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Getting Started
Explains account and book creation, and some interface basics.
<p>Welcome to Scalar! This path will help get you up to speed with creating a Scalar account, creating your first book, and learning the basics of the Scalar interface.
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Welcome
Introduction to the User's Guide
<p>Scalar is a free, open source publishing platform that’s designed to make it easy for authors to write long-form, born-digital scholarship online. Scalar enables users to assemble media from multiple sources and juxtapose them with their own writing in a variety of ways, with minimal technical expertise required. Scalar also gives authors tools to structure essay- and book-length works in ways that take advantage of the unique capabilities of digital writing, including nested, recursive, and non-linear formats. The platform also supports collaborative authoring and reader commentary.</p><p>This user's guide includes introductions to Scalar's features as well as more in-depth material to explore as your get to know the tools. If you're familiar with blogging platforms like WordPress you'll find yourself at home with many of Scalar's editing features, though you can also do things with Scalar that would be next to impossible in a typical blog.</p><p>If this is your first time using Scalar, head down the <a href="getting-started" rel="urn:scalar:version:36820">Getting Started</a> path to acquaint yourself with the basics. If you're in a hurry, you can explore a special path that gathers all of Scalar's <a href="quickstarts" rel="urn:scalar:version:37127">QuickStart</a> documentation in one place. If you're embarking on a large project, we highly recommend you read through the sections on <a href="working-with-media" rel="urn:scalar:version:36835">Working with Media</a>, <a href="working-with-content" rel="urn:scalar:version:36909">Working with Content</a>, and <a href="working-with-structure" rel="urn:scalar:version:36917">Working with Structure</a> to familiarize yourself with all of Scalar's capabilities as well as some important considerations for using media in your book. The <a href="advanced-topics" rel="urn:scalar:version:36940">Advanced Topics</a> section dives into some useful features for those who want to dive a bit deeper into the platform. Finally, the <a href="http://scalar.usc.edu/works/guide/custom-styling">Custom Styling</a> section shows you how to tailor basic stylistic features of Scalar projects, like font size and background color. </p><p>Welcome to Scalar!</p>
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Creating an Account
How to register for a new Scalar account.
<p>Creating a new Scalar account starts at the Index page.</p><h5>The Index Page</h5><p>Every installation of Scalar has an <a href="media/scalar_index_page.png" resource="media/scalar-index-page" rel="urn:scalar:version:36945" data-size="large">Index page</a> which lists all books which have been made public by their authors. If you're signed in, you'll also see all of the books you have privileges to edit, whether they've been made public yet or not.</p><blockquote style="margin: 0 0 0 40px; border: none; padding: 0px;"><p><a href="http://scalar.usc.edu/works">Scalar index page</a></p></blockquote><h5>Registration</h5><p>In order to create your own Scalar books, you'll need to <a href="media/scalar_registration_page.png" resource="media/scalar-registration-page" rel="urn:scalar:version:36947" data-size="large">register</a> for an account, which you can do from the <a href="http://scalar.usc.edu/works">Index page</a>. Registration is quick and easy; all we ask for is your name, email, and a password.</p><blockquote style="margin: 0 0 0 40px; border: none; padding: 0px;"><p><a href="http://scalar.usc.edu/works/system/register?redirect_url=/works/">Register for a Scalar account</a></p></blockquote>
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Creating Your First Book
How to create a new book.
<p>If you entered the title of your book during the registration process, then you’ll see it featured on the <a href="http://scalar.usc.edu/works">index page</a> and can click the title to go to its home page.</p><p>If not, here's how to create your first book:</p><ol><li>Go to the <a href="http://scalar.usc.edu/works">Index page.</a></li>
<li>Check the upper-right corner to see if you're already signed in. If you see a "Sign in" link, click it and do so.</li>
<li>Click the "Dashboard" link in the upper-right corner.</li>
<li>Click the "<a href="media/scalar_dashboard_myaccount.png" resource="media/my-account-tab-of-the-scalar-dashboard" rel="urn:scalar:version:36949">My account</a>" tab.</li>
<li>At the bottom of the page where it says "Create new book," enter the title of your book (you can change it later), and click "Create." You should see a message in green at the top of the screen letting you know that the new book has been created.</li>
<li>Click the title of the book where it appears under "Your books" to go to the home page of your new book.</li></ol>
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Getting to Know the Interface
Introduction to Scalar's interface elements.
