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Online poll

An online poll asset allows you to add a question to your site where users can vote. In addition to displaying the poll question, you can display the current poll and previous poll questions and their results.

The online poll page can be set up to allow users to vote once or multiple times. If it has been set up so they can only vote once, the question will appear the first time they visit the page. Once they have voted, they will see the results of the current question or can view previous poll results. The next figure shows how this process works using the bodycopy assets created under the online poll page in the asset tree.

The process of voting on the online poll (user can only vote once)

If it has been set up so the user can vote multiple times, the question will appear every time they visit the online poll page. They can either vote, click through to see the current question’s results, or view previous poll results. This figure shows how this process works using the bodycopy assets created under the online poll page in the asset tree.

The process of voting on the online poll (user can vote multiple times)

Once your online poll is created, you can configure its settings on its associated asset screens. The majority of these screens are the same as a standard page and are described in the Asset screens. This chapter will only describe the details screen, which is different for an online poll.

Additional dependant assets

The additional dependant assets

When you create an online poll page, several assets are automatically created beneath it, as highlighted in the figure: You can use these assets to define the contents and layout of the online poll page.

Vote formats

This folder contains the following bodycopies:

Question format

This bodycopy allows you to format the layout for the current question that is being voted on by users.

Option list

This bodycopy allows you to format the layout of the answers for the current question.

This layout is shown within the question format bodycopy.

Results formats

This folder contains the following bodycopies:

Results format

This bodycopy allows you to format the overall layout for each poll question’s results.

Results list format

This bodycopy allows you to format the result’s layout for each answer to a poll question. This layout is shown within the results format bodycopy.

Past questions formats

This folder contains the following bodycopies:

Past questions format

This bodycopy allows you to format the overall layout for all past questions on the online poll page.

Past questions list formats

This bodycopy allows you to format the layout for each past question asked on the online poll page. This layout is shown within the past questions format bodycopy.

Details screen

The details screen allows you to configure the settings of the online poll. Read the Asset details screen documentation for more information about the Status, Future status, Thumbnail, and Details sections.

Poll questions

This section allows you to add poll questions to the online poll and select a question to use as the current question. The poll questions section of the Details screen is shown in the figure:

The poll questions section of the details screen

The fields available are as follows:

Current question

Select which poll question to show on the online poll page.

A poll question
Add poll question

this field allows you to add a new poll question to the online poll page. By default, no questions will be added to the online poll page.

To add a new question:

  1. Enter the new question into this field.

  2. Select Save.

    A new poll question asset will appear under the online poll page in the asset tree, as highlighted in the figure: Once you have added the question, you can add options and change various settings for that question on the Details screen. Read the Details screen for a poll question for more information about poll questions.

Vote options

This section allows you to select whether a user can vote multiple times for the current question that is being displayed. The vote options section of the Details screen is shown in the figure:

The vote options section of the details screen

If Allow multiple voting is set to Yes, the user will be able to vote multiple times. Every time they visit the online poll page, the question format bodycopy is displayed to vote.

If Allow multiple voting is set to No, they can only vote once. When they first visit the online poll page, the question format bodycopy is displayed to vote on the question. Once they have voted, every time they visit the page, the results format bodycopy is displayed to view the current question’s results.

If you want to allow public users to vote, set allow multiple voting to Yes. Otherwise, the public user will only be able to vote once for each question.

Label options

This section allows you to change the button and hyperlink text on the online poll page. The label options section of the Details screen is shown in the figure:

The label options section of the details screen

The fields available are as follows:

Vote button label

Enter the text to appear on the vote button. By default, this is set to Vote.

Previous questions link text

Enter the text to appear on the hyperlink to the previous poll questions. By default, this is set to View previous questions.

View results link text

Enter the text to appear on the hyperlink to the current question’s results. By default, this is set to View result.

New window

This section allows you to change the new window’s appearance for the results of the current question. This window appears when a user has clicked the Vote button. The new window section of the Details screen is shown in the figure:

The new window section of the details screen

The fields available are as follows:

Options

Select which features of the new window you want to hide from the user.

Window width

Enter the width of the new window in pixels. By default, this is set to 0, meaning that it will open with the same width as the current window.

Window height

Enter the height of the new window in pixels. By default, this is set to 0, meaning that it will open with the same height as the current window.

Graph options

The section allows you to specify the results graph’s format shown on the results format bodycopy. The graph options section of the Details screen is shown in the figure:

The graph options section of the details screen

The fields available are as follows:

Graph box width (pixels)

Enter the width of the graph in pixels. By default, this is set to 400 pixels.

Graph box height (pixels)

Enter the height of the graph in pixels. By default, this is set to 400 pixels.

The color picker pop-up
Graph bar color

To select the color of the graph:

  1. Click on the graph bar color button.

  2. Double-click on the color you want to use.
    The color picker pop-up will close, and a tick will appear in the Graph bar color field to indicate that it has been changed.

