Latest revision as of 14:32, 9 October 2008

This article describes a DRAFT under discussion; contents, specifications and recommendations may change until the public discussion is complete.

Introduction

Welcome to the ccHost version 5 Documentation. Here you will find a general overview of ccHost, a FAQ, and detailed descriptions of the various settings available to the administrator.

ccHost is Creative Commons' open source (GPL licensed) media content management system project that powers ccMixter and is the winner of the Linux Journal LinuxWorldExpo Product Excellence Award for Best Open Source Solution. Read more about ccHost here.

FAQ/Cookbook

How do I change the banner (logo)?

Log in as an administrator and go to the "Manage Site" section. If running multiple sites make sure you select the site you want to edit from the dropdown menu on top. Click on the "Banner Logo" link, click on the "Browse" button and select your preferred image. Hit Submit and enjoy!

How do I restrict file types users can upload?

Log in as an administrator and navigate to "Global Settings." Each filetype which is desired to be blocked should be set to "(D)isabled." The "(S)ignature" and "(V)erify" options allow uploads with either a simple check of signature or full file verification using getID3, respectively.

How do I restrict licenses?

Log in as an administrator and go to the "Manage Site" section. If running multiple sites make sure you select the site you want to edit from the dropdown menu on top. Click on the "License" link. On that page you can select which supported licenses the users are able to assign to their work. When you are satisfied click on "Submit."

For information on the Creative Commons Licenses see: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/

How do I add administrators?

Log in as an administrator and go to the "Manage Site" section. If running multiple sites make sure you select the site you want to edit from the dropdown menu on top. Click on the "Settings" link. On that page you can add more registered usernames to the list of Admins. Simply separate them by a comma and space, eg: admin, fourstones, rejon, greg

How do I edit the navigation tabs at the top of the page?

Log in as an administrator and go to the "Manage Site" section. If running multiple sites make sure you select the site you want to edit from the dropdown menu on top. Click on the "Navigator Tab Sets" link. Click on the "[Edit tabs]" link for the associated tab set you want to edit.

To create a new tab click on "Add Tab." Give it a name (internal only), Display Name (what is displayed), Help Hint ("tooltip" when hovering over with mouse pointer), define its action, and set access level.

On that page you are also able to remove unwanted tabs and edit what all of the current tabs' functions are.

How do I manage page and topic content in ccHost?

For the complete howto, see Content Manager Howto.

How do I repair a broken configruation (A.K.A. HELP!!!!)

If you get into 'trouble' with your system you might be able to salvage your site by browsing to either:

If you are not logged in as an administrator when trying this you will have to:

Open the cchost_lib/cc-config-repair.php file in a text editor
Remove the two forward slashes '//' before the word 'return' in the line at the top of the file
Save this file to disk
From your browser, go to 'http://your_server/cchost_lib/cc-config-repair.php'. This should bring up a configuration editor
Click on the word 'media' to open the configuration settings and see if you can spot the error
After you have fixed (or decided you can't fix) the problem make sure to the put the '//' back into the cchost_lib/cc-config-repair.php file otherwise you will leave a large gaping security hole in your site

How to Configure the Query Browser

ccHost 5.0 includes admin configurable query brower. You can see examples of the browser in action at http://ccmixter.org/browse and http://fourstones.net/browse

This browser is a query builder (see http://your_install_root/query for documentation on ccHost Query API). The browser can configured with option sets (optset) that determine several visual features.

In order to create an optset:

1. Click on 'Global Settings' ( admin/site/global )

2. Click on 'Query Browser' ( admin/browse )

3. Here you can edit the default optset and create different optsets for the browser

   Name - The 'name' is important because it will be used in the browse URL's 
          'optset' parameter. If no optset parameter is in the URL then the 
          optset called 'default' is assumed

   Template - Select the template that will be used to show results 

   Style    - Select the style sheet

   Def. limit - Enter the initial amount to display in the results area

   Playlist but. - Check this if you want to have the 'Save to playlist' button 
                   (this only applies to sites with playlists enabled).

   Req. tags - These tags will be added to every query made, the user 
               can NOT edit these.

   Types - Click on the "Edit types" to bring up a popup that allows you edit what 
           the user will see in the 'Types' select box and what tags they map to.

   Filter on: User - Check this to include the 'User' look up field

   Filter on: License - Check this to include the 'License' look up field

Click on 'Add Option Set' to create new, custom option sets.

4. Once you have saved your optsets you can then see the results by specifying them in the 'browse' URL. Examples

To use the 'default' optset simply browse to: http://your_install_root/browse

To use a different optset browse to: http://your_install_root/browse?optset=your_optset_name

5. You can specify 'start-up' values based on the Query API

   http://your_install_root/browse?tags=hip_hop&limit=15

   http://your_install_root/browse?user=teru

The user can then change these values once in the browser.

