The new page editing concept
This article deals historically with the difference of the obsolete "Classic Backend" (CB) and the current "Alternative Backend" (AB) which everyone is using today.
In TYPO3 3.0 a new strategy for page creating has been laid. With the emergence of features such as multiple columns, multiple page languages, the Alternative Backend (AB) and in particular the Rich Text Editor (RTE) a new concept was needed.
So what was the original concept then? Well, I have always taught users to "click the page icon and select Edit". Then the Doc-module was loaded with the page header along with the available content elements in the correct order:
However it's not so clear anymore what it is to "Edit a page". We have content in various columns and languages so the old "header and content elements" concept is not sufficient anymore. In addition it has become terribly slow because of the greater number of content elements along with the Rich Text Editor. And finally you ask yourself "why on earth do I have to see all the page content - I just wanted to add a comma!"
The new way is not really new - just reworked in all ways. The Web>Page modules main purpose is to provide the best possible platform for access to regular page content elements. Instead of clicking the page icon - click the page title:
The Web>Page module features these main functions:
- A QuickEditor; This is a one-click way to the page content element. The first content element is loaded by default. (In fact using the new Rich Text Editor might even eliminate the need for multiple content elements due to the formatting capabilities! That's how this page is built for instance!).
Other content elements including the page record can be selected by a selector box. - The Columns View; Here you will see the content elements of the page divided into the respective columns. This view gives a great overview of the page content. So where the QuickEditor is quick and intuitive, this overview is indispensable when you have a complex page to manage.
- The Language View: Here the content elements are divided by language; The content elements of each language is positioned aside each other so you can compare translations. (Language view is only available if frontend languages has been defined.)
- Finally there is a Page Information view which will tell you the number of page hits if it has been enabled in the TypoScript template of your site.
Well, enough talking. I just hope you read this anyway, because I feel you need to be familiar with this strategy - and please comment it if you disagree or see ways to improve it! Now to the tricks:
Creating a new page
Creating new pages are straight forward and easier than ever using the new position selector. Simply click the "New page icon"...
... and you'll see a list of pages in two levels with icons visually indicating the new position of the page.
You don't need words to explain this, now do you? :-)
Of course you can also create new records in general by this option in the bottom of the module:
Undo changes
... is a single click away by the new undo button. Alternatively you can traverse the history of changes of the record (I'll get back to that in Tip #5).
Removing certain items from the function selector
Say you want to use only the QuickEdit function and not have access to the other 3 options. Then you simply insert this little chunk of configuration code in the "TSconfig" field of the page (or any preceeding page in the tree). The TSconfig field is meant for this kind of unusual options. You must change the page type to Advanced or SysFolder in order to access the TSconfig field (however you can just change it back after setting the values).
Disabling columns not in use
The Web>Page module also features the ability to disable columns you don't use in the Column view. By default there are four columns, Left, Normal, Right, Border. The "Normal" column is the default in use, but some templates takes advantage of the others as well. However in most cases they are not all used and to minimize confusion at your end user, why not disable them:
Again we use the socalled "Page TSconfig" to do it and remember - the configuration given by "Page TSconfig" affects all subpages unless overridden deeper in the hierarchy!
Change order of fields in QuickEdit
What about making the QuickEditor even more intuitive and straightforward? The order of fields displayed can be re-ordered by setting a few fields which you wish to present first. In the case below the bodytext and header fields are forced to be shown as the very first fields on the form. Thereafter comes all the remaining fields:
All these great configuration options are documented in the TSconfig document. These kinds of options are quite easy to integrate and if you have suggestions, please let me know.
- kasper.