  3. Select Save.

Alternatively, you can enter the # value of the color into the field. By default, this is set to #0000cc, which is blue.

Poll questions

Each question that appears on the online poll page is added as a separate asset in the asset tree. These assets are known as poll questions. For each poll question, you can add, edit, and remove the options to select and view the number of votes that each option has received.

Adding a poll question

A poll question asset

To add a poll question:

  1. Go to the Details screen of the online poll page.

  2. Enter the question in the Add poll question field.

  3. Select Save.

A new poll question asset will appear under the online poll page in the asset tree, as highlighted:

Editing a poll question

To edit a question:

  1. Right-click on the poll question asset in the asset tree.

  2. Select Details.

  3. You can add, edit, and remove options on this screen and view the number of votes that each option has.

Deleting a poll question

To delete a poll question, move the poll question asset to the trash.

Read Trashing and purging assets for more information on how to delete an asset.

Status of a poll question

If a poll question has been selected as the current question, it does not need to have a live status to appear to the public. It will still appear on a publicly viewable online poll page if it has a status of under construction. This behavior is so that the page does not appear broken. A poll question must have a live status to appear within the list of past questions.

Details screen for a poll question

The Details screen of a poll question allows you to add, edit, and remove the options to select and view the number of votes that each option has received. Read the Asset details screen documentation for more information about the Status, Future status, Thumbnail, and Details sections.

Poll options

This section allows you to add, edit, delete, and rearrange the options that the user can select for this question. It also allows you to view the number of votes that each option has received.

The fields available are as follows:

Current options

By default, the current options list is empty, as shown in the previous figure. Once you have added new options, they will appear in this list, as shown in the figure:

The current options list

For each option, the following information is displayed: Poll option::: Enter the text for the option for the question. By default, this will be similar to Poll option text #1. Votes::: This field displays the number of votes the option has received. For example, in the previous figure, the first option has received 1 vote, but the second vote has not received any votes. Delete::: To delete an option from the list:

+

  1. Click the Delete box.

  2. Select Save.

    Move

    This field allows you to re-order the options. To move the page:

  3. Click on either the up arrow or down arrow.

  4. Select Save once you have re-ordered the options.

    Clear votes

    This field allows you to clear the votes an option has received on the poll question. To clear votes:

  5. Select the Clear votes field.

  6. Select Save; the votes on the specified option(s) will be removed.

Add new options

This field allows you to add options to the question. To add options:

  1. Select the number of options you want to add from the list provided.

  2. Select Save. Each option will appear in the current options list. You can add as many options as you want to a question.

Allow multiple selections

Select whether the user can select multiple options for the question. If this is set to No, radio buttons will appear for each option to only select one option. If this is set to Yes, checkboxes will appear for each option to select multiple values. By default, this is set to No.

Voting records

This section allows you to delete the votes that users have made. By default, if no votes have been made, a message will appear in this section, as shown in the figure:

The voting records section of the details screen

Once a vote has been made, a list will appear, as shown in the figure: To delete a vote from this list:

  1. Select which user’s vote you want to delete.

  2. Select Save.

That user’s vote(s) will be deleted, and they can vote again if they want to.

The voting records section

Question format bodycopy

The question format bodycopy asset is used to define the layout for the current question that is being voted on by users. For example, for the online poll page shown in the figure, the question and its answers are shown with hyperlinks to the current and previously voted on questions. This layout has been defined in the question format bodycopy.

An online poll (question)

To change what information is being shown:

  1. Right-click on the question format bodycopy in the asset tree.

  2. Select Edit contents.

  3. Click on the edit icon – the WYSIWYG editor will appear.

  4. Use keyword replacements and formatting to layout the information to show on the page.

The next figure shows the information added into the WYSIWYG editor for the online poll page shown in the previous figure.

The WYSIWYG editor on the question format bodycopy

Keyword replacements on the question format bodycopy

A list of keyword replacements is provided in the WYSIWYG editor toolbar on the edit contents screen of the question format bodycopy. You can use these keyword replacements in conjunction with text, images, and links to layout what to show for the current question.

You need to include the keyword replacements question, option list, and vote button so that the question can be displayed on the online poll page.

The standard keyword replacements that are available include the following:

Question

This will show the value that has been entered into the poll question field on the details screen of the current question.

Date

This will show the date that the current question was created.

You can change the date the question was created on the poll question asset’s settings screen.
Option list

This will show the list of options that the user can select from for the current question.

Vote button

This will show a button that the user can press to submit their vote. When they click this button, the results for the current question will appear within the same window.

Vote button (opens results in a new window)

This will show a button that the user can press to submit their vote. When they click this button, a new window will appear displaying the results for the current question.

