out. Once at the
site you can click the Tools link to return to the tools.

3.7 My Notes

Users can also create personal notes using the My Notes link in main menu.
Personal notes are handy for to do lists, information snippets etc. and not
accessible to other users or linked to a category or content item.

49
4. AssetNow NX XHTML Editor

The AssetNow NX XHTML editor is a standards-compliant editor that is

installed automatically in popular web browsers. The editor generates XHTML
Strict or 1.1 markup and uses CSS for formatting. This ensures clean
separation of content from presentation. The markup generated by the editor
meets the most demanding accessibility requirements.

The editor toolbar is customizable and buttons can shown or hidden based on
user permissions and AssetNow NX editor configuration settings. You can
have different configurations for different users.

The editor provides context-sensitive pop-up menus. These menus are

accessed by right mouse clicks. For example the context menu available when
editing a table allows you to add/delete row and columns and set properties.

Why XHTML Strict / 1.1 is important

AssetNow NX XHTML Editor's most important role is to ensure that non-
technical users active in free-form editing areas always generate clean XHTML
Strict or 1.1. Only XHTML Strict and 1.1 guarantee the complete separation of
data from formatting. This makes them the clear choice for developers
whenever availability of data is an important factor. The separation of data
from formatting is achieved by using Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) for styling
content.

Limitations of HTML 4 editors running code clean-up routines

Most other editors present the standard "Edit Mode" found in Internet Explorer
with some type of wrapper built around it. These editors generate HTML 4 and
then run clean-up routines on the code that they create. At best, the outcome
is XHTML 1.0 Transitional (not Strict). XHTML 1.0 Transitional includes
significant negative characteristics inherited from HTML 4. In particular,
XHTML 1.0 Transitional permits the fusing together of data and formatting
that makes parsing and re-purposing content difficult. By contrast, AssetNow
NX XHTML Editor is designed to directly produce clean, accessible XHTML
Strict or 1.1, without the use of code clean-up routines.

50
4.1 Toolbar

The toolbar featured in this guide is the standard AssetNow NX Toolbar. If the
editor has been customized for your system, the selection and the appearance
of buttons on your toolbar might differ from those seen in the screenshots.

The editor's standard toolbar is contains a drop-down Styles Menu, Editor

buttons for lists, alignment, tables, and assets, View modes including markup,
browser preview, and screen reader preview, spell checker and common edit
operations including cut, copy, paste and undo.

Styles Menu
The drop-down Styles Menu, seen extended opposite, is used to format
content in the editor. For consistency of presentation, styles available in the
drop-down menu are typically pre-set by your Site Administrator to offer
formatting choices specific to the site document requirements. For speed, a
single style can apply sophisticated formatting combinations such as font type,
style, color and size. For added convenience, styles can also be grouped under
headings. When a style is selected, it displays a check mark.

View Source
Displays a code view of the editor's output and is intended for technical users
who know how to write XHTML by hand and need to enter markup directly. If
markup entered through View Source is not standards-compliant, the editor
will attempt to correct it, or allow the user to fix the markup manually.

Browser Preview
Shows how a Web browser will display content managed through the editor. In
this view, toolbar buttons are not active and you are not able to edit content.

Screen Reader Preview

Displays content as a screen reader would process it. In this view, toolbar
buttons are not active and you are not able to edit content.

51
4.2 Formatting Text

Formatting text using the Styles Menu

• The Styles Menu is a drop-down menu of formatting options, found

on the left side of the toolbar. In the screenshot opposite the Styles
Menu is extended and displays check marks next to active styles.
• For best results, your Site Administrator will typically pre-set the
Styles Menu to offer formatting choices specific to the site document
requirements.
• A single style can be used to apply sophisticated formatting
combinations such as font type, style, color and size.
• Styles can also be grouped under headings and given intuitive style
names such as "Promo Price", or "Memo Header".
• These factors create a confident, comfortable authoring environment
that supports the consistent use of presentation standards and
policies, and speeds the authoring process.

Why the Styles Menu has replaced font and color pickers

Font and color pickers are used to construct formatting one brick at a time,
combining font type, style, size and color until the desired effect is achieved.
This approach poses significant problems:

• Building styles piecemeal is time-consuming.

• Relying on individual authors to visually approximate formatting
styles leads to errors that undermine presentation standards.
• Updating the appearance of older content becomes extremely difficult
when presentation styles change.
• Font and color pickers offer no semantic capabilities. That is, they can
only stipulate how content will appear and offer no way of attaching
additional meaning to content.

