Blog & News System

Overview

The Blog System powers ESP Santa Fe de Antioquia’s news and announcements platform. This content management feature enables administrators to publish articles, news updates, and organizational announcements that keep citizens informed about events, services, and developments.

Public Communication

This system serves as the primary channel for communicating news, updates, service announcements, and community events to citizens.

User Workflows

Admin Creates Article

Administrators create new blog posts with:

Article title
Rich HTML content
Author name
Featured image
Publication status (draft or published)

Content Review

Posts can be saved as drafts (Status = false) for review before publication

Publication

Setting Status to true makes the article visible on the public news page at /noticias

Public Access

Citizens browse articles at /noticias and read full content at /noticias/{urlBlog}

Key Features

Rich Content Editor

HTML-based content editing for formatted text, lists, and embedded media

Draft System

Save unpublished drafts and control when content goes live

Featured Images

Eye-catching cover photos for each article

Pagination

6 articles per page for optimal browsing experience

SEO-Friendly URLs

Automatic URL generation from article titles

Update Tracking

Track creation and modification dates

Data Model

The blog system uses the Master entity with specific flags:

public class Master
{
    public int Id { get; set; }                    // Primary key
    public string NameMaster { get; set; }         // Article title
    public string UrlMaster { get; set; }          // URL-friendly slug
    public string Description { get; set; }        // HTML content
    public string CoverPage { get; set; }          // Featured image path
    public string Author { get; set; }             // Author name
    public Boolean Statud { get; set; }            // Published status
    public Boolean Blog { get; set; }              // Flag: true for blog posts
    public DateTime DateCreate { get; set; }       // Publication date
    public DateTime DateUpdate { get; set; }       // Last modified date
}

View Model

public class ModelViewBlog
{
    public int Id { get; set; }
    public string NameBlog { get; set; }           // Article title
    public string UrlMaster { get; set; }          // URL slug
    public string Description { get; set; }        // Full HTML content
    public string CoverPage { get; set; }          // Image path
    public Boolean Statud { get; set; }            // Published/Draft
    public string Author { get; set; }             // Author name
    public string DateCreate { get; set; }         // Formatted date
    public string DateUpdate { get; set; }         // Formatted update date
}

Controller Actions

Admin Routes

List Articles - GET /Blog

Purpose: Display all blog posts in admin dashboardAccess: SuperAdmin, AdminFeatures:

Shows both published and draft articles
Displays creation and update dates
Status indicators (published/draft)
Quick access to edit and delete

[Authorize(Roles = "SuperAdmin,Admin")]
public async Task<IActionResult> Index()
{
    var _model = from a in await _blogService.GetAll()
                 select new ModelViewBlog
                 {
                     Id = a.Id,
                     NameBlog = a.NameMaster,
                     UrlMaster = a.UrlMaster,
                     Author = a.Author,
                     DateCreate = a.DateCreate.ToString("MMM dd, yyyy",
                         CultureInfo.CreateSpecificCulture("es-CO")),
                     DateUpdate = a.DateUpdate.ToString("MMM dd, yyyy",
                         CultureInfo.CreateSpecificCulture("es-CO")),
                     Statud = a.Statud
                 };
    return View(_model);
}

Create Article - GET/POST /Blog/Create

Purpose: Create new blog postAccess: SuperAdmin, AdminValidation:

Checks for duplicate titles
Validates required fields
Ensures image file meets requirements

[HttpPost]
[ValidateAntiForgeryToken]
[Authorize(Roles = "SuperAdmin,Admin")]
public async Task<IActionResult> Create(BlogCreateDto model)
{
    var _urlName = _blogService.DuplicaName(model.NameBlog);

    if (_urlName)
    {
        ViewData["DuplicaName"] = $"El Nombre {model.NameBlog} ya ha sido utilizado, cambielo";
        return View(model);
    }

    if (ModelState.IsValid)
    {
        var result = await _blogService.Create(model);
        return RedirectToAction(nameof(Index));
    }

    return View(model);
}

Edit Article - GET/POST /Blog/Edit/{id}

Purpose: Update existing blog postAccess: SuperAdmin, AdminUpdatable Fields:

