LEARN@IGP
12
Content Blocks
Content Blocks are the heart of the IGP:FoundationXHTML (FX) tagging system. From the Content Block accordion you can insert, edit and modify the tagging interactively without ever seeing raw XHTML. You can add, insert, modify, wrap content and unwrap content with a wide range of structural, semantic, styling, presentation and behaviour selectors. Updated: 2013-11-10
Overview
The term Content Blocks represents predefined tagging patterns. It is how you tag content with XHTML IGP:Writer. Content Blocks allow editors to add valid tagging patterns to the content to ensure consistency, correctness and future value.
With FX, as with any XML system it is possible to add the wrong tags to content to make it look OK. FX uses a very large and explicit grammar to avoid this to the extent possible.
There are a number of different techniques for applying tagging patterns to different types of content.
Accessing Content Blocks
All structural and semantic tagging operations must be carried out from the Content Blocks accordion.
To access Content Blocks:
- From the accordion panel click Content Blocks. The accordion will open.
- At the top is a drop down selector which will give access to the main content blocks organized using the IGP:FoundationXHTML (FX) taxonomic structure.
- Immediately below the accordion is a panel showing the active content block.
- Next are three context sensitive sections showing Headings, Paragraphs and Inline Styles. These are the selector properties that can be applied to the various XHTML elements.
The various content blocks, heading, paragraph and inline selectors are described in detail here.
Controlling Content Blocks Display Behaviour
By default when you move your cursor through a document the Content Block menu will change in context with the tags you can apply as your cursor moves into different blocks.
You can turn this behaviour off if required. For example if you are focused on text editing or design work.
To Turn Context Content Blocks off. Click the Edit Tools button and then the Content Blocks OFF button. The button will change to ON.
You are now in manual Content Block navigation mode. If you position the cursor in any block the Content Blocks will not change.
To Turn Context Content Blocks on. Click the Edit Tools button and then the Content Blocks ON button. The button will change to OFF.
You are now in auto Content Block context mode. If you position the cursor in any block the Content Blocks will change to that context.
Note about the Styling Interface
The previous DP editing panel options had some "Web styling tools" on the editing interface. For example, text and background colour, font-family and font size. These inserted inline style statements into the FX which is anti-long term digital content quality and value because:
- They are "Web oriented" and not good for high-value reusable content.
- They over-ride styles defined in the CSS file
- They are invisible and it is time consuming and expensive to spot them and remove them when required.
In the previous interface these were left for convenience for casual online document authoring or similar. It was important that they not be used for serious publishing documents.
These options have been removed from the interface and you must now use appropriate styles from the Content Blocks editing interface. There are eight available custom paragraph styles and eight available inline styles. This is enough for most document custom spot styling.
Updates
2013-03-26. Minor corrections and clarifications