<p>Surrounding the main content on a Scalar page are some useful interface elements that will help you make the most of a Scalar book's content and features.</p><h5>Header</h5><p>In addition to displaying the book's title and author(s), the header includes a link in the top-right corner to sign in to your account. If you're already signed in to a book you have privileges to edit, you'll also see a "Dashboard" link. Following that link opens the <a href="dashboard" rel="urn:scalar:version:36938">Dashboard</a> for your book, where you can do high-level tasks like changing the name of your book, adding and removing users, changing privacy settings, and quickly editing multiple pieces of content. The "Index" link will return you to the index of public Scalar books.</p><h5>Navigation</h5><p>On the left side of the page is Scalar's navigation interface. At its top is a link back to the "Home" page of the book, and below that is a drop-down menu that lets you change the options and information that are shown. These options include:</p><ul> <li><strong>Main menu.</strong> This is the <a href="media/scalar_nav_mainmenu.png" resource="media/main-menu-mode-of-the-navigation" rel="urn:scalar:version:36951">default mode</a> of the navigation, and is a kind of "Table of Contents" of key pages in the book. (To learn how to add items to the Main Menu for your own book, visit the <a href="dashboard" rel="urn:scalar:version:36938">Dashboard</a> section).</li>
<li><strong>Current page.</strong> This mode displays <a href="media/scalar_nav_currentpage.png" resource="media/current-page-mode-of-the-navigation" rel="urn:scalar:version:36953">information about the current page</a>, including its name and relationships to other content in the book. This mode is useful if you want to quickly navigate to items linked from your current location. If you have editing privileges in the book, it also includes the New, Edit, and Trash buttons.</li>
<li><strong>About.</strong> Here can be found useful <a href="media/scalar_nav_about.png" resource="media/about-mode-of-the-navigation" rel="urn:scalar:version:36954">meta-content about the book</a>, including Acknowledgements, Works Cited, and About the Author pages. These links are generated automatically, but need to be populated with content by the book's author.</li>
<li><strong>Explore.</strong> This mode includes links to <a href="media/scalar_nav_explore.png" resource="media/explore-mode-of-the-navigation" rel="urn:scalar:version:36956">visualizations</a> of the book's content, a tag cloud, and this User's Guide.</li>
<li><strong>Import.</strong> (Authors only) From here, you can <a href="media/Navigation%20Import%20Mode.png" resource="media/navigation-import-mode" rel="urn:scalar:version:53989">import media references</a> into your Scalar book from a variety of sources, including affiliated archives, popular web services, local and internet-hosted media files. For more about importing media, visit the <a href="working-with-media" rel="urn:scalar:version:36892">Working with Media</a> section.</li>
<li><strong>Index.</strong> An <a href="media/scalar_nav_index.png" resource="media/index-mode-of-the-navigation" rel="urn:scalar:version:36959">index of all content</a> in the book, sorted first by type and then alphabetically by title. The <a href="index-visualization" rel="urn:scalar:version:36922">Index Visualization</a> is an alternate way to see all of the content in a book.</li></ul><p>At the bottom of the navigation interface is a search field for finding content in the current book, along with a View menu for rendering the content of the current page in different ways, and a Recent menu which contains a history of navigation in the current book, filterable by content type.
</p><h5>Footer</h5><p>The footer provides a variety of utility links related to the page, the book, and Scalar itself, along with social sharing options.</p>
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Reading in Scalar
The types of content in a Scalar book and how they work together.
