This page covers the different sections/modules, and what they are best used for.

Adding a Section

A page is a blank canvas and the different sections/modules allow you to show different combinations of features; text, images, slideshows, pdfs, on-line forms and embedded code.

Although the most popular way of displaying content is to create a page using one column and one html3 module/section, which is ideal for combining text and images, you an add additional sections and can amend the number of columns in the page by clicking on "Add Row"

If you want to add a section, just go to the page using the menu system and click on "Add Section". The full list of what the various sections/modules can do appears below. Choose the section/module you want and continue.

If you just want to edit content in an existing section on a page, click on "edit section" and make your amends. What you do in that section depends on what type of section/module it is.

If you want to move a section on the page, click on "Move Section" and then "Move it Here" to put it where you want it.

html3 This is the bread and butter section/module, used for 90% of pages where text and images sit hand in hand. You can simply type text in, or you can copy and paste text in - although we'd always recommend that you pasted it in via notepad or a plain txt package to ensure that your text remained compatable with the rest of the site. However, if you are pasting formatted content in from Word or Excel, we'd recommend that you paste it straight in, with the proviso that you won't be able to futher amend it from the web site. If you look at the control panel, it should becomes clearer as to the main features you'll use. You can make text Bold, or in Italics. You can make some text link to another page of your web site - or to an external page. You can insert images in amongst the content of the page. You can make tables and insert text and content in them. If you want to learn how to do anything, give us a ring or send an email, or spend a bit of time experimenting with the control panel.

Files If you have a PDF, choose to add section on a page and then choose a files module. Then use the browse facility to find the PDF [or other file types you want users to be able to access, open or download]. Once you have uploaded the file, you will have options to give the file a title, a description, show the date it was uploaded and its size. If you want to link to this PDF from another page, you will need to open the PDF and copy the full web site address into the link you make in your html3 link editor.

Photo Galleries Firstly, it is important to mention that the biggest image you can upload to the site is 300kb in size. You can reduce it further and manipulate it once it has been uploaded, but it can't be any bigger than this. If you try,  you will get a message saying that it has failed. The reason for this is simple - there is no reason to upload a 5mb image from a CD or digital camera, if you want it to look smaller or to fit on a page. It would take ages to load and take up excessive web space. Images need to be in .jpg, .jpeg or .gif formats. If you don't have the necesary package to resize or reformat images, you need to use one. Paint Shop Pro is very good, or you can download something like Batch Image Resizer. There is also a site called PIXLR.COM that enables you to re-size images on-line. If you subscribe to BackUp Your PC Online and use the Briefcase option it includes several tools that enable you to resize images as well. Once you have grasped the sizing aspects, you are now ready to upload images to the site.   In your site you will see that we have already set up a hidden page called Site Images [in some sites this might be found under "Admin"]. In this page, you will see an album called "site images" or "general site images". Click on this and you'll see any images that have already been uploaded to this album, and at the foot of the album you will see a link to "upload images" or "edit album information." We suggest that you use this album to upload any "all purpose" images, such as logos, ad hoc images etc. If the images are for a specific event or for a specific section of your site and there might be a lot of them and you want to organise your images better, we suggest that you create another album by clicking on "Add Album", calling it something relevant, and uploading the images this new Album. This is especially important if you want to create a slideshow, as this will ONLY play the images you upload to a specific album. You upload images by clicking on "Upload Photos", browsing your hard drive and then clicking Open. Add images one at a time and then click on Upload [you can upload up to ten at a time]. Once they are in the album, you can do a number of things with them. You can move them up or down in terms of their running order in album view or slideshow view. You can give them titles and descriptions, and you can open them up full size by clicking on the thumbnails. You can choose a Photo Gallery section to use on a page and can then choose the specific album you want to use, and you can select "Album View" or Slideshow View". "Album View" will display the images as thumbnails, whilst "Slideshow View" will display them as a slideshow with the thumbnails underneath. Experiment!   NB: If you have upgraded your site to use our new Picasa module, you can make a slideshow using the different Picasa features we have installed.

1] Image set left or right in amongst text [text wrapped]
This describes how you'd place an image right or left in amongst text in an HTML3 section].

Firstly, remember that you can only choose images that you have already uploaded to an album. If you have not already uploaded the image you want to use, you will need to refer to the "Photo Galleries" section above before continuing.

On the basis that you have already uploaded the image you want to use, now go to the page you want to use the image on.

Click on "Edit Section" and then click your mouse at the beginning of the paragraph where you want the image to appear. Then click on the Insert/Edit Image icon [the green tree] in the control panel at the top of the section you are editing [see above], then click on the browse icon [the little red dots on a white background], and choose the relevant album containing the photo/image you want to use. Then, tick the box underneath the image and click Select on the left hand side.

The image will now appear in the window. Now, click on Appearance and reduce its width by clicking in the first box [the height in the second box will change automatically so it will maintain its ratio]. If your image is currently 800 pixels wide, trying changing it to 350 pixels wide. Then put 10 in both horizontal and vertical boxes [that's the amount of white space in pixels terms between the end of the text and the image]. Click on Alignment, and use the drop down menu to set the image left or right.

Click Update. You can give the image a title and/or description if you want to, but you don't have to! and then OK.

NB: Remember to click save at the foot of the section or your changes will not take effect. 

2] A Photo Album Slideshow with thumbnails underneath
Once you have added images to the relevant Photo Album in your Site Images page,  you can go to any page and add a new Photo Gallery section and choose this specific album to be viewed from this page.

Select "Album View" or Slideshow View".

"Album View" will display the images as thumbnails, whilst "Slideshow View" will display them as a slideshow with the thumbnails underneath. Experiment!

This section can be added by itself or as a section on a page containing other content. If you go into "Edit Album Information" you can give each image a title and description, and you can move the order in which each image appears, and if you go to "Upload Photos", you can upload more images and they will automatically appear in the album/slideshow.

3] Flash Slideshows
You can choose a slideshow section and can then choose which album you want to play, the format, and the size of images to play. Because this is a basic Flash feature, if you add more images to the album that is playing the slideshow, or if you change the format of the slideshow, you will need to delete the section and remake it.

Code If you want to embed some specific html code, or code to embed from another web site, choose a code section, click edit and then paste the code in. [If you are you more advanced - or brave! - you can also use the html feature in the html3 section, but we'd recommend the basic code section module.]

Contact2 This is a pre-created enquiry form with built in anti-spam feature. It prompts users to insert name, organisation [if applicable], address, tel, email and nature of enquiry. You can click on edit section to give the form a name and to insert the email address you want completed forms to be delivered to.

Headers, Footers, changes to site appearance etc.
Although not a section, it is the kind of section you might look for! If you want to change your header, your footer or the overall look of your web site, please contact us. We'll either show you what to do, or will do it for you.

Site Statistics
To see how often your site has been accessed and all sorts of other interesting data such as when, by whom and for how long. Sign into your site, click on Control Panel and then Statistics, and then click on the month you want to know about.