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LexisNexis® Publisher User Guide

Contents

LexisNexis® Publisher User Guide

Copyright LexisNexis, the Knowledge Burst logo, and lexis.com are registered trademarks, and LexisNexis SmartIndexing Technology is a trademark of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used under license. Other products or services may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective companies.

Copyright © 2008 LexisNexis, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

August 2008

Contents

LexisNexis® Publisher User Guide i

Contents

Working with Topics................................................................................................................... 1 Creating a New Topic ................................................................................................................................ 2 Creating a New Search ............................................................................................................................. 3 Using Index Terms in Searches ................................................................................................................ 4 Creating a Combined Source .................................................................................................................... 5 Working with Search Results .................................................................................................................... 6

Creating a Custom Document.........................................................................................................................................................7 Working with Staged Documents....................................................................................................................................................8 Customizing a Document................................................................................................................................................................9 Working with Published Documents .............................................................................................................................................15 Publishing a Document to Other Topics .......................................................................................................................................17 Working with Deleted Documents.................................................................................................................................................18

Adding a Shared Topic............................................................................................................................ 19 Scheduling an Alert ................................................................................................................................. 20 Setting Editor Preferences ...................................................................................................................... 21 Viewing and Organizing the Topics List .................................................................................................. 22 Using the Actions Menu........................................................................................................................... 23

Managing Results .........................................................................................................................................................................23 Editing Topics and Searches ........................................................................................................................................................24 Previewing a Topic........................................................................................................................................................................31 Showing the Topic URL ................................................................................................................................................................32 Viewing Subscribed Users ............................................................................................................................................................33 Queuing a Topic for Update..........................................................................................................................................................34 Deactivating a Topic .....................................................................................................................................................................35 Deleting a Topic ............................................................................................................................................................................36

Performing Additional Topic Related Tasks ............................................................................................ 37 Previewing the Topic List ..............................................................................................................................................................37 Showing and Working with the URL for the Topic List..................................................................................................................38 Managing Combined Sources ......................................................................................................................................................39

Performing Additional End-User Related Tasks...................................................................................... 41 Setting Preferences for BlackBerry Users ....................................................................................................................................41 Formatting Text.............................................................................................................................................................................42 Setting Online Display Defaults ....................................................................................................................................................43 Setting Email Display Defaults......................................................................................................................................................48 Notifying Users of New Documents ..............................................................................................................................................52

Related Products ..................................................................................................................................... 53 Performing Administrative Tasks............................................................................................ 54

Setting Organization Preferences ........................................................................................................... 55 Editing User Subscriptions ...................................................................................................................... 57

Adding a New User .......................................................................................................................................................................58 Importing a User List.....................................................................................................................................................................59 Deleting a User .............................................................................................................................................................................60

Contents

LexisNexis® Publisher User Guide ii

Viewing a User’s History ...............................................................................................................................................................61 Working with Project or Client IDs........................................................................................................... 62

Adding a New Project or Client .....................................................................................................................................................62 Editing an Existing Project or Client..............................................................................................................................................63 Viewing Searches Associated with a Project or Client .................................................................................................................64 Deleting a Project or Client ...........................................................................................................................................................65

Generating Reports ................................................................................................................................. 66 Usage Reports ..............................................................................................................................................................................66 Subscriptions Reports...................................................................................................................................................................67 Topic Report .................................................................................................................................................................................68

Working with Topic Categories................................................................................................................ 69 Creating Topic Categories ............................................................................................................................................................69 Assigning a Topic Category..........................................................................................................................................................70 Unassigning a Topic Category......................................................................................................................................................71 Previewing Topic Categories ........................................................................................................................................................72 Showing the URL for Topic Categories ........................................................................................................................................73 Renaming a Topic Category .........................................................................................................................................................74 Deleting a Topic Category ............................................................................................................................................................75

Determining Topic Display Order for End Users ..................................................................................... 76 Deleting Attachments from Documents................................................................................................... 77 Creating Newsletters ............................................................................................................................... 78

Creating a Template .....................................................................................................................................................................78 Editing a Template ........................................................................................................................................................................83 Creating a New Issue....................................................................................................................................................................84 Sending a Newsletter....................................................................................................................................................................88

Assigning Topics to Editors ..................................................................................................................... 89 Generating Tokens for RSS Readers...................................................................................................... 90

Editing a Token.............................................................................................................................................................................91 Deleting a Token...........................................................................................................................................................................92

Additional Resources and Information................................................................................... 93 Additional Resources............................................................................................................................... 93 Research Assistance............................................................................................................................... 93

Working with Topics

LexisNexis® Publisher User Guide 1

Working with Topics LexisNexis® Publisher offers both the tools you need to locate consistent, relevant information from the LexisNexis® services and reliable access to that information via your intranet or Internet site, email, or BlackBerry™ wireless device. With LexisNexis Publisher, you can review documents and set up links to control the information you make available on your site.

Topics are managed and distributed to end users through a LexisNexis Publisher Web site established for each company that has a subscription. This section of the guide provides information to help you create, manage, and publish your organization’s topics.

Working with Topics


Creating a New Topic LexisNexis® Publisher topics are containers for your searches related to a specific subject. Each topic must contain at least one search, but you can create up to ten related searches within one topic.

To create a new topic:

1. Click the New Topic sub-tab.

2. Enter a topic name.

3. Enter the name and email address of the editor who will be responsible for this topic.

4. If notification is desired, select Email editor when new search results are available.

5. Enter the number of topic list headlines to display for end users.

6. If desired, enter a comment about the topic list for end users.

7. Enter the number of days to keep published documents if less than the subscribed timeframe.

8. Select whether the topic will be active, private, both, or neither.

Tip: You can change the status of a topic after you have created it by clicking Edit Topic or Search under the Actions… menu for that topic.

9. Select whether to display document ranking for end users.

When you run a search in LexisNexis Publisher, you may receive duplicate documents in your results. In order to limit the number of duplicate documents you receive, you can choose duplicate document detection settings to filter out duplicate documents.

To select duplicate document detection settings:

1. In the Detection Method drop-down list, select the detection method you want to use.

Tip: Headlines and Sources Match is the recommended method of detecting duplicate documents.

2. In the Handling drop-down list, select how you want to handle duplicate documents.

Tip: Overwrite duplicate(s) with new document’s contents is the recommended method of handling duplicate documents.

When published, all topics display according to your organization’s default display settings. However, you can override the default display settings if you want a particular topic to display differently from the other topics. Use the Display Preferences forms on the New Topic sub-tab to choose display defaults for one topic only.

Tip: For more detailed information and step-by-step instructions for setting display defaults, see “Setting Online Display Defaults.”

Working with Topics


Creating a New Search LexisNexis® Publisher searches do the work of finding and retrieving documents. You can create up to 10 related searches within a single topic.

To create a search:

1. On the New Topic sub-tab, scroll down to the New Search form.

2. Enter a name for the search.

3. Enter a project/client name.

Note: For more information about adding a new project or client, see “Adding a New Project or Client.”

4. In the Menu drop-down list, select the source menu you want to use.

Note: The number of menus available depends upon your organization’s subscription.

5. In the Source drop-down list, select the source you want to use.

Note: The Source list will be empty if you have not yet run any searches. To add sources to the list, click Find More Sources.

Tip: See “Creating/adding Combined Sources” if you want to select more than one source to use for the same search.

6. Enter headline or lead terms (if desired).

7. Enter terms relevant to the search, including segments and Boolean connectors.

Note: For more help constructing searches, see the Search Tips.

8. Limit your search by doing one or more of the following:

Value Description

Exclude non-business articles Select to search only within business-related articles.

Ticker If you want to search for a specific company and know its ticker, enter the ticker.

Date Select a date range for the search.

From Enter a beginning date (in mm/dd/yyyy format) for the search.

9. Click Search. Your search and topic will be saved and run for the first time.

Working with Topics


Using Index Terms in Searches As new documents for many sources are received, they are automatically analyzed and assigned LexisNexis® indexing terms that identify the topics covered within each document. You can include these index terms in your search to help you locate documents that are relevant to your topic of interest.

To use pre-defined index terms:

1. On the New Search form, click Show to expand the index terms option.

2. Select the desired directory from the Index Directory drop-down list. You can switch between directories to find all the terms you need for your search.

To search for specific index terms:

1. Select Find under Lookup Options.

2. Enter a word or phrase in the Find Terms box.

3. Click Find.

To search for terms within an organized tree-like structure:

1. Select Hierarchy under Lookup Options.

Note: The Hierarchy option is not available for the All Terms, Company, and People index directories.

2. For more information about an index term, click the Information icon ( ) next to its name.

3. To expand or collapse an index term, click the expand ( ) or collapse ( ) icon next to its name.

To include an index term in your search:

1. Select the check box next to the term’s name. The term appears in the Currently Selected area beneath the index terms box.

