MEdTech Central Login

Communities

Deactivate a Community
Create a Community
Manage Community
Editing an announcement
Deleting an announcement
Create a new discussion forum
Discussions
Creating a new post
Replying to a post
Editing a post
Editing a reply
Document Sharing
Creating a folder
Uploading a file
Uploading a revised file
Accessing an older version of a file
Moving a file
Linking to a file in a Document Sharing folder
Adding an event
Editing an event
Deleting an event
Editing a gallery
Editing a photo
Deleting a photo
Creating a gallery
Adding a photo
Manage Pages
Promote a member to an administrator
Demote an administrator
Remove or Ban an Administrator
Add a Member to a Community
Remove or Ban a Member from a Community
Linking to a file in a Document Sharing folder
Deleting a Page
Editing an image
Inserting an image
Linking to a file or web page
Creating a new page
Moving a page
Hiding and Showing a Page
Linking within a page
Adding a Poll/Vote/Survey

Deactivate a Community

To deactivate a community:

1.   In the Manage Community module, click the Deactivate tab.

2.   Read and tick the confirmation checkbox.

3.   Click Deactivate Now.
Create a Community
To create a community:
1. Click Create a Community. Select a category for your community.
  
  Categories allow users to browse communities based on interests. Official communities are affiliated with the School of Medicine, such as communities for courses and committees.
2. Specify the community details:
  
  •   In the Community Name field, enter the community name.
  •   (Optional) In the Community Keywords field, enter space-delimited keywords.
  
  The Community Keywords are used by the search feature to locate communities.
  
  •   (Optional) In the Community Description field, enter a description.
  
  The Community Description appears when someone locates the community using search or browse.
  
  •   In the Community Shortname field, enter a community “shortname”.
  
  The Community Shortname identifies the community in the URL. The shortname must be lower-case, less than 20 characters, and can contain letters, numbers, underscores, and periods.
  Ex. “anes_internal” for Anesthesiology Internal
  You can preview your URL below the help note.
  
  •    (Optional) In the Contact E-Mail field, enter a contact e-mail for the community, if one exists.
3. Select the modules you want to make available by ticking the corresponding checkboxes.
  
  The Announcements module allows you to post announcements to your community.
  The Discussions module allows you to host discussions through a web-based discussion forum.
  The Document Sharing module allows you to upload and share documents and other files within your community.
  The Events module allows you to post events to your community. They will be accessible through iCalendar ics files or viewable in the community.
  The Galleries module allows you to add photo galleries and images to your community.
  The Polling module allows you to create polls, votes, and surveys for ad hoc open community polling or individual community member votes.
4. Select the notifications that you want to make available by ticking the corresponding checkboxes.
  
  Note: Community members have the option to choose which of these notifications they receive.
5. Choose the access permissions and registration options by selecting the corresponding radio buttons.
  
  Only users signed into MEdTech Central can access a protected community. Anyone in the world can have read-only access to a public community.
  
  An open community allows anyone in the Medical School to access the community without registering.
  
  Open registration allows anyone in the Medical School to become a member of the community.
  
  Group registration allows only those of the selected Groups to become a member of the community: Student, Alumni, Faculty, Resident, Staff, and Medtech.
  
  Community registration allows only those the selected Communities to become a member of the community.
  
  A private community allows only those invited by administrators to become a member of the community.
6. Click Create.
Manage Community

Use the Manage Community module to view website statistics, and edit community details, notifications, and permissions.

Statistics
The Statistics tab allows you to view general statistics such as community quota usage and member counts.

Details
The Details tab allows you to edit community details such as the community name, description, keywords, contact information, and external website, as described in “Create a Community”.

Modules
The Modules tab allows you to edit the available community modules. Tick the checkbox next to all the modules that you want to make available in your community.

Notifications
The notifications tab allows you to select email notifications for the community. Tick the checkbox next to the notifications you want to enable. Community member can choose which of the notifications they receive.

Permissions
The Permissions tab allows you to edit the permissions and accessibility of the group, as described in “Create a Community”.

