Contributors: A-Z Index

A

Name Photograph Title / Role Contributions / Notes
Allen Ellis Image Founder

Original designer for ocPortal

Also conceived and coded the Theme Wizard and Point Store

Son of one of the early inventors of Internet protocols (Usenet, aka Internet newsgroups)

Token non-brit

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C

Name Photograph Title / Role Contributions / Notes
Chris Graham Image Founder

Original developer of ocPortal, former lead developer of Composr CMS

Masters degree in Computer Science from The University Of Sheffield

Undertaken work for over 15 FTSE-100 companies, as well as many small and mid-sized organisations. Includes a number of banks and major brands.

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Chris Warburton developer for ocProducts

Made some key contributions to ocPortal

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H

Name Photograph Title / Role Contributions / Notes
Haydn Maidment project manager for ocProducts

None available

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J

Name Photograph Title / Role Contributions / Notes
Jim Davidson contributor

written many tutorials via Arvixe

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P

Name Photograph Title / Role Contributions / Notes
Patrick Schmalstig Image Lead Developer

Joined Chris Graham behind the scenes in the development of Composr CMS in 2016.

Took on the lead developer role in 2023 when Chris Graham stepped back to attend to his new lifestyle changes.

Spearheaded the development of Composr CMS v11 and the new website, Composr.app.

Formed the company PDStig, LLC to take on professional support and development for Composr CMS users especially after the discontinuation of ocProducts, Ltd.

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Philip Withnall Early Developer

Coded the chatroom, blogging support, the analytics system, and OcCLE (now Commandr)

Masters Degree in Computer Science degree from The University Of Cambridge

Other work has included helping out with Firefox, and ongoing work on GNOME

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R

Name Photograph Title / Role Contributions / Notes
Robert Goacher Image Founder

Ran some of the early websites where ocPortal came from

Technically the original developer of ocPortal, in that he wrote the first few lines of code

Heavily involved in the feature design process

Hosted some of our early meet-ups

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S

Name Photograph Title / Role Contributions / Notes
Steve Jarvis project manager for ocProducts

Wrote many tutorials via Arvixe

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Newest 10 Entries

Question What are some of the default endpoints available in the server-side API?
Answer Default endpoints cover various functionalities, including:
  • Account: join, login, lost_password, setup_push_notifications
  • Misc: contact_us
  • Content: commandr_fs

Specific details on parameters and response data for each endpoint can be found in the documentation.
Question How does authentication work with the server-side API?
Answer Authentication is handled automatically using cookies, similar to regular website requests. If cookies are not feasible, the response parameters device_auth_member_id_cn/device_auth_pass_hashed_cn/device_auth_member_id_vl/device_auth_pass_hashed_vl from the login endpoint can be resent as POST parameters in subsequent requests.
Question How do I access the server-side API for my mobile app?
Answer The server-side API can be accessed via HTTP calls to http://yourbaseurl/data/endpoint.php. Results are returned in JSON format. The API utilizes endpoints with a 'hook' name and a 'hook type' categorization. Both REST-style and GET-parameter style requests are supported, with the latter recommended for simplicity.
Question What is the purpose of the Composr Mobile SDK Toolkit?
Answer The Toolkit, part of the composr_mobile_sdk addon, aids in mirroring Composr website resources into a mobile app. It includes tools for generating iOS/Android string resources from language files and exporting theme images in a directory structure suitable for iOS/Android app image assets.
Question How can I obtain Composr Mobile SDK?
Answer The iOS/Android SDK can be found on GitLab at: Composr ecosystem / Composr Mobile SDK · GitLab.

To connect to a Composr site, you will need to install the composr_mobile_sdk addon, which is not bundled. This addon provides scripting to generate app assets from the Composr site.
Question What is Composr Mobile SDK?
Answer Composr Mobile SDK (CMS SDK) is a toolkit designed for experienced iOS and Android developers to build mobile apps that integrate with a Composr-powered website. It offers both Composr-specific integrations and a collection of standalone utilities for building apps, providing a common base between iOS and Android akin to the PHP and Composr APIs, enabling easier code porting while maintaining a native experience.
Question What is the Composr maintenance policy?
Answer Composr follows a rolling release model. This means:
  • New major/minor versions are released as they are ready.
  • Patch releases, primarily containing bug fixes, are only released for the latest supported major/minor version branch.
Users are responsible for staying updated to the latest release or applying necessary hotfixes.

