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About Scinage
Scinage is a free digital solution created by Science Computing, which allows users to create digital signage by using the available widgets, or by using pre-made image files, to develop slides. Users can transform those slides into a collective slideshow that can be displayed on physical screens across the University of Waterloo campus.
Scinage was originally a side-project that has grown across Science and into many other departments. Students, staff and faculty members within the University of Waterloo community can access Scinage by using their ADFS login to claim their account on the Scinage website.
Deployment:
If you’re just interested in deploying some screens and looking for hardware solutions, check out our Devices/Deployment page.
1. Home Page
Once logged in, users will be prompted to the Scinage home page. Within the Scinage home page, users can access content by clicking on the blue arrow beside the content name, located inside their individual content card. Each piece of content on Scinage has their own individual colour-coded card, that provides a significant amount of information about that the specific content.
1.1 Menu/Navigation Bar
In addition to the home page, users can also use the menu/navigation bar within Scinage to access their content. Whether the user is on the home page or in the middle of editing a piece of content, users can access other content anytime by selecting the object icon within the menu/navigation bar.
The following objects can be accessed through the menu/navigation bar:
Groups
Screens
Slideshows
Slides
Widgets
Images
Videos
Trashbin
1.2 New and Updated Card
Within the Scinage home page, the New and Updated card notifies users when a new widget has been added, or when a current widget has been updated or tested.
The New and Updated card provides users the following information:
The title of the widget that was either recently updated, tested, or added.
The specific date and time of when the action was completed.
The user who completed the update or creation.
Comments regarding that specific update.
If you currently have a widget within a slide and discover that widget to be listed under the New and Updated section, users should immediately click on the blue and white update button, within the slide editor, for that particular slide. Scinage does not provide a list of slides that contain a specific widget; therefore, users will need to remember which of their slides contains which widgets.
1.3 Screens Card
Screens are represented by the television icon. The screens card can be found within the Scinage home page, and users can click on the blue arrow button beside the object name, to access all their screens.
Within the screens card, Scinage provides the following information:
How many screens a user has created and owns.
How many screens a user has access to within the groups they are a part of.
How many screens are "off".
A screen will appear as "off" if the digital screen has not been viewed on a device within the last five minutes. Users should note that the power status of a physical screen (Television screen, computer monitor, etc.), will not determine if your screen is "off" in Scinage.
1.4 Slides Card
Slides are represented by the presentation slide icon. The slides card can be found within the Scinage home page, where users can click on the blue arrow button beside the object name, to access all their slides.
Within the slides card, Scinage provides the following information:
The amount of slides the user has created.
How many other slides a user has access to within their groups.
1.5 Slideshows Card
Slideshows are represented by the slideshow icon. The slideshows card can be found within the Scinage home page, where users can click on the blue arrow button beside the object name, to access all their slideshows.
Within the slideshows card, Scinage provides the following information:
The amount of slideshows the user has created.
How many other slideshows a user has access to within their groups.
1.6 Widgets Card
Widgets are represented by the widget icon. The widgets card can be found within the Scinage home page, where users can click on the blue arrow button beside the object name, to access all the available widgets on Scinage.
Within the widgets card, Scinage provides the following information:
The amount of widgets the user has created.
How many widgets the user has listed as a favourite.
How many other widgets a user has access to within their groups.
How many of your widgets have been shared.
How many of your shared widgets have been used in slides.
2. Object Cards, Card Icons and Card Buttons
Each object (slide, slideshow, screen, and widget) will have their own individual cards within the landing page for that object.
For example, in the slides landing page, each slide has their own individual card that provides information for that specific slide, as well several action buttons and icons.
2.1 Object Card
Each card will provide the following information:
The title of the object.
Who it was created by.
A description of that object, if there is one.
Different object cards have some additional information:
Screens only:
When the screen was last seen.
The IP Address where the screen was last seen.
The URL for viewing the screen.
Slideshows and slides only:
The date of when the object was last updated, and who it was updated by.
