Managing Collections & Layouts
To begin managing your Collection, you’ll need to open the detail page.
Select Collections & Layouts from the navigation bar to open the Collections & Layouts menu.
Select the Collection you want to manage. The Collection detail window opens.
Setting Up Play Rules for a Collection Entry
Play Rules allow you to configure when and where a Collection entry plays, within a specific time frame, only on certain days or months, or only on specific Displays.
Select the Collection entry you want to manage.
Click Add Play Rules (or, if the entry already has existing Play Rules, Update Play Rules)
The Add a Start/End Date rule is in place by default, with the start date set to the current date, the end date left blank, and Play without an end date checked.
To change the entry's start and end dates, click in the date fields and use the pop-up calendar to set a new date range. If you want the entry to play indefinitely, leave the Select End Date field blank. If you do set an end date, the Play without an end date setting is unchecked automatically.
To set start and end times for the entry, select +Play Rules > Add a Start Time/End Time.
A new rule section is added.
Click in the Start Time field and choose a new start time, then select Save. Do the same in the End Time field.
Important Note on Timezones
Time based Play Rules will respect the timezone set on the Displays page.
Need to Set an Overnight Play Rule?
We do not currently support setting Play Rules over multiple days/overnight. However, you can work around this by setting multiple Play Rules.
To set the entry to play only on specific days, months, days of the month, or a combination of recurrence options, select +Play Rule > Add Custom Recurrence. Another new play rule section is added to the drawer.
If you want the entry to play only on certain days of the week, check those days under Day of Week. If you want it to play only during certain months, select those months under Month. If you want the entry to play on specific dates in a month, select those dates under Day of Month.
Note: You can combine the different recurrence options. For example, you can set the entry to play only on Mondays and Tuesdays in January, or only on the 1st and 15th of the month during March and September.
Finally, if you are a Pro or Enterprise customer, you can choose to have the entry play only on Displays that have been assigned certain labels. (Labels are not available to Base customers)
Select +Play Rule > Play on Specific Displays. Another play rule section is added to the drawer. This section lists all the label categories and labels assigned to displays in your tenant.
Select a label category to see a list of the labels in that category.
Check the labels assigned to the displays you want your entry to play on. You can select multiple labels from different categories.
When the play rules are saved, the entry will only play on displays that have been assigned the labels you selected.
When you have finished setting up play rules for the entry, click the Save button to save the rules and return to the Collections detail window. The entry now shows a summary of the play rules you set up.
Repeat as needed for the remaining Collection entries.
When you’ve finished setting Play Rules for your Collection entries, select Publish to make the Collection available to your Displays.
Note: Beam checks Collection Play Rules first, then if it’s available to play based on those, will check the Playlist’s Play Rules. If the Collection and Playlist’s Play Rules are not compatible, the entry may not play at all.
Adding Entries to an Existing Collection
To add entries to an existing Collection:
Select Collections & Layouts from the navigation bar to open the Collections menu.
Select the Collection you want to update. The Collections detail window opens.
Select Add Entry. The Choose a base layout window opens.
Choose the layout you want to use and Click Create Entry
Click on the zone you want to add content to. The Select Content window opens.
Select the Content, Programs, or Playlists tab to see a list of available content.
Choose the content you want to add to the zone.
Repeat steps 4-7 for any remaining zones in the entry.
Select Publish to publish the updates. If the Collection is playing on any displays, the new entries will play when the Collection finishes its current rotation and starts over.
Removing Entries from a Collection
To remove an entry from a Collection:
In the Collections detail window, check the box next to the entry or entries you want to delete, then click Remove Entry.
The entry has been removed from the Collection.
If the Collection is currently playing on a Display, the entry will be removed from the Collection when it has finished its rotation and starts again. If you later re-upload the deleted content item and want it to be in your collection again, you will need to re-add it. This also applies to Playlists and Programs
If you delete a content item from the Content menu and that content is part of a collection, the item still appears in the Collections detail window but will show an indicator that it has been deleted from Beam. If all zones in the Entry are deleted, the entire entry will be skipped. If only some have been deleted, the affected zone will show a blue exclamation mark on the Display until you replace it with valid content and publish the Collection.
Removing or Swapping Content in an Entry
To remove content from an entry, click the small x in the top right of the zone.
To change the content in a zone, click on the zone to launch the content selection view and choose new content.
Changing or Disabling Lead Zone
When set, the Lead Zone is given preference when determining the duration of the entry. If a Lead Zone is not selected, the longest item takes precedence.
To edit the Lead Zone:
Click the gear icon to the right of the zone
Use the toggle to set or un-set Lead Zone
Publish the Collection
Copying Entries in a Collection
To copy an Entry, click the check box next to the desired entry, then click Copy Entry. An exact duplicate of the entry will be created, including any Play Rules assigned to it. Note: Only one entry can be copied at a time.
Naming Entries in a Collection
If you would like to name the Entry, click on an entry name field, then enter a name.
Note: Entry names are for organizational purposes only and do not affect playback.
Reordering Entries in a Collection
To reorder entries, toggle on Reorder Entries. From there, you can either drag and drop entries into your preferred order or use the dropdown to choose the position you’d like each entry to be in.
Deleting a Collection
To delete a Collection:
From the list view, check the box next to each Collection you would like to delete (you may select up to 20 at a time)
Click the trash can icon at the top right of the screen
Confirm
Note: Deleting Collections cannot be undone, so proceed carefully. If you delete a Collection in error, contact Support immediately to see if it can be recovered.
What happens if this Collection is currently playing?
If you delete a Collection currently playing on a display, it will finish rotating through all entries, then before starting over, “No content available to play” will appear on the screen.
Renaming a Collection
To rename your Collection, click the name field, then enter your new name.