Template Creator
The Template Creator is a tool for creating and managing templates directly within Smartsign.
When you use a template to create Smart Media, it is loaded live on the screen, enabling visual effects and live data-updates.
Create template
To create a new template, go to Templates -> Templates.
This needs the Create new template permission, which the default
Site owner and Group admin profiles have. If you don't see it, ask
your administrator.
Here you can find pre-created templates that you can view and edit and
you can also download more templates from the marketplace.
Templates are listed by template category. To create a template from
scratch, click ADD TEMPLATE -> Create new in the category you
want to add it to.
Give your template a name and description
Click Create. The Template Creator opens with an empty template.
The template is saved in the category the first time you click
Save. If you leave without saving, no template is created.
To save your changes, click Save, the disk icon at the far left of the toolbar. An asterisk (*) before the template name means that there are unsaved changes.
Next to the template name, set the default duration, in seconds, of media created from the template. New templates use 10 seconds. This is not available for on premise installations.
Settings
Template size
Before making any changes to the template, we recommend that you
first configure the desired size.
By default, the size is set to 1920x1080 pixels, which corresponds to full screen on a standard Full HD display.
If you are not using full screen, it is common practice to match the template size to the target channel. The dimensions are specified in pixels.
The template background is white by default, but you can change the color or remove it entirely to make the template transparent.
Grid
It's possible to show a grid and make objects snap to it. This can make
it easier to position and align objects, especially when dragging them
using the mouse. To enable, select show grid and snap to grid and
adjust grid size as needed. The grid size is 30 pixels by default.
Show item outlines, which is on by default, shows the outline of
each item in the work area.
Theme & Fonts
Select theme to use the pre-defined colors, fonts and logos from
the theme. You can also use custom colors and fonts in the template.
When using theme elements in the template, they are connected to that active theme. Changes in the theme will also affect all templates using that theme.
You can also upload additional fonts to the template if you want to use more than the ones in the theme. Under Custom fonts, click Add font. A template can have up to 20 custom fonts.
Datasources
Use datasources to fetch information like weather, news or social media
and use it in the template. Multiple datasources can be added to the
template and show on specific areas.
Click connect new datasource to choose from available datasources. Once you have selected and configured a data source, you can bind data from it to different objects, such as text fields, in your template.
Select Available for quick edit on a connected datasource to let users change it when they create media from the template. To change it, users need View and Edit under Template datasource in their user profile, which the default Site owner and Group admin profiles have and the default Publisher profile does not.
When a connected datasource supports it, the selected item has a
Visibility Condition section. Select Use visibility condition,
choose the Datasource and JSON Path, and enter an expression in
Show item if true, for example JSONPathValue === 'Active Campaign'.
The item is only shown when the expression is true.
Available data sources
Please see section Template data sources
Available data sources are subject to change. Data sources may depend on 3rd party services or other factors outside of Smartsign's control. As such, Smartsign reserves the unilateral right to adjust or discontinue any data source as deemed appropriate. Some data sources may depend on Smartsign provided services that require a valid agreement or subscription. Smartsign reserves the right to enforce such requirements and block unauthorized use without prior notice.
Toolbar
Use the toolbar to add and align media items, shapes and text elements.
You can also add channels if you want to create a screen layout.
The toolbar has Save, Add media, Add shape, Add text, Move to front, Move to back, Align, Undo, Redo, a zoom menu (Fit, 25%, 50%, 75% and 100%), Preview, Layers and Details, which opens the settings panel on the right. Depending on your permissions, it also has Add channel, Interactions, to make items react to clicks, key presses and other events (see Interactions), and Use timeline animations (see Timeline animations). These need the Screen layouts, Interactions and Use timeline animations permissions, which are not part of the standard user profiles of a new site. Smartsign support can turn them on, or the Server Admin for on premise installations.
Preview
Use the preview button to see how the template looks in a separate tab. It can also be
used to check the connected datasources to make sure they have updated information.
Layers
Every item you add to the template creator will become a layer.
Enabling the layer view allows you to see all layers in the template.
You can sort the order of the layers and group multiple layers together which is useful if you have a large template with multiple layers.
The order of the layers will control where they appear when using quick edit. A headline should for example be at the top of the layer list.
To group layers, control-click two or more and click the group button. Drag layers in the list to change their order, Shift-click to select a range, and click Delete selected items to remove them. To hide a group while you work, use Hide from work area.
Lock a layer so it cannot be selected, moved or resized on the canvas
by mistake. The lock is saved with the template, and anyone editing it
can remove it with Unlock selected items.
To lock layers, select them in the Layers panel and click the
padlock (Lock selected items).
Multi-select
You can multi-select, multi-edit and use alignment tools to help you make the best templates possible.
Hold Ctrl or Shift and click each object, or click and drag to select multiple objects.
Multi-edit
When you have selected multiple objects, you can perform changes to several of their common properties at the same time. Such as position, size and content. You can input values manually or move them all by dragging an also make small adjustments by using the arrow keys on your keyboard.
