Links and Downloads Manager

LDM extends VBulletin to manage a library of documents, files and links to other web sites. Documents can be stored on your own web site, stored on your server separate from the web site, uploaded by your user community, or held somewhere else altogether. So you can use LDM to provide your user community with access to your own files and allow them to share files with each other.

12/08/06 - Versions that work with vb36 are available and supported in the VB36 thread. Version 2.2.1, which works with VB 3.5 but not with VB 3.6, remains available here.

Thanks to everyone who has helped with all the design, testing, etc.
Translations are provided (thanks dLutt and LeeWicked) into German, (thanks to Allan) into French, and (thanks to Hugo) into Spanish. Harry1951 has handled the Dutch translation.

Screenshots, Instructions and How to Install

Full details and instructions are available as a Wiki at http://www.eirma.org/wikis/index.php...nloads_Manager

LDM installs as a VBulletin product. There are no modifications required to standard VB code.

Basically - upload php files and run the installer through VB's Product installer. No changes needed to VB code. Remember to BACKUP YOUR DATABASE. By default, LDM prefixes its database tables 'local_'. Edit the configuration file, local_links_init.php, if you need/wish to change this.

LDM can handle an essentially unlimited number of categories and nested subcategories, and an unlimited number of entries (hyperlinks or downloadable files). Each entry can be placed in one or several categories. Categories can have styles. Descriptions and titles can optionally include BBcodes, smilies, images and html, giving the possibility to add images, colouring, etc. File types can be flagged using icons and individual entries can also have associated thumbnail images.

Standards templates are provided for libraries of links, files, documents, and photographs.

Users can offer comments and rate the links/downloads. Each user is allowed one rating and many comments per entry, and can freely edit these if they change their mind.

Permission to use specific features is established via the product's admin page, where the administrator specifies which usergroups can add and edit entries, comment and rate these entries, moderate, etc.

By default, all entries are visible to all users. You can restrict visibility/access to links and categories by using the permissions masks from your board's forums.

Moderation of new entries is available but turned off by default.

Users can report bad links to the relevant moderators/administrators.

Each user can flag links as his/her "Favourites".

Modules are provided for VBAdvanced.

Hooks are provided in suitable places in LDM and sample plugins are included in the release (see extras directory), for example to integrate with ID3 tags in mp3 files, for slideshows, to autocreate new threads in your forums, etc.

Plus much more.

[docvader]

Originally Posted by FROGGYJ

Not sure if anyone has noticed this....but if I go the the downloads area and stream an mp3 listed it works great. Then I close the window and try to let's say go to the forum index, it logs me out. Is there something I'm missing to keep the user logged in?

using VB 3.5.1 with LDM 2.1.2

Froggy
It may be an issue with the new vb software (and nothing to do with this superb hack), a few of us are experiencing this. A few things, make sure you don't have domain.com and xxxx.domain.com confused in your links, you're better off using the www part. Also, make sure that your "remember me" box is automatically checked. Some people have found that by turning AJAX off, IE will stop dropping your log in cookies. Personally, I use Netscape or FF, and there are no drop issues.

[Langly]

I have my Maximum file size showing this size:




But in my settings it is set way higher as you can see:



The problem is that if a file is over 4megs or so, then it doesn't get uploaded for soem reason. Why is it doing that?

[AndrewD]

Originally Posted by Langly

I have my Maximum file size showing this size:




But in my settings it is set way higher as you can see:



The problem is that if a file is over 4megs or so, then it doesn't get uploaded for soem reason. Why is it doing that?

Uploads are limited by various settings on your site. There are some that you can change within VBulletin - for example using the admincp/attachments/filetypes table - and some that are set in the php.ini file, i.e. upload_max_filesize and post_max_size. The php.ini values are absolute limits - you cannot over-ride them inside VBulletin. Furthermore, you should take care that upload_max_filesize is smaller than post_max_size. The limit you are seeing on the form is the minimum of these.

I'm note sure why you are falling over with 4M uploads when the setting is 8M.

[Langly]

Since my site is on a seperate hosting company then I guess editting the php.ini file is out of the question.

The filetypes in admincp are the same as the screenshot I previously shown.

I'm guessing 4megs but it might be more like the 8meg mark that it won't seem to accept. Any other ideas?

[AndrewD]

Originally Posted by Langly

Since my site is on a seperate hosting company then I guess editting the php.ini file is out of the question.

The filetypes in admincp are the same as the screenshot I previously shown.

I'm guessing 4megs but it might be more like the 8meg mark that it won't seem to accept. Any other ideas?

You should ask your ISP to increase the two settings upload_max_filesize and post_max_size. There is no way round these limits.

[Langly]

Oh well. I've tried before with godaddy and they won't change server side config files for any programs. Thanks thought.

[AndrewD]

For anyone who has had difficulties with the 2.1.2 beta:

a) concerning icon display on Macs and
b) concerning inability to remove favourites,

I have uploaded new code with these problems fixed. The changes are minor and in the local_links_include.php code

[Darat]

AndrewD - couple of suggestions. Perhaps add a "Home" link directly on the menu bar - that would save people having to click on Categories and then select "Home Categories" to get back to the top Category.

I've also been playing about with the layout and I think it looks better and is better "usability" if the category listing were the top panel and the info panel below them, see:http://forums.randi.org/local_links.php for what I mean. (Edited to add: Sine posting I've taken the plunge and installed the latest beta so my "customisations" regarding the layout have been lost.)

[docvader]

Any thoughts on adding some sort of notification on forumhome template, of new uploads to the LDM system?? Or did I miss it?

[Nam]

Andrew, I thought there is a problem with the cookies that I should report you as well. Firefox had none of this but in IE, whenever I refresh the page or click another link on the same page, the vbulletin login form appears. I'm not sure why it causes this, I'll PM you a a user/pass if you like.