Deactivate
You can deactivate a community if it is no longer in use. Deactivating a community will render all of the content (pages, files, images, etc.) inaccessible.
Editing an announcement
To edit an announcement:
1. Go to the Announcements page and next to the announcement you want to edit, click edit.
2. Edit the title, content, and release options as needed.
3. Click Save.
Deleting an announcement
To delete an announcement:
1. Go to the Announcements page and next to the announcement you want to edit, click delete.
2. Confirm that you want the delete the announcement.
3. Click Yes.
Create a new discussion forum
To create a new forum:
1. Go to the Discussions page and click Add Discussion Forum.
2. In the Forum Title field, enter a forum title.
3. Tick the checkbox next to the permissions you want to give Community Members.
  
  Administrators have permission to view the forum, write new posts, and reply to posts. By default, Community Members also have all these permissions. Community members cannot create new forums.
  
  In the above example, members are allowed to view the forum and reply to forum posts made by administrators, but they are not allowed to create posts of their own.
4. (Optional) To time-release the forum, use the calendar and clock to specify a Release Start date and time and a Release Finish date and time. By default, the forum is released immediately. Only release finish very time sensitive forums since they are otherwise a useful archive for other members.
5. Click Save.
Discussions
Use the Discussions Page to create a discussion forum. There are three levels to the discussion:
- Discussion root: lists all the available forums
- Forum root: lists all the posts within the specific forum
- Post root: lists the first post and all replies to that post
Creating a new post
To create a new post:
1. Choose a forum for your discussion. Click on the name of the selected forum to get to the forum root. For example, "How is the weather?" best belongs in "General Discussions" where as "I can't access my course website" best belongs in "Support". Click on the name of the selected forum to get to the forum root.
2. Click New Post.
3. In the Post Title field, enter a title for your post.
4. In the Post Body field, enter your post content.
5. (Optional) To time-release the discussion, use the calendar and clock to specify a Release Start date and time and a Release Finish date and time. By default, the post is released immediately. Only specify a Release Finish for very time sensitive posts since they are otherwise a useful archive for other members.
6. Click Save.
Replying to a post
To reply to an existing post:
1. Click on the post and click Reply To Post.
2. In the text area, enter your reply.
3. Click Save.
You can edit or delete both your posts and your replies.
Editing a post
To edit a post:
1. Click on the post and click edit.
2. Edit the post title and content as needed.
3. (Optional) To time-release the post, use the calendar and clock to specify a Release Start date and time and a Release Finish date and time. By default, the post is released immediately. Only specify a Release Finish for very time sensitive posts since they are otherwise a useful archive for other members.
4. Click Save.
Editing a reply
To edit a reply:
1. To the right of the reply, click edit.
2. Edit the reply content.
3. Click Save.
Document Sharing

Use the Document Sharing page to upload and share files with the community. You can organize content in various folders, upload revised files, and set permissions for both folders and individual files.
Creating a folder
In order to be able to share files, you must create one or more folders.

To create a folder:
1. In the Folder Title field, enter a folder title.
2. In the Folder Description field, enter a description of the folder.
3. Choose a folder icon.
4. Tick the checkbox next to the permissions you want to give members. Administrators have permission to view the gallery, upload photos, and comment. By default, Community Members also have these permissions. Only administrators can create new galleries.
  
  In the above example, community members are allowed to browse the folder and comment on files, but they are not allowed to upload files of their own.
5. Tick the checkbox next to the notifications you want to enable.
6. (Optional) To time-release the folder, use the calendar and clock to specify a Release Start date and time and a Release Finish date and time.
7. Click Save.
Uploading a file
To upload a file:
1. Go to the Document Sharing Page. This page displays all the document folders in the community.
2. Click the Upload link to the right of the folder you want to upload to. Or, click on the folder name and then click Upload File.
3. To the right of the Select Local File field, click Browse. Locate the file on your local drive and click Open.
4. In the File Title field, enter a title for the file.
5. (Optional) In the File Description field enter a description of the file. The file description is helpful for visitors using a screen reader to use the site.
6. In the Access Method field select the method used to access the file: download or view in browser.
7. In File Permissions, tick the checkbox to allow other community members to upload a revised version of the file. When a revised file version is uploaded, the older version of the file is still saved and accessible via the file page.
8. (Optional) To time-release the file, use the calendar and clock to specify a Release Start date and time and a Release Finish date and time.
9. Click Upload.
Uploading a revised file
To upload a revised file:
1. Go to the Document Sharing Page. This page displays all the document folders in the community.
2. Click on the folder that contains the file.
3. Click on the file title.
4. On the file page, click Upload Revised File.
5. In the New File Version field, click Browse. Locate the file on your local drive and click Open.
6. Click Upload.
Older versions of the file are still stored with a version tag in the filename. Ex. archive.zip (v1)
Accessing an older version of a file
To access an older version of a file:
1. Go to the Document Sharing page. Click on the folder containing the file and click on the file name.
2. In the Older Versions section, click the file name of the previous version you want to download.
Moving a file
To move a file:
1. Go to the Document Sharing Page. This page displays all the document folders in the community.
2. Click on the folder that contains the file.
3. Click on the file title.
4. On the file page, click Move File.
5. From the drop-down list, select the new file location.
6. Click Yes.
Linking to a file in a Document Sharing folder
To link to a file stored in a Document Sharing folder:
1. On the file page, right-click (or command + click) the filename and select Copy Link Location.
2. In the Manage Pages module, click on the page that will contain the link.
3. Highlight the text you want to link and click Insert/edit link.
4. In the Link URL field, paste the link location that you copied in Step 1.
5. Click Insert.
Adding an event
Use the Events page to notify community members of upcoming activities. The most recent events are displayed on the home page as well as on the Events page. Create and manage your events directly through the Events page.

