W4 - a web based wire browser

W4 is the FingerPost web based wire browser and administration tool leveraging the wire management and text control strengths of the fip system. W4 is the means to monitor all your incoming feeds - view wires, desk-emails (no longer hidden away in someones personal email account), dial-up copy, internet copy and web grabs from a single interface.

W4 can be used in addition to an existing editorial system or wire taster, say for internet access to internal material, or as a main wire browsing tool for the entire editorial floor. It is used at a number of major newspapers as the main incoming copy browsing tool for selection and routing of incoming material. It is also used at a number of sites as a preipheral tool where access to copy is needed, but there is no requirement for journalists (perhaps because they are off site) to have access to the main editorial system.

Features

• View both text wires and pictures
  • browse wires - both text and pictures
  • can view multiple wire tickers
  • fetch stories into external applications tagged appropriately
    • such as Adobe InCopy, Quark CopyDesk, Adobe PhotoShop, Microsoft Word using local templates.
    • Fetched stories leave an audit trail visible on the story, and the story list
  • Send copy into editorial system databases
    • Send straight into CCI using CCI-nitf, DTI, Atex tagged appropriately
  • Dataformat tabular material
  • Search - using a fip search tool or integrated with third party indexers
    • industry strength indexers such as Verity Topic or Glimpse
• File copy - send text and pictures into the system. These can then be routed as normal wires.
• monitor your FingerPost system
• administer logons
• edit fip parameter files and templates
• build sub-systems such as a syndication mini-copy-flow system.

It is highly configurable.

• Logons
  • The amount of access available to a logon or group of users can be tightly controlled.
  • Passwords controlled internally or via a third party product such as Radius password servers.
  • Personal preferences -
    • Control the number of characters in lists and tickers
    • peronalise your frameset
• Fully css compatible, so can be restyled

-- DotFingerPost - 21 Apr 2005

Links and screen shots .....

• basic_w4.tiff: Screen shot of w4 interface

Notes and Comments