Vote button javascript

This keyword replacement allows you to show an image to use as the vote button. The user will be able to click on the image to submit their vote. When they click this image, the results for the current question will appear within the same window.

Vote button javascript (opens results in a new window)

This keyword replacement allows you to show an image to use as the vote button. The user will be able to click on the image to submit their vote. When they click this image, a new window will appear displaying the results for the current question.

View results link

This will show a hyperlink to the results for the current question.

View results URL

This will show the URL to the results for the current question.

View past questions

This will show a hyperlink to the list of previous poll questions.

View past questions URL

This will show the URL to the list of previous poll questions.

A link to active question

This will show a hyperlink to the current question. The value entered into the Poll question field on the Details screen of the current question is used as the text for the hyperlink.

A link to active question results

This will show a hyperlink to the current question’s results.

The value entered into the Poll question field on the Details screen of the current question is used as the text for the hyperlink.

A link to active question with creation date

This will show a hyperlink to the current question. The value entered into the poll question field on the Details screen of the current question, and the date it was created is used as the text for the hyperlink.

A link to active question results with creation date

This will show a hyperlink to the current question’s results. The value entered into the poll question field on the Details screen of the current question, and the date it was created is used as the text for the hyperlink.

Option list format bodycopy

The option list format bodycopy asset is used to format the answers' layout for the current question. This layout is shown within the question format bodycopy. For example, for the online poll page shown in the next figure, the section that has been defined in the option list format bodycopy has been highlighted. For each option in the list, the radio button and option text is shown.

The list format on an online quiz

To change what information is being shown:

  1. Right-click on the option list format bodycopy in the asset tree.

  2. Select Edit contents.

  3. Click on the edit icon – the WYSIWYG editor will appear.

  4. Use keyword replacements and formatting to layout the information to show on the page.

This next figure shows the information added into the WYSIWYG editor for the online poll page shown in the previous figure.

The WYSIWYG editor on the option list bodycopy

Keyword replacements on the option list format bodycopy

A list of keyword replacements is provided in the WYSIWYG editor toolbar on the Edit contents screen of the option list format bodycopy. You can use these keyword replacements in conjunction with text, images, and links to layout what to show for each option.

You need to include the keyword replacements option selection (radio button or checkbox) and option label so that each option is displayed on the online poll page.

The standard keyword replacements that are available include the following:

Option label

This will show the text for the option. This label is the value entered into the Poll option field on the Details screen of the poll question.

Option number

This will show the number of the option. This number is based on the order of the options on the details screen of the poll question.

Option selection (radio button or checkbox)

This will show either a radio button or a check box for the option. A radio button will appear if the allow multiple selections field on the poll question asset’s details screen is set to No. If this field is set to yes, however, checkboxes will appear.

Results format bodycopy

The results format bodycopy asset is used to define the overall layout for each poll question’s results. This layout includes the results for the current question and all previous poll questions.

For example, for the online poll page shown, its results and a hyperlink to the previously voted questions are being shown. This layout has been defined on the results format bodycopy.

An example of the results format on an online poll

To change what information is being shown:

  1. Right-click on the results format bodycopy in the asset tree.

  2. Select Edit contents.

  3. Click on the edit icon icon – the WYSIWYG editor will appear.

  4. Use keyword replacements and formatting to layout the information to show on the page.

The next figure shows the information added into the WYSIWYG editor for the online poll page shown in the previous figure.

The WYSIWYG editor on the rules format bodycopy

Keyword replacements on the results format bodycopy

A list of keyword replacements is provided in the WYSIWYG editor toolbar on the Edit contents screen of the results format bodycopy. You can use these keyword replacements in conjunction with text, images, and links to layout what to show for the results page.

You need to include the keyword replacement results list so that the question’s results are displayed on the online poll page.

The standard keyword replacements that are available include the following:

Question

This will show the value that has been entered into the poll question field on the details screen of the question.

Date

This will show the date that the question was created.

You can change the date the question was created on the poll question asset’s settings screen.
View results link

This will show a hyperlink to the results for the current question.

View results URL

This will show the URL to the results for the current question.

View past questions

This will show a hyperlink to the list of previous poll questions.

View past questions URL

This will show the URL to the list of previous poll questions.

A link to active question

This will show a hyperlink to the current question. The value entered into the poll question field on the details screen of the current question is used as the hyperlink text.

A link to active question results

This will show a hyperlink to the current question’s results. The value entered into the poll question field on the details screen of the current question is used as the hyperlink text.

A link to active question with creation date

This will show a hyperlink to the current question. The value entered into the poll question field on the details screen of the current question, and the date it was created is used as the text for the hyperlink.

A link to active question results with creation date

This will show a hyperlink to the current question’s results. The value entered into the poll question field on the details screen of the current question, and the date it was created is used as the text for the hyperlink.

