Emaze Forums: Help!

General Information

Terminology Directories Permissions Alias files Logging in Use of cookies Included files Security, Anon login Files (separate html file) Database setup (separate html file) What to do upon initializing Emaze Forums

System Information

System path, URL, domain name, Cold Fusion datasource, anon cookie, post in HTML Aliases, logout URL, cookie login, search, new user group(s) Attachment options Manage attachments Email subscription template Master user info Body tag Bad login screen, no permission screen Home page header and footer Login screen header and footer Add, edit user screen headers Search query, results headers

Conference

Edit an existing conference       Name, description, aliases       New user group; message, forum order; logout URL, anonymous login           options, cookie login, search options, moderated, include index       Body tag       Forums included, custom forum order       Group permissions       Header and footer files             Homepage header and footer             Login screen header and footer             Add user screen header             Conference forum header, footer             Search query, search results headers Create a new conference Default New Conference Settings Conference Status (active / inactive, delete)

Forum

Edit an existing forum       Name, description, header, footer, status       Conferences including       Users with admin permission Create a new forum Default Forum Options Forum Status (active / inactive / archived, delete)

Group

Edit an existing Group       Name, description       List, remove users from group       Add new users       Change conference(s) permissions Create new group Delete groups

User

Edit, delete existing users Create new users Import new users

Terminology
system	Collection of all conferences. The system includes everything.
conference	Collection of forums. Level at which most options, permissions are set.
forum	Collection of messages. A forum can be in multiple conferences, allowing the same forum to list messages in a different order and even be moderated for one group, but not another..
alias	File which allows you to use any URL for users to log in, enter anonymously, or go to add user screen. Must be a valid filename. Emaze Forums automatically places a .cfm extension after the alias.
anon	Users may enter a conference or the system without a username, i.e., they enter anonymously.
group	Collection of users. Used for assigning permissions. Users may belong to multiple groups, in which case they are given the maximum combined permissions.
admin	Users may be given admin permission to a forum, meaning they can delete all messages and moderate (approve, reject new messages).
master	Primary admin user. (It is called master since that is the initial username.) Master is the only user with access to the Admin screens. Master also has full permissions to Emaze Forums, including admin access to all forums.

Directories
admin	Files which runs the admin screens.
attachments	Stores attachments. Each forum is a subdirectory by forumID name. Directory can be anywhere. It does not need to be within EmazeForums.
conf	Stores conference settings, including body tag, headers, footers, and various settings for quicker retrieval (rather than database). Each file name begins with the confID.
default	Default settings for new conferences and forums.
forum	Settings for each forum. Each file name begins with the forumID.
program	Files which run the user interface (you know, the actual program).
system	Stores system options, including body tag, headers, footers, and other settings.

Permissions
read	Read approved messages in conference
post	Post new messages, reply to existing messages
create	Create new forums within that conference. Must be a unique forum name.
emailSubscription	Subscribe to a message to be emailed when responses are posted. (login users only)
postAttachments	Upload attachments, subject to the attachment restrictions.
delete	Delete their own messages (login users only)

Alias Files

Alias	Conference URL	System URL
login	http://www.domain.com/EmazeForums/program/login.cfm?confID=1	logins.cfm
anon	http://www.domain.com/EmazeForums/program/anonLogin.cfm?confID=1	anonLogins.cfm
add user	http://www.domain.com/EmazeForums/program/adduser.cfm?confID=1	addusers.cfm

Emaze Forums will place the alias files in the EmazeForums directory. However, you are welcome to move them anywhere on your server by adjusting the page that is called. Below is the include statement that is currently used:

<CFINCLUDE TEMPLATE="program/login.cfm">

<CFINCLUDE TEMPLATE="EmazeForums/program/login.cfm">

Logging into Emaze Forums

• Anonymously: No username or password required. This assumes the conference permits anon users.
• Username: User enters username and password at login screen.
• Cookie: User with username and password has permanent cookie which automatically logs them in. This assumes the option is available to users in the conference and the user chose this option.

