Thread

Hi! My first posting of this question was met with a resounding silence (oops), so I’m posting it again, edited and simplified. I’d really appreciate thoughts or suggestions!

We’re planning a site with multiple group workspaces, similar to Google Groups or Groups on Facebook, and are wondering how to approach this in EE. I’m a project manager working with a PHP developer. We’re both new to EE but impressed by it and hopeful we can find a way to make it work. The developer’s used CodeIgniter and thinks it’s great.

This will be community area for a non-profit organization, whose small staff manages initiatives with large networks of partners. Each group workspace needs to include a discussion forum, files, and a calendar. The main site structure will be something like this:

- Community area home page
    * Calendar
    - Initiative A
        * Calendar
        - Group 1
            * Calendar
            - Discussion Forum
                - Topic 1
                    - Thread
                    - Thread
                * Topic 2
            * Files
            * Group Member List
        * Group 2
    - Initiative B
        * Group 1
        * Group 2
    * Etc

Site managers need to be able to easily add new group workspaces, ideally pre-configured with the basic components (discussion forum, files, and a calendar). The look-and-feel for each group workspace should be consistent, so the same template (or a duplicate) would be applied to all.

Is this do-able in EE? Anyone done anything like it? How might you go about it, knowing EE as you do? Should I post this question someplace else?

We’ve looked at using MSM but that would isolate each group in its own sub-domain ... and that won’t fly. Groups need to share the same site, creating a visible and navigable community space.

Thanks!

::Laura

[The original post is here: http://ellislab.com/forums/viewthread/63841/ ]

Hi,

This is my second, make that (now) third attempt to get some input from experienced EE users on using EE to build group workspaces—but no response. I’m not sure what to make of this.

- The question is too broad, difficult, and/or complex?
- The solution is obvious?
- No one’s done anything like group workspaces in EE before?
- Something like this would be very hard to do in EE, especially creating a replicable group space content type, or embedding forums in multiple folders/subdirectories—or both?
- This question should be posted someplace else?
- A spell has been cast over this question so that it appears to be jibberish to everyone but me?
- It really *is* jibberish to everyone but me (and Jeff, the developer)?

Here’s a narrower approach to the issue:

- Can MSM be used/adapted to manage subdirectories instead of subdomains?
- Could forum “categories” be used to distribute forums (or appear to distribute forums) to different “weblogs” (sections of a site)? Thing is, site members should be able to browse all groups but only post to the groups they’re in. So, forums need to appear as if they’re in different group workspaces (folders/subdirectories) with permissions keyed to the group membership rules.

I’ll also try posting this to pre-sales, but “How to” seemed to be the most appropriate place.

still hopeful for a repl(ies),

thanks!

::Laura

Hi Laura,

Please do not double and triple post the same thing. The most likely reason you’re not getting responses is that this is a very complex and in-depth question. Its beyond the scope of tech support to advise you on how to build your site.

Your best bet is to dig in and try different things. Based on what you want EE to accomplish I’d say you’re in for some customization as there is no way to automate a self-managed web site (groups) out of the box with EE. EE is not designed to power web applications like Facebook or Google Groups which probably explain the lack of replies you are getting. Your other options would to place an ad on the Job Board or hire an EE consultant from the Pro Network.

- Can MSM be used/adapted to manage subdirectories instead of subdomains?

Yes, MSM docs.

- Could forum “categories” be used to distribute forums (or appear to distribute forums) to different “weblogs” (sections of a site)? Thing is, site members should be able to browse all groups but only post to the groups they’re in. So, forums need to appear as if they’re in different group workspaces (folders/subdirectories) with permissions keyed to the group membership rules.

I’d say overall MSM is probably your best bet to get the Groups feature you’re after. You can use forum alias to create multiple forums in conjunction with MSM.

Hi, Leslie,

Thanks so much for responding and sorry for the multiple postings.

Its beyond the scope of tech support to advise you on how to build your site.

Someone in Pre-Sales/TechSupport suggested I post to the forums to see how other people might approach this, hence this post to “How To”. But, I’m still trying to determine whether or not EE is the best platform for this, so I re-posted to pre-sales. Anyway, my apologies.

Based on what you want EE to accomplish I’d say you’re in for some customization as there is no way to automate a self-managed web site (groups) out of the box with EE.

OK, that’s what we’re trying to determine, how much customization vs. configuration will be required. To be clear, though, these group workspaces will be created, managed, and archived by site admins—that is, staff at the organization—not by site/group members themselves. So the analogy with Google Groups wasn’t entirely apt.

But we are looking to provide a kind of group workspace “content type” available through the control panel that the organization’s non-technical staff can manage on their own.

We’ll delve into MSM to see how close/far it will take us and perhaps bring in a consultant from the Pro network. Again, sorry to harangue the forums with this! Just trying to get an idea of what would be entailed to accomplish this in EE.

Thanks,

::Laura