DNN Tutorials for Administrators

This tutorial demonstrates how you can use the styles drop down list in the FCK editor to format the text.

Using the styles drop down list allows you to quickly apply CSS classes from your skin.css file and should help to ensure that administrators do not use bad practices for styling text, such as using font tags.

The videos contain:

• Video 1 - Styling the Background of the Style Dropdown List in the FCK Editor
• Video 2 - List of Available Styles for the FCK Editor
• Video 3 - Dynamic Styles in the FCK Editor
• Video 4 - How to Create Custom Styles
• Video 5 - Creating Class Styles in the Style Dropdown List
• Video 6 - How to Customise Block Quotes with Different Classes

Total Time Length: 48mins

This tutorial demonstrates how to create your own HTML templates for the FCK Editor in DotNetNuke.

HTML templates are really useful for adding repetitive content into a page; they can give you a starting point when adding content to the page, you do not need to start from scratch, you can simply select a template as a starting point and then edit the content within the template. This will help to reduce errors created by content editors.

The videos contain:

• Video 1 - Introduction, the FCKtemplates.xml file
• Video 2 - How to Create a Custom HTML Template

Total Time Length: 16mins

This tutorial outlines the functions in the FCK Editor Toolbar.

The tutorial shows how each of the FCK Editor Toolbar functions work, ranging from basic text editing, such as copy and paste techniques, through to creating various types of links such as anchor links. All options in the toolbar are demonstrated including the advanced functions for each button. This tutorial also comes with a PDF document which outlines all of the keyboard shortcuts used within the FCK editor.

The videos cover:

• Video 1 - Introduction, FCK Editor Basics, Toolbar buttons
• Video 2 - Copy and Paste Functions, Removing Formatting
• Video 3 - Text Formatting, Lists, Indents Text Alignment, Links
• Video 4 - Working with Links
• Video 5 - Working with Links and Images
• Video 6 - Working with Images, Flash and Tables
• Video 7 - Working with Tables, Insert, Formatting Text

Total Time Length: 54mins

In this tutorial we demonstrate how to administer Skins and Containers in DotNetNuke through the use of SQL queries.

In particular we demonstrate how to change the container of a module displayed on all or several pages, how to change the container of a module to a new container based on the name of the old container, and how to change the skin of a page to a new skin based on the name of the old skin.

The videos cover:

• Video 1 - How to Change Module Containers Using SQL
• Video 2 - How to Change Module Containers Based On The Container Name Using SQL
• Video 3 - How to Change a Page Skin Based On The Skin Name Using SQL

Total Time Length: 24mins

In this tutorial we demonstrate how to use the SQL core DotNetNuke module.

This module is only available to the host user on your DotNetNuke installation and it allows you to execute SQL queries and scripts from within your DotNetNuke installation.

Although we thoroughly recommend you use SQL Server to build and check your queries, the DotNetNuke SQL module is useful if you already have a good understanding of using SQL within your DotNetNuke installation.

The video covers:

• Introduction
• How to access the DotNetNuke SQL Module
• Overview of the SQL Module
• How to load a SQL file into the DotNetNuke SQL Module
• How to edit and execute a SQL query in the DotNetNuke SQL Module

Time length: 5mins

In this tutorial we demonstrate how to quickly administrate modules on a page through the use of SQL queries.

We demonstrate how to move and delete modules from one content pane to another using several techniques and introduce you to using ‘SELECT’, ‘UPDATE’ and ‘DELETE’ SQL queries.

Following this we demonstrate how you can use SQL queries to copy existing modules to a page. This is for modules that are not set to display on all pages, and is the equivalent of using the admin control panel and selecting ‘Add Existing Module’.

The videos cover:

• Video 1 - Introduction, Deleting Modules Using SQL
• Video 2 - Deleting Modules from a Page, Moving Modules to a New Content Pane in a Page
• Video 3 - How to Move Modules on All Pages to New Content Panes
• Video 4 - How to Copy an Existing Module to a Page using SQL
• Video 5 - Using 'INSERT' queries to Copy Modules

Total Time Length: 35mins

In this tutorial we demonstrate how to quickly update the Page Settings of a DotNetNuke page through the use of SQL queries.

You can use SQL queries to update any of the options within the Page Settings, for instance you can update the title, description, skin, container, page header tags, etc.

The techniques used in this tutorial are very useful when you are updating multiple pages at once on an already established website as it can really help to speed up your administration time.

The videos cover:

• Video 1 - Introduction, Creating Test Page, Changing the Skin using SQL
• Video 2 - Updating further Page Settings, Grouping SQL Queries together

Total Time Length: 19mins

In this tutorial we demonstrate how to use shadow / copied modules. This is an essential and powerful administration task that can enhance your DotNetNuke portals and reduce administration time.

Shadow or Copied modules can be used to update the same content on several pages from one central area.

Following this we then demonstrate how you can use SQL queries to easily maintain these copied modules.

The SQL techniques outlined in this tutorial are very powerful techniques for easily and quickly manipulating multiple copied modules across thousands of pages in a DotNetNuke portal.

The videos contain:

• Video 1 - Introduction, Shadow Modules, Add Existing Module
• Video 2 - Copy Module to All Pages and Reordering Modules
• Video 3 - SQL Queries to Update the Module Order in Content Panes
• Video 4 - How to Update the Container for All Shadow / Copied Modules in a Portal Using SQL
• Video 5 - Using SQL to Update a Module Container to a New Container Based on the Name of the Old Container

Total Time Length: 42mins

In this tutorial we demonstrate using SQL queries for working with DotNetNuke security roles and users.

Using SQL queries can help you to easily maintain and manipulate the registered user and security role data in your DotNetNuke portal. These SQL query methods are ideal for managing users of your DotNetNuke portal for email newsletters, paid subscriptions, etc.

If you do not have any experience of SQL, we demonstrate how you can use the built in Query Editor in SQL Server Express to build your own SQL queries.

The videos contain:

• Video 1 - Introduction to SQL queries and How to Use The Query Editor
• Video 2 - Exporting Users and Removing Security Roles using SQL

Total Time Length: 16mins

In this tutorial we provide a quick start guide to using SQL queries with SQL Server Express. In particular we demonstrate how to set up SQL Server Express so that you can execute SQL queries on your DotNetNuke database, on both a local and a live database.

This tutorial helps you to set up SQL Server Management Studio Express and execute a basic query, following this tutorial you can then progress onto the more advanced SQL query tutorials.

The videos contain:

• Video 1 - How to Attach a DotNetNuke Database to SQL Server Express using Windows Vista
• Video 2 - How to Create a User Account and set up Permissions
• Video 3 - How to Edit the Web.config Connection String
• Video 4 - How to Create a SQL Query, How to Connect to a Live Database

Total Time Length: 29mins