Adding content to a Plone site is a simple process. In order to add content, you must be logged in to the site and you can only add content in the parts of the site where you are allowed to (this is called having permission).

Creating content in your member folder

As a site member, by default you will have permission to add content to your member folder, so this is a good place to practice using the Plone CMS.

Member folders are special folders with your name on them that are assigned to you when you sign up on the site. To begin, make sure you are logged in to the site. Then, navigate to your member folder by clicking on "my folder" in the personal links bar in the upper right-hand corner of the page. Your folder will open in "contents view." This means you will see all of the items inside your folder. An item is any piece of content: file, folder, news, etc. If you haven't added anything to your folder yet, the only item that will be in your folder is a document called "Home page for you" (you=your username).

Above the document list there is a drop-down menu (next to the button that says "Add new item"). Click on the menu and select a content type (see more about the content types in the list below); common types include web pages, events, files, folders, images, news items, and links. After selecting a content type, clicking "add new item" creates the new content object and opens the editing interface.

In the editing interface (a box around the main area will say "Edit content type", where content type is what you selected from the list).  All types of content have a short name, a title and a description:

• The short name becomes part of the item's Web address, and should be written in all lowercase letters with no spaces. In general, the short name should be an abbreviation of the title; the shorter the better.
  
• The title will appear in the navigation structure and at the top of the page.
• The description should provide a brief summary of the object and will appear beneath the title and on search pages.

Fill in information for these fields and the other applicable fields (for example, the body for a Web page, or the URL for a link, etc).  You can see what the content will look like by pressing "save" near the bottom of the page. This will show you the content as a user would see it (the "view" screen). If you want to modify something, click on the "edit" tab from the horizontal bar over the content.

There are many different types of content available in a Plone site. Probably the easiest way to learn about them is to play with them. In the meantime, here's a brief description of the ones you will use most commonly:

• A Web page is simply a web page. You can add text, links, and graphics into a web page.
  
• An Event is something to be added to the calendar, such as a meeting, conferences, or a social event.
• A File is an external document type, such as a word document or a pdf file. You can add just about any type of file to a Plone site.
• A Folder is a place to store other objects and to organize information. For instance, you might create a folder within your members folder where you keep images.
• A News Item is a special type of document that becomes visible on the "News" tab and on the Home page (once it is published). This type of object should be used for announcements and things like that.

There are many other types of content in Plone sites, and it is even possible to create custom types to fit specific needs.

Sharing your content by publishing

When you create a new piece of content, it is only visible to you. This allows you to work on the content in drafts until it is ready to share with others. Once you are ready to share your content, you will need to change the "state" of the object.  Publishing your content on the public site will require approval by a site manager. In order to submit your content for publishing:

1. Locate the blue horizontal bar above the content with the buttons "keywords", "add new item", and "state: private".
2. This last button tells us that this content is private (ie no one can see the content except you and a site manager). In order to publish it we take the content through two steps, both of which are done by clicking on the "state" button.
3. 1. Make the content visible: Click on the state button and select "visible".
      
   2. Submit the content for publishing: Now you can click on the state button again and select "submit". This will submit the content for a site manager to review.
      
4. The site manager will see your content upon logging into the site and will review the content to be sure it is appropriate for the site. If you have questions about your content or its publishing, contact the site manager or organization staff. Check back to see if your content has been published. Once it is published, you can send the link to others for them to be able to see your content.