Widgets only:
When the latest version was saved.
Public widget specific information:
Official status (true or false).
The number of times the widget has been used in slides.
The number of times the widget has been favourited by all users.
Any search tags for the widget.
2.2 Card Icons
Slideshows, slides and widgets have icons along the top, typically the top-right, allowing a variety of actions:
Slideshows, slides, and widgets:
The clone icon allows users to easy clone existing content.
Slides and widgets:
The preview, or eye, icon allows users to quickly view the slide or widget without having to navigate away from the page their on.
Widgets only:
The official icon shows whether or not a widget is considered "official", or supported, by Scinage developers (no function).
The favourite, or heart, icon allows users to favourite widgets allowing for quick access.
The rating, or star, icon shows the overall rating of a widget next to the icon itself. Users can rate widgets by hovering over the rating icon or value, and then clicking on the star that appears corresponding to their desired rating (1 through 5 stars). Note user can change their ratings at anytime.
2.3 Card Buttons
Within each card, there are card buttons allowing a variety of actions:
Share
Edit
View
Transfer
Delete
If you would like to edit the content for a specific object, for example a slide, the edit button will prompt you to the slide editor. Within the editing page, you can make additional edits from updating the title, to having the ability to remove or add content.
The view button allows you to preview your content to ensure that everything fits within the perimeters of the screen, and if all your content is displayed accordingly. The delete button will send your content to the trashbin, where you can either restore it or delete it permanently. Screens cannot be deleted; if needed, contact either Troy Grandy (trgrandy@uwaterloo.ca) or Mirko Vucicevich (mvucicev@uwaterloo.ca).
2.3.1 Share vs. Transfer Card Button
The share and transfer action buttons were created to function differently, and should not be mistaken for one another.
The share option allows you to share a content within any group you are part of. If you would like to keep the original content, ensure to use the share option. Depending on the permissions set within the group, other users can have access to the content you shared, and add it to their screen, but they may not be able to make changes.
To share a screen, slide, slideshow, or widget, you can click on the "Share" button on the desired content card. Then select the group you would like to share the content with, and click Share. Depending on the content you shared, it will now show up either in "Screens in Groups", "Slideshows in Groups", "Slides in Groups", or "Widgets in Groups" panes when viewing a group.
On the other hand, transfer means that you are transferring the content ownership to another user, using their 8-character UWaterloo username. To transfer an item, start by clicking the transfer button on the desire content card, and a dialogue box will open. Under recipient, enter the 8-character UWaterloo username.
Note: Transfer of ownership cannot be undone so ensure that the username you type in is correct and it is the correct content that you want to transfer. The transfer will be cancelled if the recipient has not logged into Scinage before. When you are ready, click transfer item.
3. Groups
Groups allow users to organize all the Scinage members and objects that you require in a single convenient place. The groups feature is used when multiple Scinage users want to share a piece of content (screens, slideshows, slides and widgets) amongst one another.
3.1 How to Create and Edit a Group
You can create a group by clicking on the "New Group" button within the groups page. Every new group that you create in Scinage will require a title, a description and added users.
Click on the "Add User" button and a new row will appear in the permission table. Within the Username field, enter the eight-character WatIAm userID; ensure that every character within the userID is correctly entered.
Once you have entered a userID, you can assign the following permissions to that user by selecting the appropriate box:
Can add users
Can remove users
Can use items
Can add items
Can remove items
Can edit items
Users can be removed from a group by selecting the delete field, and saving the group.
A new feature is the ability to restrict group members from editing other member's permissions. If you would like your group member(s) to be able to do so, simply check the "Can edit user permissions" box for them.
3.2 Group Owner
The owner of the group has full access to the group settings where they can assign and edit the role(s) of each user within the group. The owner of the group can also transfer the ownership of the group to another Scinage user.
Once the ownership of a group has been transferred, the previous owner cannot undo the action where they will lose ownership privileges, where they can no longer assign, edit or view the roles of each user unless given the permissions to do so by the new owner.
