Build a Posts page

In this Article

• Post element formats
• Post element settings
• Post Tools element
• Board element

One of the great parts about Posts is its flexibility -- you can use it for blogs, news articles, allowing teachers to post class information, or just about anything you can think of. There’s no one right way to create a page with Posts, either. This article will describe how to choose the right format for your page layout, more details about Post element settings, the Post Tools element, and the Board element which all work together to create the public-facing side of Finalsite Posts.

Post element formats

The basic building block of the Posts page is the Post element. Each Post element has four different formats which provides variety in layout and functionality as you display posts on your Composer pages. 

• List: Display multiple posts from one or more boards or a collection
• Grid: Display multiple posts from one or more boards or a collection
• Slideshow: Display multiple posts from one or more boards or a collection
• Single: Display a single post in this element. Used in creating a Default Board Post Page, and is useful for displaying the full text of a specific post and can be linked to one of the other Post elements on the same page or a new page. Pair a Single Post element with a Post Tools Navigation element to display multiple posts, one at a time.

Post element settings

Content Filters

The Content Filters section defines which posts you want to display on your Posts page. Many options for targeting posts are available, whether you want to display a collection, all posts from one or more of your boards, a subset of posts filtered by tags or other options, or all of the above. Read Target posts in a Post element for an explanation of these settings.

Note: Categories are not available for filtering in the Post element. Categories are intended as a single-board organizational tool, while tags are used across boards. Refer to Organize content: Tags and categories for more information.

Ignore Role/Group Display Settings: Role/group display settings can help you personalize a post to appeal to a specific group of constituents. If you want to display all posts, regardless of their display settings, select this checkbox. Learn more about role/group display settings in Use Role/Group Display to control Post visibility.

For List, Grid, or Slideshow formats, you can select to show All Posts, Only Featured Posts, or Only Non-Featured Posts. With this tool, you can display featured posts in one element and non-featured posts in another, to visually enhance the content you want to feature.

For Single format, you can opt to Display specific post and then “Select Post” from the post list that appears, or display the most recent post from the boards and collection you choose.

Content Details

These options let you decide what content to display in this element. Refer to the Post element article for more information about each of these features. Combine multiple instances of the Post element with different Content Details displayed for creative layouts and more flexibility.

Pop-up Details

There are several good reasons to open a post in a page, especially for SEO purposes. However, if you choose to open posts from a List, Grid, or Slideshow format element in a pop-up, this section allows you to set what content will appear.

Controls

The Controls section of the element settings is mostly useful if you’re using the Slideshow element format. These settings let you decide which direction the slideshow should scroll in, what transition the slideshow will use, whether users will be able to control the slideshow with arrows and/or dots, whether the slideshow will autoplay, and so on.

For all formats, this is where you choose whether to display the alerts icons, to let users sign up for email alerts or subscribe to an RSS feed. Whether subscriptions or alerts are available depends on the settings for the individual Board, and if no Board in the element has these options, the icons will not display.

Finally, the List and Grid formats come with the option to load more posts, with customizable button text.

Formatting

Formatting options include how many posts to display (List, Grid, and Slideshow), how many columns to organize posts in (Grid), date format (all), and Page and/or Pop-up Thumbnail display options.

Advanced

Ignore URL Parameters: This option allows you to always display the same content in the element, no matter where the user is coming to the page from. If, for example, you want to display posts for a specific grade alongside posts for all grades, you would use the “Ignore URL Parameters” checkbox on the all-grades element to make sure it isn’t dynamically updated.

Link To

For List, Grid, and Slideshow formats, it’s a good idea to display a small portion of the content and link to the full content elsewhere. This is where you choose where to link to: a popup, a Single Post element on the same page (Element), or a Single Post element on a different page (Page). When using the Page option, ensure there’s a Single Post element on the selected page.

Post Tools element

To augment your post content and give users more options for how to interact with your posts, the Post Tools element will come in handy. Use multiple instances of this element for a variety of ways to boost the capabilities of your Posts page.

Link the Category Filter format element to a Post List, Grid, or Slideshow format element to display a list of Board categories that users can choose to view.

Link the Navigation format element to a Single Post element to allow users to navigate between posts. Note: If “Display a specific post” is selected, using the Navigation element with it will display posts from other boards.

In a Search format element choose from keyword and/or date range search options, and link to a List, Grid, or Slideshow format element to search post content.

As with the Category Filter, use the Tag Filter format element to link to a List, Grid, or Slideshow format element and allow users to select from available tags for content displayed in the element.

Board element

Where the Post Tools element will help users navigate between posts, the Board element provides options to navigate between boards.

The Board List and Grid element formats are helpful if you have a lot of boards for users to choose from, for example, if each teacher in a school has their own board. These elements create a directory for users to see at-a-glance information about a board’s title, description, most recent post, and more.

Choose which folder to display boards from; what content elements to display (Board Title, Updated Date, Updated Time, Description, and Thumbnail); how to format the date and page thumbnail, if applicable; and where to link the element, if applicable.

The title of each Board in a List or Grid format element can be linked to a Single Board element on the same page, or to a Single Board or Single Post element on a different page. If neither a page nor an element is selected, no link will be included.

The Single Board format works exactly the same as the List and Grid formats, while only showing the details for one board. This may be helpful to display alongside a Post element to provide more details and context for the posts users are currently using.