To add an event:
1. Go to the Events page. Click Add Event.
2. In the Event Title field, enter the title of the event.
3. (Optional) In the Event Location field, enter a location for the event.
4. Use the calendar and clock to specify the Event Start and Event Finish date and time.
5. (Optional) In the Event Details/Description field, enter additional information about the event.
6. Use the calendar and clock to specify a Release Start date and time and (optional) a Release Finish date and time.
7. Click Save.
Editing an event
To edit an event:
1. Go to the Events page.
2. Next to the event you want to edit, click edit.
3. Edit the event details as needed.
4. Click Save.
Deleting an event
1. Go to the Events page and next to the event you want to edit, click delete.
2. Confirm that you want the delete the event.
3. Click Yes.
Editing a gallery
To edit a gallery:
1. On the Galleries page, below the gallery, click edit.
2. Edit the Details, Permissions, Notifications, and Time Release options as needed.
3. (Optional) From the Gallery Thumbnail drop-down list, select a thumbnail for the gallery.
4. Click Save.
Editing a photo
To edit a photo:
1. In the gallery, below the image, click edit.
2. Edit the photo details and time-release options as needed.
3. Click Save.
Deleting a photo
To delete a photo:
1. In the gallery, below the image, click delete.
2. Confirm your selection and at the dialog box, click Yes.
Creating a gallery
Use the galleries page to add pictures and photos to your community.

To add a gallery:
1. Go to the Galleries page and click Add Photo Gallery.
2. In the Gallery Title field, enter a gallery title.
3. (Optional) In the Gallery Description field, enter a description of the gallery.
4. Tick the checkbox next to permissions you want to give members. Administrators have permission to view the gallery, upload photos, and comment. By default, Community Members also have these permissions. Only administrators can create new galleries.
  
  In the above example, community members are allowed to view the gallery and comment on the photos, but they are not allowed to upload photos of their own.
5. Tick the checkboxes of the notifications you want to allow.
6. (Optional) To time-release the gallery, use the calendar and clock to specify a Release Start date and time and a Release Finish date and time. By default, the gallery is released immediately. Only specify a Release Finish for very time sensitive galleries since they are otherwise a useful archive for other members.
7. Click Save.
Adding a photo
To add a photo:
1. Go to the Galleries page and click on the gallery.
2. Click Upload Photo.
3. In the Select Local Photo field, click Browse. Locate the file on your local drive and click Open. Note: The maximum file size is 2 MB.
4. In the Photo Title field, enter a photo title.
5. (Optional) In the Photo Description field, enter a description of the photo.
6. (Optional) To time-release the photo, use the calendar and clock to specify a Release Start date and time and a Release Finish date and time. By default, the photo is released immediately. Only specify a Release Finish for very time sensitive photos since they are otherwise a useful archive for other members.
7. Click Increase Photo Selections to add more photos and repeat steps 3-6 for each photo.
8. Click Upload.
Manage Pages

Use the Manage Pages module to add pages to your community. Pages appear in the left hand menu of the community and each page type serves a different function.
Promote a member to an administrator
Administrators are allowed to view and edit all community features, including details, content, and membership.