2. If you want to change the relationship between two terms, click the connector between them.

Tip: The three default connectors are AND, OR, and AND NOT. If you want to use a different connector, click Move selections to Search Terms box and edit the connectors in the Search Terms box.

Warning: Do not alter the actual text of any index terms. Altering the text will impede the terms’ ability to associate with the index terms assigned to the target documents and will therefore degrade the quality of your search results.

3. If you want to exclude peripheral or loosely related documents from your results, select Only retrieve highly relevant documents.

Working with Topics


Creating a Combined Source The Source drop-down list allows you to select only one source (that has previously been used) for your search. However, you may want to run a search that includes multiple sources. You can create combined sources that allow you to search multiple sources included under one source name.

To create a combined source:

1. Next to the Source drop-down list, click Find More Sources.

2. Select the sources you want to add to your combined source:

If you want to… Do this…

Browse through the hierarchy to locate the sources you want to use

a. Click the Browse Sources sub-tab

b. Click the folder links to browse within the hierarchy of sources

Search for specific sources a. Click the Find Sources sub-tab

b. Enter a specific source name

c. Click Find

3. Click add to include a source in your combined source. The source appears in the Selected Sources box in the area on the right side of the screen.

Note: Due to license restrictions, some sources are not available for combined sources. Such sources are automatically disabled (indicated by the gray add icon).

4. Enter a name for your new combined source in the Name of Combined Item box in the area on the right side of the screen.

5. Click Done. Your new combined source will now be available in the Source drop-down list.

Tip: You can also access the combined sources page from the Topics Home page by clicking the Manage Combined Sources link in the Additional Tasks area on the right side of the screen.

Working with Topics


Working with Search Results After you run a search for the first time, the Results page appears. This page contains tabs and buttons that you can use to work with your results and publish documents for end users.

The Results page lists the new documents retrieved by a search. This list is updated every time the search is run. The Results page allows you to review documents and store them for 24 hours until you decide whether to publish them to your site.

Tip: If you want to store documents for longer than 24 hours before you publish them, move them to the Staged tab. For more information about the Staged tab, see “Working with Staged Documents.”

Note: Duplicate documents are not filtered out until you move documents to the Staged tab. Therefore, duplicate documents appear on the Results tab. If you want to have duplicate documents filtered out before you see them, set the alert for the search to run directly to the Staged tab (see “Scheduling an Alert”).

To review documents:

1. Browse the document list in the left pane.

2. Select which documents you want to view:


View the documents for a different search

Select a search name from the Results for drop-down list

View documents beyond the first 25 documents

Select a document range from the Go to drop-down list at the bottom of the left pane

Tip: You can change the default number of documents displayed in the document list by changing your editor preferences. For more information, see “Setting Editor Preferences.”

3. To view a full-text document, click on the headline of the document you want to read.

4. Click Go.

To change the view of the Results page:

1. Select the view you want from the View drop-down list in the top left corner of the page.

2. Click Go.

3. To change the width of the panes in a view with 2 panes, click the triple red arrow between the panes.

To move a document from the Results tab to a different tab:

Note: After you move a document off the Results tab, you are unable to move it back to the Results tab at any time.

1. Select the check box to the left of the document citation in the document list.

2. Click the button beneath the tab you want to move the document to (Staged, Published, or Deleted). The document will move to the document list for that tab.

Working with Topics


Creating a Custom Document From time to time, you may want to create your own document, such as a company memo or a marketing piece, to publish along with the documents you retrieve in your searches. You can create original documents by entering original text or by copying text from an existing document.

To create a custom document:

1. On the Results page, display the document list for the search that you want to add the new document to.

2. In the More Actions drop-down list, select Create a Document.

3. Click Go.

4. Enter a descriptive headline for the document.

5. If the text for the document comes from an existing document, enter the name of the source.

6. Enter the current day’s date in one of the supported sortable date formats.

Tip: You can use either American or European date formats: MM/dd/yyyy American format, numbers only dd/MM/yyyy European format, numbers only MMM dd, yyyy American format, full month or abbreviation dd MMM yyyy European format, full month or abbreviation

7. If you want or need an abstract, enter the text for the abstract in the Abstract box.

8. Enter or copy the text of the document into the Body Text box.

9. Set formatting instructions:

a. Select Page Formatting.

b. Enter your formatting specifications in the boxes.

10. Click Create. The new document will be added to the results for the Custom Documents search. You will now be able to work with the document as you do with other documents.

Working with Topics


Working with Staged Documents The Staged tab serves as a holding place for documents that you want to retain but are not yet ready to publish. Move documents to this tab when you want to customize them or review them further before publishing them to your Web site.

To stage a document:

1. Select the check box to the left of the document citation in the document list.

2. Click the Stage Selected button beneath the Staged tab. The document will move to the document list on the Staged tab.

Note: Documents are allowed to be staged for up to 7 days. This includes the time that the documents spend in the Results tab. After 7 days, staged documents will be automatically deleted from the system.

To move a document from the Staged tab to another tab:

1. Select the check box to the left of the document headline in the document list.

2. Click the button beneath the destination tab. The document will move to the document list in that tab.

Working with Topics


Customizing a Document Occasionally, you may want to customize a document for your organization’s purposes. You can customize documents from either the Staged tab or the Published tab to include editorial comments, external links, pictures, or attachments, and you can set a custom expiration date for a document.

Note: In order to customize a document, you must lock it for annotation. Locking a document prevents other editors from locking the same document while you are still working on it. A document will only remain locked for 20 minutes, after which time it will automatically unlock and become available to other editors.

Tip: You must select the Include Editor's Comments? option in the display defaults in order for other editors end users to see any comments, links, pictures, or attachments that you add. For more information about display defaults, see “Setting Online Display Defaults.”

To customize a document:

1. Click the document headline in the document list.

2. Click Lock to Annotate at the top of the full-text pane.

3. Click the link for the customization option you want to use (Comment, Link, Picture, Attachment, or Custom Expiration).

4. Follow the directions for that option as outlined in one of the following sections.

Working with Topics


Adding a Comment

You can use the Comment form to add a comment to a document list or to a full-text document. A comment can emphasize a key idea or draw attention to a particular segment of a document.

To add a comment:


2. In the drop-down list, select where you want your comment to appear (the document list or the full- text document).

Tip: If you want your comment to appear in both the document list and the full-text document, select the Both check box beneath the drop-down list.

3. Enter your comment in the box.

4. Click Save All.

Tip: If you have expanded the document list pane, you will not be able to see the Save All button. Click the triple red arrow to narrow the document list pane and show the Save All button.

Note: If you do not click Save All, your comment will not be added to the document.

5. Continue on to the other customization options or unlock the document if you are finished customizing it.

Working with Topics


Adding External Links

Use the Link form to add links to external Web sites that are relevant to a particular document. Such links help your site visitors quickly go to complementary information located elsewhere on the Internet.

To add one or more links:


2. Click Link.

3. In the Link Title box, enter the text you want displayed as the link instead of the URL, for example, Read More.

4. In the URL box, enter the complete URL for the link.

Tip: The beginning http:// tag is already filled in for you, but you can edit it if the URL for the link you want to include begins differently.

5. Click Add to List. The link text moves to the Links box, and the URL box clears so you can enter another link.

6. When you have finished adding links, click Save All.


Note: If you do not click Save All, your links will not be added to the document.


Working with Topics


Adding a Picture

A picture can provide a colorful visual representation of the main idea of a document. You can use the Picture form to add a picture to a document.

To add a picture to a document:


2. Click Picture.

3. Enter the URL for the picture in the box.

Note: The URL must begin with http://.

4. Click Save All.


Note: If you do not click Save All, your picture will not be added to the document.


Working with Topics


Attaching a File

You can use the File form to add an attachment to a document. The attached document will be imported to and served from a LexisNexis® Publisher server. It is recommended that attached documents be in one of the supported file formats.

Note: The size and total number of attachments allowed is restricted based on your organization’s subscription. Please contact your system administrator or LexisNexis account representative if you have any questions concerning this restriction.

The following types of files are supported by LexisNexis Publisher:

▪ Microsoft Word (.doc)

▪ Microsoft Excel (.xls)

▪ Microsoft PowerPoint (.ppt)

▪ Adobe Acrobat (.pdf)

▪ Generic Rich Text Format (.rtf)

▪ Plain text (.txt)

▪ Comma delimited spreadsheet (.csv)

To attach a file:


2. Click File.

3. To check the number of permitted attachments still available, click Status.

Note: If your organization has reached its attachment limit, you must delete another attachment before you can add a new one. For more information about deleting existing attachments, see “Deleting Attachments from Documents.”

4. Click Browse to search for the file you want to attach.

5. Double-click the filename. The complete file path displays in the box.

6. In the Link Title box, enter the text you want to display as the link to the file.

7. Click Save All.


Note: If you do not click Save All, your attachment will not be added to the document.