3.3 Tabs Within Groups
The "My Groups" tab displays the list of groups a user has created or has full ownership of. If a user has ownership, they have access to the following card buttons:
View
Edit
Transfer
The view button allows the user to view the list of members within the group as well as any screens, slideshows, slides and widgets that are shared amongst the group. The edit button allows the creator/owner, and users with appropriate permissions, to edit the current roles of each user within the group as well as add and remove users. The transfer button allows the creator/owner of the group to transfer ownership of the group to another Scinage user by entering the eight-character WatIAM userID.
The "Groups I'm in" tab will display the list of groups a user is a part of. Each individual group has their own card organized by the order of when each group was created.
In addition, each group card will provide the following information:
The title of the group.
The creator of the group.
A description of the group.
If a user does not have the primary role of ownership, that user can only view the list of members within the group as well as any screens, slideshows, slides and widgets, that are shared amongst the group, unless given permissions by the group's owner.
Users that do not own a group and do not have Can edit permissions, Can add users, or Can remove users access cannot view the list of roles that are assigned to each user. Therefore, the creator of the group should disclose which roles are assigned to you.
4. Screens
Screens are digital representations of physical screen. Each time you set up a physical screen in the real world, you can create a digital screen in Scinage to represent it. This will allow you to point a physical screen to a different slideshow, or slide without having to go fiddle with the physical screen at all.
4.1 How to Create and Edit a Screen
You can create a screen by clicking on the "New Screen" button within the screens page. Every new screen that you create in Scinage will require a title. Although a description of the screen is optional, it is recommended.
The screen url will be generated based on the title of the screen. If you change the title of your screen at any given time, the screen url will also be updated according to the changes. Therefore, if you change the title of your screen, you will be required to update your devices that contains the previous screen url. Once the update has been completed, your digital screen will continue to cast on your physical screen. Alternatively, you can also use the Screen's id in place of the screen's title url. This will prevent the required update to your physical screen if the title changes, as the id will never change. The id version of the url is the new default as of v2.1, but the screen title version will continue to work.
Click on the "Choose what to show on this screen" button where a dialogue box will appear. Select the object, a slideshow or slide, that you wish to add to your screen. Since users can only add one object to a screen, it is best to create a slideshow first that contains all your slides. Click on the "Add" button within the object card where it will then be added to your screen. Additionally, a slide should only be used for static content; a slide does not update unless the page is refreshed, or the slide is swapped out for another. If you would like to use a single slide with dynamic or updating content, create a slideshow and add the same slide twice. This will allow content to update between slide transitions, while still only using one slide.
Once every required field is complete, click on the "Submit" button and your screen will be created. Then you will need to copy the screen url, and supply it to your chosen physical device.
4.2 Tabs Within Screens
The "My Screens" tab will display a list of screens that you have created. Meanwhile, the tab "Screens in Groups", will display a list of screens that you have access to within your groups.
Screens are organized within their individual groups card where users can click on the drop down arrow to minimize or expand each group. At the top of each group card, it indicates the group name and the owner of the group.
5. Slideshows
Slideshows are a collection of slides, where each slide has an allocated time to display as well as optional start and end dates with removal after end date, if specified. A slideshow will loop infinitely through the slides in it.
5.1 How to Create and Edit a Slideshow
You can create a slideshow by clicking on the "New Slideshow" button, within the slideshows landing page. Every slideshow will require a title. A description is optional but recommended. Then click the "Save Slideshow" to ensure that your slideshow has been created.
Click the "Add Slide" button to choose which slides you would like to include in your slideshow, and then click the "Add" button with your chosen slide card, to have that slide added. Each added slide has it's own card that provides a few settings that users can adjust accordingly.
Users can adjust the following settings:
You can adjust the display length of each individual slide according to how long you would like your slide to appear on the screen, in seconds.
Choose a start date of when you would like that specific slide to appear on the physical screen.