To promote a member to admin:
1. In the community Admin Centre pane, click Manage Members.
2. Tick the checkbox next to the members you want to promote.
3. From the Select Member Action drop-down list, select Promote to administrator.
Demote an administrator
To demote an admin:
1. In the community Admin Centre pane, click Manage Members. Click the Administrators tab.
2. Tick the checkbox next to the administrators you want to demote.
3. From the Select Member Action drop-down list, select Demote to member.
Remove or Ban an Administrator
To remove or ban an admin:
1. In the community Admin Centre pane, click Manage Members. Click the Administrators tab.
2. Tick the checkbox next to the administrators you want to remove/ban.
3. From the Select Member Action drop-down list, select Remove administrators or Deactivate/ban administrators.
  
  An administrator who is “removed” can still rejoin the community as a member, provided he or she has the appropriate permissions (group, community, etc.). An administrator who is banned is prohibited from rejoining the community.
Add a Member to a Community

To add a member:

1.   In the community Admin Centre pane, click Manage Members.

2.   Go to the Add Members tab.

3.   In the People List, select the name of the person you want to add and click Add.

Control/Command + click to select multiple members.

Note: If the person's name is not in the list, it may be because you have limited registration to a specific group and they may not be a member of that group. Go to Manage Community > Permissions to adjust the group registration options. If your Community is not restricted to a certain group, or if the person you would like to add is part of a group that is allowed to register, this means that they may not be in the system. If this is the case, contact medtech@queensu.ca.

4.   Review and confirm the People To Add list and click Proceed.
Remove or Ban a Member from a Community
To remove or ban a member:
1. In the community Admin Centre pane, click Manage Members.
2. Tick the checkbox next to the members you want to remove/ban.
3. From the Select Member Action drop-down list, select Remove members or Deactivate/ban members.
  
  A member who is “removed” is still able to rejoin the community provided he or she has the appropriate permissions (group, community, etc.). A member who is “banned” or “deactivated” is prohibited from joining the community.
Linking to a file in a Document Sharing folder
To link to a file stored in a Document Sharing folder:
1. On the file page, right-click (or command + click) the filename and select Copy Link Location.
2. In the Manage Pages module, click on the page that will contain the link.
3. Highlight the text you want to link and click Insert/edit link.
4. In the Link URL field, paste the link location that you copied in Step 1.
5. Click Insert.
Deleting a Page
To delete a page:
1. In the Community Pages list, next to the page title, select the radio button. You can only select one page at a time.
2. At the bottom of the list, click Delete Selected.
3. Confirm that it is the page that you want to delete and click Delete Selected.
Editing an image
To edit an image:
1. Select the image and click the Insert/edit image icon.
2. Edit fields as needed.
3. Click Update.
To modify image spacing/borders:
1. Select the image and click the Insert/edit image icon or select and right-click the image and choose Image Properties. Click the Appearance tab. Use the image at the right to preview the settings.
2. In the Vertical space and Horizontal space fields, enter the amount of space between your image and the surrounding text (5 pixels recommended).
  
  Spacing between text and images, as shown in the image on the right, makes content easier to read and produces a more professional look.
3. To create a border, in the Border field, enter a border size (in pixels).
4. At the Insert/edit image dialog box, click Insert/Update.
Inserting an image
To insert an image:
1. Click the Insert/edit image icon.
2. In the Image URL field, enter the URL of the image.
  
  To ensure that the images you add are always available, it is recommended that you upload them to a hidden gallery page in your community. To get the image URL, right-click (command + click) on the image and select Copy Image Location, then paste into the Image URL field.
3. Enter an image description.
  
  The image description is displayed when the image is not available and is also helpful for those using a screen reader to use your community.
4. Enter an image title.
  
  The image title appears on mouse-over of the image.
5. Click Insert.
Linking to a file or web page
Insert/edit link creates a link to a website, file, or page anchor.

Insert/edit link creates a link to a website, file, or page anchor.

To link to a file or a webpage:
1. Highlight the text you want to link and click the Insert/edit link icon.
2. In the Link URL field, enter the URL of the file.
  
  To ensure that the files you add are always available, it is recommended that you upload them to a hidden Documents Sharing page. To get the file URL, right click on the file and select Copy Link Location and paste into the Link URL field.
3. Click Insert.
  
