Forum OpenACS Q&A: Ideas for Bookmark enhancement

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1: Ideas for Bookmark enhancement
Posted by Malte Sussdorff on 08/05/03 09:29 AM
First of all, let me ask the question, do we need a seperate bookmark module, or would it make more sense to port the existing functionality to File-Storage.

Now, as for enhancements:

  • It should be possible to have a joined bookmark space. This should at least be possible for every package_id.
    • When you add a bookmark, you should have the option to say, this is a private bookmark (only I can see), a public bookmark (all can see, but it is my bookmark), a group bookmark (it is a group bookmark and only the group can see it) or a public group bookmark (group bookmark, public to all).
    • When you display bookmarks you should easily be able to see your private bookmarks or the group bookmarks or both.
    • Benefit: I could add bookmarks to a common space where my peers can have a look at them and gain from the information I found (especially all the valuable nuggets about good development with OpenACS).
  • Replace folder structure with categories
    • Instead of having a folder structure, you have a categorie hierarchy. One is for yourself, one is for the group (if available).
    • When adding a bookmark, you choose one or more categories from each of the hierarchies.
    • When displaying bookmarks, the categories will be displayed in the hierarchy structure instead of the current folder view. From a user point of view there should not be the need to change the UI.
    • It remains to be discussed, how to aggregate bookmarks stored in your private scope and the group scope.
    • Benefits: You will not have to add a category to each bookmark if you want to use the category system. You can have multiple folder structures.
  • Add notifications to bookmarks. Benefit should be obvious :).
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2: Re: Ideas for Bookmark enhancement (response to 1)
Posted by Tom Jackson on 08/05/03 06:09 PM

There is a UI problem with associating bookmarks with a group. First, how do you choose the group? Users have to become intimately involved in the details of OpenACS Group management. Second: choosing bookmarks you can see. You would need to do a join to the party_approved_member_map or permission_p on each bookmark.

I have been looking at ways around these problems for a similar package that I mentioned a month or so ago called media. The idea of the package was to allow users to 'attach' media, being photos, word docs, links, to other database 'rows' and 'attributes'. The attachments could be private or public (and maybe approved/unapproved?). Still, absolute control over access to the media attachment would maybe not be possible in every case. Private media would be secure, but public media probably would only require read on the media package. This would allow media to 'show up' in context with everything else that inspired the reason to attach, maybe this is good, maybe not. The package would allow configuration on where media could be attached.

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3: Re: Ideas for Bookmark enhancement (response to 2)
Posted by Malte Sussdorff on 08/05/03 06:42 PM
if we use bookmarks based on package_id, then we have public and package_based group bookmarks. This should be fine as the user just has a decision to make, whether the scope is private or package based (though we call it group based). No need to select a group involved.