The Links Library
The Links Library is used to store 'collections' of external links, called Categories. A category can be placed on an editorial page, providing a quick and convenient way to add a collection of links to a page. More importantly, by storing your external links in Categories you make it much simpler to update them whenever a link changes. The alternative - manually adding external links to your web page - will create a lot of extra work, if the links need to be changed.
On the Links Library page you can perform a variety of actions, as listed below.
- Search for links - Locate the specific links
- Manage Categories - Add new Categories and modify old ones.
- Manage links - Add new links or modify existing ones
Each of these make use of the links library tree and the link editing table beneath the tree. In addition to these bad links are reported on daily with a report accessible from the desktops.
Search for links
The links search box appear at the top links library tree. Enter text you want to search for. The result auto populate a drop down list which you can then select from to locate the relevant links in the tree . The resulting link is also displayed in a table at the foot of the tree allowing you to click directly through to the edit link options, or the delete options.
Manage Categories
Link are organised into categories, the first section of managing deals with the categories.
- To Add a new category right click on the tree at the relevant location and select the 'Add a category' option
- Categories can exist on two levels; category and sub category.
- The name of the new category can be entered on creation and it can be renamed later via the right click 'rename' option.
- Categories can be reordered by dragging and dropping them in the tree.
- Categories can be deleted again via the right click menu but only if they have no links inside them
Manage links
The links in any given category appear in the tree, clicking on them allows you to edit each one in the table below the tree.
- Links can be added by right clicking on the tree in the relevant folder and selecting 'Add a link' alternatively with a category selected there's an Add another link option in the table at the bottom . For each link the fields are as follows
- Link display name - is the title displayed for the new link
- Link URL - is the link address itself and it must include the leading https or http to be valid
- Check boxes - 'open in new window' this manages the behaviour of the link after clicking, the options are for it to replace the content of the current window or to produce a new one. The web convention is generally that if you have control over the content in the link it should replace the content of the window but if the link is external it shouldn't. 'Show on link page' governs whether the specific link should be visible in any links page listing.
- Link description optional describes the link, it is also an option to display these descriptions in links listings.
- Links can be edited by finding them in the tree via the search and then editing them in the table once selected.
- Links can be moved from category to category by dragging and dropping them in the tree or wthin a category by dragging and dropping them in the table.
- Links can be deleted again via the right click menu and also in the links table