Messages and Publishing

In this article, you will find the essential information you need for understanding the messages and publishing functions in Rapid.

Overview of the Concepts

Messages

• In your messages, you will pull together dynamic and static content to produce the text and images that you want to deliver for each platform.
• For example, consider how you want your “now playing” track information to be displayed on HD Radio, or FM, or DAB.
• To these messages, you will also apply some availability and display rules.

Priority Lanes

• In your lanes, you will add messages to the publishing engine to create the prioritization of items for publishing.
• Rapid will use decision logic to deliver messages to each platform: HD Radio, FM, and/or DAB.

Slideshow Templates

• In your templates, you will build images for the DAB slideshow platform.
• These templates can then be added to a message.

HOME | Overview

In Rapid, on “HOME | Overview”, consider the stations.

From the navigation menu, in the group for CONTENT, select the link for Messages.

CONTENT | Messages

After selecting the link for Messages, familiarize yourself with the layout of the user experience for “Messages & Publishing”.

For “Messages & Publishing”, at the top of the page, there are two tabs:

• Messages & Priority Lanes
• Slideshow Templates

NOTES for different sets of Priority Lanes
With some installations of Rapid you may be able to switch between different sets of Priority Lanes (e.g. "Basic" or "Advanced").
If your installation of Rapid has multiple sets of Priority Lanes then you can switch between them using the drop down selector.
The station icons to the right of the selected set of priority lanes indicate which station(s) are using the chosen lanes.
To change the lanes that a station uses, you need to go to the "Station Config" page in Rapid and edit the station.

Explore the system default messages: think about how they could be useful for your Rapid.

Messages | How to Setup Messages

Edit Messages

Near the upper right corner of the layout, select the button named “Edit Messages” and consider the dialog for “Edit Messages”.

In the dialog for Edit Messages, select the button named (+ New Message) and follow the tab sequence as you add a new message.

Tab Sequence, Stations | dialog, Add Message

Observe the dialog named Add Message.

Select the tab named Stations, and begin the setup of your new message:

• key in a name for your new message
• key in a description for your new message (optional)
• select the station groups that will carry your new message
• select the stations that will carry your new message

Be sure to select at least one station in order to add dynamic content in the dynamic data fields in the next tab named Content.

Why would you use dynamic data fields?
Dynamic data fields allow you to use content from sources you've setup in Rapid. Each dynamic data field is a single field from a source (e.g., the now playing title, current show name, current weather temperature) within messages. For some platforms (e.g. FM RDS) you may need to build the message by using several dynamic data fields. For example, a now playing message would require you to add a dynamic data item that includes the currently playing track title, and another dynamic data item that includes the currently playing track artist name.

Select the tab named Content.

Tab Sequence, Content | dialog, Add Message

After selecting the tab named Content, continue in the Add Message dialog.

Platforms that are displayed in this dialog will depend on the permissions in your Rapid license.
You could have the opportunity to key in the details for one or more of the following platforms of interest:

• HD Radio
• DAB DLS
• DAB Slideshow
• FM RDS
• Text

You can add dynamic content (text) to your message of interest by using curly braces in the dynamic data fields.

Example | Dynamic Text | HD Radio

• Title
  • In this field, key in a curly brace and make your selections
    • e.g.:
• Artist
  • In this field, key in a curly brace and make your selections
    • e.g.:
• Album
  • In this field, key in a curly brace and make your selections
    • e.g.:

You can add dynamic content (image) to your message of interest by operating the user interface controls.

Example | Dynamic Image | HD Radio

• Image
  • For this field, select the option button named “Use dynamic content” and make your selections from the drop-down lists
    • e.g.: playout | now.imagepath

Example | Dynamic Content | HD Radio | Add Message

Key in your details and make your selections for your platforms of interest.

Select the tab named Availability.

Tab Sequence, Availability | dialog, Add Message

After selecting the tab named Availability, continue in the Add Message dialog.

If you do not want the message to be permanently available, then you can restrict the dates --- days and times --- for which the message will be active within that lane.

Add time slots so that the timing for the availability of the chosen message can be modified.

Key in your details and make your selections for message availability.

Select the tab named Filters.

Tab Sequence, Filters | dialog, Add Message

After selecting the tab named Filters, continue in the Add Message dialog.

If you only want the message to be on when the playout sources or schedule sources have certain content, then such controls are configured in this dialog.

NOTE
Any restrictions will only apply to this message within the rule.

Multiple filters could be added to control the messages contained within the lane of interest.

Key in your details and make your selections for message filters.

Select the tab named Display Rules.

Tab Sequence, Display Rules | dialog, Add Message

After selecting the tab named Display Rules, continue in the Add Message dialog.

Display Rules allow you to restrict when the message is on.

In the dialog for display rules, select the check box named Enable Display Rules.

The display of the message can be limited based on the start and end times of the track or show.

For example, you can set the message to only be on for the first two minutes of a track, or you can set "a next show" message to only be on for 10 minutes before the next show starts.

This enables you to interleave other messaging into show and playout messages.

Select the checkbox named “Enable Display Rules”

Key in your details and make your selections for message rules.

When you have completed the setup of your new message, select Save.

Return | Messages & Priority Lanes

In the Rapid navigation menu, select Messages and return to the tab named “Messages & Priority Lanes”: consider the layout.

As you add your messages to your Rapid, you will organize them in the Priority Lanes.

Priority Lanes | How do they work?
Rapid will go through the Priority Lanes in order, from top to bottom, until it finds a message within a Priority Lane that is active and valid. If multiple messages within a Priority Lane are active, then Rapid will cycle around them.

