NewsPlanner

NewsPlanner is a web-based product that is part of the Scoop 6 editorial system.

Main window

The NewsPlanner window consists of four different parts: Calendar, Resources, Proposals, and Assignments.

Calendar

The updated publishing calendar is on the left-hand side of the main window. Each day can have a note. The calendar is designed so that notes on supplements, and pages, etc can be added, and specific non-publishing days can be closed for planning purposes.
Specific days can be opened via the calendar by single clicking on the day. A chosen day can also be altered to show a publication or event date. When a resource is marked in the resource list, the status for each day is displayed in a column in the calendar

Resources

All resources: journalists, photographers, equipment, cars, conference rooms, etc are stored in the database, with information for each day and current status. Individual user’s status is entered for each day, for example, ‘day-off’, ‘business trip’, ‘sick’, ‘evening shift‘, etc.
The resource list is shown on the right-hand side of the screen, and shows names, status and assignments for the actual day. The list is sorted by status, so staff currently working is at the top of the list. Every resource includes a text where telephone numbers, addresses etc. can be added.

Proposals

Assignment proposals can be entered into the database, together with the basic who, what, when, where and why, such as:
• Title
• Department
• Date and time of event
• Production date
• Deadline
• Amount of characters
• Format
• Page allocation
• Priority
• Description
The proposals are added to a list, and sorted according to optional criteria. This bulletin board is displayed in the lower part of the middle section.

A day's planning

All users can enter proposals in NewsPlanner, which are then added to a list of other proposals. From that list, a planner (chief editor) chooses proposals and drops them onto a date in a calendar. These become assignments. A planner uses the Resource List to allocate assignments, which are immediately updated with specific details, such as who is responsible, how that person will be kept informed, etc. Assignments can be dropped back into the Proposal List, or dragged and dropped into another day.
If the newspaper is running Scoop WebEdit, the planner drops the assignment directly into a basket in Scoop WebEdit. An article is then automatically created in that users basket in Scoop WebEdit along with information from NewsPlanner. The assignment in NewsPlanner is then marked as ’Sent’ and the article in Scoop Edit is marked as coming from NewsPlanner.

Work schedules

Staff resources can be sorted into workgroups. Each group can define their working schedule and all groups resources have the same schedule. Individual changes to the schedule can be accommodated. By clicking a day in the calendar, that day’s status for every resource is displayed in the Resource List. The working schedules can be printed out for one person or for a group.

Logging in and access rights

A user starts the program by logging in, and access rights will be assigned.

System

NewsPlanner is installed with PostgreSQL. NewsPlanner is available in English and Swedish. More localised versions are produced on request.