New Features of the Web Tool

From Career Pathways Tutorial

Revision as of 06:02, 16 April 2009

View our online Tutorials for step-by-step instructions on all Web Tool features.

Due to cross-browser issues, please use the latest version of FireFox or Internet Explorer 7 when working in the Career Pathways Roadmap Web Tool: http://oregon.ctepathways.org

Version 3.0 :: Major Web Tool Upgrades (4/15/2009)

The Web Tool received major feature upgrades Wednesday, April 15, 2009.

Features and improvements include:

• Site redesign and incorporation of graphic icons to make tools and features more user-friendly.
• Incorporated the POST Drawings feature, which maps high school and community college plans of study.
• Added Affiliations for community college users to assist high schools in creating their plan of study templates.
• Added High School Settings so that each high school can manage their own list of default column headers.
• Added POST Views to create the published "views" of mapped POST Drawings.
• Upgraded content editor for Roadmap Drawings to allow for Spell Checking, Insert Table, Insert Image, and multiple other new features.
• Improved HELP menus throughout the site, and within the Roadmap Drawings and POST Drawings editing pages.
• Improved online Tutorials with revised topic layouts and graphics for visual reference.

For detailed step-by-step instructions on all Web Tool features, please refer to the online Tutorials.

For questions, technical assistance, or training needs please use our automated Help Desk form to submit your inquiry, and we will get back to you by the next business day.

Version 2.3 :: Web Tool Upgrades (8/27/2008)

Feature upgrades were released Wednesday, August 27, 2008. View the Tutorials for step-by-step instructions on all Web Tool features.

Features and improvements include:

General

• All references to “School”, whether in the main navigation, Drawing list filter, or Users section have been updated to read Organization (i.e. “Organization Colors”, previously “School Colors”). This has been done to keep the Web Tool flexible for working with not only Oregon schools, but State organizations and businesses as well.
• The display prior to login and after log in has been updated to reflect our new Dashboard, which replaces the previous “Site News” section of the Web Tool.

Dashboard (previously "Site News")

• With this update, you will now have access to the Tutorial, Release Info, ADA Compliance information, and Help feature while logged out of the Web Tool.
• While logged in to the Web Tool these links can now be found in our Resources section, underneath the main navigation, at all times.
• As before, the Dashboard will continue to display our Welcome message and pertinent information relating to updates to the Web Tool and highlighted features, however you will now find a Quick Links section on the Dashboard that provides links to:
  • Add a User (available to State Admin, School Admin, and Webmaster users only)
  • Report a Bug (online form/email), and
  • Request a Feature (online form/email).
• Guest users can Apply for an Account through the Quick Links section found within the Guest Login.
  • If you have a staff member that you wish to explore the Web Tool, have them demo the site through the Guest Login link on the home page, and Apply for an Account with your organization.

Version 2.0 :: Web Tool Upgrades (3/5/2008)

Feature upgrades and maintenance issues were released Wednesday, March 5, 2008. View the Tutorials for step-by-step instructions on all Web Tool features.

Features and improvements include:

Drawing Features

• Drawings are now created using advanced Canvas web technology (instead of HTML, JavaScript, and background images).
  • As a result, published drawings now render correctly when using embed code in public websites.

• Drawing TOOLS now offers print this version. When clicked your drawing is rendered as an HTML page where you can print direct from your browser.
  • Set your browsers print settings to "print background images" so that titles of boxes print white over dark colored boxes.
  • We recommend that you preview your drawings prior to printing. Change print size from "Shrink to Fit" to a fixed percentage if drawing preview shows an undesired layout.

• The Web Tool now supports use of multiple browser tabs for the purpose of viewing different drawings.

New Canvas Features

• Right-click the drawing area for a tools menu to show and/or edit the grid, or create new objects.
• Change an object's color by selecting it and clicking a color from TOOLS, or using Color on the menu.
• Positioning Objects:
  • When selected, connections, lines and arrows now show a blue box frame, with a green control point at the start and a red control point at the end. The object's menu can be brought up by right-clicking anywhere within this box. Click and drag the start control point or end control point to adjust the starting or ending location.
  • When dragging a box, line or arrow, hold down the ALT key (option on Mac) to move the object without snapping to the grid.
  • When dragging a control point for a line or arrow, hold down the Shift key to make the line vertical or horizontal.
• Resizing Boxes:
  • When selected, boxes are highlighted with a blue box frame, with left and right blue control points. Click and drag either point to expand/retract box width. Box height is determined by content.
• Print This Version:
  • Click print this version from TOOLS to render a drawing properly for printing from the browser menu.
• Connection Menu - Segments menu:
  • Sets the number of segments in the connecting line: 1 (Direct Line), 1 (Straight Line), 2, or 3.
  • The default, one segment line, may not be connected to the end point—fix by selecting a different option.
  • 1 (Direct Line) creates a direct/diagonal line to the destination box regardless of box position.
• Connection Menu - Auto Position:
  • Resets connection to 1 (Straight Line), non-direct, segment to destination box.
• NEW! Tools Menu:
  • New menu → Creates a new box, line, or arrow on the spot clicked.
  • Grid → Show Grid
    • Turn the snap to grid feature on or off. Default is on.
    • Objects snap to nearest horizontal/vertical grid axis.
  • Grid → Snap to Grid
    • Turn the snap to grid feature on or off.
  • Grid → Edit Grid Size
    • Opens a editor for the size of the grid layout.
• Grid:
  • Snap to grid is enabled by default. To disable, choose Grid → Snap to Grid from the chart's menu.
  • The grid is 10 pixels by default, and can be any size. To change the grid size, choose Grid → Edit Grid Size from the chart's menu.
  • Grid options are not saved.

