ARCOS Help: Elements of Stories

Elements of Stories

A story is a page of content on your site. Every story is made up of various elements: paragraphs of text, images, video clips, form fields, etc. These elements may be simple (just one element) or complex (an element that is made up of other elements). Below is a description of each of the elements you may want to use on your site.

Elements Available on Most Stories

Content: Interchangeable Text Elements

The following text elements are available to almost all types of stories. In addition, they can be interchanged with one another easily by changing the dropdown to the left of the element from one to another (e.g., you can change a Paragraph to a Section Heading just by changing the value of the dropdown to the left of the element). This makes it easy to cut and paste in content from other sources.

Paragraph

A paragraph of text

Bulleted Item

A single item in a bulleted list

Numbered Item

A single item in a numbered list

Page Heading

A large heading (equivalent to HTML's h1 tag)

Section Heading

A medium-size heading (equivalent to HTML's h2 tag)

Subsection Heading

A small heading (equivalent to HTML's h3 tag)

Open Format Item

An element that accepts any HTML you would like to enter. There is no template associated with Open Format Items; they are rendered exactly as entered. Open Format Items are most often used to hold HTML tables and third-party embed code such as a Google map.

Snippet

Most users creating new stories from scratch will not need to use snippets. However, advanced ARCOS users will find them useful in a few special circumstances.

A snippet behaves like an Open Format Item except that it is not included in the loop_elements_page that loops through the element_loop, rendering each in order. Snippets must be referenced explictly. This can be helpful if, for example, you have a number of contribution forms controlled by a single template, but where one of two bits of text in that template are different from page to page. You could put each page in its own category and override the template there. You could add logic to the template to include that specific piece of text, but then each new page added would require template editing and knowledge of HTML::Template syntax. You could use a paramater. Or, you could just have the user add the text in a snippet, and include <tmpl_var snippet> in the template.

Content: Other Text Elements

Archive Box

Allows you to create an autogenerated list of links to other stories on your site. Which stories are included in the list is very flexible. You can choose to include stories in one ore more categories of the site, to exclude stories in one or more categories, to filter based on tags, etc. You also have control over whether the title, teaser, and teaser image of each story is displayed.

Audio Clip

Allows you to embed an audio recording on your site

Blockquote

An indented block of text

Comment Options

Allows your site visitors to comment on the story. The various options also let you specify which comments require approval before going on the site, who receives an email notification when a comment is posted, whether visitors may comments on other comments, and more.

Container

A container is primarily designed to be a container for other elements. You can nest containers 2 levels down (for a total of 3: a container in a container in a container).

Event Box

An Event Box is very similar to an Archive Box, but is specifically designed to allow you to create an autogenerated list of links to event stories on your site. Which stories are included in the list is very flexible. You can choose to include stories in one ore more categories of the site, to exclude stories in one or more categories, to filter based on tags, etc. You also have control over whether the title, teaser, and teaser image of each story is displayed.

Flash Clip

Exactly what it sounds like

Horizontal Line

Exactly what it sounds like: a thin, horizontal dividing line. This element can be useful for breaking up long sections of text.

Image

Allows you add an image to your story

JSON Box

Allows advanced ARCOS users to leverage JavaScript Object Notation (JSON)

Lead In

A link to another story or media file on your site, or to an external URL

Page

Allows you to create multi-page stories

Parameter

Advanced ARCOS users will appreciate this very useful and flexible element that allows you to simultaneously avoid many template overrides and give story editors more control.

Support for certain specific parameters is built in. For example, by default, nearly every story includes a title that is visible on the front-end webpage. By adding a parameter (name: no_title, value: 1) to an individual story, however, you can indicate that you don't want the title displayed on the page.

For more information about how to leverage parameters, please contact your Plus Three Account Manager.

Related Story Link

Allows you to specify content that is related to the story you are editing. These related stories are often displayed in a slightly different way than other links on the page (e.g., the templates for your site may specify that all related stories appear in a bulleted list at the bottom of the page).

RSS Box

Allows you to create an autogenerated list of links derived from an RSS feed on your site or on another website.

Video Clip

Allows you to easily add a YouTube or other video to any story

Teaser

Teaser: A teaser is short intro text or a short description of the story you are currently editing. It is not displayed on that page of the site. However, it may be used by other pages that link to that story. For example, if you have a News section, you will probably want to add a teaser to each article in your News section. The News section landing page (usually an Archive story) will then be able to automatically show the title, date, and teaser of each story in the News section.
Teaser Image: A teaser image is a small, thumbnail image that pertains to the story you are currently editing. It is not displayed on that page of the site. However, it may be used by other pages that link to that story. For example, if you have a News section, you may want to add a teaser image to each article in your News section. The News section landing page (usually an Archive story) will then be able to automatically show the title, date, and teaser image of each story in the News section.
Complex Teaser: A Complex Teaser is used in rare cases where a teaser contains more complicated elements than a simple teaser can support.
Alt Teaser, Alt Teaser Image, Complex Alt Teaser: These elements are used in rare cases where you would like the main Teaser, Teaser Image, or Complex Teaser to be used in certain contexts and a different one to be used in other contexts.