Choose an end date of when you would like the slide to stop appearing on the physical screen.
Selecting the box "Remove after end date?" will remove the slide from the slideshow after the specified end date, but will not delete the slide.
You can adjust the order of the slides by clicking and dragging that slide left, right, up or down; top-left is the beginning of the slideshow, and the bottom-right is the end. Then click "Save Slideshow" to save your slideshow.
Once your slideshow has been saved, you are ready to add your slideshow onto a digital screen.
5.2 How to add a Slideshow to a Screen
To add a slideshow to a screen, read section 4.1 How to Create and Edit a Screen, within the Scinage User Guide.
5.3 Tabs Within Slideshows
The "My Slideshows" tab will display a list of slideshows that you have created and own. Meanwhile, the tab "Slideshows in Groups", will display a list of slideshows that you have access to within your groups. Slideshows are organized within their individual groups card where users can click on the drop down arrow to minimize or expand each group. At the top of each group card, it indicates the group name and the owner of the group.
Depending on the permissions set for each group, you can either share, edit, view, or transfer the ownership of slideshows. Users should note that you cannot permanently delete content that is in use. For example, another user cannot delete the slideshow that is being used on your screen.
6. Slides
A slide is very close to what you would expect from something like a powerpoint slide. You simply add the widgets you need. Slides store the widgets, and your options for each added widget, so that the content can be displayed on any screen via slideshow. You may also display a singular slide on a screen, though this is not recommended unless the content of the slide is static.
6.1 How to Create and Edit a Slide
You can create a slide by clicking on the "New Slide" button, within the slides landing page. Every slide requires a title. A description is optional but recommended. Then click the "Save Slide" button to ensure that your slide has been created. Within the editing a slide page, there are three columns that users should note.
The left column is your tools section where you will be adding a title, a description, the aspect ratio, and your widgets. In the the white area, every added widget will be listed here. The selected widget will be in green, while non-selected widget will be gray. Users can change the title of each widget to differentiate one widget from another, especially if you happen to use a widget twice. Note the order in which the widgets appear in this area dictates which widget is "on top"; specifically, a widget at the top of this list will be visible when overlapping with any widgets below it on the list.
Within each widget box, there is a clone button that allows users to duplicate the widget. The up and down arrows allows users to adjust the order of widgets - which widget is placed on top or bottom of a different widget. The "X" button will remove the widget from the workspace. The chat bubble button allows users to submit widget-specific feedback, which will be sent to the owner of the widget once a week. Clicking on this button will open a feedback pop-up, where users can specify the type of feedback via a dropdown, and then provide feedback in the text area. Once completed, clicked submit. The info button will open a pop-up with documentation provided by the owner of the widget; however, this button will be disabled if there is no documentation for a widget.
The middle column is your workspace where the dark gray area is the area in which you can add widgets to. The size of your workspace will change if the aspect ratio is changed. The aspect ratio for your slides should be the same as the aspect ratio of your physical display to ensure things look correct when shown on a screen.
Widget settings are located on the right column where users can customize each widget. At the top of the right column, users can adjust the position of the widget by changing the X and Y controls. Users can also click and drag their widgets to position them from the middle column. Clicking on the "Center" button within the X and Y settings will move your widget to the centre of your workspace. Users can adjust the size of their widget in two ways: the first method is to use the slider to adjust the width and the height; or users can enter a number from 0 - 100 within the box.
Below positional and size settings are the widget-specific settings. These settings allow for further customization and will affect the contents of the widgets. Widget settings will differ for each individual widgets; therefore, users are encouraged to test out the widget settings.
6.2 How to Add Widgets to a Slide
To add widgets to your slide, click on the "Add Widget" button within the left column, and the widget dialogue box will appear. Users can navigate between the tabs: Favourite Widgets, Public Widgets, My Widgets, and Widgets in Groups, to find a widget. Users can also use the "search for widget title" bar, to search for a widget.
