Customizing the User web pages

Look & Feel

The user pages display information about the user's account and provide access to features such as TopUp/Pre-Paid Cards. The visual design of these pages can be tailored to make them fit into the look and feel of an existing internet or intranet site. This gives the pages an official look ensuring your users see the system as an important part of your organization's network.

A customized end-user web designed for St Mary's Anglican Girls School

Figure 17.3. A customized end-user web designed for St Mary's Anglican Girls School

A customized end-user web designed for Williamstown High School

Figure 17.4. A customized end-user web designed for Williamstown High School

PaperCut Software International Pty Ltd offers a service where their developers will undertake design work based on an existing website. If you would like assistance with the customization, please email the PaperCut Software International Pty Ltd support team.

Organizations whose staff have good to advanced HTML experience may choose to customize the pages in-house.

The design of the user pages is controlled via HTML "include" files for the header and footer areas of the page, with page styling controlled via Cascading Style Sheets (CSS). Placing the following files in the PaperCut MF directory structure at [app-path]/server/custom/web overrides page layout and style.

FilenameDescription

user2.css

If this file exists, the contents of user2.css is included as an overriding stylesheet. Styles in this file can be used to define fonts, colors and sizes.

header2.inc

If the header include file exists, the HTML in the header area of the pages is replaced with the contents of the file. This file should be saved in UTF-8 encoding for international characters to be displayed correctly.

footer2.inc

If the footer include file exists, the HTML in the footer area of the page is replaced with the contents of the file. This file should be saved in UTF-8 encoding for international characters to be displayed correctly.

login-logo.png

If this file exists, the logo on the web-based login page is replaced with the supplied image. The file should be an image of size 250px by 64px in PNG format.

Table 17.2. Files used to customize the user web pages

Tip

Any custom content placed in [app-path]/server/custom/web/, such as additional images, can be accessed via a URL beginning with /custom/. For example if a file named header.jpeg is placed in [app-path]/server/custom/web/ it can be accessed via the URL /custom/header.jpeg.

Tip

To save a file in UTF-8 encoding on Windows using Notepad, change the Encoding option to UTF-8 on the Save As... dialog.

Note

Why the "2" in user2.css etc.? In previous versions of PaperCut these files did not contain a number. The numbers are there to maintain backwards compatibility for existing user web interface customizations, so that as the default look of the interface is updated in new versions, your customized look is maintained. Please remove the "2" for older installations.

Login Instructions

Some organizations may benefit from providing additional login instructions to users. This can be useful for explaining which username or password to use (in the case there are multiple logins or passwords at the site).

Login Page with custom instructions

Figure 17.5. Login Page with custom instructions

The following config keys allow you to customize the login page:

Config nameDescription

display.login-instructions

A HTML friendly message to be displayed on the login screen, above the username and password fields.

auth.web-login.autocomplete

Specify Y to enable browser auto-completion of the login fields as a convenience to users. By default, the browser is requested to not use auto-completion.

Table 17.3. Config Keys for Customizing the Login Page

Please see the section called “Using the Config Editor” for more information about changing the value of config keys.

Additional Links in the Navigation Menu

The navigation menu in the user web interface contains links for the PaperCut services that are enabled and available to the user. In some cases it may be desirable to add additional external links to this menu. Examples include:

  • Linking to a print policy page on the organization's intranet.

  • Linking to a page with key contact details.

  • A link to return to the "main" intranet page/portal.

Custom links will appear above the Log Out item.

To add a custom link:

  1. Log into the admin interface and navigate to OptionsGeneralUser Features.

  2. Enable the option Add custom links to the user web navigation menu.

  3. Click the Add custom link button that appears.

  4. Fill out the Label/Text and URL fields in the dialog that appears after clicking the button. Label/Text is the text that will appear in the navigation menu, and URL is the destination of the URL when clicked.

    Adding a new custom navigation link to the user web interface

    Figure 17.6. Adding a new custom navigation link to the user web interface

  5. The link will now appear in the user web interface.

    Example custom navigation link in the user web interface

    Figure 17.7. Example custom navigation link in the user web interface

Existing custom links are displayed in the admin interface under the Add custom links to the user web navigation menu option. Links may be deleted by clicking the [delete] link next to the relevant link.

Deleting a custom navigation link

Figure 17.8. Deleting a custom navigation link

The URL in custom navigation links may also contain special replacement fields. E.g. the %user% in http://example.edu/print-policy?u=%user% is replaced with the logged in username to create a URL like http://example.edu/print-policy?u=tom.

The available special replacement fields are as follows:

FieldDescription

%user%

The username of the logged in user.

%user_full_name%

The full name of the logged in user.

%user_id%

The id/card number of the logged in user.

%user_email%

The email address of the logged in user.

%user_office%

The office of the logged in user.

%user_department%

The department of the logged in user.

%return_url%

A URL that can be used to send the user back to the user web interface. The user will be sent back to the Summary page as if they had just logged in, assuming their session has not timed out.

Table 17.4. Fields available for replacement in custom navigation links in the user web interface

Custom Printer Maps for Web Print

A graphical map or other custom content may be used instead of the default printer selection list in the Web Print wizard. For more information see the section called “Designing Printer Maps / Custom Printer Selection Lists”.