This policy allows developers to focus resources on the latest versions and encourages users to leverage the ongoing improvements. You can find the release status on the Composr maintenance status page.
Question What are the general courtesy guidelines for interacting with the Composr community?
Answer
  • Understand that Composr is developed and maintained by volunteers who dedicate their time to the project.
  • Refrain from demanding free support or expecting developers to work on specific schedules.
  • Avoid placing undue pressure on volunteers or pushing them beyond their capacity.
  • Approach the community with respect and a collaborative spirit.
  • Remember that offering financial sponsorship for desired features can accelerate development.
Question How can I provide design feedback for Composr?
Answer Constructive design feedback is valuable. To provide effective feedback:
  • Be specific and detailed. Identify particular issues and provide clear examples.
  • Offer solutions. Suggest improvements or provide mockups demonstrating your ideas.
  • Avoid vague statements. General comments like "it looks dated" are unhelpful.
  • Understand design constraints. Consider factors like modularity, generality, feature density, compatibility, performance, and the subjective nature of design.
Directly reporting specific design bugs to the tracker or redesigning Composr interfaces yourself are excellent ways to contribute.
Question How do I make a feature suggestion for Composr?
Answer You can suggest features through the tracker or the Report Issue Wizard. When making a suggestion:
  • Be comprehensive and self-contained. Provide all necessary information and context for the developers to understand your suggestion.
  • Focus on widely beneficial features. Esoteric suggestions are less likely to be implemented.
  • Understand developer constraints. Feature development depends on factors like developer availability, funding, and project strategy.
  • Consider sponsoring features. Financial contributions can prioritize the development of desired features as it affords developers the time to implement it.

Top 10 Entries

Question What are gift points, and how do they work?
Answer Gift points are a separate points balance that can only be sent to other members as gifts. They cannot be spent directly or used in escrow transactions.

Gift points are earned daily based on usergroup membership and replenish independently of the regular points balance. When a member sends gift points, they become regular points for the recipient.
Question Can members send points to each other?
Answer Yes, members can send points to each other as a token of appreciation, reward for a service, or as part of an agreement using the Points Escrow system.
Question How does content validation affect point earning?
Answer Points are typically awarded immediately upon content submission to encourage participation. However, forum posts requiring validation only earn points after approval to deter spam. To further encourage high-quality content, consider using the "awards" addon to reward exceptional contributions.
Question Can I reward members who use specific browsers or operating systems?
Answer Yes, Composr allows you to configure bonus points based on browser/platform criteria. You can set bonus points for members using Open Source browsers, specific operating systems, or even those who have enabled privacy features like "Do Not Track" (DNT) or "Global Privacy Control" (GPC).
Question What's the difference between points balance and rank points?
Answer Points balance refers to the number of points a member currently has available to spend. This is the 'liquid' currency they can use for various actions.

Rank points represent the total points a member has accumulated throughout their time on the website. These points determine the member's rank, which can grant access to additional privileges and act as a status symbol.
Question How can members earn points on my Composr website?
Answer Members can earn points in various ways, including:
  • Joining the website: A welcome bonus for new members.
  • Daily visits: Encourage regular engagement.
  • Content interactions: Liking, rating, and submitting various forms of content.
  • Forum participation: Posting and having posts validated.
  • Chatroom activity: Reward active participation in chatrooms.
  • Quizzes and polls: Encourage learning and engagement.
  • Website recommendations: Reward referrals.
  • Receiving points from other members: Facilitate community appreciation.
  • Selling downloads: Monetize content creation.
  • Birthdays: Offer a special bonus on their birthdays.

Most earning methods can be customized in the Admin Zone > Setup > Configuration > Points options to fit your website's needs.
Question What are cleanup tools in Composr and how do I use them?
Answer Cleanup tools assist with website maintenance by deleting unnecessary data and optimizing database tables. They are divided into "De-cachers" and "Optimizers". You can access them through:

Admin Zone > Tools > Cleanup tools.
Question How can I access PHP-Info in Composr?
Answer PHP-Info provides a comprehensive overview of your PHP configuration. You can access it within Composr by navigating to Admin Zone > Tools > PHP-Info / Server Checks.

This page also provides additional useful server information.
Question What is the purpose of the Health Check feature in Composr?
Answer The Health Check feature in Composr proactively identifies potential issues that may affect your website's performance, security, and overall health. It performs various checks and alerts you to problems like:
  • Broken links and forms
  • Security vulnerabilities
  • Outdated software versions
  • Server performance issues
  • Email configuration problems

The Health Check can be run manually or scheduled to run automatically and send e-mail notifications of results.
Question How can I use Content Delivery Networks (CDNs) to enhance my website?
Answer CDNs improve website performance by serving content from geographically distributed servers, reducing latency and server load. You can leverage CDNs for your Composr website by:
  • Configuring the CDN option in Composr with a comma-separated list of CDN domain names.
  • Ensuring your files are mirrored on the CDN servers.
  • Utilizing the CDN_FILTER directive and symbol to control what content is served via CDN.