When you have located the widget, click on the blue "Add" button where the widget will then be added to the middle of your workspace. If you are using the image widget for a PowerPoint slide, or if you are using a solid color to cover the entirety of the screen, ensure to click and drag the widget to the top left corner of your workspace before adjusting the size. By doing so, you will be able to adjust the widget to its maximum size of 100.
Always remember to click the "Save" button each time you add or make a change to your slide.
6.3 Tabs Within Slides
The "My Slides" tab will display a list of slides that you have created. Meanwhile, the tab "Slides in Groups", will display a list of slides that you have access to within your groups. Slides are organized within their individual groups card where users can click on the drop down arrow to minimize or expand each group. At the top of each group card, it indicates the group name and the owner of the group.
Depending on the permissions set for each group, you can either share, edit, view, or transfer. Users should note that you cannot permanently delete content that is in use. For example, another user cannot delete the slide that is being used on your screen.
6.4 How to Create a PowerPoint Slide Using SmartArt Graphic
Using PowerPoint to create a slide is a great alternative if you require a lot of text and/or images to be added onto your slide, and as well as saving rendering times.
Within PowerPoint, open a new blank presentation. You can remove the pre-added text boxes if you prefer to start with a blank workspace. PowerPoint offers this feature called "SmartArt Graphic" that allows you to choose one of the templates available.
Within the "Insert" tab on PowerPoint, select the SmartArt icon to access the list of pre-made templates. SmartArt has a lot of templates that you can choose from:
Process
Cycle
Hierarchy
Relationship
Matrix
Pyramid
Picture
Office.com templates
Click once on a template to preview that SmartArt graphic and to learn more about that specific template. Click the "OK" button to add the template onto your slide. Users can expand or minimize the size of the graphic by clicking and dragging the corners of the frame.
Once your slide is complete, you can export your slide(s) into an image file, which you will then use the image widget on Scinage to upload your image file.
6.5 How to Export/Save a PowerPoint File into an Image File for PC Users
PC Users can either save or export their PowerPoint slide into an image file -- Portable Network Graphics (PNG) or Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG).
To save a PowerPoint slide as an image file on a PC, use the following instructions:
Open the PowerPoint file you wish to save.
Click on the "File" tab on the top left corner of the PowerPoint program.
Click "Save As" and then "Browse".
A dialogue box will open and select the folder you wish to save your file in.
Give your file a name.
Within "Save as type", click on the drop down arrow and find the option "JPEG File Interchange Format" or "PNG Portable Network Graphics" and click save.
The dialogue box will close and a smaller dialogue box will pop up asking, "Which Slides do you want to export?" Users can choose to export all slides or just this one (the current slide).
Users also have the option to export their PowerPoint slide by following the export method. To export a PowerPoint, use the following instructions:
Open the PowerPoint file you wish to save.
Click on the "File" tab on the top left corner of the PowerPoint program.
Click "Export".
Click the last option "Change File Type".
Double click either "PNG Portable Network Graphics" or "JPEG File Interchange Format".
A dialogue box will open, select the folder you wish to save your file in.
Give your file a name and click save.
The dialogue box will close and a smaller dialogue box will pop up asking, "Which Slides do you want to export?" Users can choose to export all slides or just this one (the current slide).
Once you export/save your PowerPoint slide(s) into an image file, read section 8.1 How to Upload an External Image onto a Slide.
6.6 How to Export a PowerPoint File into an Image File for Mac Users
PowerPoint on a Macbook or iMac desktop do not provide the same "save as" option as PC users. Instead, Mac users can use the "export" option to export their PowerPoint file into an image file -- Portable Network Graphics (PNG) or Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG).
To export a PowerPoint slide on a Mac, use the following instructions:
Open the PowerPoint file you wish to save.
Click on the "File" option within the menu bar at the top of your Mac screen.
Click "Export" and a dialogue box will appear.
Give your file a name and select the folder you wish to save your file.