This can be very useful for menu items and navigation tabs.

Customizing the Query Browser (Developers)

To make your own custom styles for the entire query browser:

     a: Copy ccskins/shared/css/qbrowser_narrow.css to
        your_cchost_files/skins/css/my_browser_styles.css

     b: Edit the 'desc' line at the top to something meaningful to you

     c: Edit the import urls to point to ccskins versions of
        those files

     d: Browse to admin/browse and select your stylesheet
        in the "Style"

To make your custom results templates:

     a: Copy ccskins/shared/formats/simple_qbrowser.tpl to
        your_cchost_files/skins/formats/my_browser_results.tpl

     b: Edit the 'desc' line at the top to something meaningful
        to you

     c: The current dataview for that template is 'playlist_line'
        which has limited information per record. If you like 
        a more full record of information change the dataview 
        line to 'default'

     d: Browse to admin/browse and select your template in the
        "template" section

Administrative Settings

There are two Administrative Settings sections: Manage Site and Global Settings.

To view the Manage Site documentation see Manage Site

To view the Global Settings documentation see Global Settings

Understanding ccHost URLs

Understanding how URLs work in ccHost is a very important concept that you should understand before doing anything else.

URL Parts

ccHost URLs are composed of four main parts:

1. Root URL of installation

This is the URL address of where index.php lives. For example: http://example.com, or http://example.com/cchost

2. Virtual Root

Don't worry if you don't know what a 'ccHost virtual root' is, we'll get to it here but for now assume it's the word media.

3. Command

This part of the URL maps to an internal command in ccHost. This can be anything from a request for a submit form, a feed, a record listing, etc. Examples are people which shows a listing of the latest registered users who have uploaded or files which lists the latest uploads.

4. Parameters

Many if not most commands accept and even require parameters. For example, adding a specific user's name to the people command will display the user's main page, e.g. people/rejon

You should refer to the ccHost Command Reference for a listing of all available commands.

If you have enabled 'pretty URLs'(more info) in your installation then all the elements are strung together into one URL:

http://example.com/media/people/rejon

If not, then everything starting from the virtual root is prepended the following way:

http://example.com?ccm=/media/people/rejon

Difference between revisions of "CcHost5Documentation"

Latest revision as of 14:32, 9 October 2008

Contents

Introduction

FAQ/Cookbook

How do I change the banner (logo)?

How do I restrict file types users can upload?

How do I restrict licenses?

How do I add administrators?

How do I edit the navigation tabs at the top of the page?

How do I manage page and topic content in ccHost?

How do I repair a broken configruation (A.K.A. HELP!!!!)

How to Configure the Query Browser

Customizing the Query Browser (Developers)

