3.1. The preinstalled modules

Born as the heart of PHP-Nuke, it was the obligatory Home Page in previous versions. In the last versions it is instead possible to define which modules should appear as the default page. The News module expands its branches on more pages. The first one we see is a collection of the latest News published (it is possible , from the configuration panel [admin->preferences] to choose the number of latest news to be displayed, say 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30). In the main page only a small initial text of the news article is published. If the text is too large, it will be possible to read it whole by pressing the link "Read more". The article module has many elements that distinguish it from other ones. In the first place, the title, the topic, that is the main category and is usually characterized by an image that, if clicked, brings up a selection of the articles that belong to this topic. We have a second way to classify the articles, which is to assign them a category they are supposed to belong (see Figure 3-2)

It is a very simplified version of the news archive, cretated mainly from the need to visit the page via a Palm Pilot. AvantGO is a system for archiving and visualizing the pages on palmtop screens due to the fact the Palm Pilot has a very small screen and has a low resolution (and even a low bandwidth connection) so they require simplified pages.

This module is deeply branched and manages a file archive (present on our own or a third party site) offering the user various modes of interaction (see Figure 3-3).

Allows the user to send feedback and contact the webmaster of the site. The user just fills in the appropriate fields which are "Name", "E-Mail" and then the "Message Text". The system will then format an e-mail message that will arrive to the webmaster of the site.

It displays all the users registered on the site. It is possible to select the users on the basis of their basic information fields (name, nickname, personal homepage and e-mail address). It is also possible to obtain a complete list of all the users and to order it by real name, e-mail address or homepage.

All the registered users have access to an internal messaging system, thus being able to exchange messages with each other. In the login box of each user the number of messages that are archived for this user will be displayed, and there is a management functionality allowing for replies or deletions (see Figure 3-4).

This module is so you can send an e-mail to a friend recommending visiting our PHP-Nuke site. The message that will be sent to the friend must be configured by the administrator.

This module serves as an archive of product/services/site reviews. The book review must be inserted by the administrator but also from a user (a book review will need , in this case, be accepted by the administrator) who, after inserting a short description of the product then may express his judgment assigning a score to it. It is also possible to insert a descriptive image. The book reviews are cataloged in alphabetical order and the selection can be made based on starting letter.

It is the main search engine for PHP-Nuke, it does full text searches on articles, comments, sections, users and book reviews (see Figure 3-5). It is possible to make multiple searches (e.g.. an article of a certain category written by a certain author).

This module is a classification system like the topics. The articles inserted in this module do not appear in the news module, they can be displayed on more than one page and for this reason they are able to accommodate articles which are big in size. Every section can be associated with a different image. The article even provides a display system for printable pages.

The statistics module provides basic statistical information regarding use of the site. The information varies from the total number of displayed pages , to the type of browser and operating system used, up to the number of users that are registered, the version of PHP-Nuke used etc...(see Figure 3-6)

Archives all the articles by month enabling a chronological consultation. After having chosen the month, the corresponding articles are displayed with small flags besides them, visualizing the language they were written. Also in this plane it is possible to see the article in printable format and to send it to a friend. An inner search engine is also comprised as well as the display of details regarding the article, such as:

The users or the simple visitors of the site can propose to the administrator an article that will then be examined and, if approved, published. The users do not have all the possibility of classification that the administrator does, in fact they can only decide the article's title, the topic, the language and the text. They cannot classify it or choose if it should appear in the Home Page or not. And they can neither decide to publish it on a temporary basis.

Enables the administrator to create a survey that will later appear in a block or in the survey list. The users can vote on this survey (not more than once in 24 hours), and eventually comment. Moreover it is possible to display the list of the previous surveys and to consult their final results.

It lists the top 10 active ones of all our portal.

Lists the main categories of PHP-Nuke. Once we have entered this module, we will be able, by clicking on the corresponding icon of the topic we are interested in, to carry out a selection of articles and in automatic mode, to see all the articles corresponding to this topic. We are also presented with a small search interface to finish our search in the chosen context.

It is a collection of web links. This module has the exact same functionality as the Download module so there is no need to explain it any more.

It's the administration console for your "User Profile" (It only works for registered users), the implemented functions are (see Figure 3-7):

It is a module that lists all the categories (cross-sectional arguments to the topics, do you remember?), that lists, in the first instance all the present categories and once the category is selected, it lists all enclosed articles emphasizing the publication language.

It is a system for creating one or more word dictionaries. In the first selection scheme it requires you to enter the dictionary (displaying even a small flag that indicates the language), after the click we are invited to choose the letter that corresponds to the searched word or to use the inner search engine of the encyclopedia, once found it's enough to click on the word to discover its meaning.

It is an archive of Questions/Answers divided by category that can be consulted by the user as a first solution to his problems. He can divide the Questions/Answers by category in order to facilitate the consultation.

In version 5,6 - 6.0 of PHP-Nuke the Splatt forum is present. We still do not know if it will be integrated in successive versions to Nuke. I suggest to use it anyway, since it is a mature application and has an italian support comunity. The functionality implemented in this forum (on the user side) are many (see Figure 3-8), the forums are divided by category, have a dedicated inner search engine, users can associate to every post (participation in the forum) icons relating to the argument, cast a vote on a discussion, see various icons according to the degree of attention degree that a specific discussion has generated, see how many questions and answers a certain thread has received, see the profile of that user and many other functions...