Keyboard shortcuts
| Keys | Action |
|---|---|
| Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V | Copy and paste the selected items |
| Ctrl+D | Duplicate the selected items |
| Ctrl+Z, Ctrl+Y | Undo and redo |
| Delete or Backspace | Delete the selected items |
| Arrow keys | Move the selected items 1 pixel |
| Shift+arrow keys | Move the selected items 10 pixels |
On Mac, use Cmd instead of Ctrl. Delete and Backspace only work when you are not typing in a field.
Size & Position
When you click on a item, you can adjust the position, size and rotation on the right menu.
You can now lock the aspect ratio of the items in the template,
making it easier to work with specific resolutions without
distorting the proportions.
Arrange
When you have selected multiple objects, the Align menu in the
toolbar will be enabled. It allows you to arrange the different objects horizontally or
vertically. For example, select Align left to align the left edge of all
objects to the same position as the currently leftmost one.
Quick edit
An important aspect with templates is the possibility to lock the feel and look of it. In Template Creator you can enable quick edit on items in the template where users are allowed change the information, but not select their own fonts, colors or change the layout of the template.
Select an item and check Available in quick edit to use the feature.
Users see the layer name as the field label, so give layers clear names.
Shapes, items bound to a datasource and theme background images can't
be made available for quick edit.
When users create a media with this template, they can only change headline and description.
Users with the Advanced Edit permission, which the default Site owner, Group admin and
Publisher profiles have, can still select Advanced editing and change the whole design.
Layout elements
You can add images, video, shapes and text elements to the template via the toolbar. With Add media you can also add webpages, video streams, documents, HTML widgets and other smart media, as long as the smart media contains no channels.
Video stream is not available in Template Creator, and webpages and video streams can't be selected from the media library. You can still add a webpage with Add media -> More -> Webpage. The same webpage, smart media item or HTML widget can only be added once.
Images
To add images to the template, click the "add media" button.
Choose Media library to select an existing item, Theme media to
use media from the theme, Upload to upload a file, or More to
see all sources.
Select the image in the template to tweak its settings,
such as position and content properties. Under Scale & align,
choose Fit, Stretch, Fill or Crop, and use Replace
to change the image.
You can also add CSS effects to it like rounded corners or drop shadow.
Text
To add text to the template, click the "T" icon and then drag to create
the text area then write the text your desired text message.
On right hand side, you make your formatting choices.
Double click on a textbox to edit text again,
or use content box on right hand side.
Use Overflow to choose what happens when the text doesn't fit:
Hidden, Resize text to fit, Horizontal scroll (Beta) or
Vertical scroll (Beta). For scrolling text, set the Scroll speed.
Video
To add a video to the template, click the add media button. You can either upload a new video or select an existing from the media library. Select the video in the template to tweak its settings, such as position and content properties. Only one video file is allowed and the format must be .mp4. Please note that playback performance for template embedded video varies greatly between different screens/players. Select Mute sound to play the video without sound.
You can also add a video stream, such as a YouTube link, with Add media -> More -> Video stream. Video streams do not count toward the limit of one video file.
Documents
To add a document, such as a PDF, Word, Excel or PowerPoint file, click Add media and select or upload it. If the document has several pages, choose the page to show under Page. Documents are not available for on premise installations.
Shapes
You can create filled shapes in the same way as you create text boxes. Click Add shape, choose Rectangle, Circle, Triangle, Rhombus, Pentagon, Hexagon, Star, Starburst, Arrow, Chevron, Heart, Flower or Banner, and then drag to create the desired shape. Then select the shape and use Fill & border and the other sections on the right to adjust its settings. To change the shape later, use Shape under Size & position, where Custom shape lets you enter your own outline in Clip path.
Shapes can be used as backgrounds for text or fetched data like
weather, QR codes or images from datasources. Only rectangles and
circles have Data binding.
Effects
It's possible to apply effects to objects. To do so, select the object
and open the Effects section on the right.
The effects are Opacity, Blur, Animation, Drop shadow and Custom CSS Class. Shapes other than rectangles and circles only have Opacity.
From here it's also possible to add an animation and control the speed of the animation. If you use timeline animations, animations are set in the Animation section instead, see Timeline animations.
Performance and results may vary since effects are rendered live on screen using the screen browser. For this reason it may not be possible to use some effects on some screens.
Timeline animations
Timeline animations let items enter, stay and exit at set times. Click Use timeline animations in the toolbar to show the timeline below the work area, with Go to start, Go to end, Loop playback or Play once, and Timeline scale. Select an item and use the Animation section on the right to set Start, Duration, Enter, Exit, Slide from, Continuous animation and Easing.
Timeline animations need the Use timeline animations permission, which is not part of the standard user profiles of a new site. Smartsign support can turn it on. Timeline animations are not available for on premise installations.