  Community visitors are now able to download the file or view the website by clicking on the link.
Creating a new page
To create a new page:
1. In the Admin Centre, go to the Manage Pages module. Click Add New Page.
2. From the Page Type drop-down list, select a page type:
  - Default Content
  - Announcements
  - Discussions
  - Galleries
  - Document Sharing
  - Events
  - External URL.
3. In the Page Parent field, use the drop-down list to specify a page parent.
  
  Page Parent specifies how the page fits in with the overall hierarchy of the community. Pages with no parent are top-level pages that appear in the main menu of the home page. All other pages appear in the sub-menu of the parent page.
  In the Menu Title field, enter a menu title.
  
  Menu Title specifies the name of the page as it appears in the menu. The menu title should be short, but informative, and is limited to 35 characters and spaces.
  (Optional) In the Page Title field, enter a page title.
  
  Page Title specifies the full name of the page, as it appears in the page body. The page title can be longer and more descriptive than the menu title. For example, a page listed as “Resources” in the menu can be titled “Learning Resources” in the body.
4. Fill in the page content:
  - For a Default Content page, in the Page Content box use the rich-text editor to enter the content that you want to display on your webpage. For more information, see “Default Content”.
  - For Announcements, Discussion, Galleries, Document Sharing, Polling, and Events pages, in the Top of Page Content box, fill in any information you want to appear at the top of the page.
  - For an External URL page only, specify the Destination URL. Ex. http://www.queensu.ca
5. Use the Page Visibility drop-down list to Show or Hide the page.
  
  Hiding a page is useful if you are editing, or if you would like to create a page that does not appear in the community menu. Pages that are not visible are still accessible via the URL and the Manage Pages module.
6. Click Save.
The new page now appears in the sub-menu of the parent page. All page additions and edits are effective immediately.
Moving a page
To move a page:
1. In the Community Pages list, click on the page title. The previously entered page content is displayed.
2. From the Page Position drop-down list, select a new page position.
3. Click Save.
Hiding and Showing a Page
To hide/show a page:
1. In the Community Pages list, click on the page title. The previously entered page content is displayed.
2. From the Page Visibility drop-down list, select Hide or Show. A hidden page appears gray in the Community Pages directory.
3. Click Save.
Linking within a page
Insert/edit anchor creates a link destination within the current page.

Insert/edit link creates a link to a website, file, or page anchor.

This function is helpful when the page content is much longer than the browser window.

To link within a page:
1. Place an anchor at the page position you want to link by clicking the Insert/edit anchor icon.
2. Name the anchor and click Insert.
3. Highlight the text you want to link and click the Insert/edit link icon.
4. From the Anchors drop-down list, select the name of the anchor you want to link.
5. Click Insert.
When visitors click the link, the page scrolls up or down to the anchored position.
Adding a Poll/Vote/Survey
Use the polling page pose questions in the form of a poll, a vote, or a survey. Polls are created directly through the Polling page.
1. Go to the Polling page. Click Add Poll, Add Vote, or Add Survey.
2. In the Title field, enter a title.
3. (Optional) In the Description field, enter a description of the poll/vote/survey.
4. In the Allow Multiple Votes field, choose Yes or No. Allowing multiple votes allows the members to vote more than once.
5. In the Question field, enter the poll/vote/survey question.
6. If you want the voter to choose more than one response, tick the Multiple Responses checkbox. Enter the range of responses the voter must choose. For example, if you enter 3 To 5 Responses Allowed, the voter must choose a minimum of 3 responses and a maximum of 5.
7. In the Responses field, enter a response. Click the “+” icon to add the response. Repeat for all responses. To remove a response, click the “–” icon to the right of the option. Reorder responses by dragging and dropping.
8. Tick the checkboxes in Poll Permissions to specify which groups can view the poll, vote in the poll, view the results, and view post-vote results. If you want to restrict voting to certain community members only, select their name from the Available Community Members list and click Add.
9. If you want to notify eligible voters that they can vote in the poll, tick the Notify Eligible Voters checkbox.
10. (Optional) To time-release the file, use the calendar and clock to specify a Release Start date and time and a Release Finish date and time. By default the poll is released immediately.
11. Select an After Saving option: Add Another Question, Create A New Poll, or Return To Polls Index. Click Proceed.
  - Choose Add Another Question to add another question to the poll.
  - Choose Create A New Poll to create a new poll.
  - Choose Return To Polls Index if you have completed all polls.

Communities

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