Working with Topics


Setting a Custom Expiration Date

The Custom Expiration form identifies both the current expiration date and the maximum expiration date for a document. You can use this form to specify any date for the document to expire between the current date and the maximum expiration date.

To set a custom expiration date:


2. Click Custom Expiration.

3. Enter the date (in mm/dd/yyyy format) on which you want the document to expire.

Note: You may also enter a date in European format (dd/mm/yyyy) as specified on the form. Your custom expiration date cannot exceed the document’s maximum expiration date.

4. Click Save All.


Note: If you do not click Save All, the custom expiration date will not go into effect.


Working with Topics


Working with Published Documents The Published tab displays the list of documents that are currently published for end users to view. Use the options on this tab to review published documents, reorder the document display list for end users, publish documents to other topics, and delete documents that are no longer relevant. If you publish only to an intranet, you can also use this tab to extend expiration dates for documents.

To publish a document (from another tab):

1. Select the check box to the left of the document headline in the document list pane.

2. Click the Publish Selected button under the Published tab. The document will move to the document list in the Published tab.

To reorder the document display list:

1. In the More Actions drop-down list, select Sort Document List Order.

2. Click Go. The Sort Document List Order window appears. The documents will be listed in their current order in the box on the left.

3. Use the buttons to move documents to the New Order box on the right:

Button Function

Moves a selected document from the Current Order box to the top of the New Order box

Moves all documents in the Current Order box to the New Order box

Moves a selected document from the Current Order box to the bottom of the list in the New Order box

Moves a selected document from the New Order box to the bottom of the list in the Current Order box

Moves all documents in the New Order box to the Current Order box

Moves a selected document up the list in the New Order box

Moves a selected document down the list in the New Order box

Working with Topics


To delete a document before its expiration date:


2. Click the Delete Selected button beneath the Deleted tab.

Tip: For more information about deleting documents, see “Working with Deleted Documents.”

To renew a document (intranet publishing only):


2. Click Renew Selected on the right above the full-text pane. The document will be renewed for an additional 30 days.

Note: Your ability to renew documents depends upon your subscription.

Working with Topics


Publishing a Document to Other Topics Sometimes you may want to publish a document to other topics in addition to the topic in which you retrieved it. You can publish a document to other topics from both the Staged and the Published tabs.

To publish a document to other topics:


2. In the More Actions drop-down list, select Publish to Other Topics.

3. Click Go.

4. Select the topics to which you want to publish the document.

5. Click OK. The document will now appear in the document list for the topics you selected.

Working with Topics


Working with Deleted Documents The Deleted tab contains all the documents that you previously chose to delete from the Results, Staged, or Published tabs. It also contains duplicate documents that have been deleted according to your settings for handling duplicate documents. You can use this tab to review the documents that have been moved here from the other tabs. If you determine that a document should not have been deleted, you can move it back to either the Staged or the Published tab.

Note: Documents that have been automatically deleted per your duplicate document detection settings will remain on the Deleted tab for 7 days, after which time they will be permanently deleted. All other documents on the Deleted tab are permanently removed between 12:00 a.m. and 1:00 a.m. ET each day.

To delete a document (from another tab):


2. Click the Delete Selected button beneath the Deleted tab. The document will move to the document list in the Deleted tab.

To view different types of deletions by category:

1. In the Show drop-down list, select the type of deletions you want to view (all deletions, manual deletions, or auto deletions).

2. Click Go. The document list will be filtered according to the type of deletions you selected.

To undelete a document:


2. Click the button beneath the tab (Staged or Published) where you want to move the document. The document will move to the document list in the tab you selected.

To permanently delete a document:


2. Click the Delete Permanently button beneath the Deleted tab. The document will disappear from the document list.

Note: Permanently deleted documents cannot be retrieved again.

Working with Topics


Adding a Shared Topic Shared topics are topics that the LexisNexis® staff create for many customers to share. They include topics that are updates of entire publications, such as The New York Times® or Tax Notes Today®. Shared topics are only available if your organization has subscribed to them, and the number of shared topics available to you depends upon your organization’s subscription.

To add a shared topic:

1. In the Additional Tasks area on the Topics Home page, click Add Shared Topics.

2. Browse through the lists of shared topics and select the topics you want to add.

Tip: You can CTRL-click to select multiple topics in the same list.

3. Click OK. The shared topic will now appear in the Current Topics list on the Topics Home page.

Tip: Shared topics in the topic list are denoted by an asterisk (*).

Working with Topics


Scheduling an Alert When you create a search, it is set by default to run only when you initiate it (a manual search). You can schedule an alert to run a search automatically so you don’t have to manually initiate it every time you want to check for new results.

Note: You cannot schedule an alert for a search that has never been run or that has not been run in two days. If you wish to schedule an alert for such a search, first run the search, then schedule the alert.

To schedule an alert:

1. On the Topics Home page, locate the topic that contains the search for which you want to schedule an alert.

2. Click the Actions… menu link to the right of the topic.

3. Click Edit Topic or Search.

4. Scroll down to the Current Searches area at the bottom of the page.

5. In the Schedule Alerts area, click the Edit Alert link for the desired search. You will be redirected to the Scheduled Alert page.

6. In the drop-down list, select how you want the alert to run:

▪ Manually only

▪ Automatically to the “Results” tab

▪ Automatically to the “Staged” tab

▪ Automatically to the “Published” tab

7. Use the option buttons to select how frequently you want the alert to run.

8. Click Save. Your alert will be scheduled and run for the first time.

Tip: You can also edit or schedule alerts from the More Actions drop-down list on the Results page.

Working with Topics


Setting Editor Preferences The Editor Preferences form allows each editor to set personal preferences for using LexisNexis® Publisher.

To set editor information:

1. Click the Editor Preferences link at the top of the page.

2. Enter your name. Entering your name allows LexisNexis Publisher to fill it in automatically on forms that require it.

3. Enter your email address. Entering your email address allows LexisNexis Publisher to fill it in automatically on forms that require it.

Tip: You can enter multiple email addresses by separating them with commas or semicolons.

To set the default display for search results:

1. In the Results Per Page drop-down list, select the number of results you want to view at a time.

2. In the Results Format drop-down list, select the default view for search results.

Tip: If you would like to receive email notifications about LexisNexis® Publisher product updates and outages, select the check box.

When you are finished setting your preferences, click Save. Your preferences will be saved and applied.

Working with Topics


Viewing and Organizing the Topics List The Topics Home page displays information about the current status of the topics your organization has created. The page provides a collection of tabs and links that give you easy access to various actions related to maintaining your topics and to performing some administrative tasks. Beneath the Current Topics list, you can find information telling you how many standard topics and shared topics you have used and how many are still available to you.

Note: The number of topics available depends upon your organization’s subscription.

Topic Status Indicator Meaning

Active topic

Tip: Most topics will fall into this category.

Inactive topic

Private topic

Shared topic

You can sort the order of the topics in the Current Topics list according to what information is most valuable to you at a certain time.


Sort the list in descending order based on the values displayed in a particular column

Click the column title

Sort the list in ascending order based on the values displayed in a particular column

Click the column title twice

Tip: When you sort the topics list by the contents of a particular column, the column title turns red and displays a triangle icon that indicates whether the list is sorted in ascending or descending order.

Working with Topics


Using the Actions Menu To the right of each topic in the Current Topics list is an Actions… menu link. This menu contains links that you can use as you work with a topic.

Note: Not all the links in the Actions… menu are available for shared topics.

Managing Results After you create a new topic and its associated searches, you will want to be able to manage the results that the topic produces.

To manage results:

1. Click the Actions… menu link for the topic you want to manage.

2. Click Manage Results. The Results page appears, allowing you to view results and stage, publish, and delete documents. For more information about working with results, see “Working with Search Results.”

Note: The Manage Results link is not available for shared topics.

Working with Topics


Editing Topics and Searches Sometimes you may want to edit a topic or search after you have created it. You may need to edit a topic’s settings; add, edit, copy, or delete a search; or schedule or edit an alert.

To access the Edit Topic Settings form:

1. Click the Actions… menu link for the topic you want to edit.

2. Click Edit Topic or Search. The Edit Topic Settings form appears, allowing you to edit and update the topic and its associated searches. See the following sections for more detailed information on performing specific editing tasks.

Working with Topics


Editing Topic Settings

The Edit Topic Settings form is similar to the New Topic form. You can use it to change the settings and properties for a particular topic, such as the topic name or status.

Note: Not all the actions within the Edit Topic Settings form are available for shared topics.

Working with Topics


Adding a Search

There may be times when you may want to create a new search within an existing topic. You may want to search multiple menus or use different search terms for different databases. LexisNexis® Publisher gives you this flexibility by allowing you to create up to 10 searches within a single topic. For example, you can search both cases and news for a particular topic, and the results from both searches will merge and display together.

