User:Daniel Mietchen/Sandbox/EoEarth Upgrade

The following is a copy of this page from EoEarth.

The Encyclopedia of Earth has upgraded its systems to make your life easier. This new upgrade will hopefully alleviate many of the issues you may have had in the past while using the site. Some of the new features are highlighted below. But the best way to see the changes is to experience it for yourself...so go ahead, edit an article.

= New features =

Improved search capabilities

 * If your search term matches an existing articles it will bring you directly to that article

Automatic formatting adjustments

 * You can now copy and paste from word and the wiki will format your text correctly

Adding Images just got a whole lot easier

 * You do not need to know any wikicode to add an image. Simply click this image [[Image:Image tool bar.PNG|25x25px]] on the tool bar.
 * Once you've added an image to your article you can easily move it around
 * To resize your image all you have to do is drag the corners
 * You can now search our database of images

Add audio and video files to your article

 * We now have the capabilities to upload mp3, wmv, avi, mov and pps

Work flow history displayed prominently

 * At the top of each article there is a box that shows the changes made to that article.
 * This means you know who's been working on it and what they have done to it, which promotes both transparency and collaboration

Sleeker interface/more aesthetically pleasing

 * In general the new "look and feel" of the wiki is more appealing
 * We have tried to make the experience more enjoyable by tailoring the wiki to look like

Ability to edit specific sections of articles

 * We know that editing an entire article can be daunting, so at the beginning of each section there is an "Edit" button that will separate that section so you can work on it without the distraction of the entire article.

Automatic update on the public site

 * When you publish an article the changes automatically go live

Helpful icons for external links and email links

 * There are some icons throughout the wiki that will help you identify links. For example if you see this [[Image:External link.PNG]] you know that link will send you to a website that is outside the EoE or if you see this icon [[Image:Email icon.PNG]]you know that link will send an email.

Editing and articles just got a whole lot easier

 * We have installed the newest version of "FCK editor"; this means that you should feel like you're using Microsoft Word, not creating a webpage (which you are essentially doing)

Keep in mind this is aprocess and because it is a new system there might still be some kinks we need to work out. Currently the "My Dashboard" feature is not working but it is being improved and will be up and running shortly.