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.

[yessir]

Originally Posted by AndrewD

I only have a certain amount of time free, and I'd like to live a life :tired:

No doubt. Great job Andrew. I'm going to install this over the weekend.

[elsupremo]

Hey guys,
I PM'd Andrew a couple of ideas, including that there should be a better image gallery layout, which he agreed with and thought there should be generally a more flexible layout with options of which layout you want for a category.

The second thing I suggested was to have a "Recent Comments" section as an option. He agreed with me, but was curious how best to implement it, and on that note asked me to post my idea here for your guys' input:
Originally Posted by elsupremo
"#2. For regular links/entries, if possible please have a "Recent Comments" section under the description of the entry, containing between 3-5 comments, with a "Add Comment" link underneath it.
The reason for this is that people are LAZY. I tested the other day with several friends of mine, and they downloaded some videos from my website, without even knowing that they could add a comment, even though I <strong>'ed and increased the font size of the "Add Comment/Rate Link" text.
If people see the first few comments, it would really bring the comment system to a functional and effective point. Right now, people don't see the comments and are too lazy to click the link to go in and check them out."

Andrew's response was the following:
"This is a good idea - I think it needs to be a per-site-configuration option, so that the admin can decide how many comments are summarised in the bit.

What would help me a lot is a couple of rough sketches of possible layouts. I'm not the greatest garphics artist! You don't need to do these in html - just somthing that gives me a sense of what you would find aesthetically 'clean'. Perhaps you could post this in the main thread for others to respond to."

If anyone is able to help with this last part, much thanks to you! I will give it a try myself when I have some time.

Regards,
David

[EasyTarget]

I agree, that would be a nice addition. I'd like to see the last 3 or so comments or summaries, and a link to see more.

[GrendelKhan{TSU]

1. .

   Originally Posted by elsupremo

   "#2. For regular links/entries, if possible please have a "Recent Comments" section under the description of the entry, containing between 3-5 comments, with a "Add Comment" link underneath it.

   
   I still say this is teh best method as it also provide much better integration and with vbulletin, will allow for promotion/exposure and flexibility for things like posting LYRICs to songs and discussions about the files in the main forums:
   
   

   the Drupal plugin has a great system. When new blogs are posted to Drupal ...it autmatically creates a thread in a forum of your choice. then people can comment on it from there. just a thought but the point is... love the plans for new features, but tighter integration with the forums I think one of, if not, the most important as that just really makes this that much more an indespensible seamless part of the vbull system.

   perhaps combining them would be best showing first few replies here ...but actually using vbulltein. DEFINITELY gotta have it appear in the forums. imo
   
   
2. 
   BUG:
   
   don't know if this is just mine...but I can't get the default sort to work. I want it default on date created descending, but it always reverts back to TITLE.
   
   
3. anyone getting bugs with the BETA? I'm going to install if not...cause I'd love to have more category control.

[AndrewD]

Originally Posted by GrendelKhan{TSU

BUG:
don't know if this is just mine...but I can't get the default sort to work. I want it default on date created descending, but it always reverts back to TITLE.

How are you setting the default? If you set an overall value on the admin page, and you also set a default sort for a category (edit category), then the category's sort takes priority.

[AndrewD]

I have uploaded a second beta 2.1.1 into the first post in thread for testing and comment.

The only difference between this and the first beta is that the integration with user profiles has been redone, so that it is possible to connect LDM with any user profile field, see discussion between TundraSoul and me.

If you installed 2.1.1 beta 1, you must uninstall before installing the second beta

New features in 2.1.1 over 2.1.0:

Admin pages give better information when invalid parameter settings entered
Default permissions for new links taken from parent category rather than global default_forumid
Daily user file download and bandwidth limits available
File uploads retain their name when downloaded
New *cat_cols_display* setting controls # columns in catlist
New *can_save_musicbox* permission defines whether users see the open/save as hyperlink for Jukebox media files
QuickTime plugin included in Jukebox - *Warning* - if upgrading LDM, manually remove "mov" from *musicbox_filetypes_realplayer* filetypes
'Update to current time' checkbox added to Edit Link form
Uploads of thumbnail images available
UserProfile integration (off by default, set *profile_integration* to 1)
- 'Show MySearch' driven by parameters in User Profile
- Enable showing user's recent LDM hits in profile
Users with *can_moderate_link* can change (Ajax-enabled) name of user who submitted entry

Bugs fixed
- Phrase order in browser title changed to match VB's format
- Some unnecessary links removed from the Jukebox display
- Hard-coded phrases moved from plugins into phrases file

I have also translated the instructions file into html - see the /manual subdirectory in the zip file.

Please note:

- User Profile integration is not switched on by default - you need to set *profile_integration* in the admin settings. Then edit your profile - you should see two new items - 'My LDM Search' and 'My Recent LDM Hits'. Try putting some keywords into 'My LDM Search', then go back to LDM and use Show/My Search. Go to Quick Links/My Profile and you should see the last five items you visited/downloaded.

- File download and bandwidth settings are controlled by a new submenu item on the admin menu

- I have split up local_links.php into two files (local_links and local_links_search). Possibly in the process there are menu commands which don't work properly - please exercise these to look for bugs.

- There are some new phrases which need translation into French, German and Spanish - help please

As usual, please take a back up before installing. Upgrades are handled automatically by installing the product file on top of an existing installation. You can downgrade back to 2.1.0 if necessary by uninstalling and then reinstalling 2.1.0 - this will not lose your database.

[GrendelKhan{TSU]

Originally Posted by AndrewD

How are you setting the default? If you set an overall value on the admin page, and you also set a default sort for a category (edit category), then the category's sort takes priority.

ahha!! that did it. didn't realize it you could do per category too.

[GrendelKhan{TSU]

What would help me a lot is a couple of rough sketches of possible layouts. I'm not the greatest garphics artist! You don't need to do these in html - just somthing that gives me a sense of what you would find aesthetically 'clean'. Perhaps you could post this in the main thread for others to respond to.

I'll see if I can throw something together as well.

There are lots of little changes to UI of this that would help A LOT in making it look A LOT better and promote more usage of its features.

[Alfa1]

Andrew, this is great stuff! Your hack is a much apreciated expansion of my site.
I am having the following problem and I have been running round in circles to solve it:
I have full functionality ad admin. Other members only have the functionality of posting links, not uploading. They get the error: Error - unable to move uploaded file on server.
As far as I found the settings are right. Do you have any idea, what the problem is?

[AndrewD]

Originally Posted by Alfa1

Andrew, this is great stuff! Your hack is a much apreciated expansion of my site.
I am having the following problem and I have been running round in circles to solve it:
I have full functionality ad admin. Other members only have the functionality of posting links, not uploading. They get the error: Error - unable to move uploaded file on server.
As far as I found the settings are right. Do you have any idea, what the problem is?

I registered at your site and went into the 'Add Link' page and I can see the "Upload File" box. This should not be visible to me if you have configured your site so that other users cannot upload. Take a look at the "permissions" page - have you given registered users 'can_upload_files' privilege?