Use of cookies in Emaze Forums

Upon logging in to Emaze Forums with a usename, or via the anon method when cookies are enabled for anon users, Emaze Forums will create 3 temporary cookies in the user's browser:

EmazeForums_userID	Stores either the user's individual userID for login users or -1 for for anon users.
EmazeForums_confs	Stores the conferences for which the user has at least read permission.
EmazeForums_permissions	Stores the permissions for the conference the user is currently in as well as the forums for which the user has admin permission. This cookie is updated whenever the user switches conferences.

Other cookies
EmazeForums_master	Temporary cookie used only for the Emaze Forums admin screens to ensure that only the Master user may access these screens.
EmazeForums_login	Permanent cookie for users who choose the automatic login via cookie option.

Included files

1. Store commonly-used values to avoid unnecesary database queries (increases the speed of Emaze Forums)
2. Allow you to easily customize many aspects of your discussion forums

Security, Anon Login

If a user without the require cookie attempts to either log into a conference or read a particular forum, the system will first look for the cookie to ensure the user has the proper permissions. If the cookie exists, but the user does not have the necessary permissions, Emaze Forums will not allow the action.

If there is no cookie, Emaze Forums will check the anon permissions for that conference. If the anon user has the necessary permissions (namely "read") it will automatically log the user into Emaze Forums as an anon user. This is useful for sending users directly to a particular forum, or even message, without first going to the conference or system homepage.

What to do upon initializing Emaze Forums

1. Change the username and password for master. (link)
2. If you intend to allow users to log into the system, i.e., all conferences for which they have permission, create the system alias files. (link)
3. If you intend to allow attachments, set the attachment options, including the directory where attachments are stored and the type of attachments permitted. (link)
4. If you intend to let users subscribe to messages, edit the email subscription template. (link)
5. If you intend to allow users to log into the system, customize the headers and footers of the home page and login screen. (login, homepage)
6. Edit the default options for new conferences, including the basic options and the various headers and footers. (link)
7. Create the conferences. (link)
8. If you will be allowing users to add themselves to the user database in individual conferences, create an adduser alias for the conference. (link)
9. Set the default options for new forums, i.e., the header and footer options. (link)
10. If you want initial forums in your conferences, create the forums. (link)
11. Create groups, or at least assign permissions to the various conferences for the Everyone group, which already exists. (create, assign)
12. Create new users or import existing users. (create, import)

System

• Login screen
• Add user screen
• Homepage
• Edit user screen
• Search screen

System path, URL, domain name, Cold Fusion datasource

The system path is the path to the EmazeForums directory on the server. The system URL is the full URL to the EmazeForums directory. The Cold Fusion datasource is the name of the datasource for the Emaze Forums database as determined in the Cold Fusion Administrator.

The anon cookie option writes a temporary cookie to a user's browser then entering the system via the anonymous access method. This is quicker than not using a cookie, but we have provided this option for sites which do not prefer to use cookies. Cookies are still necessary for users who log in via a username.

The domain name is the domain name and extension or the IP address. It is used to write a permanent cookie for users who choose the automatic login via cookie option. The domain name is also used for temporary cookies to ensure other servers cannot read them. If you are entering a domain name, be sure to include a period (.) before the domain name, e.g., ".emaze.com" . However, if you are entering an IP address, do not include the period, e.g., "127.0.0.1" .

The post in HTML option enables users to include full HTML in their messages. If this option is checked, posting in HTML is allowed for all users in all conferences. If not checked, all ampersands (&), double quotes ("), open brackets (<) and close brackets (>) are escaped to render them harmless. Please note that allowing HTML posts could create security issues if a user inserts JavaScript code in their message.

Aliases, logout URL, new user group(s)

The system aliases are the primary URLs for Emaze Forums. There are 3 types of aliases: login, anon login, and add user. The login alias takes the user to the system login screen, where they enter their username and password. After logging in, they are sent to the system homepage, assuming they have permission to do so. The anon login alias sends users directly to the system homepage, assuming that anon users are permitted to do so. The add user alias takes the user to the system add user screen.

The logout URL is the URL users are forwarded to after logging out of Emaze Forums. Each conference has its own logout URL. This is the system logout URL for when users log out from a system screen, e.g., the system homepage.