52
By contrast, the technology used by editor's Styles Menu; Cascading Style
Sheets (CSS) and eXtensible Hyper Text Markup Language (XHTML):

• make applying accurate formatting quick and easy

• make updating presentation styles a snap
• allow authors to attach unlimited semantic meaning to content
• generate markup that meets the most demanding accessibility
requirements

Apply formatting (Styles)

1. In Edit mode, select content to be styled.

2. In the Styles menu, click one or more styles to apply the desired
formatting. Active styles display check marks.

Edit or Remove a style

1. In Edit mode, select styled content.

2. In the Styles Menu, uncheck any style(s) you want to remove.
3. To remove all styles, select "None".

53
4.3 Bullets and Numbering

Add bullets or numbering

1. Select content to which you want to add bullets or numbering.

2. On the toolbar, click for numbering, or for bullets. Active
buttons appear depressed.

Remove bullets or numbering

1. Select content from which you want to remove bullets or numbering.

2. On the toolbar, click to remove bullets or to remove numbering.

Indent bullets or numbering

1. Place the cursor in the bulleted or numbered line you want to indent,
or select several lines.
2. Press Tab.

Or:

1. Right-click on the line(s) you want to indent.

2. Under "List", select "Move Right".

Remove indents from bullets or numbering

1. Place the cursor in the line from which you want to remove the indent.
2. Press Shift + Tab.

Or:

1. Right-click on the line the line from which you want to remove the
indent.
2. Under "List", select "Move Left".

54
4.4 Images

Images and Accessibility

• The desire to make information universally accessible has generated

standards and best practices that are actively enforced in the editor.
• For images, this includes entering Alternate Text, Descriptions and
Long Descriptions that are used by assistive technologies such as
screen readers.
• Though sometimes confused, the distinction between Alternate Text
and Descriptions is simple: If the browser is not able to display an
image, the text that appears is Alternate Text, such as "Junk food"
seen opposite.
• If the browser is able to display the image, text that appears in the
tooltip when the cursor passes over the image, is the image's
Description.

When is Alternate Text required?

• Alternate Text is not required for Decorative Images. Decorative

images include designs and shapes used for aesthetic purposes only.
• Alternate Text are however required for non-decorative images, which
typically includes most images. Examples of non-decorative images
are drawings, photographs, charts, etc.

To ensure that Alternate Text is entered when required, the editor:

1. Asks the author to confirm if the uploaded image is a Decorative

Image or not.
2. If the image is not decorative, the editor requires authors to enter an
Alternate Text for the image before it can be saved.
3. Alternate Text is entered through the Image Properties dialog box
shown opposite.

55
When are Descriptions required?

• Descriptions are optional for all images, but can be very useful to
assistive technologies.
• Descriptions are entered through the Image Properties dialog box
seen below.

Writing Alternate Text and Descriptions

• Think of Alternate Text as "what an image means".

• Think of Descriptions as "what an image is".
• The distinction between Alternate Text and Descriptions is illustrated
by the following image:

Alternate Text = Stress

(What the image means)

Description = Man under stress holding his

head in his hands
(What the image is of)

Long Descriptions

• Long Descriptions are URLs that lead to Web pages that contain
lengthy information about an image.
• They are optional for all images, but are particularly useful to assistive
technologies.
• Long Description URLs are entered through the Image Properties
dialog box seen below.

56
Image Properties

• To open the Image Properties dialog box, double-click on the image,

or right-click on the image and choose "Properties".

Decorative Image / Alternate Text

• Under "Decorative Image", indicate if the image is decorative or not.

• If the response is "No", enter an Alternate Text for the image.

Description

• Under "Description", enter a Description of the image (optional).

Image URL

• The "Image URL" field automatically displays the file name of the
uploaded image.
• To browse for alternative images, click the box to the right of the
Image URL field.

Width and Height

• The "Width" and "Height" fields display the dimensions of the image
currently selected.
• Resize images by modifying Width and Height, in pixels, or as a
percentage of the width of the page.

Constrain Proportions

• Under "Constrain Proportions", select "Yes" to avoid distorting images

when they are resized.
• Constraining proportions causes the "Width" field to adjust
proportionately to the "Height" field (and vice versa) when either field
is modified.

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Long Description URL

• Enter a "Long Description URL" (optional).

• Long Descriptions are URLs that lead to Web pages that contain
lengthy information about an image.
• They are optional for all images, but are particularly useful to assistive
technologies.

Align

• Under "Align", choose "Left" or "Right" to align an image to the right or

left of an object, or text.
• "Left" align floats the image to the left, wrapping text to the right, and
vice versa.
• A blank selection left-aligns the image, but does not wrap text around
the image.

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Insert an image

Images can be uploaded into the editor in 6 ways:

• Drag images into the editor

• Browse and select images from libraries
• Enter a direct URL for an image
• Copy then paste an image from the file system
• Copy then paste images from other applications such as Photoshop
• Use "Print Screen" to capture images from your monitor.

Drag images into the editor

1. In Edit mode, select an image from the desktop.

2. Drag the image into the editor, at the position you want the image to
appear.
3. If the file name of the image you are uploading already exists, in the
"Filename already exists" dialog box, replace the existing file with the
new file, or rename the new file.

Browse and select images from libraries

1. In Edit mode, place the cursor at the point where you want the image
to appear.
2. On the toolbar, click Image to open the "Select An Image" dialog
box seen opposite.
3. Browse available image sources. Your Site Administrator determines
which image sources are available to you.
4. As seen in the screenshot opposite, when an image is selected, the
"URL" field displays the location of the image.
5. The size of the file, the image's dimensions and the date the image
file was last modified are displayed in the center.
6. A preview thumbnail of the selected image appears to the right.

