Writing.Com 101

Embedding Photos and Media Files in Books

Books also allow the use of additional components to complete or enhance a Book entry. These additions are embedded in the book entry and stored separately elsewhere. Please note the paid membership level that is necessary for each type of addition.

With an Upgraded or higher membership, Book entries may embed videos stored on YouTube, Vimeo, or Facebook, or audios stored on podbean.

With a Premium or higher membership, Book entries may embed photos you have uploaded to your Book item, your Photo Album, or elsewhere on the site.

Embedding a Media Link
Offsite videos stored on YouTube, Vimeo and Facebook and offsite audios stored on podbean may be embedded in Book entries on Writing.Com. The media files must be set to allow them to be played on other sites. The media files may also have restrictions on the countries where they can and cannot be viewed, which can affect who can see the embedded links on this site. You must have an Upgraded membership or above to use this feature.

Considerations for embedding audio or video links:

Video and audio embed tags may only be used within Book entries. They are not officially supported elsewhere in Writing.Com.

Only one embedded media tag may be used per Book entry. Using more than one is not officially supported.

The embedded media is displayed along the left margin unless WritingML tags are used to position it elsewhere in the entry.

If for any reason the offsite media file becomes no longer available, the embedded media link will no longer work.

Note: Members have reported embedding media links in Static items, Group item headers, forum posts, and Notebook notes/comments, and have also reported they don't always work properly or don't work properly after editing the location. When such unsupported usages don't work, it's considered user error, not a bug.

Embedding the media link:

Create and save the entry in which you wish to place the embed tag.

Find the ID of the offsite media file you wish to embed. From your browser's address bar, copy:
          For YouTube, the entire URL of the video.
          For Vimeo, the ID number shown in the URL of the video.
          For Facebook, the ID number is usually shown in the fb's "embed" share option and sometimes shown in the video link.
          For podbean, the ID number shown in the URL of the audio.

Open the Edit page for the entry, and go to the place you want the video embedded. Add the appropriate embed tag, pasting in the correct ID for the media file:
          {embed:YOUTUBEURL} where the YOUTUBEURL is the URL of the video on YouTube.
          {embed:vimeo:VMID} where VMID is the ID number shown in the URL of the Vimeo video.
          {embed:facebook:FBID} where FBID is the ID number shown in the URL of the Facebook video.
          {embed:podbean:PBID} where PBID is the ID number shown in the URL of the podbean audio.

Add any additional WritingML tags to position the video where you want it.

Save and View your entry to ensure the video is properly placed.

Examples of Embedded Videos
An example of an embedded YouTube video can be viewed in WritingML Help for embed. An example of an embedded Vimeo video can be viewed in "Video: Linking to an Item" . An example of an embedded Facebook video can be viewed in "Note: Omg... I think I pulled something. *Laugh* ...".

Playing Embedded Videos
Embedded videos from YouTube and Vimeo show a play button which is clicked to begin playing the video. Embedded videos from Facebook do not show such a button, and begin playing if the embedded video image is clicked.

Adding Photos:
While the use of non-animated images, and creating and hosting Book items, are features available to Upgraded members and above, hosting photos is a Premium level benefit. Photos can be added to your Book entries and stored with the Book item.

Add Photo(s):
No matter which format you are using (a Blog or a Single Entry), you will see an Add Photos command on the Edit line for your entry. Click on that command to open the Add Photos page. Right-clicking will open the page in a new window.

Use the form on this page to upload up to five photos at a time. You can browse for photos on your hard drive and enter the filename directly into the text boxes provided. Any photos larger than the allowable size of 550 by 550 pixels will automatically be resized to fit. Premium accounts can store up to 500 total photos in photo album(s) or book(s); Premium Plus accounts can store up to 1,000 total photos. Photos can also be uploaded in other places, such as forum posts and notebook notes. All your photos can be found on your My Account/My Photos page. The photos themselves are not items in your port, and they do not use any of the maximum space allotted to a book item.

Photos stored in photo albums or books cannot be shared by other members. Do not upload photos that you want to display in other entries. They must be added to those entries separately.

Click Go to upload your photos. This might take a few minutes depending on your connection speed. The uploaded photo(s) will be displayed at the bottom of the entry in the thumbnail size.

Add Documentation to the Photo(s):

Clicking on a displayed photo opens a window into which you can add a title and description of the photo. If you preferences allow, your title and description will be visible when you hold your cursor over the photo. The description box can hold up to 5,000 characters.

Click Store Comment to save your information. The title you entered will be displayed above the photograph while the description text you entered will be displayed under the photograph. Your title and description may be edited at any time.

Adjust the Aspect of the Photo:

The orientation, position and size of the photos can be easily changed using the Manage Photos command, which is accessed through the Manage command on Your Item: edit line while viewing the entry containing the photos you wish to change. Note that clicking on Manage Photos opens a page that displays all the photos in your book; they may not appear in the order of your entries, nor will they appear in order within each entry unless you have previously set that order. The entry in which the photo resides will be identified with each photo. It might help to open a separate copy of the entry you are adjusting to verify the changes before exiting the Manage Photos page.

 Orientation: Clicking on the individual picture opens a window allowing you to rotate your picture clockwise or counter-clockwise. This may be repeated until it shows the orientation you desire. Use the Next button to work on another photo or just close the window to complete the action.

 Position: You may wish to position the photo elsewhere in the entry. You'll need to open a separate edit window of that entry to incorporate and verify the changes you want to make. In the Edit window, place your cursor where you want your photo to be displayed and use the WritingML photo tag with the photo ID number to position the picture there. Additional WritingML tags can also be used. For example, using {center}{photo:######}{/center} centers your photo. Since you are editing your entry, you must save your changes normally. You can position multiple photos in the same entry using the appropriate tags.

 Size: Photo tags for five different sizes are available to display a photo that is stored in a photo album or a book. They include normal (photo), small (sphoto), medium (mphoto), large (lphoto), extra large (xlphoto) and full size (fsphoto). The normal and small tags display the photo as a thumbnail view in the photo album or book. Full-size photo tags display the photo in the same size as is shown in the photo editing page. The full-size tag is valid within book items only. If you try to use the fsphoto tag in an item other than a Book, it will only display the thumbnail size photo link. (see: WritingML Help for photo)

If you wish to display more than one photo on the same line, put at least one space between each pair of photo tags to allow the system to wrap a too-wide line instead of stretching the column.

Change the Photo Order: 

Use the Manage Photos option to change the order of your photos. Again, note that the Manage Photos page displays all the photos in your book; they might not appear in the order of your entries. Each photo contained in the Book is displayed as a thumbnail with numeric order boxes to the left and photo information on the right. Within the entry, the photos with higher numbers will display to the left and top, and those with lower numbers will display to the right and bottom. Be sure you are ordering only those photos that appear in the entry of interest.

Delete a Photo: 

You can use the Manage Photos page to delete photos. When you click on the Delete button, a pop-up asks you to confirm the delete operation. Confirm to complete the operation, and you will be returned to the Manage Photos page. A Delete option is also available by clicking on a photolink. 1

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Recommended Reading

1. Book
2. Create/Edit a Book
3. Book Entries
4. Manage a Book
5. Free and Paid Membership Benefits

Footnotes
1  Updated by northernwrites; written by northernwrites and JACE