The cookie login option determines whether users may login automatically via a permanent cookie. Users must choose this option on the add user and/or edit user screen though. Please note that allowing the system cookie login will log the user into all conferences for which they have permission regardless of the cookie login setting for that conference. In other words, if you do not allow cookie login to certain conferences but do to the system, when users log into the system rather than a specific conference, the system cookie setting will override all individual conference settings. (This may present a security issue if you have conferences which require a high level of security where you do not want to allow cookie login. If necessary, we can customize Emaze Forums for you to change how this works.)

Allow users to search by author, date of message, subject, and/or message text. Only those options which are checked will be displayed on the search query screen. The search options apply to all users regardless of their individual permissions. These options enable users to search all conferences for which they have at least read permission regardless of the search permissions for the individual conferences. Only approved messages are searched, regardless of the moderated settings of the conferences. While this may prevent some messages from being returned, we did this primarily to reduce search time. This only affects users with admin permission for a forum and instances where a forum is included in both a moderated and non-moderated conference, meaning a message may be viewable to some users but not others.

The new user group is the group(s) users are added to after adding themselves to the user database. (Groups are used for assigning permissions in each conference.) After creating their username, users are automatically forwarded to the system homepage, assuming they have permission to do so.

Attachment options (directory, extensions allowed/disallowed)

The attachment options include the directory where attachments are stored and the file extensions allowed. You must enter the path to the directory where attachments will be stored as well as the URL to that directory. The default setting is to use the attachments directory within the EmazeForums directory, but you may use any directory. Emaze Forums will create a subdirectory for each forum which has an attachment. This is done to make it less likely that more than user will try to upload a file with the same name. (When this happens, Emaze Forums will rename the new file.)

There are 3 options for which file extensions may be uploaded:

• No restrictions
• Allow only designated extensions
• Allow all but designated extensions

Regardless of the attachment settings, a user must be given permission to upload attachment, either via the anon permissions or the group permissions. There are 5 file extensions which are specifically not allowed, regardless of your attachment restrictions. These are: cfm, cgi, dll, exe, and pl. This is done because the server will attempt to execute these files when users try to download them, which is a major security problem. When a file with one of these extensions is uploaded, Emaze Forums will add a doc (MS Word) extension to the name to render them harmless. If you include one of these extensions in the list of extensions which are not allowed, Emaze Forums will simply not allow the upload.

Manage attachments (view, delete)

This screen enables you to view the details on the attachments uploaded by users, and delete attachments without deleting the actual message. (This is one of Emaze Forums' 3 confusing screens. The others are for editing users and adding users to groups.)

When an attachment is uploaded, Emaze Forums creates a directory for the forum in the attachments directory if one does not already exist. However, directories are not deleted if the message or attachment is deleted. The directory name is the forum ID, which is a number assigned in the order in which the forum was created.

The top frame presents a list of directories with their corresponding forum name. Only forums (i.e., directories) which have at least one attachment are included in the list. Just click on the directory name for a list of attached files in that directory. The list will be displayed in the bottom frame. This enables you to move between directories without backing up to the initial screen.

The files will initially be listed in alphabetical order, but you can click on the heading to order them by size (largest to smallest) or date uploaded (newest to oldest). In a later version, we will add the information of the user who uploaded the attachment as well. To delete the file(s), check the checkbox in that row, and then click on the "Delete Attachments" button at the bottom of the page. To ensure you do not accidently delete the attachments, you must also check the checkbox below the "Delete Attachments" button to delete the attachments.

Email subscription template

This page contains the various settings for the emails sent to users who subscribe to a message. Please note that only users who have their own username may subscribe to a message. The options on this screen are as follows:

From name	Name of who the email is from. This can be a person's name, your company name, the name of the discussion forum, etc.
From email	Email address of who the email is from. This should probably be a standard webmaster email address.
Subject	Subject of message
Email server	Mail server used to send the email.
Body	Body of email which appears at the top of the message.

You can also choose to include the following:

• Message date/time posted
• Name of poster
• Email address of poster
• Message subject
• Message
• URL to message

Master user info (username, password, etc.)