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Enter a direct URL for an image

1. In Edit mode, place the cursor where you want the image to appear.
2. On the toolbar, click Image to open the "Select An Image" dialog
box.
3. Under "URL", enter the URL of the image to be inserted.
4. Click "Display" to see a preview thumbnail of the image. If no
thumbnail appears, the URL is incorrect.

Copy then paste an image from the file system

1. Open the file system, right-click on a file name and select "Copy".
2. Place the cursor in the editor at the point you want the image to
appear, right-click and select "Paste".

Copy then paste an image from other applications (Photoshop, Word, etc.)

1. In the application, select "Copy" or "Copy Merged" to copy the image.

2. Place the cursor in the editor at the point you want the image to
appear, right-click and select "Paste".

Use "Print Screen" to capture images from your monitor.

1. On the keyboard, press Print Screen to capture a screenshot of the

image displayed on your monitor screen.
2. In the editor, place the cursor where you want the screenshot to
appear, right-click and select "Paste".

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Wrap Text around an Image

1. Right-click on the image and select "Align Right" to float an image to

the right, wrapping text around the left of the image.
2. Selecting "Align Left" floats the image to the left, wrapping text to the
right of the image (see opposite).
3. To remove text wrap from an image, reselect "Align Right" or "Align
Left" to obtain the result seen is the second image opposite.

Delete an Image

1. Right-click on the image and select "Delete".

2. Or click on the image until "handles" appear, then press the Delete
key.

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Resize an Image

There are two ways to resize images in the editor.

• Stretch an image to its desired size.

• Resize an image using the "Image Properties" dialog box.

Stretch an image to its desired size

1. Click on the image so that "handles" appear around the image.

2. Place the cursor on any handle until double-headed arrows display.

3. Maintaining pressure on the left mouse button, drag the double-

headed arrows until the image reaches the desired size. To avoid
distorting images during resizing, use the corner handles only, as
shown opposite.

4. The new dimensions of the image display (in pixels) as the image is
being resized.

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Resize an image using the "Image Properties" dialog box

1. Right-click on the image and choose "Properties", or double-click on

the image, to open the "Image Properties" dialog box seen below.
2. Modify the Height and Width of the image, in pixels or as a percentage
of the page.
3. Selecting "Yes" under "Constrain Proportions" avoids distorting images
when resizing by adjusting the Width of an image in proportion to its
Height, and vice versa.

Reset the original dimensions of an image

1. "Reset Dimensions" restores both the original height and width of the
image.
2. The original dimensions are the dimensions of the image at the time it
was first uploaded into the editor.
3. To reset an image's original dimensions, right-click on the image and
select "Reset Dimensions".

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4.5 Tables

Tables and Accessibility

• The desire to make information universally accessible has generated

standards and best practices that are enforced in the editor on two
levels:
o in the background, at the code (XHTML) level
o in the foreground, at the authoring level
• In the background, the editor is guaranteed to produce 100%
accessible markup.
• In the foreground, the editor interacts with authors to ensure that,
from a content perspective, information in tables is as accessible as
possible prior to publication. It does this in four ways:
o The editor offers authors a choice between using Layout
Tables or Data Tables.
o It requires basic information for Data Tables before they can
be saved.
o It collects additional information for Data Tables and makes
this information available to screen readers.
o It includes a Screen Reader Preview that helps authors verify
(prior to publication) that content presented in both Layout
and Data Tables is as accessible as possible.

Accessibility and Layout Tables

• Layout tables are a popular method of presenting information, but can

hinder accessibility.
• This is because layout tables typically position text in relation to
images, whereas screen readers used by people with disabilities
ignore visual relationships between text and images. They also
process information from left-to-right, top-to-bottom, regardless of
the type of content.

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• The editor's Screen Reader Preview is designed to show authors
how information is processed by screen readers, so that they
understand where accessibility issues exist. Authors can then make
appropriate changes to content before it is published.
• For example, in the Layout Table opposite (seen in Edit mode), text
describing the Acropolis is meant to be read in relation to the image
of the Acropolis that appears beneath the text. The same is true for
the pyramid.
• The most obvious difference is that the visual relationships between
text and images in the original table have been lost. Consequently,
the words "...such as the Acropolis seen below" are no longer followed
by an image of the Acropolis.
• For the same reason, the words "...pyramids such as this..." are
followed by an image of the Acropolis instead.
• Made aware of these issues by the editor's Screen Reader Preview, the
author can now return to Edit Mode to make appropriate changes to
content prior to publication.

65
Accessibility and Data Tables

• Data Tables (such as the one seen opposite) typically present content
that can only be understood in relation to Column and Row Headers.
• If screen readers are not aware of the presence of Column and Row
Headers, they process information in Data Tables just as they would
information found in Layout Tables: fom left-to-right, top-to-bottom,
regardless of the type of content.
• Thus, a screen reader unaware of the Column Headers in the table
above would generate the following meaningless output:

"Country Popular Summer availability Winter availability Greece

Yes. Visitors are particularly drawn to sites of antiquity such as
the Acropolis Yes No Egypt Yes, an increasingly popular tourist
spot, with pyramids being of special interest. Yes Yes"

• To avoid this type of confusion, the editor requires authors to identify

when a Data Table is being used, and ensures that screen readers are
aware of any Column and Row Headers in the Data Table.
• The result is seen in the Screen Reader Preview of the same Data Table
(opposite). Column Headers have been clearly identified by the editor
and the screen reader uses (repeats) the headers in order to make
sense of information found in the table.