Results list

This will show the results for the question. Please note that additional keyword replacements are available for the vote button. As you cannot vote on the results page, these keyword replacements should be ignored.

Results list format bodycopy

The results list format bodycopy asset is used to format the result’s layout for each answer to a poll question. This layout is shown within the results format bodycopy. For example, for the online poll page shown in the figure, the section that has been defined in the results list format bodycopy has been highlighted. The option text, the percentage of votes received, and a results graph are shown for each option in the list.

An example of the results list format on an online poll

To change what information is being shown:

  1. Right-click on the results list format bodycopy in the asset tree.

  2. Select Edit contents.

  3. Click on the edit icon – the WYSIWYG editor will appear.

  4. Use keyword replacements and formatting to layout the information to show on the page.

The next figure shows the information added into the WYSIWYG editor for the online poll page shown in the previous figure.

The WYSIWYG editor on the results list format bodycopy

Keyword replacements on the results list format bodycopy

A list of keyword replacements is provided in the WYSIWYG editor toolbar on the edit contents screen of the results list format bodycopy. You can use these keyword replacements in conjunction with text, images, and links to layout what to show for each answer to a question.

You need to include the keyword replacements option label and option votes (number) so that each option’s results are displayed on the online poll page.

The standard keyword replacements that are available include the following:

Option number

This will show the number of the option. This number is based on the order of the options on the details screen of the poll question.

Option label

This will show the text for the option. This label is the value entered into the poll option field on the poll question’s details screen.

Option graph bar

This will show a graph of the number of votes the option has received.

Option votes (number)

This will show the number of votes the option has received.

Option votes (percent)

This will show the percentage of votes the option has received.

Past questions format bodycopy

The past questions format bodycopy asset defines the layout for all past questions asked on the online poll page.

A poll question needs to have a live status to appear in the past questions list.

For example, for the online poll page shown in the figure, each question that has been asked is displayed. This layout has been defined in the past questions format bodycopy.

An online poll (past questions)

To change what information is being shown:

  1. Right-click on the past questions format bodycopy in the asset tree.

  2. Select Edit contents.

  3. Click on the edit icon – the WYSIWYG editor will appear.

  4. Use keyword replacements and formatting to layout the information to show on the page.

This next figure shows the information added into the WYSIWYG editor for the online poll page shown in the previous figure.

The WYSIWYG editor on the past questions format bodycopy

Keyword replacements on the past questions format bodycopy

A list of keyword replacements is provided in the WYSIWYG editor toolbar on the Edit contents screen of the past questions format bodycopy. You can use these keyword replacements in conjunction with text, images, and links to layout what to show on the page.

You need to include the keyword replacement question list so that the list of previous poll questions is displayed on the online poll page.

The standard keyword replacements that are available include the following:

Question list

This will show the list of previous poll questions, including the current question. Each question will be hyperlinked to the results format bodycopy. In other words, when the user clicks on the hyperlink, the results for that question will be shown.

Question list (with creation dates)

This will show the list of previous poll questions and the date they were created. Each question will be hyperlinked to the results format bodycopy. In other words, when the user clicks on the hyperlink, the results for that question will be shown. This list will include the current question.

Question list (without active question)

This will show the list of previous poll questions without the current question. Each question will be hyperlinked to the results format bodycopy. In other words, when the user clicks on the hyperlink, the results for that question will be shown.

Question list (with dates, without active question)

This will show the list of previous poll questions and the date they were created. Each question will be hyperlinked to the results format bodycopy. In other words, when the user clicks on the hyperlink, the results for that question will be shown. This list will not include the current question.

A link to active question

This will show a hyperlink to the current question. The value entered into the poll question field on the details screen of the current question is used as the hyperlink text.

Date

This will show the date that the current question was created.

Past questions list format bodycopy

The past questions list format bodycopy asset is used to define the layout for each past question asked on the online poll page. This layout is shown within the past questions format bodycopy.

For example, the section defined in the past questions list format bodycopy has been highlighted for the online poll page shown in the figure. For each question, a hyperlink to the results is shown.

An example of the past questions list format on an online quiz

To change what information is being shown:

  1. Right-click on the past questions list format bodycopy in the asset tree.

  2. Select Edit contents.

  3. Click on the edit icon – the WYSIWYG editor will appear.

  4. Use keyword replacements and formatting to layout the information to show on the page.

The next figure shows the information added into the WYSIWYG editor for the online poll page shown in the previous figure.

The WYSIWYG editor on the past questions list format bodycopy

Keyword replacements on the past questions list format bodycopy

A list of keyword replacements is provided in the WYSIWYG editor toolbar on the Edit contents screen of the past questions list format bodycopy. You can use these keyword replacements in conjunction with text, images, and links to layout what to show for each question in the list.

You need to include the keyword replacement questions so that each question is listed on the online poll page.