17 April 2013Boss - Finesse

In this release we have added further finesse to the Boss Console, expanding functionality and enhancing usability. We've also fixed some bugs for good measure.

New Features

Improvements to Page Object Lists

Page Objects can include Articles, Albums, Products, Events - anything that makes up the content on a Page. When you edit a page (e.g. via Manage Pages), you'll see the updated Page Object list. These objects now have icons to show how each Page Object has been configured, much like the screenshot below:



Each icon has a hover tool-tip indicating its meaning:

		This object is 'sticky', meaning it will always display above other standard objects. If there are more than one 'sticky' objects, they will display in order of the Display Options.
		This object has been 'bubbled' to this page, meaning that the object actually resides elsewhere in the website, but is "popping up" here. This can be useful if information needs to be duplicated across multiple pages.
		This object has been 'bubbled back' to this page, meaning that the object already resides on this page, yet there is a need for a second copy of the object. This is useful if information needs to be duplicated on a single page.
		This is a template article. It is treated differently by the website template system, and therefore may not display along with the other standard articles.
		This object resides on a child page (a page below this one in the hierarchy), but is displaying on this page due to the 'Display items from child pages' setting in the Display Options.
		This object is not currently visible due to its 'go live' or 'expiry' date setting. This feature can be used to have content appear and disappear at scheduled times.
		This product has a 'Not for sale' setting, meaning that it will display as usual, but cannot be added to a user's shopping cart.

Improvements to Display Settings

Each page already has a Display Settings section in its Configuration tab, however, these settings are now also available on the relevant tab for the Page Objects list (e.g. Articles, Products, Albums, Events). We've added a cog next to the 'filter' button, which drops down the Display Settings and shows display changes instantly as they are made.

In the screenshot below, you can see the black Display Options area is now visible, since clicking on the cog. This gives access to all the usual options, however if the Sort option is changed, the Page Object list is updated instantly to show the new order of the objects on the page. Additionally, if the 'Display objects from child pages' option is toggled on or off, the list will be updated automatically to show any objects that have been added or removed.

An alternative to this technique is to click on the Configuration tab for a page, and change the Display Options there. Again, if a new sorting order is selected, the Page Objects List will update to show the new order of the objects.

Remember to 'Save All Tabs' to make the new Display Options permanent.

Sort Options:

• Sorting Number - objects are sorted according to their 'Sorting Number' (e.g. screenshot below). If this option is chosen, the sorting numbers are displayed in the list below to make it obvious what is dictating the sort order.
• Date Created - objects are sorted according to the date they were created. If this option is chosen, the creation dates are displayed in the list below.
• Last Modified - objects are sorted according to the date they were last modified. If this option is chosen, the modification dates are displayed in the list below.
• Title - objects are sorted alphabetically according to their title.
• Price - objects are sorted according to their price (this only applies to products).

Improvements to Page Details

We've moved some configuration items around to make it more obvious what they relate to; one example of this is the Page Description. This was previously on the same tab as the Page Objects (e.g. Articles, Products, Albums, Events), but has now been put into a new tab called 'Page Details'. This tab holds all of the settings that are unique to this page, including the page's URLs, name, meta information, and description (i.e. the Page Description article).

The Page Description has always been a special article, used to convey information about the page to the rest of the website (e.g. via the menu system), or when special features are required that a standard article can't supply.

In the screenshot below, you can see the Page Details tab, and the page's Description & Media. If the Page Description has an attached image, a preview of this will show on the right of the description's content.

To edit the Page Description, click the 'Edit Description' button at the bottom of the section. This will open the Page Description article using the standard article editor.

Order Products by Price

A new feature on Category pages is the ability to choose to order the products according to their price, either ascending or descending. In the past, this could only be achieved using custom template changes.

Bug Fixes and Other Enhancements

There are many other improvements in this release of Boss. Some of them are listed below:

• Fixed: Form submission report dates were out by 12 hours.
• Fixed: There was no active/inactive setting for Picture Albums.
• Fixed: Duplicating a product with an apostrophe in its name doubles the apostrophe.
• Fixed: There was no right-click functionality on simple or articles pages.
• Fixed: The Product Centre (previously Manage Products) search was buggy.

Well, that's a brief summary of the changes in this release of Boss. As always, if you have any questions about anything relating to Boss, feel free to give us a call on (03) 6888 668 or send us an email.

27 November 2012Boss - Faster and Louder

In this release we have applied a snazzy redesign to the Boss Console, incorporating bold colours and strong contrasts. We've also added some new functionality and fixed some bugs for good measure.

New Features

Simpler layout

The new look Boss Console has been well considered by the team at Verb, and is much simpler to use with simpler pop-up windows and clear separation between relevant sections. As you click around, you'll see that similar items are grouped more clearly, and items that are more commonly used have been moved into prominent positions.

More control over website settings

We've expanded the Settings section under the Console menu to include many configuration options that weren't available previously. Now you can change just about any setting related to your website including page settings, media settings, cart settings, and even specifying details about your merchant account for your payment gateway.

Inline image tool improvements

The 'Insert Inline Image' tool has been improved and enhanced. You can now simply tick one or more images that you want to insert, and an 'Insert into editor' button will pop out at the top right. Click this to insert all the selected images into the article content or product description.

Bulk management of products on Category pages

The same great search tool you currently use in Manage Products (for those of you who have Boss.Catalogue) is now available on every Category page. This means you can now search and filter the products on that specific page and use our functional right-click menu, which will make your job easier.