66
Create a Layout Table

1. On the toolbar, click "Insert Layout Table" to open the "Table

Properties" dialog box.
2. Under "Rows" and "Columns", enter the number of rows and columns
for the table.
3. Under "Cell Padding", insert a number representing the space you
want to appear between the contents of a cell and the cell's border.
One (pixel) is the default.
4. Under "Cell Spacing", insert a number representing the space you want
to appear between the cells themselves. Two (pixels) is the default.
5. Under "Width" indicate the width of the table in pixels, or as a
percentage of the width of the page.
6. Under "Border" indicate the thickness of the table gridline. The default
border setting for layout tables is "0". For the author's convenience, a
"0" border setting displays as a gray border in Edit mode, but displays
no border at all in Browser Preview mode (the published version).
7. Enter a "Summary" (optional). If a Summary is entered, it will be made
available to screen readers.

Create a Data Table

1. On the toolbar, click "Insert Data Table" to open the "Table

Properties" dialog box.
2. Under "Rows" and "Columns", enter the number of rows and columns
for the table.
3. Under "Cell Padding", insert a number representing the space you
want to appear between the contents of a cell and the cell's border.
One (pixel) is the default.
4. Under "Cell Spacing", insert a number representing the space you want
to appear between the cells themselves. Two (pixels) is the default.
5. Under "Width" indicate the width of the table in pixels, or as a
percentage of the width of the page. If the field is left blank, the width
of the Data Table will expand as content is entered.

67
 6. Under "Border" indicate the thickness of the table gridline. The default
border setting for Data Tables is "1".
7. Under "Caption, indicate if the table is to have a "Caption" or header.
Captions are entered in Edit mode. They are visible in Browser Preview
(published) mode, are made available to assistive technologies such as
screen readers, and are thus visible in Screen Reader Preview mode.
8. Enter a "Summary" for the table. Summaries are required for Data

Tables. The alert icon seen in the screenshot below indicates a

missing Summary. "Summaries" do not appear in Edit mode or in
Browser Preview (published) mode. They are however made available
to screen readers, and as such are visible in Screen Reader Preview
mode.
9. When the Table Properties dialog box is completed, click "OK" to view
the Data Table in Edit mode.
10. In Edit mode, enter the table Caption if one is to be used. Captions
appear immediately above Data Tables and are centre-aligned.
11. Begin entering data into the table. As shown below, by default the
editor assumes that the top row of any Data Table is a "Row of
Headers". Column and Row Headers are displayed in bold.
12. To add Column or Row Headers, right-click in a row or column, select
"Table", then "Column of Headers" or "Row of Headers".
13. To remove Column or Row Headers, right-click in a row or column,
select "Table", then re-select "Column of Headers" or "Row of
Headers".

Insert space before a table

1. Place the cursor in the top-left cell of the table. In Data Tables, place
the cursor in the Caption if one is present.
2. Use the left arrow key to move the cursor to the left until it appears as
one long cursor along the vertical left edge of the table, as seen in the
screenshot below. Press Enter to insert a paragraph before the table.

68
Insert space after a table

1. Place the cursor in the bottom-right cell of the Layout or Data Table.
2. Use the right arrow key to move the cursor to the right until it appears
as one long cursor along the vertical right edge of the table, as seen
in the screenshot below, then press Enter to insert a paragraph after
the table.

Move around inside a table

1. Use the Tab key to move forward to the next cell.

2. Use Shift + Tab to go back to the preceding cell.
3. Use the Up Arrow or Down Arrow keys to move to rows above or
below.

Edit Table Properties

1. Right-click inside the table, select "Table" then "Table Properties", to

open the "Table Properties" dialog box.
2. For assistance in modifying the Table Properties dialog box, refer to
the section Create a Layout Table or the section Create a Data Table.

Change the width of a table

1. The width of Layout Tables is set by default to 100% of the page width.
2. The width of Data Tables is blank by default. If no width is specified,
Data Tables expand as data is entered into the table.
3. To change the width of a table, right-click on the table, select "Table"
then "Table Properties".
4. In the "Table Properties" dialog box, under "Width", set the width of
the table in pixels or as a percentage of the width of the page.

69
Hide or modify the gridline (Border) of a table

1. Layout Tables have a default Border setting of "0" pixels, which

displays no gridline in the published version, but for the convenience
of authors displays a gray border in Edit mode.
2. Data Tables have a default Border setting of "1" pixel.
3. To hide or modify the gridline of a table, right-click in the table,
select "Table" then "Table Properties".
4. In the "Table Properties" dialog box, under "Border", enter the
thickness of the gridline as a number (pixels).

Select a row, column or table

1. Place the cursor inside a cell, right-click and choose "Table".

2. Then choose "Select Table", "Select Row", or "Select Column".

Align Cell Contents

1. Double-click in a cell, or right-click on a cell, choose "Table" then

"Cell Properties".
2. In the "Table Cell Properties" dialog box seen below, under "Horizontal
Align", choose, Left, Right, Center, or the Default alignment set at the
row level.
3. Under "Vertical Align", choose, Top, Bottom, Middle, or the Default
alignment set at the row level.