<h5>Text</h5><p>While text itself needs no introduction, its appearance in Scalar bears mentioning a few items of note:</p><ul> <li><strong>Links.</strong> Rolling over a link in the body text of a Scalar book often reveals <a href="media/scalar_link.png" resource="media/scalar-link-rollover" rel="urn:scalar:version:36963">additional information</a> about its contents.</li>
<li><strong>Media Links.</strong> Each <a href="media/scalar_medialink.png" resource="media/scalar-media-link" rel="urn:scalar:version:36964">media link</a> is preceded by an icon for the type of media it references; clicking a link to a time-based media file causes it to start (and subsequently to stop) playing, while links to other media types simply highlight the media on the page when clicked.</li>
<li><strong>Notes links.</strong> These links are preceded by a <a href="media/scalar_noteslink.png" resource="media/scalar-note-link" rel="urn:scalar:version:36965">note icon</a> and serve a similar function as footnotes, displaying additional content when rolled over.</li></ul><h5>Media</h5><p>Embedded media files have a few extra features that go beyond simple playback and viewing. The Details button in the lower left corner of the media opens an expanded view in which all aspects of the media file, from annotations to metadata, can be examined. Clicking "Permalink" will take you to the media's dedicated page, and clicking "Popout" will open the media file itself in a new window.</p><p>If a media file has annotations, they will be available in different ways depending on the media type and display method. In some cases, an "Annotations" link will toggle the display of all of the file's annotations, which can be individually clicked; in others, you'll need to click the "Details" link to access them. For text and time-based media, pop-up "live annotations" will be displayed when the media is cued up to an annotated region.</p><h5>Paths</h5><p>Paths are sequences of pages--like chapters in a book, but more flexible. You'll know you're about to embark on a path when you see a "<a href="media/scalar_pathtoc.png" resource="media/path-table-of-contents" rel="urn:scalar:version:36974">Begin this path</a>" button at the bottom of a page, with a table of contents beneath. Clicking the button (or on any of the listed pages) will take you into the path. Once you're on a path, <a href="media/scalar_pathnav.png" resource="media/scalar-path-navigation" rel="urn:scalar:version:36968">additional navigation</a> at the top and bottom of the page identifies the name of the path you're on, how far you've traveled, and provides links to move stepwise along the path. Sometimes paths lead to other paths; other times they lead back to the "Home" page of the book.</p><p>One of the things that makes Scalar paths unique is that they can share content with each other--in other words, a single page or media file can belong to multiple paths. In that case, the <a href="media/scalar_pathintersect.png" resource="media/path-intersection" rel="urn:scalar:version:36969">additional "intersecting" paths</a> are shown at the top of the page, and by clicking the name of one of these paths you can "switch tracks" and proceed in a new direction within the book.</p><p>If you want to get a better sense of the structure of all of the paths in a book, try the <a href="path-visualization" rel="urn:scalar:version:36928">Path Visualization</a>.</p><h5>Tags</h5><p>Tags are markers that are applied to pages that have something in common. If the page you're looking at has been tagged, you'll see a <a href="media/scalar_tagbar.png" resource="media/scalar-tag-navigation" rel="urn:scalar:version:36971">tag icon at the bottom of the page</a>, followed by the name of the tag and links to other pieces of content that share the same tag (or tags).</p><p>If you want to see how tags in a book are interrelated, try the <a href="tag-visualization" rel="urn:scalar:version:36925">Tag Visualization</a>.</p><h5>Comments</h5><p>Any reader is free to submit a comment on any page or media file in a Scalar book by clicking the "Comment on" link at the bottom of the content, whether or not they have a Scalar account. It's even possible to add a comment to another comment in threaded fashion. New comments, however, will not be visible within the book until <a href="user-comments" rel="urn:scalar:version:46615">approved</a> to go live by an <a href="book-users" rel="urn:scalar:version:37084">author user</a> for the book.</p>
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Further Explorations
<p>Congratulations! By completing this path you've gotten acquainted with the basics of getting around in Scalar. Feel free to explore some <a href="http://scalar.usc.edu/scalar/showcase/">featured projects</a> to see what others have done with the platform, and to start adding and creating content in your own book. When you're ready to learn more, we recommend reading through the sections on <a href="working-with-media" rel="urn:scalar:version:36892">Working with Media</a>, <a href="working-with-content" rel="urn:scalar:version:36909">Working with Content</a>, and <a href="working-with-structure" rel="urn:scalar:version:36917">Working with Structure</a> to familiarize yourself with all of Scalar's capabilities as well as some important considerations for using media in your book.</p>
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