Bug Fixes and Other Enhancements

There are many other improvements in this release of Boss. Some of them are listed below:

• On some websites, the password reset system wasn't working. This is now fixed.
• Large media can cause the Media tab to malfunction. This is now fixed.
• The 'Send Preview' button for Boss.Cart shop emails now works as expected.
• The 'Insert Inline Media' button now works for template (site-wide) articles.
• Boss.Client emails had an HTML encoding bug in the subject line. This is now fixed.

Well, that's a brief summary of the changes in this release of Boss. As always, if you have any questions about anything relating to Boss, feel free to give us a call on (03) 6888 668 or send us an email.

12 November 2012Media Updates

In this release we are introducing a new system for managing your uploaded media (images and files). We have combined your images (photos etc.) along with your files (documents etc.) into an overall media list. This list is available everywhere you need it to be, and now has an amazing search mechanism to help you quickly find the media you're looking for.

In the above screenshot of the Media tab on an Article, you can see several new features:

• Uploaded media on the left (all media that is not currently attached to this article)
• Attached media on the right (all media that has been attached to this article)
• Media search and filter on both sides to narrow down results
• Tick box beside each media item to allow selection for tasks
• Image preview when hovering your mouse over the image name (works on both sides)
• Delete icon for uploaded media
• Edit icon for attached media

Media Search

You'll find the media search box wherever good media is sold. This is a case-insensitive search of all media (images and files). In the example below we can see that there are two matching media items.

Media Filter

Click the 'Filter' button to reveal the media filter. The filter allows you to narrow down your results by specifying the following:

Attachment Scenario

This option allows you to filter according to how the media item is being used currently.

• Attached as media: Only show items that are currently attached to an Article, Product, or Album.
• Inserted in text editor: Only show items that have been inserted manually into the rich-text editor (Content tab for an article or page description, or Description tab for a product).
• Not attached or inserted: Only show items that are not currently used.

Media Type

This option allows you to filter according to the type of media item.

• Images: Only show image media (.jpg, .png, .gif - includes photos)
• Files: Only show file media (.pdf, .doc, .docx, xls, xlsx - includes documents and spreadsheets)
• External Media. Only show external media items (HTML snippets, social media plugins)

Number of Results

This option allows you to determine how many results will be shown in each set of results. The default is 20 media items in each set, and there is a 'Load more results' link at the bottom to retrieve the next set (if any).

Filter by Project

Projects are a new feature in this release of Boss. Media can be assigned to a project to make searching easier. Media is assigned to a given project during the uploading process. Projects can be created at any time using the 'Create new project' link, which is found within the Media Filter and on the Upload Files/Images dialogue.

At this time media cannot be retrospectively added into a project; if you'd like your media to be assigned to a project, you will need to upload it again with the relevant project selected. At this time media can only be assigned to one project.

Attaching and Removing Media

Media can be attached or removed from an article, product, or album using the following technique:

1. Use the search or filter to narrow down results as desired.
2. Select the media to be attached or removed by ticking the box to the left of each item. (Note that you can select all items in a given set by ticking the 'Select all' box at the top of the set)
3. If the items are to be attached, an Attach button will appear at the top (see below). Click this to attach the selected media to the item you're working on.
   
4. If the items are to be removed, a Remove button will appear at the top (see below). Click this to remove the selected media from the item you're working on.
   

Media Details

Each item in the Uploaded Media and Attached Media sections may be clicked to lock the item preview, and to show further information.

In the above screenshot of the Media tab on an Article, you can see that Image-7.jpg has been selected by clicking, which reveals the following information:

• Available sizes (only for images): When this image was uploaded, there were three size variants created (due to the resizing option that was selected at the time). The available sizes are Standard, Thumbnail, and Large. Links are provided for each size variant to allow for the image link to be copied or viewed.
• File Credits: This is an optional field used to specify ownership (copyright) of the media item. This field can be displayed on the live website via the template system if desired.
• Attached to the following: A list of all articles, products, or albums that this media item is attached to.

Inserting Images into Content

Images can be inserted directly into the rich-text editor, which is found on an article's content tab or into product's description tab. (Note that a product doesn't load the rich-text editor by default.) 

To insert an image into the rich-text editor, make sure your cursor is located in the text-editor where you'd like the image to be inserted. begin by clicking the top icon in the column of tools on the left side of the editor window (see screenshot below) or by pressing Ctrl + G. This was originally the location of the Image Manager icon, but has now been replaced by our new Image Insertion tool.

When the Image Insertion tool is clicked, a panel will open at the top of the screen to reveal a Media Search, identical to the one found on an article or product Media tab (including the filter). Use the search and filter to narrow down results as needed, then right-click on the item to insert and click 'Insert into text editor' (see screenshot below where Image-1.jpg has been right-clicked).

As an alternative, you can also click directly on any item to reveal optional details and insertion options (see screenshot below where Image-1.jpg has been clicked). 

You can now see all of the available image sizes (e.g. Standard, Thumbnail, Large) at the top of the image preview. Click the  icon next to the image size you'd like to insert. The image will be inserted directly where your cursor was located before you began. 

Client Email Enhancements

We've completely revamped the Client Email system, with a new design and greatly improved functionality. See the screenshot below.

Some of the new Client Email system features are as follows:

• New design and layout with left-hand progress indicators
• New emailing system that works in the background to send emails
• Ability to manage (edit or delete) previously sent emails
• New search mechanism to choose client groups/individual clients as recipients

Bug Fixes and Other Enhancements

There are many other improvements in this release of Boss. Some of them are listed below:

• Client Email editor now uses absolute URLs for hyperlinks and image links.
• Form Submission results are now displayed with the latest results at the top.
• Form Submission results are now correctly aligned horizontally if some fields are blank.

Well, that's a brief summary of the changes in this release of Boss. As always, if you have any questions about anything relating to Boss, feel free to give us a call on (03) 6888 668 or send us an email.