Editor fallback

Editor fallback is designed to ensure that end users always receive the best possible editing environment that they are able to run with their client environment.

The editor fallback functionality of Ephox Editors for IBM Connections enables rich text sections to revert to the editor that is packaged with IBM Connections in certain situations. When fallback occurs, it will always be to the default IBM Connections editor.
  • EditLive! - fallback occurs when the Java plugin is not available or has not been installed.
  • Textbox.io - fallback occurs when the browser is not supported by Textbox.io The instance of the IBM Connections editor that is loaded is unmodified by Ephox.
Editor fallback does not include any additional functionality beyond what is packaged with IBM Connections.

The Ephox Editors for IBM Connections integration enables editor fallback to happen automatically. The end user will not be prompted to manually trigger the fallback, and users of most browsers will not see any Java install prompts. When the page containing a rich text editing section is loaded into the browser, the integration uses JavaScript to identify the end user's platform - their browser and whether Java is installed. If Java is available then EditLive! will be instantiated in the rich text editing section.

Alternatively, if Textbox.io is configured as the preferred editor, and if the browser supports it, then editor fallback will run. However if Java is unavailable or the user has an unsupported browser, then the default editor packaged with IBM Connections will be instantiated in the rich text editing section.
Note: Fallback support when using EditLive! is not available on Apple's Safari browser. Safari users who do not have Java installed will be prompted to install Java to edit rich text sections.

Fallback does not make any of the Ephox Editors functionality available in the original packaged editor. Much of the functionality that differentiates the Ephox Editors relies on the Java Runtime Environment in the case of EditLive! or on HTML5 in the case of Textbox.io and cannot be made available in an unsupported client. The fallback functionality does not make any of the Ephox Editors functionality available in the default CKeditor packaged with IBM Connections. In effect, users who work with this editor experience IBM Connections as it was prior to the Ephox Editors installation.

Users that have a client environment that is supported by EditLive! or Textbox.io will receive EditLive! or Textbox.io as the rich text editor within IBM Connections