There are several topics covered in this post. If you prefer to download and save a PDF version of this post, feel free. It was last updated September 2021.
Table of Contents
- Uploading a New Document
- Page Setup Using the Gutenberg WP Editor
- New Year, New Documents – Adding a new block to an existing page
- Display By Title
- Edit the Excerpt Per Document
- Edit the Excerpt Per Document Type
- Adding a New Document Type
- Editing Document Type
- Public Alert *NEW FEATURE*
Uploading a New Document
You can watch this video or scroll down for written instructions with screenshots.
NOTE: PDFs are the only acceptable document type. Word Documents, and other types of documents, are not supported by this plugin. If you are having trouble with documents not publishing, please make sure you’re uploading PDFs only.
1. Log into WordPress.
2. Click on the Documents > Add New item in the menu.
3. Choose the document type and date, select or upload the document, set the tag (if applicable) and publish the document. These steps can be done in any order.
- There are several preset document types, including Agenda, Council Agenda, Council Minutes, Form, Minutes, Newsletter, and Ordinance.
- If you need to add a new type, you may do so in the “Types” area of the plugin. (See Adding a New Document Type.)
- Select the date on which the document was published. For Meeting Minutes, set the date to the date on which the meeting occurred. For Ordinances, set the date on which the Ordinance was approved or enacted. For a Newsletter, it is probably okay to set the date to today’s date (the date on which the document is being published).
- Select or upload the document. As of September 2020, the only acceptable document type is PDF. Clicking the “Select a Document” button will take you to the media library. There you have the choice to either upload a new document or select an existing document. If you’ve made a mistake and selected the wrong document, just click the “Select a Document” button again and choose a different document.
- Sometimes you may have a special document that you’d like to set apart from the rest. This is done with tags. Type in the Tag (Special, Reorganization, Cancelled are a few common tags), and then click Add.
- Publish the document.
4. If you haven’t already done so, set up a page on which to display this type of document. (See Page Setup.) Otherwise, the pages that you’ve set up will auto-populate with your documents.
Page Setup Using the Gutenberg WP Editor
1. Log into WordPress.
2. If you have an existing page, edit that page. If you need to set up a new page, click “Add Page”.
3. Choose the correct block (by clicking the + on the screen) from the choices as follows:
- List
- Bulleted List
- Grid
4. You can change your mind on the block type even after you’ve selected it using the Block Settings section on the right when the block is selected.
You have control over:
- The display of the documents on the screen, whether lists, bullets, or a grid.
- The document type displayed in this block. (You can display more than one document type on a page in separate blocks.)
- The document year.
- Whether the documents are displayed by date or title. (If you need to display the document’s title, see Display by Title.)
- Whether the documents are ordered in ascending or descending order.
- Whether the documents open in a new tab.
- Whether the excerpt is displayed.
5. When you have the page set up the way you like it click “Publish” if it’s a new page or “Update” if it is an existing page.
Display By Title
1. Log into WordPress.
2. Make sure the category that you wish to display is set up to display by title. Remember, the default display is by date.
- Click on Documents > Types.
- Edit the category you wish to display by title. (This is not recommended for Meeting Minutes and Agendas that should be titled by the date on which the meeting occurred.)
- Set the “Document Title Template”.
By default, it is %doc_type% – %month_name% %day_name%, %year%
To show the title is should be something like %doc_type% – %doc_name%, %year%
- Click “Update” at the bottom of the Document Type editing screen.
3. Click on the Documents > Add New item in the menu.
4. Choose the document type and date, select or upload the document, set the tag (if applicable) and publish the document. (See Uploading a New Document.)
5. If you haven’t already done so, set up a page on which to display this type of document. (See Page Setup.) Otherwise, the pages that you’ve set up will auto-populate with your documents.
Edit the Excerpt Per Document
1. Log into WordPress
2. Click on the Documents > All Documents item in the menu.
3. Choose the document you wish to edit by clicking “Edit”.
4. Scroll to the bottom of that document page. Edit the Excerpt as you wish.
5. Click “Update” at the top of the document screen. (Instead of “Publish” on an existing document, this button will say “Update”.)
Edit the Excerpt Per Document Type
1. Log into WordPress
2. Click on Documents > Types.
3. Edit the category you wish to display by title.
4. Set the “Document Excerpt Template”.
- By default, it is Click the title to view the %file_extension%.
5. Click “Update” at the bottom of the Document Type editing screen.
NOTE: This change does not work retroactively. It only works for documents moving forward.
Adding a New Document Type
1. Log into WordPress
2. Click on Documents > Types.
3. Right from this screen you can add a new document type by
- Typing the Name of a new document type.
- Clicking “Add New Document Type” at the bottom of the screen.
You can edit the Parent Document Type, Description, Document Title Template, Document Excerpt Template, and Document Name Template right from this screen as well before you click the “Add New Document Type” button. If you wish to edit these items after the fact, see Editing Document Type.
Editing Document Type
- Log into WordPress
2. Click on Documents > Types.
3. Edit the category you wish to display by title.
4. You can control the following right from this screen:
- Name
- Slug
- Parent Document Type
- Description
- Document Title Template
- Document Excerpt Template
- Document Name Template
5. Click “Update” at the bottom of the Document Type editing screen.
Public Alert
1. Log into WordPress.
2. Click on “Public Alerts” from the dashboard menu on the left.
3. From there, you have several items from which to choose. (Please see the image above for a visual representation of these items.)
- Instructions – to help guide you through the alert process
- Show Notice – when this box is checked, the notice will show on the front-facing website
- Notice Message – type your message into this box
- Notice Style – choose the way in which you’d like the notice to appear
4. There are also several “Advanced Settings” from which to choose. (Please see the image above for a visual representation of these items.)
- Show close button? – when this box is checked, the user can close the notice on the front-facing website
- Enable sticky positioning? – when this box is checked, the notice will remain at the top of the page even when scrolling
- Display on front page only? – when this box is checked, the notice will only be shown on the homepage on the front-facing website
- CSS – this box allows for any special formatting
5. When finished, assuming you’ve clicked the “show message” box, click save changes. Your notice should appear on your website at this time. You may need to clear the website and/or browser cache to see the notice right away. If you want to disable the message, uncheck the “show message” box.