Note: You cannot add searches to shared topics.

To add a search to an existing topic:

1. On the Edit Topic Settings page, scroll down to the Current Searches form at the bottom of the page.

2. Click Add a New Search. The New Search form appears.

3. Use the form to construct your search.

Tip: For more information on creating a search, see “Creating a New Search.”

4. Click Search. Your search will be saved and run for the first time.

Working with Topics


Editing a Search

Sometimes you may want to edit or refine an existing search. You can use the Edit Search form (similar to the New Search form) to modify a search as necessary.

To edit an existing search:

1. On the Edit Topic Settings page, scroll down to the Current Searches list.

2. Click the name of the search you want to edit. The Edit Search form appears.

Tip: You can also access the Edit Search form from the Actions… menu to the right of the search name.

3. Use the form to make the necessary changes to the search.

Tip: For more information on constructing a search, see the Search Tips.

4. Click Save. If your updated search is a manual search, it will be saved.

Tip: If the search is scheduled to run automatically, it will run and display the new results. However, if the search is set to run manually, you must click the Search button to initiate the search before you can view the new results.

Working with Topics


Copying a Search

There may be times when you want to create a new search that is similar to an existing one. In such instances, you can copy a search to save the steps of reentering text and selecting or deselecting various options.

To copy an existing search:


2. Click the Actions… menu link for the search you want to copy.

3. Click Copy Search. A new search named as a copy of the existing search appears in the Current Searches list.

4. Click the name of the copied search. The Edit Search form appears.

5. Use the Edit Search form to make any necessary changes to the copied search.

Tip: For more information on working with searches, see “Editing a Search” or “Creating a New Search.”

6. Click Search. The copied search will run for the first time.

Working with Topics


Deleting a Search

If you want to remove a search from a topic, you can use the Edit Topic Settings page to delete a search.

To delete a search:


2. Click the Actions… menu link for the search you want to delete.

3. Click Delete Search. A pop-up window appears to verify that you want to delete the search.

4. Click OK. The deleted search will disappear from the Current Searches list.

Working with Topics


Editing an Alert

You can choose to run a search manually or to schedule an alert that will run the search automatically at a specified time or frequency. If you need to, you can modify the alert settings for a search.

To edit an alert:


2. In the Schedule Alerts area, click the Edit Alert link for the search you want to edit. The Scheduled Alert form appears.

3. In the drop-down list, select how you want the alert to run.

4. Use the option buttons to select how frequently you want the alert to run.

5. Click Save. Your alert will be scheduled and your search will run.

Tip: You can also edit or schedule alerts from the More Actions drop-down list on the Results page.

Working with Topics


Previewing a Topic

To preview how a topic displays to end users on your Web site:

1. Click the Actions… menu link for the topic you want to preview.

2. Click Preview Topic. A new browser window opens and displays the topic as it will appear to end users.

Working with Topics


Showing the Topic URL You can use a topic’s URL to incorporate the topic into your Web site or to give subscribed users access to a private topic.

To find the URL for a particular topic:

1. Click the Actions… menu link for the topic whose URL you want.

2. Click Show Topic URL. A pop-up window containing several different URLs appears.

Note: You may retrieve URLs in HTML, XML, RSS, or JavaScript format depending on your organization’s subscription.

Once you have displayed the topic’s URLs, you can click a URL to preview the topic or copy and paste the URL you need into your organization’s Web site.

Working with Topics


Viewing Subscribed Users 1. Click the Actions… menu link for the topic whose subscribed users you want to view.

2. Click View Subscribed Users. The Subscribed Users page for that topic displays.

Tip: For more information about viewing and working with user subscriptions, see “Editing User Subscriptions.”

Working with Topics


Queuing a Topic for Update There may be times when you can’t wait until a scheduled search’s next normal runtime to check for new results. In such cases, you can request that a scheduled search be placed in the system’s update queue. The next time any updates are processed, that scheduled search will be processed along with them.

Note: If a search is very complex (if it contains more than 60 search term connectors and/or 7 wildcards), it will be placed in the queue for the next available update time for complex searches. Such searches can only be run at specific times during the day.

To queue a topic for update:

1. Click the Actions… menu link for the topic you want to update.

2. Click Queue for Update. The Queue Scheduled Searches for Update page appears.

3. Select the search that you want to queue for update.

Note: Only searches with scheduled alerts, not manual searches, can be queued for update.

4. Click the Queue for Update button above the search list table. The Next Run Date column will update to display the new expected run date and time for the queued search.

Note: A newly-queued search is scheduled to run at the current time, but depending in the number of other searches in the queue, it may not actually run until the next hour.

Working with Topics


Deactivating a Topic All active topics are available for end users to view. However, there may be times when you do not want end users to be able to access a particular topic. You can deactivate a topic to hide it from end users while still allowing the topic’s searches to run on schedule.

To deactivate a topic:

1. Click the Actions… menu link for the topic you want to deactivate.

2. Click Deactivate Topic. An X icon appears to the left of the topic name, indicating that the topic is inactive and no longer visible to end users.

To reactivate an inactive topic:

1. Click the Actions… menu link for the topic you want to activate.

2. Click Activate Topic. The X icon next to the topic name disappears, indicating that the topic is active and visible to end users.

Working with Topics


Deleting a Topic 1. Click the Actions… menu link for the topic you want to delete.

2. Click Delete Topic. A pop-up window appears to verify that you want to delete the topic.

3. If you are sure that you want to delete the topic, click OK. The topic disappears from the Current Topics list.

Warning: Deleting a topic deletes all the searches, published and unpublished documents, and comments associated with it.

Working with Topics


Performing Additional Topic Related Tasks The Additional Tasks area on the right side of the Topics Home page provides a variety of links that make it easy for you to perform a number of topics and end user related tasks and to generate administrative reports.

The links in the Topic Related section of the Additional Tasks area allow you to preview the topics list, obtain the URL for the topics list, and manage your combined sources.

Previewing the Topic List There may be times when you want to preview the topic list to evaluate your default display settings or to see how the topics and their associated documents display. You can use the links under Preview “All Topics” in the Additional Tasks area to preview the topics list either in the normal list view or in a categorized view.

▪ To preview the topic list in the normal list view, click List View. A new window displaying a list of all the topics will open.

▪ To preview the topic list in a categorized hierarchy, click Categorized View. A new window displaying a list of topic categories will open.

Note: In order to see the topic list in the categorized view, you must first set up topic categories. To learn more about topic categories, see “Creating and Assigning Topic Categories.”

Working with Topics


Showing and Working with the URL for the Topic List You can use the links in the Show “All Topics” URL section of the Additional Tasks area to obtain the URL for either the standard topic list or the categorized topic list.

To obtain the URL for the standard topic list view:

1. In the Additional Tasks area, click the List View link under Show “All Topics” URL. A pop-up window containing several types of URLs appears:

URL Type Description

HTML An HTML URL that creates a link to your topic list

Frame Display A URL that links users to a special navigation tool for browsing your organization’s published topics and documents

XML XML URLs that link either to the topic list with documents included or to the topic list only

Note: The availability of XML URLs depends on your organization’s subscription.

The window also contains a Generate JavaScript link. Use this link if you want to display the topic list inline in your own HTML instead of simply providing a link to it.

2. Copy and paste the URL or JavaScript that you need into your Web site.

3. Click Close Window.

If your organization’s subscription entitles you to use one or more of the LexisNexis® Data Feed Integration features, the pop-up window also contains a link to an Integration Guide. This link provides an online guide for using the Data Feed Integration feature to import topic-related information directly into your organization’s Document Control Software (DCS) or custom applications. In addition, you will see a detailed datafeed entitlement at the bottom of the window that describes your organization’s specific entitlements (based on your subscription). You will find this information useful when building and issuing data feed requests for service.

To obtain the URL for the categorized topic list view:

1. In the Additional Tasks area, click the Categorized View link under Show “All Topics” URL. A pop-up window containing an HTML URL appears.

2. Copy the URL and paste it into your Web site.

3. Click Close Window.

Note: You must assign topic categories in order to obtain the URL for the categorized topic list view.

Working with Topics


Managing Combined Sources Many organizations create custom source packages for their searches by combining individual sources. The Manage Combined Sources link in the Additional Tasks area allows you to view and work with the combined sources that your organization has created.

▪ To view a list of your organization’s combined sources and access tools for working with those sources, click Manage Combined Sources in the Additional Tasks area.

▪ To view the individual sources within a combined source, click the Show link for that combined source. The combined source will expand to display all the sources it contains.

Tip: You can expand all your combined sources simultaneously by clicking Show All in the upper right corner of the Combined Sources form.