Update the username and password for the Master user. The default username is master but you may change it. Master is the only user who can access the Emaze Forums Admin screens. You can also change the first name, last name, and email address of Master. However, at this time, Master cannot actually log into Emaze Forums as a user. This is to avoid accidently deleting the Master user. Master is userID 0 (zero).

Body tag

The system body tag is used on the system pages. This is the same screen as the conference body tag screen. You can choose the bgcolor, background, text, link, alink, and vlink settings. You may also include any other body tags you wish in the Other text field.

To choose the body tag settings for bgcolor, text, link, alink, and vlink, you can either choose from the select list of options or enter another color. Just check the proper radio button. When editing the body tag, the current option will be listed in the text field, with the default option in the select list being the default value. If using a background or other tags, you must check the checkbox.

Bad login screen (incorrect username/password), no permission screen

The bad login screen is displayed when a user attempts to log into Emaze Forums, but did not use the correct username / password combination. The page will inform the user that the username and/or password was not correct, and re-display the login screen. There is no need to tell the user to back up and try again. For security purposes, Emaze Forums will not say which field was incorrect.

The no permission page is displayed when a user attempts to log into Emaze Forums, but does not have read permission. For a conference login, the user (or anon user) does not have read permission for that conference. For system login, the user does not have read permission for at least one conference.

The same screens are used for both normal and anon login users, and for all conferences and the system itself. (If you are interested in customizing either screen based on the user or the particular conference, it can be done by using a CFIF statement in this template. Like all included files, you may include text, HTML, and/or Cold Fusion tags.

Homepage header and footer

As the title implies, these are the header and footer of the system homepage. The header is everything after the navigation buttons to the table for the first conference which lists the forums it includes. The footer begins after the last conference table and ends before the navigation buttons.

Login screen header and footer

These are the header and footer of the system login screen. The header is everything after the body tag to the table containing the username and password text fields, and the Log in button. The footer begins after the table is closed and goes to the end of the file. You are welcome to position the table by using an opening CENTER or UL tag at the end of the login header, and the corresponding closing tag at the beginning of the footer.

Add, edit user screen headers

These are the headers of the system add user screen and the edit user screen. You can customize the add user screen for each conference, but the edit user screen is the same across all conferences, so the system header is always used.

Search query, results headers

These are the headers of the search query and search results screens. The search results are listed beneath the search query.

Conference

• Login screen
• Add user screen
• Home page
• Search screen
• Forum pages (you know, the messages)

Edit an existing conference

When editing the conference options, first choose the conference to edit from the select list at the top of the page. Then choose which options to edit by checking the appropriate radio button. If editing group permissions for that conference, be sure to choose the group(s) you want to edit. You will then be presented with the screen to edit that information. After submitting your changes, Emaze Forums will make the appropriate changes in the database and/or text files, and then re-display the Edit conference screen with a note at the top saying which information has been updated.

Name, description, aliases

This screen enables you to change the conference name, description and aliases for the login, anon login, and add user URLs. The conference name is used in headings and the title tag. For any of the changes to take effect, you must check the checkbox. Replacing an existing alias with nothing will delete the alias.

New user group; message, forum order; logout URL, anonymous login options,
    cookie login, search options, moderated, include index

This is the screen where the basic conference options are set. They include:

Logout URL

Page users are sent to after logging out of Emaze Forums.

New user group(s)

Group(s) users are added to when they add themselves to the user database. Determines their initial permissions.

Message Order

Order in which messages are listed in the forum. Can be threaded (indented), chronological, or reverse chronoligical. Can be changed at any time.

Forum Order

Order in which forums are listed on homepage and in select list to switch forums. Can be chronological, reverse chronological, alphabetical, reverse alphabetical, or a custom order determined on the Forums Included screen. If a custom order is chosen, new forums will be added to the end of the list. This includes new forums created by Master as well as users.

Access Options

Choose to allow users to login automatically via a permanent cookie. Users must choose this option on the add user and/or edit user screen though. Set the anon user permissions: read, post, create new forums, and upload attachments. Anon users may not delete their own messages or subscribe to messages.

