One benefit of IAAP’s Web Community is its robust resource library options. IAAP members and chapters have the ability to upload a variety of different media (PDFs, presentations, video, audio, etc.) for use by their chapter and/or other IAAP members. This tutorial will walk you through the process of adding a file or files to a Resource Library.
To upload files to a resource library, select "Add a New Entry" from the drop-down menu under Resources (on some sites, the main tab may say "Professional Resources").
When creating a library entry, you can upload one or multiple files to the same entry. For example, if you wanted to upload chapter newsletters from an entire year, you may create an entry that contains 12 separate files, one for each newsletter. Or in some cases you may only have one file to upload.
The first step is to name the entry and describe the file or files that will be included. This is an important step because it will determine, largely, how easy the files are to find using the library's search functionality. If the title and description do not contain enough information, it will likely be difficult for anybody to search and find it. Whenever possible, include as much information as possible about the file, including chapter name it relates to, exact titles, similar words that might be used to search for it, etc.
After you've entered a title and description, you will need to choose a library in which to place the entry. If the files you are uploading should only be available to members of your chapter, you should select your chapter's library (if your chapter is subscribed to the web community). Otherwise, you can simply choose the library that relates the best to the files you are uploading. For example, if you are uploading a chapter newsletter you want all IAAP members to have access to, you might upload it to the Newsletter Editor library. If it's uploaded to your chapter library, only your chapter members will be able to access it.
The last step on describing your entry is to select an Entry Type. Most of the time, you will want to select Standard File Upload no matter what type of file you are uploading.
Once you have entered the title, description, selected the library and file type, click next.
Next, you will want to choose the files you want to upload. Click Browse to locate the file(s) on your computer to upload. If you need to include more than one file with your entry, use the additioanl fields below to add them. If you need more than three files, click the "Add Another File" option to add another field.
When you click Browse, you will need to locate the file, click on it once and click Open.
Once you have queued the files you want to include in your entry, click the Upload File(s) button.
When your files have finished uploading (larger files will take longer), they will display in a list below the Upload File(s) button.
You now have two options, you can click Finish and complete the upload process, or (optionally) you can click Next to add additional information about your files (Note: in most cases, clicking Finish at this point is sufficient, but we will explore both options here).
If you click Finish...
Once you click finish you will be taken to the View Document screen (see below). This is a summary of the file or files you uploaded and is what people will see before downloading the actual files.
- Here you can see the title of the document, who posted it, when and in which library. You can also read the description.
- All of the actual files available to download will be listed here. You can download individual files if there are multples or you can download all of them in a single zipped file.
- You can rate documents here and see how other people have rated the document here.
- This section allows you to share the library entry with others or to save for future use. You can click Share to email it to other members, or the Permalink will provide you a direct link to the entry's summary page. You can also add it to your favorites, to find easier in the future. Also, if you are the creator of the entry, you can edit the files here or delete the entire entry.
- This section displays information about how many times the library entry has been viewed and how many times the files have been downloaded and/or shared with others.
If you click Next...
If you'd like to add additional information to your files and click Next, you will be taken to a screen where you can add a title and description for each individual file you have uploaded. This step is optional, especially if you are only including one file in your entry. If you want to skip this step, just click Next or Finish.
The last option step is to choose tags that are related to your library entry. In some cases, this can make finding your documents easier, depending on the users' search methods. Once you've selected your tags, click Finish and you are done.
One thing to remember is that every file you uploaded will automatically be added to your My Documents list, which is also in the Resources tab. If you ever need to quickly locate a document you have uploaded, simply clicking on My Documents is usually the fastest way to locate it.