Align Row Contents

1. Right-click on a cell, choose "Table" then "Row Properties".

2. In the "Table Row Properties" dialog box seen below, under "Align
Horizontal", choose, Left, Right, Center, or the Default alignment for
the row.
3. Under "Align Vertical", choose Top, Bottom, Middle, or the Default
alignment for the row.

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Insert a row or column

1. Right-click inside a table, select "Table", then choose from the "Insert"
options shown opposite.

Delete a row, column or table

1. Right-click inside the table, select "Table" then choose from the
"Delete" options shown opposite.

Merge cells horizontally

1. Select consecutive cells in the same row for merging.

2. Right-click in the selection, select "Table" then "Merge cells".

Split cells

1. Right-click over the merged cells, select "Table" then "Split Cells".

71
4.6 Hyperlinks

Hyperlink text and accessibility

• The desire to make information universally accessible has generated

best practices that make certain text unsuitable for hyperlinks.
• Unsuitable hyperlink text is best described as text that becomes
meaningless when read on its own.
• Classic examples of unsuitable hyperlink text include "More" and
"Click here". Though popular, these expressions transmit no meaning
when read alone. For this reason, the editor's Screen Reader Preview
warns authors against using such expressions for hyperlink text. Your
Site Administrator might also have added additional expressions to be
avoided, in which case the Screen Reader Preview will warn against
using those expressions too.
• To illustrate the importance of choosing appropriate hyperlink text,
imagine a Web page selling cheeses. Next to an image of each type of
cheese is a hyperlink "More". The hyperlinks lead to additional
information on each type of cheese.
• In this context, if a user of an assistive technology wants to read only
the hyperlinks on the page, the result will be meaningless: "More More
More More".
• By contrast, when appropriate hyperlink text is used the result is very
meaningful: "More about Cheddar. More about Edam. More about
Parmesan..." etc.

Insert a hyperlink

1. Select the text or object to be hyperlinked.

2. On the toolbar, click Hyperlink to open the "Hyperlink Properties"
dialog box seen below.
3. Under "URL", enter the hyperlink URL following the convention
http://www...

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 4. If you are unsure of the URL used for the hyperlink, click the box to
the right of the URL field to browse available file libraries. When a file
is selected, the URL of the file automatically displays.
5. Under "ID", enter an ID for the hyperlink (optional). Hyperlink IDs are
used as anchor points for "jumping", for example for "jumping" to the
top of a page. To implant a "jump" to the top of a page, select text or
an object at the top of the page and click to open the Hyperlink
Properties dialog box. Under "ID", enter an ID for the top of page
location, such as "top".
6. Then select text at a second location lower down the page and click
to open the Hyperlink Properties dialog box again.
7. This time, under "URL", enter "#" followed by the ID for the top of
page location. In our example this would therefore be: #top. Clicking
on the hyperlink lower down the page will now "jump" to the top of
the page.
8. Under "Description", enter a description for the hyperlink. Though
optional, Descriptions are very useful to assistive technologies such as
screen readers. Descriptions are also of general value, since the text
of Descriptions appears as a tooltip when the cursor is passed over a
hyperlink in the browser (see opposite).

Edit a hyperlink

1. Double-click on the hyperlink, or right-click on the hyperlink, choose

"Hyperlink" then "Edit".
2. In the "Hyperlink Properties" dialog box, make changes and save.
Refer to the section “insert a Hyperlink” for assistance in completing
the Hyperlink Properties dialog box.

Remove a hyperlink

1. Right-click on the hyperlink, choose "Hyperlink" then "Remove".

73
Edit hyperlink text

1. To edit text used for hyperlinks, type directly into the hyperlink.
2. To enter text before a hyperlink, without hyperlinking the new text
being entered, place the cursor at the front of the hyperlink and click
the Back Arrow key once before typing.
3. To enter text following a hyperlink, without hyperlinking the new text
being entered, place the cursor at the end of the hyperlink and click
the Forward Arrow key once before typing.

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4.7 Attachments

Uploading attachments

• Your Site Administrator may have set restrictions on the type and size
of attachments that can be uploaded through the editor.
• Folders uploaded through the editor are automatically zipped
(compressed) and given a ".zip" extension.
• There are four ways to upload attachments through the editor:
o Drag an attachment directly into the editor
o Copy then Paste an attachment into the editor
o Browse the file system for an attachment
o Enter a direct URL for an attachment

Drag an attachment directly into the editor

1. Select the file or folder on your local computer and drag it into the
editor.
2. The hyperlink created displays the file or (Zipped) folder name.
3. Edit the hyperlink text if a more readily recognized file name for the
attachment is required. Whatever the file name, clicking on the
attachment will always link to the original file uploaded.

Copy then paste an attachment into the editor

1. Right-click on a file or folder on your local computer then select

"Copy".
2. In Edit mode, "Paste" the file or folder as an attachment.
3. The hyperlink created displays the file or (Zipped) folder name.
4. Edit the hyperlink text if a more easily recognized name for the
attachment is required.