Search Options

Allow users to search by author, date of message, subject, and/or message text. Only those options which are checked will be displayed on the search query screen. The search options apply to all users regardless of their individual permissions.

Other Options

Choose whether the conference is moderated, i.e., messages must be approved by a user with admin permission. (Note that admin permission is granted on a forum basis rather than conference basis.) Because a forum can be in multiple conferences, it is possible for a forum to be moderated in one conference, but not another. In this instance, users in the non-moderated conference will see all messages regardless of whether they are approved, while users in the moderated conference will see only approved messages.

Include index determines whether the index is displayed at the top of the forum. The index lists the message subject, author and date in the message order. You can also choose tu automatically create links for any URLs and email addresses included in the message. (Please note that this is not currently offered, but it will be included in a future version.)

Body tag

Same as system option except it is customized for each conference.

Forums included, custom forum order

This is where you choose which forums are included in the conference. It is possible for a conference to include no forums, just as it is possible for a forum to not be included in any conferences.

To include a forum, highlight the forum(s) in the Non-Included select list and click on the "<" button to move them to the Included list. To remove a forum from the conference, highlight the forum(s) in the Included select list and then click on the ">" button to move them to the Non-Included list. Please note that removing a forum from a conference does not delete it.

When choosing which forums are included in the conference, you will notice the number in parantheses after each name. This is because you may use the same forum name for multiple forums. The number is the forumID which uniquely identifies each forum. The forumID is assigned when the forum is created and are assigned in numerical order based on when the forum was created. So a forum with a lower number was created earlier.

If a custom forum order is chosen, this screen also allows you to choose the custom order. Emaze Forums will present a series of select lists which contain all forums, one for each forum in the conference. You then choose what the first forum listed is, the second, and so on. Emaze Forums will check that a forum was not repeated.

Group Permissions

Permissions each group is granted for that conference. If a user belongs to multiple groups which have different permissions for a conference, the user will get the combined permissions.

Header and Footer Files:

To edit the header and footer files, the checkbox must be checked for each one to ensure you do not accidently update it. Each also includes a checkbox which will return the particular header/footer to the default value. (The default value is used when creating new conferences.) Regardless of the current setting, choosing to return to the default options will overwrite the current option.

Homepage header and footer

Same as system option except it is customized for each conference.

Login screen header and footer

Same as system option except it is customized for each conference.

Add user screen header

Same as system option except it is customized for each conference.

Conference forum header, footer

Header and footer for all forums which appear in the conference. You can choose to not include a header and/or footer, to customize it via the Emaze Forums admin screen, or to include a file which can be anywhere else on the server. Using an external file is convenient if you want ot use the same header and/or footer for all conferences. (Note that each forum can also have its own header and footer, which will appear in between the conference header and footer, i.e., after the conference header and before the conference footer.) If choosing an external file, be sure to use the full path to that file.

Search query, search results headers

Same as system option except it is customized for each conference.

Create a new conference

When creating a new conference, you must give a name for the conference. You may also choose to set the description, user login alias, and anon login alias. The description is optional. It is not currently used within Emaze Forums, but is there for notes to yourself or to be used on the system or conference home page. (Same with the forum description.) The user login alias is the URL (http://www.yourdomain.com/EmazeForums/alias.cfm) that users use to reach the conference login screen. The anon alias is the URL to reach the conference homepage via the anon login method. (If you want to create an alias for the add user screen, that can be done after creating the conference.)

When creating a new conference, Emaze Forums will ensure that the conference name is not already being used. If it is, it will ask you to choose a new conference name. Same goes for the login and anon aliases to avoid overwriting an existing alias.

Emaze Forums will create the new conference using the default settings for new conferences. The default settings includes the body tag, all headers and footers, and the basic options (forum order, message order, anon permissions, etc.). It includes everything except the add user alias, forums which are included in the conference, and group permissions for that conference.

Default New Conference Settings

The default options are used when new conferences are created. The default settings includes the body tag, all headers and footers, and the basic options (forum order, message order, anon permissions, etc.). It includes everything except the add user alias, forums which are included in the conference, and group permissions for that conference.