Administrative Settings

Understanding ccHost URLs

URL Parts

Navigation menu

Personal tools

Namespaces

Variants

Views

More

Search

default links

wiki navigation

Tools

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
-=THIS IS A DRAFT PAGE - DO NOT TRUST ANY INFORMATION ON IT=
+{{Draft}}
 =Introduction=
-==Understanding ccHost URLs==
+Welcome to the ccHost version 5 Documentation.  Here you will find a general overview of ccHost, a FAQ, and detailed descriptions of the various settings available to the administrator.
-Understanding how URLs work in ccHost is a very important concept that you should understand before doing anything else.
+'''ccHost''' is Creative Commons' open source ([http://creativecommons.org/licenses/GPL/2.0/ GPL] licensed) media content management system project that powers [http://ccmixter.org ccMixter] and is the winner of the [http://creativecommons.org/weblog/entry/6026 Linux Journal LinuxWorldExpo Product Excellence Award] for '''Best Open Source Solution.''' Read more about ccHost [[CcHost#Zeitgeist|here]].
-URL Parts
+=FAQ/Cookbook=
+==How do I change the banner (logo)?==
+Log in as an administrator and go to the "Manage Site" section.  If running multiple sites make sure you select the site you want to edit from the dropdown menu on top.  Click on the "Banner Logo" link, click on the "Browse" button and select your preferred image.  Hit Submit and enjoy!
-ccHost URLs are composed of four main parts:
+==How do I restrict file types users can upload?==
+Log in as an administrator and navigate to "Global Settings."  Each filetype which is desired to be blocked should be set to "(D)isabled."  The "(S)ignature" and "(V)erify" options allow uploads with either a simple check of signature or full file verification using getID3, respectively.
-. Root URL of installation
+==How do I restrict licenses?==
-* This is the URL address of where index.php lives. For example: http://example.com, or http://example.com/cchost
+Log in as an administrator and go to the "Manage Site" section.  If running multiple sites make sure you select the site you want to edit from the dropdown menu on top.  Click on the "License" link.  On that page you can select which supported licenses the users are able to assign to their work.  When you are satisfied click on "Submit."
-. Virtual Root
+For information on the Creative Commons Licenses see: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/
-* Don't worry if you don't know what a 'ccHost virtual root' is, we'll get to it here but for now assume it's the word media.
-. Command
+==How do I add administrators?==
-* This part of the URL maps to an internal command in ccHost. This can be anything from a request for a submit form, a feed, a record listing, etc. Examples are people which shows a listing of the latest registered users who have uploaded or files which lists the latest uploads.
+Log in as an administrator and go to the "Manage Site" section.  If running multiple sites make sure you select the site you want to edit from the dropdown menu on top.  Click on the "Settings" link.  On that page you can add more registered usernames to the list of Admins.  Simply separate them by a comma and space, eg: admin, fourstones, rejon, greg
-. Parameters
+==How do I edit the navigation tabs at the top of the page?==
-* Many if not most commands accept and even require parameters. For example, adding a specific user's name to the people command will display the user's main page, e.g. people/rejon
+Log in as an administrator and go to the "Manage Site" section.  If running multiple sites make sure you select the site you want to edit from the dropdown menu on top.  Click on the "Navigator Tab Sets" link.  Click on the "[Edit tabs]" link for the associated tab set you want to edit.
-You should refer to the ccHost Command Reference for a listing of all available commands.
+To create a new tab click on "Add Tab."  Give it a name (internal only), Display Name (what is displayed), Help Hint ("tooltip" when hovering over with mouse pointer), define its action, and set access level.
-If you have enabled 'pretty URLs' in your installation then all the elements are strung together into one URL:
+On that page you are also able to remove unwanted tabs and edit what all of the current tabs' functions are.
-http://example.com/media/people/rejon
+==How do I manage page and topic content in ccHost?==
-If not, then everything starting from the virtual root is prepended the following way:
+For the complete howto, see [[CcHost5Documentation/Content_Manager|Content Manager Howto]].
-http://example.com?ccm=/media/people/rejon
+==How do I repair a broken configruation (A.K.A. HELP!!!!)==
-=Administrative Settings=
+If you get into 'trouble' with your system you might be able to salvage your site by browsing to either:
-==Manage Site==
+*http://your_server/admin/edit
+*http://your_server?ccm=/media/admin/edit
+*http://your_server/cchost_lib/cc-config-repair.php
-===Settings===
+If you are not logged in as an administrator when trying this you will have to:
-Admins, editors, etc.
+*Open the cchost_lib/cc-config-repair.php file in a text editor
+*Remove the two forward slashes '//' before the word 'return' in the line at the top of the file
+*Save this file to disk
+*From your browser, go to 'http://your_server/cchost_lib/cc-config-repair.php'. This should bring up a configuration editor
+*Click on the word 'media' to open the configuration settings and see if you can spot the error
+*After you have fixed (or decided you can't fix) the problem make sure to the put the '//' back into the cchost_lib/cc-config-repair.php file otherwise you will leave a large gaping security hole in your site
-===Skin===
+==How to Configure the Query Browser==
-Choose a skin, theme, layout, colors, fonts, etc.
-===Navigator Tab Sets===
+ccHost 5.0 includes admin configurable query brower. You can see examples
-Create and edit navigator tabs
+of the browser in action at http://ccmixter.org/browse and http://fourstones.net/browse
-===File Formats===
+This browser is a query builder (see http://your_install_root/query for documentation
-Pick which file formats are allowed to be uploaded
+on ccHost Query API). The browser can configured with option sets (optset) that determine
+several visual features.
-===License===
+In order to create an optset:
-Pick which licenses a user is allowed to select from
-===Upload Renaming===
+. Click on 'Global Settings' ( admin/site/global )
-Configure how uploads are automatically renamed