User Permissions

• State Admins have ability to publish drawings for all schools
• Webmaster are now able to delete drawings for their schools.

Version 1.1 :: Maintenance & Web Tool Improvements (2/4/2008)

Feature improvements and technical maintenance issues were released Monday, February 4, 2008. Feature improvements include:

General Features

• A new HELP link has been added to the Web Tool navigation; users can submit help requests through a form on the Web Tool instead of outside email services.
• Edit Users now enables Webmasters and School Admin to add job titles and phone numbers for users within their schools. Phone numbers are displayed in the Edit Users list to ease contacting Web Tool users.
• School addresses are now displayed under school names in the Edit Users list for quick reference.

Drawing List Features

• By default, when you log in, the drawing list displays drawings the logged in user is associated with. The drawing list has been improved to remember selection changes users make in the drawing list filters for “Schools”, “Users”, and “Titles”.
• A link for my drawings has been added above the drawing list to restore default settings for the logged in user.

Drawing Features

• For all users, copy this version has advanced features and is now operated through a pop-up window. Do you have a drawing that you want to use as a template for other roadmaps? Then this feature is for you!
  • For drawings at your school, you can create:
    • A New Version, to the existing drawing, or
    • A New Drawing, which copies the existing drawing into an identical new drawing at your school; provide a new* drawing name before hitting “OK”.
  • For drawings at other schools, you can create:
    • A New Drawing at your school, and provide a new* drawing name before hitting “OK”.

Note

If no new drawing name is provided, the original drawing name is used and the word “copy” is appended to the new drawing name by default.

Version 1.0 :: Updates to the Career Pathways Web Tool (1/18/2008)

The Web Tool was down Friday, January 18, 2008 for maintenance and new feature upgrades. Now that our updates are complete, we hope you take time to explore and enjoy using these new features:

New Features

• A new user level of Webmaster has been created to manage school colors. You can work directly with the assigned Webmaster on your campus to customize your schools roadmap color choices.“School Admin” users have this permission as well.
• Webmasters will also have access to Embedding Instructions that provide examples and resources to embed and customize published roadmaps.
• “School Admin” and “Webmaster” users now have the ability to delete users that are not associated to drawings in the system.

Drawing List Features

• Keyword Search has been added. You can search for drawing titles, keywords in drawing content, and user names.
• A new drawing list interface allows you to view and sort the drawings list by all “Schools”, through a “show all” feature, or by selecting one or multiple schools at a time. This feature applies to “Users” and drawing “Titles” as well. By default, the logged in user’s school and user name will be selected from these filters - the results of the drawings list showing only drawings associated with the logged in user.
• Click on drawing titles to edit the drawing title, view thumbnails and detailed information on drawing versions, such as monitor who created and modified each version, enter “draw” mode or “preview” each version, and “copy this version”.

Drawing Features

• The drawing header with drawing title has been reduced, and now identifies the associated school.
• New right-click menus offer customizing options for all drawing objects:
  • Boxes:
    • Edit - Titles: Enables an in-place text editor for box titles.
    • Edit - Content: Opens an editor for box content. (Edit mode can no longer be accessed by hovering and clicking on box titles or content areas.)
    • Color - Sets the color of the box; select color from school specific color swatches.
    • Start Connection Here/End Connection Here: Creates a dynamic connection and draws a line between two boxes. Connect two boxes by choosing Start Connection Here from one object’s menu and End Connection Here from another’s. These dynamic connections move with the connected boxes as layout changes occur. Right-click on the connecting arrow to select customizing options, such as “start point”, “end point”, “orientation”, “segments” (default set to “1”), “color”, and “delete”.
    • Duplicate: Makes a copy of the box. Connections to and from the box are not copied. This is the same as CTRL+C, CTRL+V.
    • Delete: Permanently removes the box, after confirmation. All connections to and from the box are also deleted.
  • <b/>Connections</b>:
    • Start Point - Top left, Top center, Top right, Middle left, Middle right, Bottom left, Bottom center, Bottom right : Sets the starting point on the box the line is drawn from.
    • End Point - Top left, Top center, Top right, Middle left, Middle right, Bottom left, Bottom center, Bottom right: Sets the ending point on the box the line is drawn to.
    • Orientation - Horizontal, Vertical: Sets the orientation of the line from the start point.
    • Segments - 1 (straight line), 2, 3: Sets the number of segments in the connecting line. Default set to “1”.
    • Color - Sets the color of the connection; select color from school specific color swatches.
    • Delete: Permanently removes the connection, after confirmation.
  • Basic Lines and Arrows:
    • Color - Sets the color of the line or arrow; select color from school specific color swatches.
    • Duplicate: Makes a copy of the line or arrow; same as CTRL+C, CTRL+V.
    • Delete: Permanently removes the line or arrow, after confirmation.

Note

Your existing drawings were not affected by these updates. Basic lines and arrows will still function the same. We encourage you to try out these new features by going back in to your drawings, deleting arrow objects and using the new dynamic connections. Play with the “start point”, “end point” and “segment” features to take full advantage of what these new tools can offer you.

For questions, technical assistance, or training needs please email mailto:helpdesk@ctepathways.org and we will get back to you by the next business day.