Meta Tags

Meta Description: The Meta Description is placed in the source code of the story and is only visible to search engines and users who click to view the source code of your site. The description is an important tool used by most major search engines as one way of determining in what search results your site should appear.
Meta Keywords: The Meta Keywords are placed in the source code of the story and is only visible to search engines and users who click to view the source code of your site. Early search engines relied heavily on the keywords attribute, but today keywords are somewhat deprecated. No consensus exists as to whether or not the keywords attribute has any effect on ranking at any of the major search engines today. It is speculated that, if it does, if the keywords used in the meta can also be found in the page copy itself.
Meta Title: By default, the title of a story appears on the page. Sometimes you may want a different title to appear on the page. In that scenario, use the Meta Title element.

Search

Exclude From Archives: A checkbox that determines whether or not this story will appear on Archive story pages or pages that contain an Archive Box element. For example, if the story you are editing lives in the "News" section, the News landing page normally would include a link to it -- unless you were to use the "Exclude from Archives" element.
Exclude From RSS: A checkbox that determines whether or not this story will appear in the site's RSS feeds
Exclude From Search: A checkbox that determines whether or not this story will appear in your website's search form results
Exclude From Site Map: A checkbox that determines whether or not this story will appear in your website's site map
Tags: Adding keyword "tags" to a story is a very powerful way to connect it to other stories on your site. Tags may be displayed on the front-end website so that your visitors can see at a glance what keywords you would use to describe the story. You can also use tags on Archive stories and in Archive boxes; for example, you could create a "News about Sunshine" landing page that automatically generates a list of all news stories that are tagged with the keyword "sunshine."

Multilingual

English Version: For multilingual sites, the English Version element allows you to indicate that another story on the site is the English version of the story you are editing.
Spanish Version: For multilingual sites, the Spanish Version element allows you to indicate that another story on the site is the Spanish version of the story you are editing. (This element could also be used for other languages, too.)

Form Elements

Common Elements

Autoresponder: When a user submits a form on your site, you can have an email automatically sent to him with whatever thank-you message you would like. To enable this feature, first create the mailing (type: autoresponder). Then, add an Autoresponder element to the form story and specify that mailing.
Custom Field: You may include any standard or custom fields on a form. The standard fields may be chosen from the Displayed Fields element; custom fields must be added to the story as Custom Field elements. Note: You can add HTML code to a template in order to display an input field for a custom field on a form. However, the input will not be recorded unless a custom field element is added to the story also.
Displayed Fields: Allows you to specify which fields will be displayed on the form. Any custom fields you add to a form will automatically be displayed (unless the template is modified to exclude them).
Required Fields: Allows you to specify which fields a user must enter in order to submit the form
Thank You Message: After submitting a form, the user is taken by default to a simple thank-you screen that displays the Thank You Message element.
GoTo Story: After submitting a form, the user is taken by default to a simple thank-you screen that displays the Thank You Message element. However, sometimes, you may want to take them to a different page -- a more elaborate thank-you page, a second form you want them to complete, etc. Use a GoTo Story element to bypass the thank-you message and take the user straight on to another story on your site. Note: This is a great and easy way to encourage your supporters to do all that they can for your cause!
Do Not Opt In Submitters?: By default, anyone who submits a form on your website is opted in to your master member list. This element lets you specify that you do not want people who submit this form to be opted in.
Disable Prefilling?: By default, forms on your site are prefilled with information about the user if he or she is logged in. Forms are also prefilled for all users based on the information they have submitted previously on your site during the same browser session. This element allows you to turn off prefilling for the story you are editing.
Display Facebook Ask?
Message Language: By default, all error messages on forms are displayed in English. The Message Language element lets you change this to Spanish.

Fundraising Form Elements

Amounts and (optional) Descriptions: Allows you to specify what dollar amounts you want to offer on this form and, if you would like, a description of what each amount corresponds to (e.g., $10 = 1 ticket, $20 = 2 tickets). Adding an amount "other" enables a free entry input field that lets the user specify whatever amount he would like. The "other" field does not support a corresponding description.
Contribution Frequency: If you are processing payment through Authorize.net and have registered for recurring billing, the Contribution Frequency element allows you to specify whether transactions initiated on this form will be processed only once (One-Time), weekly, monthly, or yearly. If set to "Recurs at User-Chosen Frequency," the end user is able to decide whether he or she would like the payment to occur only once or on a recurring basis. Offering this option on your contribution forms is an excellent way to grow your base of monthly sustainers.
Default Amount: Allows you to specify which of the contribution amounts will be selected by default when the form loads
Minimum Required Amount: Allows you to specify a minimum amount that a donor must give. It can be a good idea to set a minimum required amount so that the donor gives at least enough to cover the transaction costs your payment gateway and merchant account charge.
Payment Account: Allows you to specify which payment account money collected through this form will be routed to. On a regular contribution form, you may only specify one payment account. However, on an itemized contribution form, you can specify that a donor's gift be split between multiple payment accounts (e.g.
Require Card Security Code?: Allows you to turn on or off

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Elements of Stories

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