Within the "File Format" section, click on the drop down arrow and select either the JPEG or PNG option.
Both options will prompt additional setting such as:
Selecting the option to "Save Every Slide" or "Save Current Slide Only".
Setting the width and height dimensions of your PowerPoint file. It is highly recommended to use the dimensions 1920 x 1080 to achieve the full screen look.
Click the "Export Button".
Once you export your PowerPoint slide(s) into an image file, read section 8.1 How to Upload an External Image onto a Slide.
7. Widgets
Widgets are self-contained customizable objects which can be added to your slides. Examples of widgets include things like images, a youtube video, a clock, the weather, and a calendar. Each widget is a simple construct of javascript, css, html, jQuery and Jinja, which allows users to easily develop their own widgets.
7.1 Widgets Information Card and Icons
Each widget has its own individual card that provides information for that specific widget. Within the "Public Widgets" tab, the following information can be found within within each widget card:
The creator of the widget
If it's an official or non-official widget
Latest update
A description, if there is one
Within each widgets card, there are icons that you as a user should know about. A the top of each widget card, there are icons users should note (from left to right):
Star icon and number (allows for rating widgets, when hovered over, and displays the widget's average rating beside it)
Check-circle icon (also shows official status)
Clone icon (allows you to duplicate the widget)
Eye icon (allows you to preview how the widget looks like)
Heart icon (allows you to favourite the widget)
These icons are also on all other tabs.
On the bottom left corner of each public widget card, there are additional icons users should note:
Plus box icon and number (indicates how many times this widget has been used)
Heart icon and number (indicates how many times this widget has been favorited)
Tags (indicates the searchable tag names associated with this widget)
At the top of the widgets landing page, there is a "search for widget title" box, where users can search specific tag or widget names to narrow down the list of widgets.
7.2 How to Create and Edit a Widget
You can create a widget by clicking on the "New Widget" button, within the widgets landing page.
Users can create a widget by using javascript, css, html, jQuery and jinja, which allows users to easily develop their own widgets. Furthermore, widget creators can add specific tag names associated with the widget. Controls can be added to allow for user customization of widgets when used in slides, as well as documentation to aid in using the widget and customizing it's settings, both of which are optional but encouraged. Feedback submitted by other users will be displayed here as well, grouped by the version of the widget the feedback pertains to and by the type of feedback.
7.3 Tabs Within Widgets
There are different tabs within the widgets landing page, when compared to slides, slideshows and screens.
The first tab "Favourite Widgets", is where you will find the official widgets on top, and below, your favourite widgets. Official widgets are widgets that Science Computing has endorsed, meaning they are either very popular, and/or their creators actively support and update them. The official status does not invalidate any non-official widget, but they are recommended for most users.
The second tab "Public Widgets", is where you can find widgets that are created by Scinage users and are open to the public for use. This tab only shows the top five most popular widgets, by use count, but all public widgets can be found via the search bar at the top of the tab.
Users can locate their created widgets within the "My Widgets" tab. This is where widgets can be shared, edited and deleted. Note that widgets in use cannot be permanently deleted.
Finally, the "Widgets in Groups" tab, is where you can find widgets that you share within your groups. Click on the drop down arrow to minimize or expand each group, to view which widgets are shared within your groups.
7.4 Widget Feedback
Scinage users can provide widget-specific feedback through the slide editor via the button with a comment icon located on the left column of the editor. This button allows the user to give general feedback, report any bugs/issues with the specific widget, or any other feedback that does not fit under these two categories. The feedback will be mailed to the widget's creator once per week.
7.5 Widget usage examples
The following are a few examples of widget usage within slides. Note that these are subject to change as widgets and Scinage are updated, and that better alternatives may be created to some of the below. Additionally, the word 'layer' is used interchangeably with 'widget'; widgets were originally called layers.
7.5.1 Text Area Widget
Scinage users can add text to their slide by using the "Text Area" widget. Once you have added the "Text Area" widget, head over to the right hand column, where you will find the widget settings. Within the box under the section "Text you would like on layer", replace the current text with your own text.