-===Submit Forms===
+. Click on 'Query Browser'  ( admin/browse )
-Edit what kind of submit forms the user can see
-===Banner and Footers===
+. Here you can edit the default optset and create different optsets for the
-Edit what the banner and footer says on each page.
+browser
-===Sidebar Extras===
+    Name - The 'name' is important because it will be used in the browse URL's
-Pick what features are available on the side bar.
+           'optset' parameter. If no optset parameter is in the URL then the
+           optset called 'default' is assumed
+    Template - Select the template that will be used to show results
+    Style    - Select the style sheet
+    Def. limit - Enter the initial amount to display in the results area
+    Playlist but. - Check this if you want to have the 'Save to playlist' button
+                    (this only applies to sites with playlists enabled).
+    Req. tags - These tags will be added to every query made, the user
+                can NOT edit these.
+    Types - Click on the "Edit types" to bring up a popup that allows you edit what
+            the user will see in the 'Types' select box and what tags they map to.
+    Filter on: User - Check this to include the 'User' look up field
+    Filter on: License - Check this to include the 'License' look up field
-===Menus===
+Click on 'Add Option Set' to create new, custom option sets.
-Edit the menus
-===ID3 Tagger===
+. Once you have saved your optsets you can then see the results by specifying
-Configure how to tag ID3 compatible files (e.g. MP3s)
+them in the 'browse' URL. Examples
-===Menu Groups===
+To use the 'default' optset simply browse to: http://your_install_root/browse
-Edit the menu groups
-===Thumbnails===
+To use a different optset browse to: http://your_install_root/browse?optset=your_optset_name
-Configure thumbnails handling (for image uploads)
-==Global Settings==
+. You can specify 'start-up' values based on the Query API
-===Admin Help===
+    http://your_install_root/browse?tags=hip_hop&limit=15
-Help on configuring the site
-===Global Setup===
+    http://your_install_root/browse?user=teru
-Cookies, ban message, admin email, 3rd party add ins, etc.
-===Manage Page Content===
+The user can then change these values once in the browser.
-Manage special pages and topics
-===Paths===
+This can be very useful for menu items and navigation tabs.
-Configure where ccHost looks for stuff
-===Forum===
+===Customizing the Query Browser (Developers)===
-Configure forums access, groups, etc.
-===Ratings===
+To make your own custom styles for the entire query browser:
-How ratings are calculated, who can rate, etc.
-===Tags===
+      a: Copy ''ccskins/shared/css/qbrowser_narrow.css'' to
-Edit tag aliases, reserve tags, counts, etc.
+         ''your_cchost_files/skins/css/my_browser_styles.css''
+      b: Edit the 'desc' line at the top to something meaningful to you
+      c: Edit the import urls to point to ccskins versions of
+         those files
+      d: Browse to admin/browse and select your stylesheet
+         in the "Style"
-===Default User Avatar===
+To make your custom results templates:
-Upload a default avatar for new users
-===Super Users===
+      a: Copy ''ccskins/shared/formats/simple_qbrowser.tpl'' to
-Edit list of super users
+         ''your_cchost_files/skins/formats/my_browser_results.tpl''
+      b: Edit the 'desc' line at the top to something meaningful
+         to you
+      c: The current dataview for that template is 'playlist_line'
+         which has limited information per record. If you like
+         a more full record of information change the dataview
+         line to 'default'
+      d: Browse to admin/browse and select your template in the
+         "template" section
-===Restrict Access===
+=Administrative Settings=
-Restrict access to commands
-===Language===
+There are two Administrative Settings sections: ''Manage Site'' and ''Global Settings.''
-Configure Language use
-===Upload Throttles===
+To view the '''Manage Site''' documentation see [[ccHost5Documentation/ManageSite|Manage Site]]
-Limit the number and types of uploads per user
-===Activity Log===
+To view the '''Global Settings''' documentation see [[ccHost5Documentation/GlobalSettings|Global Settings]]
-Configure the administrator's activity log
-===Import Files===
+=Understanding ccHost URLs=
-Import files from your server into ccHost
-===Disable Site===
+Understanding how URLs work in ccHost is a very important concept that you should understand before doing anything else.
-Disable site when doing maintainence.
-===Email===
+== URL Parts ==
-Configure system email address and access
-===Create Contest===
+ccHost URLs are composed of four main parts:
-Create a new contest, set its start time, rules, etc.
-===Download Manager===
+. Root URL of installation
-Count, checksum and license options for downloading
+* This is the URL address of where index.php lives. For example: http://example.com, or http://example.com/cchost
-===Moderation/Flagging===
+. Virtual Root
-Configure moderation (Ban) and upload flagging
+* Don't worry if you don't know what a 'ccHost virtual root' is, we'll get to it here but for now assume it's the word media.
-===Playlists===
+. Command
-Manage Playlists
+* This part of the URL maps to an internal command in ccHost. This can be anything from a request for a submit form, a feed, a record listing, etc. Examples are people which shows a listing of the latest registered users who have uploaded or files which lists the latest uploads.
-===Pseudo Verify===
+. Parameters
-Configure usage of exotic and other dangerous file types
+* Many if not most commands accept and even require parameters. For example, adding a specific user's name to the people command will display the user's main page, e.g. people/rejon
-===Quota===
+You should refer to the ccHost Command Reference for a listing of all available commands.
-Configure user quota
-===Virtual ccHost===
+If you have enabled 'pretty URLs'([[CcHost#Enabling_.27Pretty_URLs.27|more info]]) in your installation then all the elements are strung together into one URL:
-Create a new virtual root
-===Query Browser===
+ http://example.com/media/people/rejon
-Configure query browser
-===Channels Page===
+If not, then everything starting from the virtual root is prepended the following way:
-Configure playlists for the channels page
-===Sample Pools===
+ http://example.com?ccm=/media/people/rejon
-Managing sample pools and trackbacks