To create a new combined source:

1. Click Create Combined Source. A small pop-up window appears.

2. In the pop-up window, select a source menu from the drop-down list.

3. Click Go. A larger window appears.

4. Locate the sources you wish to use:


Browse through the hierarchy a. Click the Browse Sources sub-tab

b. Click the folder links within the hierarchy of sources

Search for specific sources a. Click the Find Sources sub-tab

b. Enter a specific source name

c. Click Find

5. Click add to include a source in your combined source. The source appears in the Selected Sources box.

Note: Due to license restrictions, some sources are not available for combined sources. Such sources are automatically disabled (indicated by the gray add icon).

6. Enter a name for your new combined source in the Name of Combined Item box in the area on the right side of the screen.

7. Click Done. Your new combined source now appears in the list on the Manage Combined Sources page.

Working with Topics


There may be times that you want to edit the individual sources contained in a combined source; however, editing a combined source may negatively affect other searches that use it. For this reason, editing a saved combined source is not allowed. If you need to edit a combined source, you can make a copy of the source, edit it, and then edit the search to use the new source.

To copy a combined source:

1. Click the Actions... menu link for the combined source you want to copy.

2. Click Copy. The pop-up window used to create a combined source appears.

3. Follow the same steps as for creating a combined source (above) to edit your copied source.

Tip: A copied combined source is automatically named as a copy of the original source. You can rename it either while editing it or from the Actions… menu after you have saved it.

To rename a combined source:

1. Click the Actions... menu link for the combined source you want to rename.

2. Enter the new name in the pop-up window.

3. Click OK.

To delete a combined source:

1. Click the Actions... menu link for the combined source you want to delete.

2. Click Delete. A pop-up window appears to verify that you want to delete the combined source.

3. Click OK. The combined source will disappear from the list.

Note: You may not delete a combined source that is currently being used in a search.

To view the searches associated with a combined source:

1. Click the Actions... menu link for the combined source whose associated searches you want to view.

2. Click View Associated Searches. The searches associated with that combined source displays in a pop-up window.

3. Click Close Window when you are done viewing the list of associated searches.

When you are finished working with your combined sources, click Done to return to the Topics Home page.

Working with Topics


Performing Additional End-User Related Tasks The links in the End-User Related section of the Additional Tasks area allow you to set online and email display defaults, to notify users of new documents, and to subscribe new users.

Setting Preferences for BlackBerry Users In today’s high-tech world, remember that your end users may use mobile devices such as the BlackBerry™ to access the documents that you publish. Although you can’t set display preferences specifically for BlackBerry users, keep the following tips in mind to help make it easier for those users to access your content.

▪ Keep headers and footers with extraneous links to a minimum.

▪ Background colors do not display the same on a BlackBerry as they do on a desktop computer.

▪ Arial font works best. Different fonts and sizes typically normalize to fit on the screen of a BlackBerry.

▪ Bolding appears on search terms but not on topics.

In addition, it will be easier for BlackBerry users to access the topic list if you remind them to bookmark it when you first send it to them.

The following requirements are necessary for BlackBerry users to access LexisNexis® Publisher content:

▪ Java-enabled BlackBerry

▪ BlackBerry Enterprise Server™ version 3.5 or higher with Mobile Data Service enabled or a third-party provider equivalent

Note: If you use a third-party provider, your users will need to use an ID and password for authentication. IP authentication will work with an onsite BlackBerry Enterprise Server.

Working with Topics


Formatting Text Within both the online and email display defaults pages, you can format the different categories of text (based on usage) that appear within the topic list, document lists, and full-text documents. You can change the fonts, colors, and styles (bold, italic, or underline) for the different categories of text to match the design of your organization’s Web site.

On both the Online Display Defaults page and the Email Display Defaults page, you can find the form for formatting text in a sub-tab called Fonts/Colors Preferences. The form lists different categories of text and allows you to change how each category displays.

Tip: You can preview your formatting changes at any time by clicking Refresh or View in New Window above the preview box.

To change this… Do this…

Text color

Click the colored square to the right of the appropriate heading and choose a new color from the color palette.

Tip: You can also enter either the RGB or HEX value for a specific color.

Font Choose a font from the Font drop-down list.

Font size Choose a pixel size from the Size drop-down list.

Text style Choose a style (italic, bold, or underline) from the Style list. To choose more than one style, CTRL-click each style you want to apply. To clear a style, CTRL-click the style you want to remove.

Working with Topics


Setting Online Display Defaults Online display defaults affect the way content displays on your Web site. You can set display defaults for your organization’s topic list, document list, and full-text documents.

To access the Online Display Defaults page, click Online under Set Display Defaults in the Additional Tasks area on the Topics Home page.

Note: You can set different online display preferences for an individual topic on the New Topic page when you create a new topic or on the Edit Topic or Search page.

Working with Topics


Header and Footer

You can incorporate information from your organization’s Web site into the header and/or footer of each document list and full-text document. You can include images (such as a company logo) and text. You only have to define your default header and footer HTML once - each topic will then use the same settings unless you change the settings for a specific topic when you create it.

Tip: You can also include your Web site’s style sheets in the header and footer HTML.

To set the display defaults for the header and footer:

1. On the Online Display Defaults page, click the Header & Footer tab.

2. Cut and paste the appropriate HTML into the Header HTML and Footer HTML boxes.

▪ Do not include a <Base HREF=“”> tag in either the header or the footer.

▪ Use absolute paths for all links. For example, instead of <img src=“/img01.gif”>, use <img src=“http://domainname.com/img01.gif”>.

▪ Specify the character set you want to use, for example, ISO-8859-1.

3. Click Apply to save your changes and continue setting your display defaults.

4. If you are finished making changes to the display defaults, click Save.

Working with Topics


Topic List

You can use the Online Display Defaults page to choose how the topic list displays to end users on your Web site.

The Topic List tab contains two sub-tabs that you can use to control how the topic list displays: Presentation Format and Fonts/Colors Preferences. The Presentation Format sub-tab allows you to control what features appear on the topic list. The Fonts/Colors Preferences sub-tab allows you to determine the colors, fonts, and styles of the text in the topic list. To learn more about setting the display defaults for text, see “Formatting Text.”

Tip: Click Refresh or View in New Window (above the preview box) at any time to preview your settings.

To set the presentation format:

1. On the Online Display Defaults page, click the Topic List tab.

2. Select the default settings for the topic list header.

3. Select whether to include topic comments in the topic list.

4. Select the default settings for the document list within the topic list.


6. If you are finished making changes to the presentation format defaults, click Save.

Working with Topics


Document List

You can use the Online Display Defaults page to choose how the document list displays to end users on your Web site. The document list within each topic will use these settings.

The Document List tab contains two sub-tabs that you can use to control how the document list displays: Presentation Format and Fonts/Colors Preferences. The Presentation Format sub-tab allows you to control what features appear on the document list. The Fonts/Colors Preferences sub-tab allows you to determine the colors, fonts, and styles of the text in the document list. To learn more about setting the display defaults for text, see “Formatting Text.”



1. On the Online Display Defaults page, click the Document List tab.

2. Select the default settings for the document list header.

3. Select the default settings for the document list.



Working with Topics


Full-text Documents

You can use the Online Display Defaults page to choose how a full-text document displays to end users on your Web site. Each document will use these settings.

The Full Text tab contains two sub-tabs that you can use to control how full-text documents display: Presentation Format and Fonts/Colors Preferences. The Presentation Format sub-tab allows you to control what features appear on a full-text document. The Fonts/Colors Preferences sub-tab allows you to determine the colors, fonts, and styles of the text in full-text documents. To learn more about setting the display defaults for text, see “Formatting Text.”



1. On the Online Display Defaults page, click the Full Text tab.

2. Select the default settings for the document header.

3. Select the default settings for the document.



Working with Topics


Setting Email Display Defaults Email display defaults affect the way content appears in emails to your end users. You can set display defaults for your email header and footer, document list, and full-text documents.

Note: You must choose to format the email display on the Org Preferences page in order to set email display defaults. To learn more, see “Setting Organization Preferences.”

To access the Email Display Defaults page, click Email under Set Display Defaults in the Additional Tasks area on the Topics Home page.

Note: Email display defaults are also used for newsletters.

Working with Topics


Header and Footer

You can retain the look and feel of your organization’s Web site by incorporating its information into the header and/or footer of the emails you send to end users from LexisNexis® Publisher. You can include images (such as a company logo) and text. You only have to define your default header and footer HTML once - each email will then use the same settings.

Tip: Click Preview in New Window at any time to preview your settings.

To set the display defaults for the header and footer:

1. On the Email Display Defaults page, click the Header & Footer tab.

2. Cut and paste the appropriate HTML into the Header HTML and Footer HTML boxes.




Tip: You can also include your Web site’s style sheets in the header and footer HTML.


4. If you are finished making changes to the display defaults, click Save.

Working with Topics


Document List

You can use the Email Display Defaults page to choose how the document list displays in emails to end users. The document list within each topic will use these settings.