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Browse the file system for an attachment

1. In Edit mode, select some text or an object then click Attachment

on the toolbar.
2. In the "Select An Attachment" dialog box (seen below), browse
available sources and select an attachment.
3. The selected text acts as a hyperlink label to the uploaded attachment.

Enter a direct URL for an attachment

1. Select some text or an object then click Attachment on the toolbar.

2. In the "Select An Attachment" dialog box, under "URL", enter the URL
at which the attachment can be found.

Remove an attachment

1. To remove the attachment, right-click on the hyperlink to the

attachment, select Hyperlink then Remove.

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4.8 Spellchecker

Spell Checker overview

• Spell checking is available in: Danish, Dutch, English (Canadian, British,

US), French, German, Italian, Norwegian, Portuguese, Spanish and
Swedish.
• To spell check the whole document, Click on the toolbar.
• To spell check part of a document, select text then click on the
toolbar.
• In the Spelling dialog box, misspelled or unrecognized words appear
under "Not In Dictionary".
• In the text being spell checked, misspelled or unrecognized words are
highlighted (see opposite).

Replace With

• "Replace With" offers the most likely correct spelling for misspelled
words.
• When the "Replace With" field is blank, choose from "Suggestions", or
enter the correct spelling into the "Replace With" field, then click
Change or Change All.

Suggestions

• "Suggestions" offers alternatives for misspelled words.

• When a Suggestion is selected, it displays under "Replace With".

Ignore and Ignore All

• Click "Ignore" to ignore one instance of a misspelled word.

• Click "Ignore All" to ignore all instances of the misspelled word.
• Both options ignore misspelled words during the current spell
checking session only.

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Change and Change All

• "Change" replaces one instance of a misspelled word with the word

appearing under "Replace With".
• "Change All" replaces all instances of a misspelled word with the word
appearing under "Replace With".

Add

• "Add" permits users to add unrecognized words to a custom

dictionary.
• This feature is useful for adding acronyms, technical terms, proper
names, etc.
• Depending on how the Site Administrator has configured your content
management system, words added to the custom dictionary are made
available to individuals, groups or globally.

Dictionary Language

• The editor is configured to spell check using a default language

chosen by your Site Administrator.
• "Dictionary Language" confirms the language version being used for
the current spell checking session.
• To change the Dictionary Language, select another language from the
drop-down menu.
• At the end of the spell checking session, the Dictionary Language will
revert to the default.

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Multilingual and mixed language spellchecking

• When multiple languages appear within the same text selection and
the selection is greater than 15 words, if the spell checker detects
more than 50% errors, the "Spelling" dialog box prompts the author to
select a more appropriate Dictionary Language.
• The new language selection will be used to spell check the current
selection, but subsequent spell checks will revert to the default
language.
• When a selection includes equal proportions of more than one
language, it is recommended to spell check each language portion
separately.

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4.9 Custom Content

Import third-party content into the editor

• The Directory service is used to import custom content of any type

into the editor.
• Imported data can be "raw" data, or pre-formatted content such as an
entire chunk out of a product catalog that combines complex
formatting options.
• The choice of content available via the Directory service is determined
by your Site Administrator.

1. To import custom content, in Edit mode, place the cursor at the point
you want the content to appear.
2. On the toolbar, click Directory .
3. In the "Directory" dialog box, browse available sources then double-
click to insert selected content at the cursor point.
4. The screenshot shows the Directory service used to insert into the
editor a custom widget. The custom content could be a document
outline or a portion of a product catalog that combines images, tables,
text formatting, and abbreviations. Once inside the editor, third-party
content inserted in this way can be edited in the usual manner.

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4.10 Foreign Characters

Insert foreign characters or symbols

• The Directory service is used to insert foreign characters or

symbols into the editor at the cursor point.
• The selection of foreign characters and symbols available to you via
the Directory service is determined by your Site Administrator.

1. In Edit mode, place the cursor at the point you want to insert a foreign
character or a symbol.
2. On the toolbar, click Directory .
3. In the "Directory" dialog box opposite, browse available sources then
double-click to insert the selected character or symbol into the editor
at the cursor point.

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4.11 Abbreviations

Overview

• Abbreviation is a shortened form of a word or phrase. For example,

IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) and Mass.
(Massachusetts).
• In standards-compliant browsers such as the one seen below,
Abbreviations appear underscored by a dotted line.
• Placing the cursor inside the Abbreviation causes a tooltip to appear,
displaying the full form of the Abbreviation.

Insert an Abbreviation

1. In Edit mode, select the Abbreviation.

2. Under the Styles menu, select "Abbreviation".
3. In the "Abbreviation Properties" dialog box (seen below), under "Full
text", enter the full form of the Abbreviation and save.
4. If the same Abbreviation is used more than once in a document, the
editor prompts the author to enter the "Full Text" only for the first
instance of the Abbreviation.

Edit an Abbreviation

1. If the same Abbreviation is used more than once in a document, edit

only the first instance of the Abbreviation.
2. In Edit mode, place the cursor inside the Abbreviation.
3. Right-click then select "Properties" to open the Abbreviation
Properties dialog box.
4. Under "Full Text", make changes and save.

