Custom panels can easily be added to the left or right columns of any page on the website. Examples include adding an advert to the right hand, adding a teaser to the right hand column, replacing the main menu in the left hand column with a single image.

Such custom panels are based on the Newsflash module. The Newsflash module will display 1 or more items of content from any given category.The Newsflash module can be configured to select content items randomly for display one at a time or be forced to display given content items arranged either vertically or horizontally. If you displaying only one item of content then it doesn't matter whether you set Newsflash to arrange vertically or horizontally. If you have multiple items of content in the category but have Newsflash configured to display only one item arranged then the top item will be displayed. By changing the order of content items within the category you can determine which item is displayed.

First create a section and category that will be displayed by your new module. Then populate this category with one or more items of content. If the content is to display images then the Newsflash module must be configured to display images. The default template accommodates images of up to 145px wide. If your image is larger than this, it will widen the column to which the module is assigned and cause the whole page to become mis-aligned.  

Now go into the Module Manager and make a copy of the Newsflash module. Open up this copy, rename it eg. Teasers or Adverts, and re-configure the module to use your newly created category. Select how many items of content you want to display and in what arrangement. Remember to check the box if you want to view images.