Working with Ad-Hoc Content

Ad-Hoc Items are place-holders that can be put into a playlist, just like other content, by an administrator but the contents of the Item can be updated by a lower-level (Ad-Hoc) user.

Ad-Hoc Users only have access to a few Ad-Hoc Items and have, therefore, very limited capacity to change the content on the display. A typical Ad-Hoc use is to give a receptionist the ability to change a daily welcome message or the TV station on the display device in the company foyer.

The administrator controls access to the Ad-Hoc Items by creating one or more web pages for the Ad-Hoc User and placing the Ad-Hoc Items on those pages.

Content types that can be made Ad-Hoc include:

• Text.
• TV / Radio station.
• Tables.

The 5-step process to enable and make Ad-Hoc changes is as follows:

1. Create an Ad-Hoc Item.
2. Add the Ad-Hoc Item to a playlist.
3. Create an Ad-Hoc User account on the NTB.
4. Create an Ad-Hoc Page for the new user and add the Ad-Hoc Item to the page.
5. Make an Ad-Hoc change as an Ad-Hoc User.

  No user can make Ad-Hoc changes unless the Ad-Hoc Item has been placed on a page and the user has permission to access that page.

How to Create an Ad-Hoc Item

1. For Ad-Hoc Tables, browse to 'Tables | Add' and create the table.
2. Browse to 'Ad-Hoc Items | Add' page / tab.
3. Either select the media type (text or TV) from the list, give the item a descriptive name and click the top 'Add' button or select a table by name and click the bottom 'Add' button.
4. For Text or TV items: enter the default words or TV station and click 'Save'.

How to Playlist an Ad-Hoc Item

1. Browse to the NTB, locate the layout and click on the zone that you wish to show the item in.
2. Go to the 'Special Items' tab.
3. Select the appropriate 'Ad-Hoc' Item from the a drop-down list.
4. Click 'Add' to insert the item into the playlist.

How to Create an Ad-Hoc User Account

1. Browse to 'Setup | Users | Add'.
2. Enter a user name, real name and password and click 'Add'.
3. Click 'Edit' for the new account.
4. Ensure that only 'Ad-Hoc Access' is ticked and click 'Update'.

How to Create an Ad-Hoc Page and Add Items to it

1. Browse to 'Ad-Hoc Pages | Add'.
2. Enter a descriptive name for the page. The name will be very important and should make it clear what the purpose of the page is.
3. Click 'Add'.
4. In the 'Ad-Hoc Pages' tab, click 'Edit..' for the new page.
5. Click on the 'Properties' tab.
6. Type instructions to the user in the 'User Guidance' box. If it is unclear what should go in here, leave it blank and come back to it after trying out the page as an Ad-Hoc user.
7. Tick or un-tick user names to specify who should be allowed to access this page and edit the Ad-Hoc Items that will be placed on it.
8. Click on the 'Add' tab.
9. Use the drop-down list to select an Ad-Hoc Item and click the 'Add' button to add it to the Page.
10. Repeat until all items have been added.

How to Make Ad-Hoc Changes

1. Log into the NTB as an Ad-Hoc User.
2. Browse to 'Pages' under 'Ad-Hoc Customisation'.
3. Click the page describing the action that you wish to perform. (This is where you will see how important page name choice is)
4. Make / overwrite the necessary changes to the Item(s) shown on the Page.
5. Click the 'Save' button.
6. If the Ad-Hoc Item is currently showing on the screen then the change will be noticed immediately. If not then it will be noticed when the item does appear.

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