To change the font, simply select the drop down area under the "Font" section, within the widget settings. Users can also change the font colour by selecting the box underneath the heading "Font colour", where a selection of colours will appear for users to choose from. If you would like to change the alignment of your text (centre, left, or right), make sure to change the setting underneath "Align", by typing your choice -- centre, left, or right.
Finally, you can move your text by selecting the "Text Area" widget box on the left hand column, which allows you to click, drag and drop your "Text Area" widget anywhere on your workspace.
7.5.2 Colour Bar Widget
Scinage users can create the Faculty Color Bar on Scinage by using the "Colour bar" widget.
...
Faculties and UWaterloo associated schools and satellites campuses, can find their colour bar palette on the University of Waterloo
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To create a Faculty Color Bar, use the following instructions:
Create a new slide and click on the "Add Widget" button.
The widget dialogue box will open. Select the "Colour bar" widget by clicking on the "Add" button within the widget card. The "Colour bar" widget will be added onto the middle of your workspace, automatically set in the SCI colour palette.
To change the colour palette to represent your faculty, go under the "Faculty colour palette" on the right column, click on the tab, and choose your faculty.
To change the dimensions of the colour bar, there are size options for the width and height on the right column.
If you want to have the colour bar across the top of the screen, click and drag "Colour bar" widget to the top left corner of the screen. Then go to the right column and adjust the width size to 100. Then adjust the length of the colour bar according to your preference.
7.5.3 UWCMS Banner Page
Scinage allows users to add a WCMS banner onto their slide by using the "UWCMS Banner Page" widget. Use the following instructions to have a UWCMS banner on your slideshow:
Create a new slide and click on the "Add Widget" button.
The widget dialogue box will open up. Select the "UWCMS Banner Page" widget by clicking on the "Add" button within the widget card. The "UWCMS Banner Page" widget will be added onto the middle of your workspace.
Once you have chosen which UWCMS Banner you would like to use, copy the url of the home page. For example, to feature the Arts Computing Office banner on a slide, the URL will be copied -- https://uwaterloo.ca/arts-computing/
On the right hand column, within the white box under the "WCMS Event URL" section, paste the URL that you had copied and hit enter on your keyboard.
Scinage will refresh the widget and the banner should appear exactly how it looks on the website. Users may adjust the size settings of the banner according to their preference.
In addition, you can adjust the following settings:
Time to show (how long each slide appears)
Display time in seconds (How long to show each slide)
Scroll delay
7.5.4 Youtube Player
If you are inserting a YouTube video into Scinage, you will need to insert the YouTube videoID into the Youtube Player widget, which can be found in the link of the video you want to insert.
For instance, if you want to insert a YouTube video with the
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link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LJ_JiJ1G3-E, the YouTube videoID is everything following the equal sign in the URL (see bolded text in the link above). Therefore, the videoID for this URL is LJ_JiJ1G3-E. Also, no matter what YouTube video you want to insert in Scinage, the videoID will be located in the same spot within the URL.
The YouTube Player also allows for looping videos and playlists. To generate a playlist of videos, simply place the videoID of the first video in the Youtube video ID field, and every other video's ID in the Youtube playlist ID field comma separated with no spaces (e.g. videoID2,videoID3,videoID4).
To have your video(s) loop infinitely, set the Loop setting to "1"; otherwise, set this to "none". Note that a single looping video requires that both the Youtube video ID field and Youtube playlist ID fields must have the same ID in addition to Loop being set to 1.
7.4.5 Twitter Feed
Scinage users have the option to add a Twitter Feed onto their slide by using the "Embedded Twitter Feed" widget. Use the following instructions to add a Twitter feed onto your slide:
Create a new slide and click the "Add Widget" button.
The Widget dialogue box will open up. Select the "Embedded Twitter Feed" widget by clicking on the "Add" button. The widget will be added onto the middle of your workspace.