The Document List tab contains two sub-tabs that you can use to control how the document list displays: Presentation Format and Fonts/Colors Preferences. The Presentation Format sub-tab allows you to control what features appear on the document list. The Fonts/Colors Preferences sub-tab allows you to determine the colors, fonts, and styles of the text in the document list. To learn more about setting the display defaults for text, see “Formatting Text.”



1. On the Email Display Defaults page, click the Document List tab.

2. Select the default settings.



Working with Topics


Full-text Documents

You can use the Email Display Defaults page to choose how a full-text document displays in emails to end users. Each document will use these settings.

The Full Text tab contains two sub-tabs that you can use to control how full-text documents display: Presentation Format and Fonts/Colors Preferences. The Presentation Format sub-tab allows you to control what features appear on a full-text document. The Fonts/Colors Preferences sub-tab allows you to determine the colors, fonts, and styles of the text in full-text documents. To learn more about setting the display defaults for text, see “Formatting Text.”



1. On the Email Display Defaults page, click the Full Text tab.

2. Select the default settings for the document.



Working with Topics


Notifying Users of New Documents If you review topics prior to publishing them, or if you have time-sensitive news you wish to send immediately, you can use the Notify Now feature to send updates to users immediately instead of waiting for their individual update schedules to notify them of the new documents. You can send an update either for all topics simultaneously or for a single topic.

To send an email update to users:

1. In the Additional Tasks area on the Topics Home page, click Notify Now under End-User Related.

2. Select the topics for which you want to send an update.

Tip: You can select all topics simultaneously by selecting the check box at the top of the column.

3. In the Pre-Subject Line Text box, enter the text (if any) that you want to display before the email’s subject line (for example, “Breaking News” or “Special Alert”).

Note: Depending on the number of notifications that need to be issued, the process could take several minutes. Therefore, you can also request that the editor receive an email when the process completes. To request this notification, select Process Completion Notification. Then, enter the email address for the person who will receive the completion notification email.

Tip: If you want more than one person to receive the completion notifications, enter their email addresses separated by commas or semicolons.

4. Click Send. A confirmation screen appears to let you know that your request has been accepted and is being processed.

Working with Topics


Related Products Some organizations maintain a LexisNexis® Publisher portal component for their portal users. If your organization is one of these, click the Portal Administration link in the Additional Tasks area of the Topics Home page for easy access to the LexisNexis Portal Administration application.

Performing Administrative Tasks


Performing Administrative Tasks While many of the tasks that you perform in LexisNexis® Publisher are related to your organization’s topics and searches, some tasks, such as adding new subscribers or generating usage reports, are more administrative in nature. The following sections will help you as you work through the behind-the-scenes tasks that support your front-end publications.



Setting Organization Preferences You can set organization preferences that affect how certain information appears to your end users, such as the time zone and the maximum number of documents displayed per intranet page. You can also choose settings for email notifications issued to end users.

To set organization preferences:

1. Click the Org Preferences link in the top right corner of the page.

2. Select the settings that you want to apply to your organization’s topics:

Comprehensive Settings

▪ What date format to use (American or European)

▪ What time zone to use

Tip: All time zones are relative to Greenwich Mean Time.

▪ How many documents to display at once (for end users)

▪ How to detect and handle duplicate documents

Tip: These duplicate document detection settings will become the default settings for every new topic.

▪ Whether to force end users to use a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL)

Tip: SSL is a form of encryption that ensures that your communications are kept confidential. URLs using SSL will contain an extra s (https://).

Email Settings

▪ How many headlines to include in the document list for each topic

▪ Whether to send one email for all topics or to send a separate email for each topic

▪ Whether to include a link to allow users to unsubscribe from the email notifications

▪ What security key to use

Note: A security key is necessary for subscribed users outside your company’s IP address range. The security key is included in notification emails and allows users to view documents published to your intranet via a link from the email. The security key may be any combination of letters and numbers and may not exceed 16 characters.



▪ Whether to replace the link to LexisNexis Publisher with another URL

Tip: Replace the Publisher URL with another URL if you want to link users to a page within your organization’s Web site.

▪ Whether to format email messages according to your default display settings

Note: You must select Yes in order to set display defaults for emails and newsletters.

3. Click Apply. Your settings will be saved, but you will remain on the Organization Preferences page.

4. When you are finished setting your organization’s preferences, click Save.



Editing User Subscriptions Your end users can subscribe to receive email notifications when you publish new documents to your topics. As an editor or administrator, you have the ability to:

▪ Edit user subscriptions

▪ Add new subscribers

▪ Delete old subscriptions

▪ Set the defaults for email notifications

▪ View user histories

To edit a user’s subscription preferences and topic notifications:

1. Click the Administration tab.

2. Select the user whose subscription you want to edit.

Note: You can only edit the topic notifications for one user at a time.

3. Click Edit Subscriptions in the Actions column for the user whose subscription you want to edit.

4. Edit the user’s subscription preferences as necessary.

5. In the Topic Notifications box, select the topics for which the user will receive email notifications.

Tip: You can subscribe a user to all topics by selecting the check box at the top of the column. You can also ensure that a user will receive notifications for topics that you may create in the future by selecting Automatically subscribe to new topics.

6. Click Save.

To edit a user’s subscription preferences:


Tip: If you are already on another sub-tab beneath the Administration tab, click the Subscribed Users sub-tab.

2. Select the user whose subscription you want to edit.

Tip: You can select multiple users if you need to make the same changes to their subscriptions. You can also select all subscribed users by selecting the check box at the top of the column.

3. Click Edit Selected.

4. Select the schedule for email notifications (hourly, daily, or admin initiated).

5. In the Time Zone drop-down list, select the time zone to use for the notification schedule.

Note: All time zones are relative to Greenwich Mean Time.

6. Select how to format emails (HTML or plain text).

7. In the Email View drop-down list, select the view you want to use in email notifications.

8. Click Save.



Adding a New User

To subscribe a new user:



2. Click Add a New User.

3. On the sign-in page, enter the email address of the user you want to subscribe.

4. Click OK.

5. Enter the user’s first and last names in the corresponding text boxes.

6. Select the schedule for email notifications (hourly, daily, or admin initiated).

7. In the Time Zone drop-down list, select the time zone to use for the notification schedule.

Note: All time zones are relative to Greenwich Mean Time.

8. Select how to format emails (HTML or plain text).

9. In the Email View drop-down list, select the view you want to use in email notifications.

10. In the Topic Notifications box, select the topics to which you want to subscribe the user.

Tip: To subscribe a user to all topics, select the check box at the top of the column.

11. Click Save. A pop-up window appears to inform you that the user will receive a confirmation email.

12. Click OK.

Note: If your organization publishes to an intranet only, your end users will have the option to subscribe themselves to topics. End users use the same form to subscribe themselves as you use to add subscribers.



Importing a User List If you need to subscribe a number of users at one time, you can create an external plain text (.txt) or spreadsheet (.csv) file that contains a list of the new users you want to import into LexisNexis® Publisher.

To import a user list:



2. Click Import User List.

3. Enter the name of the file you want to import.

Tip: If you do not know the name or the full path for the file you want to import, click Browse to find the file you need.

4. Set the subscription preferences for the group of users that will be imported.

Tip: For more detailed information about subscription preferences, see “Editing User Subscriptions.”

5. Click Import. The Import User List: Status page displays, showing the list and status of the users you chose to import.

6. Click Done. The imported users will now appear in the list of subscribed users on the Subscribed Users sub-tab.

Note: After you have imported the list of users, you will probably want to edit their subscriptions to make sure they are subscribed to the correct topics. For more information, see “Editing User Subscriptions.”



Deleting a User

To delete a user’s subscription:



2. Select the user whose subscription you want to delete.

Tip: You can select more than one user if you want to delete multiple subscriptions at once. If you want to delete all the subscribed users, select the check box at the top of the column.

3. Click Delete Selected. A pop-up window appears to verify that you want to delete the subscription.

4. Click OK.



Viewing a User’s History

To view a history of the notifications sent to a user within the past 24 hours:



2. In the Actions column, click View History for the user whose notification history you would like to view. A pop-up window containing a list of the email messages sent to that user in the past 24 hours appears.

3. When you are finished viewing the list, click Close Window.



Working with Project or Client IDs When you create a new topic, you can designate that topic as belonging to a certain project or client by using a project or client ID. The Projects/Clients sub-tab displays a list of the IDs your organization currently uses and allows you to create new IDs and edit existing IDs.

Adding a New Project or Client 1. Click the Administration tab.

2. Click the Projects/Clients sub-tab.

3. Click Add a New Project/Client.

4. Enter an ID for the project or client.

Tip: An ID can be any combination of letters and numbers. It serves as a shorter, easier way to identify projects or clients with long names.