Priority Lanes

Rapid’s publishing engine uses decision logic to determine what content to convey on HD Radio, FM, and/or DAB.

1. Priority Levels: Rapid will find a valid message it can use, working from the highest priority lane, down to the lowest priority lane. As soon as it finds a valid message in a valid priority lane it will use that.
2. Cycling within a Priority Level: if Rapid finds two valid messages in the currently active Priority Lane it will cycle between the two of them.
3. Switching off/on priority lanes based on Playout or Schedule source content: A priority lane can be switched off or on based on the content that’s available in a playout or schedule source (e.g. “This priority lane is on when a song is playing”, or “This priority lane is on when the current show title contains the word ‘breakfast’).
4. Switching on/off messages based on playout or Schedule source content: A message can be switched off or on based on the content that’s available in a playout or schedule source (e.g. “This message is on when a song is playing”, or “This message is on when the current show title contains the word ‘breakfast’).
5. Part-time availability of messages based on playout or schedule source item start/end time: A message can be switched on or off based on a change in the playout item or schedule item, and is only available for part of the duration of that item (e.g. “this message is on for the first 2 minutes of a track and then is off”, or “this message comes on 2 minutes into a track, stays on for 1 minute, and then is off for the rest of the track”, or “this message is on for 10 minutes before the start of the next show”, or “this message is on for “5 minutes of a show, then off for 2 minutes, then on again for another 5 minutes, and repeats”.
6. Availability of a message based on hard-booked date/time: A message can be set to only be on during a certain date range and/or time period (e.g. “message is only on Mondays between 1000-1200”, or “message is on between 20 June and 30 June”, or “message is on between 5 May and 20 May, between 1100 and 1300 on weekends).

NOTE
Multiple rules can be applied to a single message.

Messages & Priority Lanes

Select the tab named “Messages & Priority Lanes” and consider the layout.

On a first run of Rapid you will see a number of default Priority Lanes, for example:

• High
• Medium
• Low
• In each priority lane, you could encounter some default messages.

NOTE
You can add, edit, delete, and re-order Priority Lanes.

Priority Lanes | dialog, Edit Lanes

Near the upper right corner of the layout, select the button named “Edit Lanes” and consider the dialog named Edit Lanes.

In the dialog named Edit Lanes, select the button named (+ New Lane) and follow the wizard sequence as you add a new priority lane.

Priority Lanes | Wizard Sequence | dialog, Add Priority Lane

Observe the dialog named Add Priority Lane.

Key in your details, make your selections, and select Next.

Priority Lanes | Wizard Sequence | dialog, Edit Content Filters

Observe the dialog named Edit Content Filters.

You can add Playout and Show filters to control when this item will be available.

• Select the button named (+ Playout filter)
• Select the button named (+ Show filter)

Adding a filter means that the priority lane will only become active when the filter evaluates to true.

For example, if the filter was set to be active when “Artist is Bruno Mars”, that lane (and any messages within that lane) would only be active when the song playing was by Bruno Mars.

Consider your options, key in your details, make your selections, and select Save.

Return | Messages & Priority Lanes

In the Rapid navigation menu, select Messages and return to the tab named “Messages & Priority Lanes”: consider the layout.

As you add your priority lanes to your Rapid, you will organize them in the layout of “Messages & Priority Lanes”.

For organizing and managing messages:

• Use the drag handles that are located on the left side of each message card
• You can take a message in one priority lane and drag it somewhere else within the same priority lane
• You can drag a message from one priority lane and move it into a different priority lane
• Use the overflow menu (vertical ellipsis) that offers options for the chosen message: edit, duplicate, clone, or remove a message

Push changes to live

• Any changes a user makes on this page --- for lanes and/or messages --- won't be published on any outputs until the user has pressed the "Push changes to live" button
• As this button restarts the affected outputs, the changes should ideally be pushed once all of the changes have been made, rather than after each change
• If you forget to push changes, when you navigate away from this page, you're reminded to push the changes then or push the changes later

Select the illuminated green button named “Push changes to live” if your new messages & priority lanes are ready to go live.

Slideshow Templates

Select the tab named “Slideshow Templates” and consider the layout.

On a first run of Rapid, there are no slideshow templates.

dialog, Add Slideshow Template

Near the upper right corner of the layout, select the blue button named (+ Add Template) and consider the dialog named Add Slideshow Template.

In the dialog named Add Slideshow Template, key in your details, make your selections, and select Next.

dialog, Add Slideshow Template | Layers

In this dialog, plan the layers for your slideshow template.

Build the layers for your slideshow template using the buttons: (+ Image), (+ Text), {+ Rectangle).

dialog, Add Slideshow Template | (+ Image)

Build the image layer for your slideshow template.

Continue building your template.

dialog, Add Slideshow Template | (+ Text)

Build the text layer for your slideshow template.

Continue building your template.

dialog, Add Slideshow Template | (+ Rectangle)

Build the rectangle layer for your slideshow template.

Continue building your template.

dialog, Add Slideshow Template | Example

Example: adding layers in a slideshow template.

When you have completed your build for your slideshow template, select Save.

Return | Slideshow Templates

In the Rapid navigation menu, select Messages and return to the tab named “Slideshow Templates”: consider the layout.

Publish your Changes

Return to the tab named Messages & Priority Lanes and review your changes.
Select the green button named “Publish changes to live”.

Continue exploring the user experience for “Messages & Publishing”.

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