Integration with vBulletin - vbWiki Standard - vBulletin+MediaWiki integration

Update:

9/28/2007: vbWiki Std v1.3 RC5 is now available for download. This version adds compatibility with MW 1.11.0+

5/17/2007: vbWiki Std v1.3 RC4 is now available for download. This version is compatible with MW 1.10.0+ and vBulletin 3.6.6+

1/21/2007: vbWiki Std v1.0.2 RC3 is now available for download. This version fixes the 'session error' that used to happen on some installations of MediaWiki 1.9.x.

Description:

vbWiki Standard is the lite version of vbWiki Pro. vbWiki Standard allows the integration of vBulletin and MediaWiki user authentication.

(vbWiki Pro is a commercial product that, in addition to the functionality found in vbWiki Standard, provides full skin integration, enhanced user management, Admin CP, editing of wiki skin in vBulletin's Style Manager, among other features.)

Why should you add a wiki to your forums?

Forums are great for community building with their high level of interactivity. Successful forums have hundreds or thousand of concurrent users creating and replying to threads.

However due to this very reason the more your forums grow the more "collective knowledge" is scattered throughout the thousands (or hundreds or millions) of threads in your forums. Making it difficult for users to find and use.

A wiki is not that good at community building, but it is a great medium to centralize this 'collective knowledge'. Enabling you to create an 'ecosystem of information' (quoting pipin ) maintained and contributed by your users.

The idea behind vbWiki (both Standard and Pro) is to enable the seamless integration between these two packages (vBulletin and MediaWiki) side-by-side in your community. You (and your users and community) get the best of both worlds.

Or so the theory goes...

Features:

• Single sign-on for vBulletin and MediaWiki (users log in only once)
• Supports mapping of vBulletin usergroups to MediaWiki user roles
• Users viewing wiki pages are shown in vBulletin's "What's going on?" section (both guests and registered users)
• Supports auto-authentication, users who choose to be "remembered" are logged in upon visiting the site to both vBulletin and MediaWiki.

Installation:

These installation instructions do not apply to vbWiki Pro. Refer to vbWiki Pro installation instructions for more information.

MediaWiki and vBulletin must be installed and properly working before installing vbWiki. MediaWiki can be downloaded here.

• Create a new directory in your forums directory named vbWiki.
• Upload the content of the installation package to this new directory.
• Rename the file vbWiki_Init.php-dist to vbWiki_Init.php
• Open the file LocalSettings.php found in your MediaWiki directory in a text editor and at the very end find the following line and remove it if present:

PHP Code:

?> 


• Add the following code at the end of the file (entering the correct directory path):

PHP Code:

require_once "/absolute/path/to/your/forums/vbWiki/vbWiki_Init.php"; 


Troubleshooting:

• Last installation step: Click Mark as Installed..

If you run into any trouble installing vbWiki (blank page, logins not working, etc.), follow these instructions to temporarily turn on vbWiki's Diagnostic Tools.

Open vbWiki_Init.php (or vbWikiPro_Init.php) and find this line:

PHP Code:

$run_vbWikiPro_diag_tools = false; 


And change it for this:

PHP Code:

$run_vbWikiPro_diag_tools = true; 


Navigate to the wiki home page, and see the results.

Changes:

• 0 vBulletin files to Edit
• 1 MediaWiki file to Edit
• 10 vbWiki Files to Upload

Requirements:

• vBulletin v3.5.4 (version 3.6.x recommended)
• MediaWiki 1.6.8+ (recommended 1.7.x+).
• PHP4+

Uninstalling...

• To uninstall vbWiki Standard simply remove (or comment) the line added to LocalSettings.php.
• Optionally remove the directory vbWiki from your forums directory.

[AyeCapn]

After consulting with my rabbit, I still plan to buy the Pro version

[thincom2000]

I've had a good experience with the Pro version so far. I have 1.0.2 RC1 files installed, running off the old 0.9.7 RC1 (just haven't gotten around to running the new product file yet). Using MW 1.6.8 on vB 3.6.4.

No issues right now, we just upgraded to a PHP 5 server, so I'm going to make the move to MW 1.9 shortly. Hopefully this session error gets sorted out by the time I fit the update into the site's schedule.

[ElfMage]

Originally Posted by AyeCapn

After consulting with my rabbit

After your debate with cheesegrits, I can now understand this comment...

Regarding the session error, we haven't been able to duplicate this error. I need a link to a wiki exhibiting this error...

[sickboy6ths]

Originally Posted by ElfMage

Regarding the session error, we haven't been able to duplicate this error. I need a link to a wiki exhibiting this error...

www.6thsense.eu/wiki

I just bought the Pro Edition and have submitted tickets in the Support Area

[ElfMage]

Thanks. We got your tickets and link. Replying now...

[Dankness]

I just wanted to say that my community has been using this Wiki Bridge for afew months now , and it works very well. Its one of the best mods iv installed on my boards and its come along way in updates also Good work Elfmage.

[ElfMage]

Thanks Dankness, glad to hear it is being working for your community.

[drupy]

I really want to buy the Pro, but I am using VB with Subdreamer with skin integration, so I am worried that it won't work with this great mod. My site is using php 4. I will buy it right away if I know it will work OK, including skin integration of all 3. Basically my VB forum is being skinned by Subdreamer, and membership, posts etc are based on VB.

Is there any trial use?

[ElfMage]

I would need to take a look at the Subdreamer integration. If it is using vBulletin Template system (just like vbAdvanced, vbPortal, etc, use) then vbWiki Pro will work fine.

Given the complexity of vBulletin, I would guess this to be the case. However, they may have hacked it.

Regarding the trial version it is difficult, since we give away all the PHP source code when you buy a vbWiki Pro license.

Internally, for the trial, we are thinking on either using an encoder like ionCube, or sporting a 15-30 days money back guarantee. But this is still in the works...

Anyways, I just sent you a PM.

[Wayne Luke]

<a href="http://www.ridersofconquest.org/wiki/" target="_blank">http://www.ridersofconquest.org/wiki/</a>

That is my wiki. Fairly stock implementation. I have the vBulletin integration commented out right now though so I can start adding content to the site today and tomorrow.