5. Enter a descriptive name for the project or client.

6. If desired, enter a description of the project or client.

7. Click Save.



Editing an Existing Project or Client 1. Click the Administration tab.


3. Click the Actions… menu link for the project or client you want to edit.

4. Click Edit.

5. Make any necessary changes to the project or client’s ID, name, or description.

6. Click Save.



Viewing Searches Associated with a Project or Client 1. Click the Administration tab.


3. Click the Actions… menu link for the project or client whose associated searches you want to view.

4. Click View Associated Searches. A pop-up window displays the project or client ID and a list of the searches currently associated with it.

Tip: The number of searches associated with a particular project or client is displayed in parentheses next to the View Associated Searches link.

5. When you are finished viewing the list of searches, click Close Window.



Deleting a Project or Client If you are no longer conducting any searches for a particular project or client, you can delete that project or client to ensure that your list of projects and clients remains up-to-date.

To delete a project or client:



3. Click the Actions… menu link for the project or client you want to delete.

4. Click Edit.

5. Click Delete. A pop-up message appears to verify that you want to delete that project or client.

6. Click OK.



Generating Reports LexisNexis® Publisher provides powerful reports to help you track your organization's LexisNexis Publisher activity. You can generate usage reports, subscription reports, and topic reports according to your organization’s needs.

Note: The types of reports available to you depends on your organization's subscription.

You can choose to print or download (as a .csv file) any of the reports that you generate. To print or download a report, click the appropriate icon at the top of the report.

Usage Reports Usage reports help you analyze your end users’ LexisNexis Publisher usage over the timeframe you specify (within the past 2 years). You can choose to generate usage reports by topic, by day, or by document headline. All reports contain both percentage values and actual counts.

To generate a usage report by topic:


2. Click the Reports sub-tab.

3. From the Usage By options, select Topic.

4. Select a time frame in the Date drop-down list.

5. Click Generate Report. The Usage by Topic report displays at the bottom of the page.

To generate a usage report by day:



3. From the Usage By options, select Day.


5. Click Generate Report. The Usage by Day report displays at the bottom of the page.

To generate a usage report by headline:



3. From the Usage By options, select Headline.


5. Click Generate Report. The Usage by Headline report displays at the bottom of the page.



Subscriptions Reports Subscriptions reports give you a snapshot of the number of end users subscribed to your LexisNexis® Publisher topics at the time the report is generated. You can choose to generate reports either by topic or by user.

A subscription report generated by topic lists all your active topics and the users subscribed to them. It also displays the users’ email addresses, email schedules, and email view preferences.

To generate a subscription report by topic:



3. Click the Subscriptions sub-tab.

4. Select Topic.

5. Click Generate Report. A Subscription Report by Topic displays at the bottom of the page.

Tip: You can filter your results by choosing options from the Show drop-down lists and then clicking Go.

A subscription report generated by user lists all end users and shows the list of topics to which each has subscribed. It also displays the users’ email addresses, email schedules, and email view preferences.

To generate a subscription report by user:



3. Click the Subscriptions sub-tab.

4. Select User.

5. Click Generate Report. A Subscription Report by Topic displays at the bottom of the page.

Tip: You can filter your results by choosing options from the Show drop-down lists and then clicking Go.



Topic Report The topic report lists the major properties associated with each of your organization's LexisNexis® Publisher topics. This helps you quickly determine what topics are being researched, the editor responsible for each topic, the searches being submitted, the LexisNexis index terms being used to target results, and any topics that have a particular client or project association.

To generate a topic report:



3. Click the Topic sub-tab.

4. Click Generate Report. The Topic Report displays at the bottom of the page.



Working with Topic Categories You can organize the collection of topics you display to your end users by creating custom topic categories and assigning your topics to them. Then you can present your topics to your end users with either a categorized list view (all the topic categories with their assigned topics) or an individual category view (a single topic category with its assigned topics).

Creating Topic Categories 1. Click the Administration tab.

2. Click the Topic Categories sub-tab.

3. Click Create Topic Category.

4. Enter the name for the new topic category in the box.

5. Click Create.



Assigning a Topic Category 1. Click the Administration tab.


3. Select the topic you want to assign to a topic category.

Tip: You can select more than one topic at a time. You can also select all topics simultaneously by selecting the check box at the top of the column.

4. In the Assign to drop-down list, select the topic category to which you want to assign the selected topic.

5. Click Assign.

Tip: You can assign one topic to more than one topic category by repeating the process for each topic category where you want the topic to appear.

Note: All topics not specifically assigned to a topic category will be automatically included in an “Other Topics” topic category.



Unassigning a Topic Category 1. Click the Administration tab.


3. Select the Categorized Topics view.

4. In the Topic Categories area, select the topic category that contains the topic you want to unassign. The topics in that topic category displays on the right.

5. Select the topic you want to unassign.

Tip: You can select multiple topics to unassign them at the same time. You can also select all the topics simultaneously by selecting the check box at the top of the column.

6. Click Unassign.



Previewing Topic Categories Preview the categorized topic list or a single topic category to see how it will display to your end users.

To preview the categorized topic list:




4. Click Preview All. The categorized topic list opens in a new browser window.

To preview a single topic category:




4. Click the Actions… menu link for the topic category you want to preview.

5. Click Preview. The topic category opens in a new browser window.



Showing the URL for Topic Categories You can use the URL for the categorized topic list or for a single topic category to create a link from your Web site for your end users.

To show the URL for the categorized topic list:




4. Click Show URL. A pop-up window displays the URL for the categorized topic list.

To show the URL for a single topic category:




4. Click the Actions… menu link for the topic category whose URL you want.

5. Click Show URL. A pop-up window displays the URL for that topic category.



Renaming a Topic Category 1. Click the Administration tab.



4. Click the Actions… menu link for the topic category you want to rename.

5. Click Rename.

6. Enter a new name for the topic category in the box.

7. Click OK.



Deleting a Topic Category 1. Click the Administration tab.



4. Click the Actions… menu link for the topic category you want to delete.

5. Click Delete. A pop-up message appears to verify that you want to delete the topic category.

Note: Deleting a topic category will not delete any topics assigned to it.

6. Click OK.

Note: Any topics assigned to that topic category only will be automatically reassigned to an “Other Topics” topic category.



Determining Topic Display Order for End Users You can change the order in which your topic list displays to end users. You can either create a custom order or choose to have the topic list display alphabetically.

To change the display order of the topic list for end users:

1. In the Additional Tasks area on the Topics Home page, click Sort Topics List (under End-User Related).

2. Select a topic that you want to move in the order.

3. Use the buttons to move the topic to a different place in the list:

Button Function

Moves a topic to the top of the list

Moves a topic up one place in the list

Moves a topic down one place in the list

Moves a topic to the bottom of the list

Tip: If you want to restore the original order of the list and begin again, click the Start Over button at the bottom of the list.

4. When you are finished reordering the list, click Save.

To make the topic list display alphabetically for end users:

1. In the Additional Tasks area on the Topics Home page, click Sort Topics List (under End-User Related).

2. Select Always resort alphabetically when new topics are added. If the list was not already in alphabetical order, it will resort alphabetically.

3. Click Save. Any topics that you create later will be automatically incorporated into the alphabetical order of the topic list instead of being appended to the bottom of the list.

Note: You can also sort the topic list from the Topic Categories sub-tab under the Administration tab.



Deleting Attachments from Documents 1. Click the Administration tab.

2. Click the Attachments sub-tab.

3. Click Delete for the attachment you want to delete. A pop-up message appears to verify that you want to delete that attachment.

4. Click OK.

Note: You cannot retrieve an attachment once it has been deleted.



Creating Newsletters You can use LexisNexis® Publisher’s newsletter feature to create and send email newsletters to your subscribed users. You can easily create reusable templates for different newsletters, select the topics from which you want each newsletter to draw documents, and define the target audience for each newsletter. Then, for each issue, you simply select the documents to include in it and the end users who will receive it.

When you create a newsletter, you do not have to complete it in one sitting. You can work on a newsletter, leave it, and come back to finish it at another time. To ensure that your work is saved for your return, click Save Changes on each page throughout the process of creating the newsletter.

Creating a Template Before you can create and send the first issue of a newsletter, you must create a template for that newsletter. New templates are based on your email display defaults, but you can customize a template for a particular newsletter.

Note: You must define email display defaults in order to create newsletter templates.

To create a new template:


2. Click the Newsletters sub-tab.

3. Select the Templates view.

4. Click Create Template.

5. Enter a name for your new template in the pop-up window.

6. Click Create. The template appears in the Template drop-down list.



Selecting Newsletter Topics

After you create a newsletter template, you can specify that the template only include certain topics as its sources. Selecting certain topics for a newsletter helps you tailor the content of your newsletters to specific audiences among your end users.

Tip: Click Preview Template in New Window at any time to preview your newsletter.

