I have a concrete need to add contact info to users.
I can of course hack something up, but this seems to basic that we'll want it in core. Something like:
- street addres, postal code, etc.
- IM names
- phone numbers
I know vaguely about Griffin's stuff, and I know that we're a global community, but I also know that we tend to make general solutions for really simple things, so ...
What should we do here?
1. Add the relevant columns to the users table, ignoring the complexities of the issue, and just providing a place to store the info. E.g. just provide enough fields that anybody anywhere in the world will be able to fit in their address somehow. Add IM columns for Y!M, AIM, ICQ, MSN, and Jabber, and don't try for the generic service-contract-based approach.
2. Build a generic 'Interface' mechanism a' la other OO tools, so you can make the 'user' object type 'implement' this 'contact info 'interface. This could be made arbitrarily complex.
3. Fork and do whatever the hell I want to, so long as I don't commit it to OpenACS.
I'd be inclined towards 1, just because it's so obviously useful and simple to do.
Thoughts?
/Lars