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.

[Slave]

Following on from what shiva has said .. as a test I went to edit one of my links so I could add my mods forum, which can only be seen by mods and admin, as the links parent forum. It doesn't show up in the list of forums to which I can parent my link to .. so if this is a bug, I can confirm.

Expected behaviour would be to be able to pick the mod forum and then the link to act in the same way as the forum, ie only mods and admin to see and be able to click the link.

[AndrewD]

Originally Posted by shiva

here's another one...

I would like the ability to hide certain listings untill I can make sure they are valid, or is a trustworthy source, as my community likes exe files, and is very high end. I found such a link, and tried to set a cat so only I, as a admin can see it.

I thought it would be by pointing to the admin only board that I have in my forum, but that board does not show at all when I try and add the new admin only category.
It is restricted at least, but is still viewable on the listing to a regular member, or even a guest.

I think having a admin only setting would be nice, so that it's not viewable by anyone else. I read the manual, I may have missed it, but just having the system reconise a admin board on your forum, and transfereing over the permissions as set in that board would be a good idea

I've just tried this and it seems to work the way I expected:

a) Normally, when you set forum-based permissions for a category or a link, it is only visible to/accessible by users in groups that have both *Can View Forum* and *Can View Others Threads* permission. Otherwise the category/link is invisible and inaccessible.

b) When you edit a category to set forum-based permissions to it, the permissions also become the default permissions for new links added in the category. (If you want them to cascade them also to the existing links within the category, then there's a check box to do so).

c) If you have given LDM's can_see_protected_links_on_portal permission to any usergroups, these groups can *see* protected links and catgeories, but can't actually access the links.

If one of your forums doesn't show up in the list of forums on the add/edit category/link page, this may be a bug. It seems to work ok for me. Again, LDM presents a list of forums for which the current user has both Can_view_forum and Can_view_others_threads permissions. Does this apply in your case?

[Slave]

I have both "Can View Forum" and "Can View Others' Threads" as yes for admin (ie me) within Forum permissions, but can't see the forum in the list on the add/edit link/cat pages ..

[Slave]

Originally Posted by Slave

I have both "Can View Forum" and "Can View Others' Threads" as yes for admin (ie me) within Forum permissions, but can't see the forum in the list on the add/edit link/cat pages ..

It looks like the forum setting "Show this Forum and Child Forums on the Forum Jump Menu" makes the difference ..

If you have this set as no, the forum in question wont show in the parent forum list no matter the permissions ..

(Which works on forums that are just links too .. so please leave it as it is )

[AndrewD]

Originally Posted by Slave

It looks like the forum setting "Show this Forum and Child Forums on the Forum Jump Menu" makes the difference ..

If you have this set as no, the forum in question wont show in the parent forum list no matter the permissions ..

That figures - I'm using standard VB routines to build the forum menu.

Is this a big issue?

Concerning forums that are themselves links (in the VB sense), again, if the main VB code thinks these are forums, then they appear on the list.

The alternative is that I shall have to write another forum menu builder, with all the complications of handling users in multiple user groups, etc.

[shiva]

I reset my forum permissions as Slave did, and my admin forum shows up as well.

I think you have enough on your plate as it is, especially for such a minor bug. If worse comes to worse, I can always just delete the admin cat, and change one setting in my forum admin permissions to restore it back, and use another method

[Slave]

Nah .. I'd leave it as is .. it's handy being able to leave linked forums off the list and that's the perfect way of dealing with it ..

All I'd do is add this behaviour somewhere in the manual so people know about it. I've got to admit I set this as no for my mod forum thinking non admin/mods would see the forum in the list, but it seems they don't anyway .. so I guess there might be others who have done the same. As long as the manual has this info it should be fine

[MikeGK]

Hi Andrew, which part should I change to have the login error prompt for vbulletin start msg?? right now I see something such as this ..

"Unfortunately, you do not have sufficient permission to access this entry, as it is reserved for another usergroup. Please contact us for more information if necessary"

how do I fix it to use the vbulletin msg instead? thank u

[AndrewD]

Originally Posted by MikeGK

Hi Andrew, which part should I change to have the login error prompt for vbulletin start msg?? right now I see something such as this ..

"Unfortunately, you do not have sufficient permission to access this entry, as it is reserved for another usergroup. Please contact us for more information if necessary"

how do I fix it to use the vbulletin msg instead? thank u

Go to VB/admincp/languages and phrases and do a search for the ll_access_error_loggedin phrase - you can modify this how you like.

[AndrewD]

Originally Posted by testpig

Hi Andrew.
I'm using IE. site is http://www.hemi6pack.com/forum.local_links.php

I have my image settings at apporx 800 x 800 pixels. If I try to upload anything larger it errors to a white 404 screen. The images I was trying to load were 1000x1200. Once I resized them they uploaded immediately so I assumed it was the vB settings. Otherwise not sure.

I'm a bit stuck with this - I can't get it to go wrong on my site or on yours. If I allow unlimited size uploads, the picture upload works correctly, and if I set a lower limit and try to upload an image that is bigger than the limit, it gives me the correct error message. I tried the same thing on your site, and it also gave me the correct error message.

So I must be missing something.