Remove an Abbreviation

1. In Edit mode, select the Abbreviation.

2. Under the Styles menu, uncheck "Abbreviation".

82
3. If the same Abbreviation is used more than once in the same
document, remove each instance of the Abbreviation in the same
manner.

83
4.12 Widgets

Overview

• Widgets are icons used to reserve space for dynamic content.

• Dynamic content is content that is continually changing. Classic
examples of dynamic content include the current date and time of day,
the current retail price of a product, the latest stock price, etc.
• Widgets are only visible in the editor. When a Web site visitor calls for
a Web page, dynamic content appears instead of the widgets.
• Widgets save authors time, and ensure the latest accurate information
appears in the published version of content.
• The number and type of Widgets available to you in the editor is
determined by your Site Administrator.
• Widgets are inserted using the Directory service on the toolbar.
The example (below) shows widgets that will cause the current date,
time and temperatures to display on the live Web site.

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Insert a Widget

1. In Edit mode, place the cursor at the point you want the widget to
appear.
2. On the toolbar, click Directory service .
3. In the "Directory" dialog box (seen below), browse available sources
and double-click to select a Widget.
4. In the example below, a temperature icon is inserted as a Widget for
the current temperature in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
5. For the author's convenience, in Edit mode, Widgets are identified by
tooltips that pop up when the cursor is passed over a Widget.
6. Widgets may have options that can be set by right-clicking the icon
and selecting “Properties” to display the properties dialog box with the
widget.

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4.13 View Source

View Source mode and standards-compliance

• View Source mode permits skilled technical users to enter markup

directly into the editor.
• It is accessed by clicking on the toolbar.
• Since the editor generates only standards-compliant XHTML Strict or
1.1, if markup entered through View Source is not standards-
compliant, it must be corrected or discarded.

Correcting non-standards-compliant markup

1. If non-compliant markup is entered into View Source, the "Failure"

dialog box seen opposite displays and offers three options: Edit, Fix
or Discard.
2. "Edit" allows the technical user to manually correct markup errors.
3. "Fix" asks the editor to attempt to correct the markup errors.
4. "Discard" deletes all markup entered (not only the non-compliant
sections).
5. If the user elects to Edit the markup but fails to correct it, the "Failure"
dialog box again displays, offering the same three options.
6. At this point, if the user is unable to "Edit" the markup manually, the
non-compliant markup must be discarded.

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4.14 Screen Reader Preview

The function of the Screen Reader Preview

• Unless instructed otherwise, assistive technologies such as screen

readers process information in strict linear fashion. This means that
they "read" content from left-to-right, top-to-bottom, regardless of
the type of content.
• When all types of content are processed in linear fashion, the result
can be confusing.
• To avoid confusion, the editor therefore:
o flags certain items, so that screen readers process those
items in a particular way
o transmits needed information regarding the flagged items
• The function of the Screen Reader Preview is to:
o show authors how content managed through the editor will be
"read" by screen readers
o help authors identify opportunities to "tweak" content, prior
to publication, in order to make information as accessible as
possible

Reading the Screen Reader Preview

• The Screen Reader Preview is accessed by clicking on the toolbar.

• To understand how the Screen Reader Preview works, compare the
screenshots below.
• The first screenshot shows a mixed collection of content (regular text,
formatted text, images and tables) viewed in Edit mode.
• The second screenshot shows the same content viewed in Screen
Reader Preview mode. Numbers refer to "Explanatory Notes" that
describe aspects of the Screen Reader Preview, and discuss simple
changes to content that will optimize accessibility.

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The screen shots opposite show content viewed in Edit mode and the same
content viewed in Screen Reader Preview mode.

Explanatory Notes

This link may not be meaningful when read on its own: More

• Here, the Screen Reader Preview highlights "More" as unsuitable text

for a hyperlink, since "More" conveys no meaning when read thus by a
screen reader: "Report from the AHA. More".
• Though the editor is pre-programmed to warn against expressions
such as "More" or "Click here", when used as text for hyperlinks, Site
Administrators can add proscribed expressions at their discretion.
• The use of "More" in our example also makes it unclear (for all readers)
if the link leads to more information on the AHA or more information
on the report.
• To resolve all these issues, the author can simply return to Edit Mode
and replace "More" with more suitable hyperlink text, such as "Learn
more about the AHA" or "Read the report".

Image: Junk food

• Here, the image of a burger and fries is replaced by the image's

Alternate Text.
• Alternate Text is used by screen readers to explain non-decorative
images such as photographs, charts, etc.
• The editor ensures that Alternate Text are available to screen readers
by requiring authors to identify images as Decorative or non-
decorative, and in the latter case, by requiring an Alternate Text for
the image before it can be uploaded through the editor.
• If changes were required to the Alternate Text in our example, this
would be achieved by returning to Edit mode, and using the Image
Properties dialog box.

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• Refer to the Images section of this guide to:
o Learn more about images and accessibility
o Learn how to write Alternate Text

Abbreviation

• The full form of Abbreviations is only seen (in green) in the Screen
Reader Preview.
• Full forms of the abbreviations are made available to screen readers.
• In our example, a typo in the word "Asociation" could be easily
corrected using the Abbreviation Properties dialog box in Edit mode.

