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Tutorial: Updating Non-Article Content

Damon
Staff / Moderator

Mar 15, 2006, 5:19 PM

Post #1 of 3 (4571 views)
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Tutorial: Updating Non-Article Content	Can't Post

Hi,

I posted these steps in another thread but I thought it would be helpful to post again as a seperate tutorial here.

So, here is the steps to use Article Manager to update other sections of your site (such as advertisement, link list, contact us sections, events, etc). Make backups before making changes so you can restore your current setup if needed.

Quick Overview:
1. Create new stripped down article template
2. Create new hidden category
3. Add articles in the hidden category
4. Include hidden article content using Server Side Includes
5. Repeat process to include additional content

By making use of hidden category and hidden articles, you can use Article Manager to update any content on your site.
In this example I will replace the top link list with the an editable link list by adding the links into a hidden article.

1. Create new stripped down article template
Copy the following code and save it as include.html in your article template directory (templates/article/include.html)

$art_content$





Even though the img templatecells are not used, empty img templatecells need to be on the include.html template page or Article Manager will return an error message indicating they are missing and required.

2. Create new hidden category
In the category editor, create a new category called Includes. Check the Hide Category check box so the category and all articles published within the category will be hidden. They will still be published but nothing will be linked to them.

In the Templates section of the Category Editor page, choose article/include.html from the Article Pages dropdown list.

3. Add articles in the hidden category
Add an article using the hidden "Include" category.
Example:
Title: Top Link List
Category: Includes
Status: Visible
Article Type: Full Article
Content: Linkname | Linkname | Linkname | Linkname | Linkname

The content is the only part of the article that will be published then included in other sections of your site.
After saving the article, go to the Article Editor and click the article to edit. In the browser URL it will indicate the article number.
For example, the URL http://www.yoursite.com/cgi-bin/artman/exec/admin.cgi?art_edit=32 shows that the article number is 32. The next step requires adding the article number into the Server Side Include.

4. Include hidden article content using Server Side Includes

Open the following templates:
/templates/article/default.html
/templates/index/default.html
/templates/search/advanced_search.html
/templates/search/search_results.html

In each of the templates, replace this:

<a href="#">Linkname</a> |
<a href="#">Linkname</a> |
<a href="#">Linkname</a> |
<a href="#">Linkname</a> |
<a href="#">Linkname</a> <br><br>

With this:



Upload the updated templates back to your site. Login to Article Manager and in the Setup Options, click the Publish All button to re-publish the content with the new includes.

5. Repeat process to include additional content
To add/edit content in other areas of your site, you just need to create a new article in the Hidden Category, then add it to your templates using a SSI.

I hope this helps. If any of the steps are note clear or you have any questions, let me know and I would be happy to provide more details.

Cheers
Damon Edis
interactivetools.com

osluk
User

Jun 9, 2006, 4:51 AM

Post #2 of 3 (3350 views)
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Re: [Damon] Tutorial: Updating Non-Article Content [In reply to]	Can't Post

I want to use this.

Can you just clarify where you are linking the new empty template with these articles?

Cheers Chris
_______________________
Chris from Optima
"please always add logical keywords to help find items"

Optima Solutions Limited
http://www.osl.net
"technology for business"
Nominet member for .UK names and European hosting

MikeB
Staff / Moderator

Jun 10, 2006, 3:50 PM

Post #3 of 3 (3334 views)
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Re: [osluk] Tutorial: Updating Non-Article Content [In reply to]	Can't Post

Hi Chris,

Thanks for the post! Smile

In Step 1 you've made a new, stripped down article template that will output just the content of the articles themselves. You'll actually reference this new template in Step 2 of Damon's post when you create your new hidden category.

You'll want to find the section of the "Category Editor" page that has the heading "Templates" and you'll want to set the "Article Pages" dropdown menu to use your new article template which Damon has called "include.html".

I hope this helps and if you have any other questions feel free to let me know! Smile

Cheers,
Mike Briggs - Product Specialist
support@interactivetools.com

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