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cyberSaps business: blogging news, internet biz, communities, UK angle
A pure blogging company. With history (4 years 211 days ) in hosting Manila weblogging communities and building customised blogging environments for a range of companies and Government quangos. The latest project: building the intranet for the Government Office for the West Midlands, based entirely on Manila. Next project: their internet and extranet. See more details on services and history.

10 September 2004   

 

Marc Canter in London

"It'll be great to see peeps and schmooze about micro-content."

Marc Canter's European Tour: I've signed up for the London gig. Though I won't be able to stay very late, I'll have a last train to catch back up to Telford, I think it'll be worth while, just to get to meet some real faces. Matt Mower I've been meaning to meet for some time, and of course Julian Bond. Luke Razzell, I've met in the Summer.


1936 Also posted to: Home page . At: 4:02:02 PM  . .
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Other title(s) for this story: Marc Canter's London micro content London gig   Micro content in London  

 

 

Address book plug in for Manila

From graphics to programming. For the past few days I've been working deep in Manila. Specifically, an addressbook for the Government Office's intranet. Based on John VanDyk's metaData plugin.

Search across searches
This is version two. This time, everything is linked. So, not only can you browse the whole A to Z listing of names, but you can look up other people who are of the same department, team, location or grade. Also you can see who's an individual's line manager (and their line manager), and who else they line manage.

Shortcuts
Using Manila's "shortcut" feature, people can add global shortcuts for:

  • individual record pages
  • email addresses
  • mugshots
  • phone numbers
Anywhere throughout the installation, that's anywhere in any sub Manila site. Just add "Steve Hooker" "Steve Hooker email" or "Steve Hooker mugshot" or "Steve Hooker phone" and it'll expand as expected. (Not that I'm in the employee list.)

Mugshots
Currently, I've had to swap the actual mugshots for silhouettes. Though, I loaded their ID badge images, the 'management' aren't keen, or is that the unions? Still, the idea is that each person, 'owns' their individual record. That is, in Manila parlance, they're the member who posted their message. So, they can log in, normally, and edit their message (record) even uploading a nicer picture, than their standard ID mugshot.

FOAF
I expect over time, that this will be fun. What? A work's address book fun? Why not? If they can upload their own image, they could upload several. Pictures of their cat, of their holidays. Links to other sites. It could become much more than a regular phone book, somewhere where they browse for laughs. Linking to other work colleagues looking at friends of a friend. Hmmm. This is all sounding rather familiar, like a social network?

Well, considering that there are many bloggers within the Government Office as it is, we're not to far away from every person having a Manila blog. Technically, we're there (have been for 4+ years), it's a political problem, like the mugshots.

surname listing2

One of the results pages: the listings for the 'A' surnames. They all look alike, no matter what you're searching across: all the Daves in Personnel, the extension number 1234, all the green team membrs on the fifth floor. All the people who list strategy as part of their role. Return, Pete, Peter. Or, if I search for Bob show me Roberts too.

Clicking on a department, team, location or grade will find others of the same grade or in the same location, presented as a similar surname sorted list.

individual record

This page is merely a Manila message containing a metaData template.
Grey mugshots - simply by uploading a new picture they can overwrite the silhouette (disabled, currently). Of course, it thumbnails to the correct size invisibly.

Managing Editors, i.e. the officers who work in personnel, can see Manila's normal Admin box where they can: "Delete this story" a nice euphemism for sacking people ;-) They can undelete and thus re-employ.

Editors don't have to worry about editing Manila's hierarchy, this is done automatically, from which is built the folder structure seen to the left. Very low maintenance - eveything works in the background.

edit record

This is their editable page. Add nicknames, edit role. Pick from drop lists for: department, team, location, grade. Version three, I guess will extend this section to allow friends, hobbies, for sale items, other departments they've worked in...

There's an additional Managing Editor's plug in, that bulk emails those who haven't edited their record for a while, or those who haven't modified a particular item in their record, say if a line manager is replaced.

 


1935 Also posted to: Home page . At: 1:50:14 PM  . .
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Other title(s) for this story: Address book plug in for Manila