Customizing the ARCH
From CTSKnowledgeBase
| Table of contents |
Introduction
One of the key elements of the Arch is YOUR ability to customize it to fit your needs. It
allows you to add, move, and remove layout elements to develop an interface right for
you.
To better understand how you can customize this layout, you first need to know how
information is displayed within the Arch. There are three main layout elements within
the Arch: channels (1), columns (2), and tabs (3).
To add any of these three elements, you begin by clicking on the Properties link in the
upper right corner of the web page. The user preference screen shows a representation of your
version of the Arch in the bottom portion of the page. (NOTE: You need to click the 'Save
Changes' link before the 'Exit Properties' to save changes you make to your layout.)
Tabs
To add a new tab to your layout, simply click on the New Tab link in the 'User Preferences
Actions' area. The area above the actions area will change to show the tab creation process.
The first step is to click on the crosshairs in the location that you would like the tab created.
Once the tab is created, you are able to change the name of the tab by typing in the text box
that appears on the new tab and then clicking on the gray arrow next to the text box. (Options
are also shown to move or remove the tab.)
Columns
Similarly to adding a new tab, a new column can be added by clicking on the New
Column link in the 'User Preferences Actions' area. Once you have clicked on that link, you
will need to click on the expanding box icon to specify where you would like the column placed.
Columns can be moved by clicking on the arrows at the top of the box representing the channel.
Icons are alse provided to allow you to delete, expand, shrink and auto-resize the columns.
Channels
Channels are the main chunks of content within the Arch. They can be added to any spot
within a column on any tab by clicking on the Add Content link in the 'User Preferences
Actions' area. Once the link has been clicked, you will be shown a list
of categories to choose from to locate the desired channel. If you are unsure of which
category the desired channel is located in, you can choose the Expand option in the upper
right portion of the category selection area. (There
is a channel called Channel Listing in the Information category. This channel
contains a list of channels available to you, descriptions of those channels, and the
categories that those channels are listed in.) Once you have chosen a category, the list will
expand to show you channels within that category. Clicking on one of those channels will expand
it to show a brief description of the channel and an option to 'Subscribe to this channel'.
Once you have subscribed to the channel, you will be presented a screen to choose the location
of the channel. Click on the expanding box icon to specify where you would like the channel.
Once the channel has been added, it can be moved by clicking the arrow buttons or
removed by clicking the X button on the channel representation.
Example
The following is a list of steps that would be necessary to add a tab with two columns,
one containing the 'Campus Discussion Board' channel and the other containing the
'Student Academic Profile' channel (or the 'Faculty Academic Information' channel if
you are a faculty member looking for WebAdvisor access) and the 'Dining Menu'
channel.
1. Once logged in to the Arch, click on the 'Properties' link in the upper right
corner.
2. Click on the 'New Tab' link in the 'User Preferences Actions' area.
3. Choose a location for the tab, provide a name, and click arrow button next to the name.
4. You should now be looking at the tab you added in your representation. Click the
'New Column' link and then click on the icon to specify the location of the column.
(Repeat this step to add a second column.)
5. Click on the 'Add Content' link. Choose the category
'News/Information', choose the Discussion Board' channel, and then click on the
'Subscribe to this channel' link. Click on the icon in the left column to add this
channel in that location.
6. Click on the 'Add Content' link. Choose the category
'News/Information', choose the 'Student Academic Profile' channel, and then click on the
'Subscribe to this channel' link. Click on the icon in the right column to add this
channel in that location.
7. Repeat the steps in #6, but choose 'Dining Menu' from the 'Information' category
this time and place it below the 'Student Academic Profile'.
8. Click on the 'Save Changes' link and then the 'Exit Properties' link in the upper right
corner and enjoy your new channels.
