Adding Shortcut Links

Some editors like to add shortcut links at the top of very long pages to let readers jump down to the section they are interested in.  We don't recommend this unless the page has more than four sections and the sections are very long.  Scanning the headings is natural and efficient for readers, so shortcut links at the top can become distracting clutter.

If your page consists of many long sections, you should also consider breaking them into separate pages and having a single page that acts as table of contents, with links to each subpage.

To add a shortcut link on your page, follow these steps.

1. Add the target, AKA the anchor.
   1. Edit the page in question to open the text editor.
   2. Place your cursor in the text where you want the user to end up.  This is usually just above a heading for a section.
   3. Click the small "bookmark/anchor" button in the editor toolbar.  It is next to the insert/edit image button.
   4. Enter a name for the anchor.  It should be all lowercase, beginning with a letter, using only letters, numbers, or underscores.
   5. Click "ok."
2. Add the link to the target.
   1. Go to the top of the page text.
   2. Start a bulleted list for the shortcut links, if there isn't one already.
   3. Type the name of the section (the words to be used for the link).
   4. Highlight this phrase and click the insert/edit link button.
   5. For the link URL, enter # and the name of the anchor you created in the first step. Examples, "#courses", "#requirements". Don't worry about the other link fields/settings.
   6. Click "ok."
3. Save the content and test the shortlink. If you are logged in, note that the gray and black admin toolbar may cover up the top of the section you've jumped to, but ordinary users won't see the toolbar.