How do I create public and private notices?

Administrators can create custom notices in WinCATS that display in both WebCATS and WinCATS. There are two types of custom notices: public and private.

Public notices are available to anyone that accesses the WebCATS login screen. They are also automatically opened in an HTML Web page for anyone that logs into WinCATS.

In WebCATS, private notices are hidden behind an extra layer of security and are only available for viewing once a user has logged into WebCATS. In WinCATS, private notices display as an HTML Web page upon login. Private notices can be assigned to a specific center so that only users with a particular home center are privy to them.

To create a private or public notice…

1. In WinCATS, select File|Notices. This command is only available to database administrators.
2. WinCATS displays the Notices form. Select Edit|New Record to create a new notice record.
3. From the Product field’s drop-down menu, indicate whether the custom notice should be available to users accessing WebCATS, WinCATS, or both applications.
4. From the Type field’s picklist, select either “Public Notice” or “Private Notice.”
5. In the Date field, enter the date that you want displayed next to the notice.
6. From the Format field’s picklist, select whether you want to create the notice using plain text or HTML.

Note: If you select "HTML," your notice can display color, bolding, hyperlinks, and any other types of HTML formatting you desire. For a primer on using basic HTML, visit the FAQ titled How do I use HTML to create the public/private notices that display in WebCATS?.

Note: If you select "Plain Text," we recommend inserting manual carriage returns into the Message field to ensure that the text, when posted, does not run off the Web page.

7. Enter a title and text for your message in the Title and Message fields. If you selected “HTML” as your notice format in the previous step, you can write the notice using HTML formatting.
8. If you selected “Private Notice” in step 4, you have the option of limiting the notice to a particular center. Only users who have that particular center designated as their home center will see the notice upon login to WinCATS or WebCATS.
9. Select Edit|Save Record or close the Notices form to put your new notice into effect.

Note: When it's time to remove a custom notice, you can delete the notice record from the Notices form or, to temporarily remove the notice, deselect the Enabled/Visible? check box.

Want more? Browse our extensive list of WebCATS FAQs.

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