To select a topic for a newsletter:




4. Click the Topics sub-tab.

5. In the All Topics list, select the topic you want to include in the newsletter.

Tip: You can CTRL-click to select multiple topics simultaneously.

6. Click to move the topic to the Selected Topics list.

7. When you are finished, click Save Changes.

You may want the topics you selected for your newsletter to display in a different order than the order in which you selected them, or you may decide not to include a topic that you had selected.

To reorder the selected topics:

1. In the Selected Topics list, select the topic you want to move.

2. Use the buttons on the right of the Selected Topics list to move that topic to a different place within the list:

Button Function

Moves a topic to the top of the list

Moves a topic up one place in the list

Moves a topic down one place in the list

Moves a topic to the bottom of the list




To remove a topic from the Selected Topics list:

1. Select the topic you want to remove from the list.

2. Click to move the topic back to the All Topics list.




Setting Default Email Information

While editing a template, you can view a list of your organization's subscribed users and select which users you want to receive newsletters generated using that particular template. You can also enter text to be used as a default subject line for each newsletter based on this template. The target audience list and subject line text will be available after you create the newsletter so you can adjust the distribution and subject for a specific issue.

To set default email information:




4. Click the Email Information sub-tab.

5. Enter the text you want to use as the default subject line for this newsletter.

6. Select the users you want to include as part of the target audience for this newsletter.

Tip: Select the check box at the top of the column to select all your subscribed users at once.

7. Click Save Changes.



Adding a Table of Contents

Not all email clients display the table of contents the same way. Therefore, you can choose whether or not you want to include a table of contents in your newsletter, as well as where you want it to display on the page.

To add a table of contents to a newsletter template:




4. Click the Table of Contents sub-tab.

5. Select whether or not to display the table of contents.

6. Select a location option from the Location of Table of Contents drop-down list.




Editing a Template You can edit a template to change the visual design of its header and footer. You can edit an old template if you want to update it. You can also edit a new template in order to specify its default header and footer HTML to be different from your that of email display defaults.

Tip: Click Preview Template in New Window at any time to preview your settings.

To edit a template’s header and footer HTML:



3. Select the Templates view option.

4. Select the template you want to edit.

5. Clear the Use Defaults box.

Note: Clearing the Use Defaults box removes the default header and footer already defined in your email display defaults. If you want to retain the same header and footer in your newsletters as you have for your emails, do not edit the newsletter template’s header and footer HTML.

6. Enter the appropriate HTML in the Header HTML and Footer HTML boxes.




7. Click Save Changes to save your changes and continue setting your display defaults.



Creating a New Issue When you want to create a new issue of a newsletter, you must first create an empty issue based on one of your newsletter templates. After you have created the empty issue, you can select the topics and documents that you want to include, add a preliminary note, and create a distribution list.

To create a new issue of a newsletter:



3. Select the Newsletters view.

4. Click Create Newsletter.

5. In the Template drop-down list, select a template for the new issue.

6. Enter a name for the new issue.

Tip: Newsletter names can be up to 80 characters long. The name you choose will be used as the email subject line, so choose a descriptive name that will accurately inform your readers about the issue’s contents.

7. Click Create. A new issue is created and appears in the Newsletters drop-down list.



Selecting Documents

After you create a new issue of a newsletter, you must select the documents you want it to include.

Tip: Click Preview Newsletter in New Window at any time to preview your newsletter.

To select documents to include in an issue of a newsletter:




4. In the Topics area, select a topic that contains documents you want to view. The documents published to that topic appear in the Published Documents area.

5. Select the documents you want to include in this issue of the newsletter.

Tip: Select the check box at the top of the column to select all the documents in a topic.




Adding a Preliminary Note

Tip: Click Preview Newsletter in New Window at any time to preview your newsletter.

To add a preliminary note to an issue of a newsletter:




4. Click the Note sub-tab.

5. Enter the text of the note in the box.

Tip: You can use HTML to format your note and/or imbed links and images. Remember that you must use the absolute path (http://) for links and images.




Creating an Email Distribution List

Although you create a list of target audience members when you create a newsletter template, you may not want to send every issue of a newsletter to every user in its target audience. When you create a new issue of a newsletter, you can create an email distribution list specific to that issue.

To create an email distribution list for an issue of a newsletter:




4. Click the Email Information sub-tab. A list of the target audience members identified for that newsletter displays.

5. Select the users whom you want to receive this issue of the newsletter.

Tip: Click the check box at the top of the column to select all the users in the target audience list.




Sending a Newsletter After you have finished creating and editing an issue of a newsletter, you are ready to send it to the subscribed users on the email distribution list for that issue.

Tip: Make sure you preview your newsletter before you send it to make sure it is complete.

To send an issue of a newsletter:



3. At the bottom of the page, click the Send button. A pop-up window displays to verify that you want to send the newsletter.

4. Click OK. After the newsletter is sent, it will be removed from the Newsletters drop-down list.



Assigning Topics to Editors If you are an administrative editor, you can assign the responsibility of creating new topics and/or maintaining specific topics to the non-administrative topic editors within your organization. To do this, you must first specify the maximum number of topics each of them can control and then assign the topics you want each one to maintain. Since you may need to balance editor workloads and adjust for vacations or other conditions from time to time, this feature lets you easily adjust topic editor assignment limits or reassign topics from one topic editor to another.

Note: All topic editors within your organization will receive administrative entitlement unless you contact LexisNexis and request to remove it for specific topic editors. Without this entitlement, some features within LexisNexis Publisher may not be visible and some capabilities may be limited. For example, non-administrative topic editors can only see and access the topics they were assigned and any new topics they create.

To assign a topic to an editor:


2. Click the Assignments sub-tab.

3. Select the topic you want to assign to an editor.

Tip: You can assign several topics to the same editor simultaneously by selecting multiple topics.

4. In the Assign to drop-down list, select the editor to whom you want to assign the selected topic.

Note: Topic editors will only show up in the list of editors if they have previously signed in to LexisNexis® Publisher.

5. Click Assign.

To unassign a topic from an editor:



3. Select the Assigned Topics view.

4. Select the topic you want to unassign.

5. Click Unassign. The topic is now unassigned and visible to all editors unless you assign it to another editor.

To manage editor workloads and assignment limits:



3. Click the Editor Assignments sub-tab.

4. In the Topic Assignment Limit column, enter the number of topics to which you want to limit a particular editor.

Note: Topic editors who reach their topic assignment limit cannot create any new topics or be assigned any additional existing topics unless you first increase their topic assignment limit.




Generating Tokens for RSS Readers You can create a unique MD5 token that can be appended to any topic's RSS URL (&md5=...). The token allows your subscribed users to access the topic either through an RSS reader used outside your organization’s intranet or through an external RSS aggregator. A secured connection (https://) is required when using the URL to subscribe to the topic.

Note: These RSS URLs will allow users to view the document list for the associated topics. However, they will be prompted to sign into LexisNexis® Publisher when they attempt to open a document.

To create a new token:


2. Click the Tokens sub-tab.

3. Click Add a New Token.

4. Enter a description for the token.

5. Enter an expiration date for the token (in mm/dd/yyyy format).

6. Click Create. The new token appears in the list of available tokens.

7. Append this token to the topic URL that you issue to end users.

Tip: A URL used by an RSS reader/aggregator to subscribe to a topic will look similar to the following: https://www6.lexisnexis.com/publisher/DataFeed?Action=GenerateRss&orgId= 1234&topicId=123456789&md5=aaaaaaaa-bbbb-cccc-dddd-eeeeeeeeeeee

The Tokens sub-tab also maintains a list of all the various MD5 tokens that have been created and are available for use. Having multiple tokens to choose from gives you an extra level of control over who can access topics via RSS, since you have the option of creating a separate token for each user and/or aggregator.

Note: Some RSS aggregators do not work with a secured connection (https://) and therefore will not work with this functionality.



Editing a Token 1. Click the Administration tab.


3. Click the Actions… menu link for the token you want to edit.

4. Click Edit.

5. Make the necessary changes to the token’s description and/or expiration date.

Tip: Providing you don't delete it first, you can edit an expired token's expiration date to reinstate its use. However, tokens with an expiration date 180 days old or older will be automatically deleted from the system.

6. Click Save.



Deleting a Token 1. Click the Administration tab.


3. Click the Actions… menu link for the token you want to edit.

4. Click Delete. A pop-up window appears to verify that you want to delete the token.

5. Click OK.

Additional Resources and Information


Additional Resources and Information

Additional Resources For a copy of the current LexisNexis® Publisher Search Tips, as well as other resources such as FAQs, Best Practice Tips, and a list of recent Publisher enhancements, please go to www.lexisnexis.com/infopro/publisher.

Research Assistance ▪ For technical assistance, call Customer Support at 877-810-5325.

▪ For training or for help in formulating a search, contact your LexisNexis Librarian Relations Consultant.