Using SERC Workspaces

SERC Workspaces are wiki-like areas on the web where groups can collaboratively edit web pages and share documents.

Visit the Workspace and Create an Account

When you start using a SERC workspace you'll be provided with the url of the workspace (or more precisely with the url for a particular page in the workspace). If the workspace is private (see below) you'll immediately be asked to login to gain access. If you have yet to create an account with SERC you'll need to follow the 'Create New Account' link. In order to gain access to the workspace be sure to create your account using exactly the same email address that the person managing the project would have used to set up access. Once you've created the account you should be able to return to the workspace url and see the pages. If the workspace is public you'll be to view it immediately, but when you want to make changes or upload files you'll need to login (creating an account beforehand if you don't have one already). The interface should guide you through this process.

The Editing Controls are in the upper right corner of the page.

Each workspace page has editing controls in a pink box in the upper right corner of the page. Clicking this box will expand it to reveal either a login area or (if you've already logged in) a series of options for making edits.

• The Edit this Page button changes the text of the page into a directly editable box with a Save button at the side and basic formatting options in a menu bar.
• Links to other pages can be made using the link tag [link url 'text of link']. The details are outlined in the Editing Help link within the editing sidebar.
  
• The Upload File/Image button provides a screen where you can select files on your local hard drive, provide title and description and then upload the file to the workspace.
• The Create New Page button lets you provide the title for a new page, specify where in the navigation menu the page will live and (once you create the page) will provide you with a tag you can use to link to this new page. You can also move to any page in the workspace using the list at the bottom of the editing sidebar.
  

Uploaded Files are in the File Archive and can be embedded directly in any page.

At the bottom of the right side is a link to the File Archive. This page lists all the files and images that have been uploaded in the workspace. In addition this page also shows the tags needed to embed that particular file or image within any of the other workspace pages (e.g. [file 11006]).

Workspaces can be Public or Private.

Depending on how the workspace was set up it may be either public or private.

• Public Workspaces can be viewed by anyone (no account or password needed).
• Private Workspaces and files within them are only visible to those with an account that has explicitly been given access.
• Both public and private workspace can be edited only by those with explicit access: you must have an account and that account must have been given editing access to that workspace.
  

If additional people need access to your workspace you'll need to provide their email addresses to the person managing the workspace.

Workspaces are Built on the Same Tools as the rest of the SERC CMS.

You can explore the rest of the documentation here to get more detail about the SERC CMS and how it functions. Most of these ideas and additional formatting tags apply equally to workspaces. The two major differences between Workspaces and other areas on the SERC site are:

• Workspaces have only live pages, while other web spaces in the CMS have both development and live versions. Since workspaces are intended for formative, collaborative work the the dev/live separation would complicate things unnecessarily.
• Workspaces have editing controls embedded directly in the page. And these controls allow both creation of new pages and access to all uploaded files. This means people can use workspaces without needing to leave the workspaces pages themselves (e.g. to use the full editing interface.).

You can learn more about the rest of the CMS in the pages that follow.