Summary

• The editor requires Summaries for all Data Tables, and makes them
available to screen readers.
• Summaries are useful to screen readers for elaborating on Captions
that are vague or cryptic, or for situating a table in its proper context.
• Since Summaries are only seen in Screen Reader Preview mode, this
offers a convenient opportunity for authors to review Summaries prior
to publication. If necessary, authors can modify Summaries in Edit
mode, using the Table Properties dialog box.

Tables

• Data Tables such as the one in our example present content that can
only be understood in relation to Column and Row Headers. To make
Data Tables accessible, Column and Row Headers must therefore be
identified to screen readers.
• As the Screen Reader Preview confirms, the Row Headers in this Data
Table are properly identified by the editor, permitting screen readers
to repeat the headers whenever necessary to make information in the
table intelligible to users of assistive technologies.

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• The only content improvement necessary in the table might be to
replace "M" with "million" for screen reader purposes. This would be
done inside the table, in Edit mode, and give the more easily
understood result of "3.9 million" instead of "3.9 M".
• Refer to this guide's section on Tables to:
o Learn more about tables and accessibility
o Create a Data Table
o Create a Layout Table

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5. AssetNow NX Upload Applet

AssetNow NX allows you to upload image and file assets in a number of ways:

• Using the standard web browser form-based file upload. This method
is suitable for small files and does not require any additional software
on the client machine. This method is not reliable for large file
uploads.
• Drag/Drop and Copy/Paste images and files directly into the
AssetNow NX XHTML editor. This method uses web services to
transfer the files to the site server. It is suitable to files that are
typically less than 5MB in size.
• The AssetNow NX Upload Applet is a Java applet that is downloaded
and installed automatically on the client machine. The applet requires
the Sun Java Virtual Machine to be installed on the client machine. The
Upload applet provides an upload progress bar, cancel button and
support Drag/Drop and selection of multiple files for upload. The
upload applet can upload very large files, over 2GB.

Clicking the upload applet icon will display the applet in a pop-up window.
The applet takes a short time to load. The pop-up window lets you minimize
other windows making it easier to drag and drop files into the applet. To
upload a file drag it into the applet window, to upload multiple files select
them all and drag al of them into the applet window at once.

Click File on the applet menu to display a file selection dialog. You can explore
your local machine/network and select files to upload.

Once you drop or select files for uploading the applet will transfer the files to
the server providing an accurate progress bar indicator. To cancel uploading
click the Cancel button below the progress bar.

The upload applet can scale (resize) and compress jpg and png format images
on the client machine before uploading them.

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Click one of the 5 scaling preset icons to launch the applet with
a scaling preset.

The default scaling presets (w x h) are:

1. 120 x 90 pixels (Teaser image)

2. 160 x 120 pixels
3. 320 x 240 pixels
4. 480 x 360 pixels
5. 640 x 480 pixels

Clicking the upload applet icon launches the applet without any scaling.

Images uploaded with scaling have “_s” and the scaling preset number
appended to the file name. For example uploading an image named bike.jpg
using the 3rd scaling preset will result in a file named bike_s3.jpg. This allows
you to upload the same image using different scaling factors without file name
conflicts.

The scaling values can be set by your Site Administrator. Scaling can enforce
maximum width and maximum height values, or apply a scale factor. Scale
factors less than 1 reduce the size of an image, scale factors larger than 1
enlarge the image.

Typically the scaling presets are configured to suit the site template size
requirements allowing publishers to upload digital camera images and have
them resized and compressed to fit the site templates size requirements.

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6. System Requirements

6.1 Server Requirements

AssetNow NX can be deployed on dedicated or shared host servers with multiple

independent installations on a single server.

• Macromedia ColdFusion MX application server.

• Microsoft Windows or RedHat Linux operating systems.
• Microsoft Internet Information Server (IIS) or Apache web server.
• MySQL database server, Microsoft SQL Server, or Microsoft Access database.

Macromedia ColdFusion MX is fastest way to build and deploy powerful Internet

applications. ColdFusion MX is built with java and available for popular server platforms
including J2EE enterprise deployments.

One of the greatest benefits of using ColdFusion MX is that it includes many advanced
functions that are either not available, or have to be purchased from 3rd party vendors,
when using technologies such as Microsoft .Net, Microsoft ASP, or PHP.

6.2 Client Requirements

Client requirements are for users of the AssetNow NX tools only. AssetNow NX websites
and content do impose any specific client requirements.

AssetNow NX tools work with most popular browsers and desktop operating systems.
However to use the AssetNow NX XHTML Editor the following requirements apply:

• Web browser – Microsoft Internet Explorer 5+ (6 + recommended), Mozilla

1.7.5+, Firefox 1.0+, Netscape 8.0+.
• Windows 98, ME, NT, 2000 or XP. Some of the editor’s multilingual features
may not be available on Windows 98 and ME, since these operating systems do
not support Unicode. Support for right-to-left (RTL) languages such as Hebrew
and Arabic is only available on Windows 2000 and XP.
• Minimum display resolution of 1024 x 768 pixels (XGA) is recommended.
• Sun Java Virtual Machine (JRE 1.4.x) for upload applet.

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