The Picture Library web part

This is a useful web part for displaying multiple images, such as examples of pupils’ work, photographs of a school event or resources for a lesson.As mentioned earlier, Glow does not have tools for re-sizing, so ensure that images are of a suitable size before uploading to the Picture Library.

When the Picture Library web part is first added to a Glow group page it may already contain an image, as any picture held in an Image web part in the Glow group will automatically also be displayed in the Picture Library. If it is deleted from the Picture Library or the name is changed, it will no longer be displayed in the Image web part.

To add further images to the Picture Library:

  1. In the Picture Library web part click on Add picture, then on Browse.
  1. Navigate to find the image you want to add and then click Open.
  2. Click on Save and Close.

To change the information displayed in the Picture Library:

  1. Click on the down arrow on the title bar of the Picture Library web part.
  2. Click on Modify Shared Web Part.A menu will open at the right hand side of the screen.
  3. Click Edit the current view.
  1. The Edit View screen will open. The Columns section indicates what information is currently displayed in the web part. By default the Picture Library web part shows a thumbnail, the name of the image and the picture size.

  1. Decide what information you want to be displayed in the Picture Library web part and then click in the appropriate boxes in the Display column.

  1. In the Position from Left column click on the down arrow next to each type of information you have chosen. Select a number to indicate the order in which the information should be displayed.
  2. Click OK at the bottom of the screen to return to the Glow group. The Picture Library web part will now be displayed with the relevant columns.

To add information about the image:

  1. In the Picture Library web part click on the thumbnail image, then click on Edit Properties.

  1. Here a number of changes can be made if required, such as the name of the image, and a description can be added. Click Save and Close, then click the ‘Back to’ link to return to the Glow group.

To view images in a slideshow

  1. Click on Picture Library in the title bar of the web part.
  1. In the list of Actions on the left-hand side of the screen click View slide show.
  2. The slide show will open in a new window with a control panel to move through the images.
  3. Close the slide show window and click on the ‘Back to’ link to return to the Glow group.

The Text Editor web part

This is a very flexible web part for displaying formatted text, graphics, tables, flash animations, sound files and videos.

To add text, images, tables and flash animations to the Text Editor:

  1. Click on the down arrow on the title bar of the Text Editor web part and click on Modify Shared Web Part.
  1. Here the title and size of the Text Editor web part can be modified as described in Tutorial 9.
  2. Click on Edit Content. The r.a.d editor window will open. Enter text and use formatting options on the toolbars in the window to choose font type, size, colour and alignment.
  3. To upload and insert an image click on the icon in the toolbar to open the Image Manager window. Double click on the PictureLibrary folder, then click the Upload Image tab. Click Browse and locate the required file. Click Open and then Upload. Note the maximum file size allowed is 200KB. On the Browse Files tab select the file and click Insert.

Use the alignment icons on the toolbar to position the image at the left, right or centre of the window; alternatively, click the icon to select an absolute position for the image.

  1. To insert a table first position the cursor in the window where you want the table to be placed. Click on the icon. In the menu move the pointer over the cells from top left to bottom right to select the size of the table. Click in the final cell to insert the table.

Text and graphics can be inserted, as described above, into cells of the table. Further table options, such as inserting additional rows or columns, merging cells and changing borders can be accessed by clicking on the icon.

  1. To upload and insert a Flash file, such as a game, click on the icon. On the Browse Files tab double click on an appropriate folder in which to store the file. Click on the Upload Flash tab, click Browse, locate the file and click Open. Note that the maximum file size is 100 KB. Click Upload. On the Browse Files tab select the file, set any appropriate options, such as the width and height for display, and click Insert.
  2. For further information on options available within the Text Editor window click on the icon at the right-hand side of the window.
  3. Click Update at the bottom of the r.a.d editor window.
  4. Click OK at the foot of the Text Editor menu. The completed web part will appear on the page.

To add a video to the Text Editor:

  1. Click on the down arrow on the title bar of the Text Editor web part and click on Modify Shared Web Part.
  1. Open up a new Internet Explorer window (or tab in IE7). From a suitable website, such as identify the video you wish to add to your Glow group. Look for the ‘Embed’ or ‘Embeddable’ code displayed next to the video. Click on the code to highlight it; on the menu bar click Edit then Copy to copy the code. Close or minimise this Internet Explorer window.
  2. Return to Glow. In the Text Editor menu click on Edit Content and switch to HTML Mode by clicking on the icon at the bottom of the r.a.d editor window.
  3. On the Internet Explorer menu bar click Edit then Paste to insert the code.
  4. Click Update at the bottom of the r.a.d editor window and then OKon the Text Editor menu.
  1. The video will appear in the Glow group page.

The XML web part

This is a useful web part for adding RSS feeds to a Glow group.To add an RSS feed to a page in Glow you will need to use a simple online tool to create the necessary JavaScript. One such free tool is available via the following link:

Adding an RSS feed:

  1. Find your RSS feed (for an example, go to and click on the News feedsicon at the left-hand side of the page.)
  2. Once you have found the RSS feed you wish to add to your Glow group highlight the URL of the page, then on the menu bar clickEditthenCopyto copy the URL.
  3. Go to the website of the online tool for creating the JavaScript, as described above. Click in the box requesting the URL of the RSS feed, then on the menu bar click Edit then Paste to paste the URL.
  1. Follow the instructions to generate the JavaScript.Click in the box containing the JavaScript. On the menu bar click Edit then Select All to highlight the JavaScript, then click Edit and Copy.
  2. In your Glow group click on the down arrow on the title bar of the XML web part and click on Modify Shared Web Part.
  3. Click on XML Editor, then on the keyboard press Ctrl and V to paste the JavaScript.
  4. Click OK to save and close the XML Editor window.
  5. Change the title of the web part, as described in Tutorial 9, to reflect the contents of the RSS feed. Click OK at the bottom of the XML menu.
  6. The RSS feed will appear in the web part on the Glow group page and will update automatically. Information can be read directly in the web part or links can be followed to view the source website.

Page 1 of 8