On the right hand column, within the "Twitter Feed" widget settings, enter the Twitter username inside the white box. Note: The "@" symbol is not required.
Therefore, if I were to added the University of Waterloo Arts twitter, I would enter "uwaterlooARTS", inside the white box. Scinage will automatically refresh the widget where the latest tweet/retweet (made by the selected user) will appear. You may adjust the size settings of the widget according to your preference.
There are multiple "Twitter" widgets available on Scinage, such as:
Twitter with images alternate layout
Twitter with images
Twitter with images, without text
WCMS-style Twitter
7.5.6 Image Slideshow Widget
The "Image Slideshow" widget allows you to display up to ten images in one slide. To add the "Image Slideshow" widget, use the following instructions:
Create a new slide and click on the "Add Widget" button.
The widget dialogue box will open up. Select the "Image Slideshow" widget by clicking on the "Add" button within the widget card. The "Image Slideshow" widget will be added onto the middle of your workspace.
On the right hand column, within the "Image Slideshow" widget settings, start adding your images by clicking each individual url box. The order of the images will appear according the image number, with "Image 1" as the first image, and "Image 10" to be the last image to appear on the slideshow.
The following are some tips for using this widget:
Ensure that when you add this widget that whatever the height setting is, the weight is the same. This ensures that the widget has the same aspect ratio as the slide; otherwise, the images will appear to be stretched.
You can change the duration of each slide. Ensure that the duration is not set to anything less than two otherwise the images go by too fast for viewers to clearly view the images.
Never use images that are shaped as a square, such as the images below, or your images will be stretched out.
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Only use images that are the same aspect ratio as your screen, such as the images below.
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There are ten image placements within the Widget settings. Therefore, you have to add ten images, otherwise a
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broken image icon will appear.
If you don't have ten images, take the images you have and put them in order based on how you want them to be displayed, then add each image multiple times, until you have added ten images to the slide.
For instance, If I were trying to make a photo slideshow using four images I will add the four images to this widget in the following order. See image figure below.
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This ensures that even though I don't have ten images, I can still create a photo slideshow out the four images I have.
8. Media Upload
Scinage allows users to upload images and videos for quick and easy access when using widgets that require them. Media deleted in Scinage will not go to the trashbin; it will be permanently removed from Scinage.
8.1 Images
Images can be uploaded onto Scinage in two ways. The first method is to upload your image within the "Image" page on Scinage, use the following instructions:
Within the navigation bar, click on "Images", where you will be prompted to the "Images" landing page.
Then click the "Upload Image" button.
A dialogue box will open up, where you will be selecting your image file. Then click the "Open" button.
Your image will be automatically uploaded onto Scinage. Your latest image will appear at the top of the image list.
The second method is to upload the image via the Image widget, or similar, during slide creation/editing, use the following instructions:
Navigate to the slide editor.
Add the Image widget to your slide.
Click on the Image field under Widget settings.
A dialogue box will open up, where you will be selecting your image file. Then click the "Open" button.
Note that this is also where you can add previously uploaded images to slides.
Once you have added your external image file, you may adjust the image size according to your preference. If you are uploading a PowerPoint slide to use on Scinage, always remember to adjust your image size to 100, to fit the entirety of the screen.
8.2 Videos
The video page on Scinage is where you can manage your uploaded videos. Videos are added the same way as images, but through either the Videos page or a widget which requires a video be supplied.
Note: there are no thumbnails but the file name is displayed so that you can still locate your video.
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9. Trashbin
When a slideshow, slide, or widget is deleted via their cards delete button they will be sent to the trashbin. Each content type has their own tab, and offer two actions: Restore or Delete. Restore will move the object out of the trashbin and back to where it was, whereas delete will permanently delete the object from Scinage. Note that objects in use (i.e. a slide being used in a slideshow, a widget in a slide, a slide or slideshow being used on a screen) cannot be permanently deleted to prevent content disappearing from others.