Title (NameBlog)
Content (Description)
Author
Status (publish/unpublish)
Featured image (optional)

[HttpPost]
[ValidateAntiForgeryToken]
[Authorize(Roles = "SuperAdmin,Admin")]
public async Task<IActionResult> Edit(int id, BlogEditDto model)
{
    if (id != model.Id)
    {
        return NotFound();
    }

    if (ModelState.IsValid)
    {
        try
        {
            await _blogService.Edit(id, model);
        }
        catch (DbUpdateConcurrencyException)
        {
            if (!MasterExists(model.Id))
            {
                return NotFound();
            }
            else
            {
                throw;
            }
        }
        return RedirectToAction(nameof(Index));
    }

    return View(model);
}

View Details (Admin) - GET /Blog/Details/{id}

Purpose: Preview article as adminAccess: SuperAdmin, AdminDisplays full article with all metadata including unpublished status.

Delete Article - GET/POST /Blog/Delete/{id}

Purpose: Remove blog post permanentlyAccess: SuperAdmin, AdminWarning: Deletion is permanent and cannot be undone.

Public Routes

News Listing - GET /noticias

Purpose: Display paginated list of published articlesAccess: PublicFeatures:

Shows only published articles (Statud = true)
6 articles per page
Displays featured images, titles, authors, and dates
Pagination controls

[Route("noticias")]
[AllowAnonymous]
public async Task<IActionResult> Notice(int? page)
{
    var _model = from a in await _blogService.GetAll()
                 where a.Statud == true
                 select new ModelViewBlog
                 {
                     Id = a.Id,
                     NameBlog = a.NameMaster,
                     UrlMaster = a.UrlMaster,
                     CoverPage = a.CoverPage,
                     Author = a.Author,
                     DateCreate = a.DateCreate.ToString("MMM dd, yyyy",
                         CultureInfo.CreateSpecificCulture("es-CO")),
                     Statud = a.Statud
                 };

    var pageNumber = page ?? 1;
    int pageSize = 6;
    var onePageOfStudents = _model.ToPagedList(pageNumber, pageSize);
    return View(onePageOfStudents);
}

Article Detail - GET /noticias/{urlBlog}

Purpose: Display full article contentAccess: PublicFeatures:

SEO-friendly URL using article title slug
Full HTML content rendering
Featured image display
Author and date information
Social sharing capabilities (if implemented in view)

[Route("noticias/{urlBlog}")]
[AllowAnonymous]
public async Task<IActionResult> Details(string urlBlog)
{
    if (urlBlog == "")
    {
        return NotFound();
    }

    var _blog = await _blogService.GetById(urlBlog);

    if (_blog == null)
    {
        return NotFound();
    }

    var _model = new ModelViewBlog
    {
        Id = _blog.Id,
        NameBlog = _blog.NameMaster,
        UrlMaster = _blog.UrlMaster,
        Description = _blog.Description,
        Author = _blog.Author,
        CoverPage = _blog.CoverPage,
        Statud = _blog.Statud,
        DateCreate = _blog.DateCreate.ToString("MMMM dd, yyyy",
            CultureInfo.CreateSpecificCulture("es-CO")),
        DateUpdate = _blog.DateUpdate.ToString("MMMM dd, yyyy",
            CultureInfo.CreateSpecificCulture("es-CO"))
    };

    ViewData["detail"] = false;
    return View(_model);
}

Content Creation Guidelines

Writing Best Practices

Use clear, concise headlines
Start with the most important information
Keep paragraphs short (2-4 sentences)
Use subheadings to organize content
Include relevant images and captions
Proofread before publishing

SEO Optimization

Choose descriptive titles (50-60 characters)
Use keywords naturally in content
Add alt text to images
Keep URLs short and descriptive
Use proper heading hierarchy (H1, H2, H3)

Image Requirements

Format: JPG or PNG
Recommended size: 1200x630 pixels (Facebook/OG standard)
Maximum file size: 2MB
Compress images for web
Use descriptive filenames

