OpenCMS and the MSASS
Website
OpenCMS and the MSASS
Website
A Note on Terminology
Locking a file for editing:
 No lock
NOT locked


You have write/edit access

Someone else has write
access
What does a CMS do?

Separation of tasks
•
•
•
Editor can only update/create pages
Project Managers can update/create/publish
pages
Pages are not live until they are published.
Separation of downloads, images, PDFs etc
•
•
•
Gallery Management organizes non-html parts
Galleries centralize the upload and download
Gives control of these items to the Gallery owner
Need to Know

What you need to know:
•
•
•
•
•
Don’t use Mozilla or Chrome to edit pages.
Nothing is live until it is published.
You can only work on pages in your Project.
Basic toolbar items of MS Office for the Editor.
Permissions are set by the file system (so: PMs).
What you don’t need to know:
•
HTML (but the more you know the better).
Entering the System

Logging into the system
•
https://msass.cwru.edu/opencms/open
cms/system/login
•
In the login dialog box enter
your username and
password.
Logging in automatically
opens a new browser
window and closes the old
one (you will be prompted to
confirm this
action).
•
Basic Screen
Basic Screen (Numbered)
7
4
5
6
8
9
14
3
2
1
10
11
13
12
15
16
Basic Screen – Numbered
Explanation (1-6)

The Primary Toolbar (1-6)
1.
2.
3.
Projects: your editable sections of the web site
Publish: how you export to the live web
View: switches Explorer or Administration
–
–
4.
5.
6.
Explorer lets you edit pages
Administration give you access to galleries
Reload: refreshes the current page or view
Preferences: User based preferences
(password)
Exit: Logout button
Basic Screen – Numbered
Explanation (7-8)

The File Explorer (7)
•
•
Shows file structure of web site
Grayed out items are not in your project
The Secondary Toolbar (8) – left to right
•
•
•
•
•
Back: returns to previous screen
Up: Go up to the folder containing current folder
Search: Searches for files within the web site
New: Create a new folder, page, etc.
Location: Specific location of current folder
Basic Screen – Numbered
Explanation (9-13)

Main Operation Window (9-13)
1.
Edit Columns (3):
–
–
–
2.
3.
4.
5.
Item Icon – used to edit all parts of item
Lock – used to denote if a current item is currently
in edit mode by you or someone else
Flag – Notification of unpublished changes
File Name of item – used to open / view item
Title of item – used to further qualify item
Type of item – textual descriptor of item type
Date Changed – last modified date
Basic Screen – Numbered
Explanation (14-16)

Main Operation Window (14-16)
User ID: Notification of current user
2. Group ID: Notification of current group
1.
–
–
3.
Important if you are in more than one Project
Different groups have different right
Security and Trust:
–
–
All communication on OpenCMS is secure
Recommended client setup of adding
https://msass.case.edu to Trusted Site in IE

OpenCMS Explanation by
Task
Basic Tasks (Everyone)
•
•
•
Creating a new page
Editing a page
Other properties of a page
Gallery Based Tasks
•
•
Adding Items to a Gallery (PMs only)
Using items in a Gallery (Everyone)
Advanced Tasks
•
•
Changing Permissions
Workflow
Creating a New Page – Part 1
of 3
1.
Make sure you are in “Explorer” view
1.
Make sure you are in your Project
1.
Make sure you are in the right folder
•
•
Note: Your folder may be different
than what is shown
Creating a New Page – Part 2
of 3
1.
Click on the “New” button
1.
Select “Page” to create a web page or
“Folder” to create a new sub-folder. For
the most part you shouldn’t use any
other option here. Then click Continue
Creating a New Page – Part 3
of 3
1.
Fill out the Form
1.
Make sure
the
template is yours
1.
Uncheck this box
next options
will disappear
1.
Click Finish
the
Editing a Page – Part 1 of 4
1.
Make sure you are in “Explorer” view
1.
Make sure you are in your Project
1.
Make sure you are in the right folder
•
•
Note: Your folder may be different
than what is shown
here
Editing a Page – Part 2 of 4

1.
Do the following if the page is NOT locked:
LEFT Click on the Page Icon
1.
Click on “Lock” in the menu that pops up.
The page will then have your
lock
•
•
will
will
else.
or
Note: everyone else's locks
appear as and your lock
appear this way to everyone
Editing a Page – Part 3 of 4
1.
2.
LEFT Click on the Page Icon
Click on “Edit page” in the menu that pops
up.
•
the
•
Note: Once you
have a page locked
menu will give you a lot
more options. For instance
you can now delete the
page or change the file
permissions.
Editing a Page – Part 4 of 4
This area is the content area for your page;
add all the content you want. You can also
change the title and template above. The
Editor menu allows you to switch into source
Code. The other toolbars should be intuitive.
When you are done click Save and Exit (
)
Other Properties of a Page –
Part 1 of 2




To the Left:
Once you have locked a
page the edit menu will
have many more
available options.
To the Right:
Boxed = Common
Functions.
 Circled = Advanced
Tasks.
 Star = Useful Functions.

Other Properties of a Page –
Part 1 of 2
Useful Functions:
•
Show File System Links
–
–
•
Untested function, but should do as promised.
Use the “Back” button to get out of this view.
Properties
–
–
–
This is where the keywords and descriptions
are.
Additional page specific tags for various
templates that are also here.
If you want a page to only appear in
OpenCMS then you can set it here (set
export=false).
Adding Items to a Gallery –
Part 1 of 5
1.
Switch to Administration view (and your
project)
1.
If you have a Gallery you should see one of
the numbered items (don’t worry about the
rest):
1
1.
2
3
Click on the Gallery you wish to add an
item to.
Adding Items to a Gallery –
Part 2 of 5
1.
Click on the name of your Gallery.
1.
Click on the upload button
Adding Items to a Gallery –
Part 3 of 5
1.
The Upload file dialog box will appear
click “Browse” to find your file, and
double click it or click “Open” in the
Choose file dialog box.
Adding Items to a Gallery –
Part 5 of 5
1.
2.
If you are prompted to overwrite (as in
you are updating an existing file) then
click yes.
You should then be returned to the
listing of files in your gallery. You
should also see the file you just
uploaded now listed. It will not be
available until you publish the Gallery.
Using Items in a Gallery – Part
1 of 2
1.
2.
Open a web page for editing (see
previous instructions).
Click on the Gallery icon you would like
to use:
•
•
•
Image
Download
Link
Using Items in a Gallery – Part
2 of 2
1.
2.
If you are using Download or Link
Galleries then select the text you would
like to link to that resource (in your page).
Select Your Gallery. Find the resource you
would like to use and double click it (for
images: click and drag it into the page).
Then close the Gallery Window.
Thank you.