Overview
Page Components (or simply “Components”) are the building blocks of pages in Ondexx, and contain the primary content of the page. Every page in Ondexx will contain at least one Page Component unless the page is completely empty!
Page Components can be thought of as the main headings or sections of a page. For example, a page for an internal policy might contain the “Purpose,” “Scope,” and “Policy Statement” components, each containing the relevant content for that section of the page.
Using a library of Page Components for a Site is a helpful way to keep Pages standardized and enforce naming conventions, however, new Page Components can be easily created at any time.
In addition to editor-created Components that contain inline content, Ondexx has three built-in Page Components, used to add special functionality to display other kinds of content:
- The Document Viewer component embeds a file in an online viewer
- The Embedded E-Learning Course component hosts an online course inside of Ondexx
- The Attachments component can be used to create a list of files relevant to the Page with simple drag-and-drop file management
While the content of a Page Component is specific to a given page, Components can also be broadly customized across an entire site. This includes renaming the Component everywhere it appears, adding default Templated Content, or causing Pages created in certain areas to automatically contain certain Components.
Using Page Components in the Page Editor
Modifying a Page’s Page Components
In order to add content to a page, you will need to add Page Components to put it in. To modify a Page’s Components, switch to the Components tab in the Page Editor.
The Component Library lists all the Page Components in the Site alphabetically, while the Page Layout lists the Page Components in the page in the order they will appear in the Page.
To add Page Components to the page, simply drag and drop components from the Component Library to the Page Layout. Components in the Page Layout can be rearranged and removed using the same method.
Creating new Page Components
If a Page Component you need isn’t in the Component Library, a new Component can be created directly in the Page Editor. The new Component will also be added to the Component Library, allowing it to be used in future pages.
To create a new Page Component in the Editor, simply type the name of your new component into the Add New Component field, and click +. The Component will be created and instantly added to the Page.
How to manage Page Components
Page Components in a Site are managed using the Page Component Manager menu, which can be found under Administration > Content Management > Components.
This menu allows Page Components in the Site and their usage to be reviewed. Components can also be created, edited, and archived from this menu.
The Usage column lists how many published pages use each component. Clicking on this statistic will show a list of those specific pages.
Display Name vs. Internal Name
Page Components in Ondexx have two names to help keep things organized for Editors.
The Internal Name is only used in the Page Editor, while the Display Name is used when the live page is viewed. This allows for an organizational name to be used for Editors while a different name is shown to End Users, e.g. “News Item – Alert” for Editors, but just “Alert” for End Users.
This can also be useful when using Component Templates, allowing multiple Components with the same Display Name but different Templates to be distinguished from each other by an Editor using their Internal Names.
Archiving Page Components
Page Components in a Site cannot be permanently deleted, only archived. An archived Component cannot be added to a page in the Page Editor, but does not affect the display of the Component in any pages that already contain it.
To archive a component, click the Archive button in its row. To unarchive a component, click the Unarchive button in its row.
Creating and Editing Page Components
New Page Components can be created from the Component Manager with the Add New Component button at the bottom of the page. You can also create a new Page Component from anywhere in the Site by going to Add New > Component
Enter or modify the Display Name, Internal Name, and Component Template as needed. More information on Component Templates can be found in this article: Using Component Templates
When finished, click Save to create the new Component, or immediately apply your changes to the existing Component.