Data Transfer Objects

Create DTO

public class BlogCreateDto
{
    [Required(ErrorMessage = "El título es requerido")]
    [MaxLength(200)]
    [DisplayName("Título")]
    public string NameBlog { get; set; }
    
    [Required(ErrorMessage = "El contenido es requerido")]
    [AllowHtml]
    [DataType(DataType.MultilineText)]
    [DisplayName("Contenido")]
    public string Description { get; set; }
    
    [Required(ErrorMessage = "El autor es requerido")]
    [MaxLength(100)]
    [DisplayName("Autor")]
    public string Author { get; set; }
    
    [Required(ErrorMessage = "La imagen es requerida")]
    [DisplayName("Imagen destacada")]
    [ValidateExtensionImg]
    [ImageSizes]
    public IFormFile CoverPage { get; set; }
    
    [DisplayName("Publicar")]
    public Boolean Statud { get; set; }
}

Edit DTO

public class BlogEditDto
{
    public int Id { get; set; }
    public string NameBlog { get; set; }
    public string UrlMaster { get; set; }      // Read-only, generated from title
    public string Description { get; set; }
    public string Author { get; set; }
    public Boolean Statud { get; set; }
    public IFormFile CoverPage { get; set; }  // Optional on edit
}

Pagination

The system uses X.PagedList for efficient pagination:

var pageNumber = page ?? 1;              // Default to first page
int pageSize = 6;                        // 6 articles per page
var onePageOfStudents = _model.ToPagedList(pageNumber, pageSize);

This approach:

Improves page load times
Reduces database queries
Provides better user experience
Enables navigation controls (previous/next)

Status Management

Draft (Statud = false)
Published (Statud = true)

Article is saved but not public
Only visible to administrators
Can be edited and refined
Does not appear in /noticias listing

Date Formatting

Dates are formatted using Colombian Spanish locale:

CultureInfo.CreateSpecificCulture("es-CO")

Example outputs:

Short format: “Ene 15, 2024”
Long format: “Enero 15, 2024”

Service Layer

public interface IBlogService
{
    Task<IEnumerable<Master>> GetAll();
    Task<Master> GetById(int? id);
    Task<Master> GetById(string urlMaster);
    Task<Master> Create(BlogCreateDto model);
    Task Edit(int id, BlogEditDto model);
    Task DeleteConfirmed(int id);
    bool BlogExists(int id);
    bool DuplicaName(string name);
}

Common Use Cases

Service Announcement

Notify citizens about scheduled maintenance, service interruptions, or new service offerings

Event Promotion

Announce community events, public meetings, or educational workshops

Project Updates

Share progress on infrastructure projects or organizational initiatives

News Coverage

Report on organizational achievements, awards, or significant milestones

Employee Management - Reference staff in articles
Brigade Management - Announce brigade events
Document Management - Link to official documents

Get Started

Core Features

Architecture

Overview

Public Communication

User Workflows

Key Features

Rich Content Editor

Draft System

Featured Images

Pagination

SEO-Friendly URLs

Update Tracking

Data Model

View Model

Controller Actions

Admin Routes

Public Routes

Content Creation Guidelines

Data Transfer Objects

Create DTO

Edit DTO

Status Management

Date Formatting

Service Layer

Common Use Cases

Service Announcement

Event Promotion

Project Updates

News Coverage

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Get Started

Core Features

Architecture

​Overview

Public Communication

​User Workflows

​Key Features

Rich Content Editor

Draft System

Featured Images

Pagination

SEO-Friendly URLs

Update Tracking

​Data Model

​View Model

​Controller Actions

​Admin Routes

​Public Routes

​Content Creation Guidelines

​Data Transfer Objects

​Create DTO

​Edit DTO

​Pagination

​Status Management

​Date Formatting

​Service Layer

​Common Use Cases

Service Announcement

Event Promotion

Project Updates

News Coverage

​Related Features

Build docs developers (and LLMs) love

Overview

User Workflows

Key Features

Data Model

View Model

Controller Actions

Admin Routes

Public Routes

Content Creation Guidelines

Data Transfer Objects

Create DTO

Edit DTO

Pagination

Status Management

Date Formatting

Service Layer

Common Use Cases

Related Features