Content Zones, Dates & Lists

Home : Updater 4.2 Support: Content Zones, Dates & Lists

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   Check out our concise, step-by-step video tutorial on
   Updater's Content Zones, Dates & Lists Editor.

1. To edit content, choose "Edit Content" from the AcuWeb Menu.
2. Once the content list view is pulled up, a more detailed search can be used to find content. Use keywords (separated by a space) OR choose a specific page and press the Search button.
   
   
3. To edit the content, click the title to continue.

Publish on Page

Any Updater story can be set to simultaneously publish in two locations within your website. For example, "Latest News" is on the home page, as well as in a secondary news section, deeper within the site.  Here, in the "Publish on Page" section, you may specify which content "zone", or area of each page on you wish the story to appear.  Many webpage layouts only have one "Main Content" zone; however, your site may be designed to have multiple content zones, such as a left and right column.  The Zone selection options Updater presents to you are customized to the page-layout characteristics of your site.

It is very important to assign the content to a page(s) on the Website This allows the content to display on your Website.

Primary Page

Choose an existing page from the drop-down menu to assign content to that page.

Primary Zone

The zone is the area of the layout where the content will be displayed. These will set these up initially when building the Website and will be labeled in a way so it is easy to understand.

The zone is usually set to default to the main content zone, however, in some special cases, the zone will need to be changed so content can be assigned to a different column or area.

For dynamic items such as news or events lists, choose the "None (for dynamic lists)" option.

Primary Order

Primary Order is the numerical order of content on a page. This allows maximum flexibility to arrange multiple content on a page in any position.

• Use numbers only ranging from 0-999.
• Zero (0) represents the highest position while 999 represents the lowest position on a page.

Assigning Content to a Second Page

The content assigned to a primary page can also be assigned to a secondary page as well. Choose the page from the Secondary Page drop-down selection and change the zone and order accordingly.

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Start & End Dates

Updater also allows you to specify a Start and End Date for each content item.  In Updater 4, a pop-up calendar allows you to visually select both Start and End dates for each story.  Bear in mind that Updater checks these Start and End dates each day at midnight, removing any stories set to end on the preceding day; and adding any new stories set to Start on the new day that has just begun.

Since start and end dates allow the content on a page to display or to be removed on a specified day, this is really helpful when you are not available to post/remove content that may be time-sensitive.

Start and End Date Selection

1. Choose the start date by clicking on the input box. The calendar will appear.
2. Select the date by clicking on the date. The calendar will automatically close and your date will be selected.
   
   
3. Repeat the process for the End Date.

Note: Content will post at midnight (CST) for start and end date specified.

On End Date

Upon successful content expiration, you will want to choose one of the two options.

1. Archive
   • Content is removed from the page and saved in the database.
   • This feature is standard on all content. You will want to use this option if you plan on using the content (or parts of it) again in the future.
2. Delete
   • Content is permanently deleted from the database.
   • If you know you will never use this content again, use this feature.

Content Lists and Calendar Events

Near the bottom of the Content Editor, you'll find a section "Content Lists and Calendar Events".  These tools allow you to include any Updater story or content element in pre-defined lists, which may appear in one or more places on your site.  These lists are actually Shared Items and can be set up to display only story titles, as in a list of headlines that might link to stories elsewhere in the site; or, as listings of upcoming events, where both the event title and event date could be set to appear. 

Depending on how a Calendar Events list is set up, events can be set to automatically display for a certain range of dates (say, for the next 90 days), which helps assure your Events listing will always stay current, and won't continue to display an event after the event date has passed.  The parameters for Calendar Event lists are set in the Shared Items area.

Remember that these lists are Shared Items, and as such, each list can be embedded as an object inside an Updater story, or placed directly on a page template.  These advanced editing functions are explained in greater detail in other AcuWeb™ tutorials. Are you wanting to create a news page with a list of news items or perhaps a calendar page with a list of events? If you need an event or calendar list set up on your site, please contact Acuity.

What is an event or calendar list?

It's a customizable list of events or news articles that is clickable to a full detailed content page. An example of a news article may look like this:

• Event Date - This is the date that will display on content and calendar event lists. Initially, whatever the start date is set on, the event date will be the same. You may change the event date at any time.
• Include In - This is a list of the events that have been set up in Shared Items. If your item is an event or news item, select the appropriate event to include your content in.
• Teaser Text - Teaser text is a brief synopsis or description of your news item to be displayed in the News List item underneath the title or date (depending on how it's set up).
• Teaser Link - This is the linked text that will allow the user to read more of your event or news item.
  Ex: Read more », Full Story, Read On, More Info, Go Now »

Assigning content to a news or calendar events list

Once your list has been set up by Acuity, follow these steps to add content to a list.

1. Go to "Edit Content" from the AcuWeb Menu.
2. Click the "New Content" button at the top of the page.
3. Type in a title and place content into the content box.
4. Scroll down the page to the "Publish on Page" section and choose the appropriate page.
   Note: Acuity will provide you the name of this page when setting up the lists.
5. For "Primary Zone" choose "None (for dynamic lists)" from the drop-down list.
6. Under the "Content Lists & Calendar Events" section, choose the event date by clicking on the calendar icon.
7. For "Include In..." click to highlight the list(s) you want your content to show up in.
8. For "Teaser Text", type in or copy/paste a sentence or two describing your story (optional).
9. For teaser link, type a couple of words.
10. When done, press the "Save Changes" button and then "Post to Web" to release web changes to the live site.

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