The default options are only used when new conference are created. They are not actively used in any of the conferencers. However, when editing the options for an existing conference, you can choose to return the headers and footers to the default settings.

Conference Status

The conference status is either active or inactive. If a conference is inactive, users may not enter the conference, including even to read messages. An inactive conference is not deleted; it is simply not allowing users to enter the conference at that time. Inactive conferences may be permanently deleted at the bottom of the page.

To change the status of a conference from active to inactive, highlight the conference(s) in the Active select list and click on the ">" button to move them to the Inactive list. To change a conference from inactive to active, highlight the conference(s) in the Inactive select list and then click on the "<" button to move them to the Active list.

To delete an inactive conference at the bottom of the screen, highlight the inactive conference(s) to delete, check the checkbox below the buttons, and then click on the Delete button. You may also choose to delete all forums and messages within the conference. If you choose this options, only those forums which are not also included in other conferences will be deleted. Please note that even if you are deleting all conferences which contain a particular forum, the forum will still not be deleted. You will need to delete it via the Forum Delete option.

Forum

For instance, a forum could be moderated in one conference, but not another. This means that users reading via the moderated conference must have their messages approved before being posted and can only read approved messages. However, for users entering via the non-moderated conference, their posts do not need approval and they can read all messages even if they have not been approved.

Another example is the message order, which can be threaded, chronological, or reverse chronlogical. Because the message order is set at the conference level, it is possible for users in one conference to view the messages in a threaded format, whereas users from another conference view the messages in chronological order. This is an easy way to allow users to view the messages in their preferred order.

Edit an existing forum

To edit an existing forum, choose the forum you wish to edit and then choose which options you wish to edit. The forums are listed in alphabetical order. When choosing a forum, you will notice the number in parantheses after each name. This is because you may use the same forum name for multiple forums. The number is the forumID which uniquely identifies each forum. The forumID is assigned when the forum is created and are assigned in numerical order based on when the forum was created. So a forum with a lower number was created earlier. (Only the Master user may create a forum with the same name as an existing forum. Users who are permitted to create new forums must choose a unique name.)

Name, description, header, footer, status

The forum name does not need to be unique. The description is optional. It is not currently used within Emaze Forums, but is there for notes to yourself or to be used on the system or conference home page. The forum status can be active, inactive, or archived. Active means that users may read and post new messages to the forum, assuming they have permission to do so. An inactive forum cannot be read or posted to until it is made active again. Users are not aware that it even exists. An archived forum is read-only and searchable. Essentially, it is an active forum will not accept new messages.

The header and footer setings allow you to include a custom header and/or footer for this forum. It will appear only in that forum, but for all conferences which include the forum. The header appears after the conference header; the footer appears before the conference footer. Just as with the conference header and footer, you can choose to not include a header and/or footer, to customize it via the Emaze Forums admin screen, or to include a file which can be anywhere else on the server. Using an external file is convenient if you want ot use the same header and/or footer for multiple forums. If choosing an external file, be sure to use the full path to that file.

Conferences including

This screen allows you to determine which conferences include this forum. This is similar to the Conference screen which allows you to determine which forums are included in the conference. It merely provides another method to do so. It is basically an added convenience when adding a forum to multiple conferences. Rather than editing each individual conference which is to include the forum, just include the forum in all conferences in one quick action.

To include the forum in a conference, highlight the conference(s) in the Non-Including select list and click on the "<" button to move them to the Including list. To remove the forum from a conference, highlight the conference(s) in the Including select list and then click on the ">" button to move them to the Non-Including list. It is possible for a forum to not be not included in any conference. This just means users may not access it until it is included in a conference. Making a forum inactive achieves the same effect.

Users with admin permission

Admin permission enables a user to delete all messages in a forum, and moderate new message which are awaiting approval before users in a moderated conference may read them. Users are assigned admin permission to individual forums rather than to an entire conference. This is because a forum can be included in multiple conferences, making it awkward for a user to have admin permission for the forum in one conference, but not another. Users can also be granted admin permission to a forum on the Edit User and Add User screens. This enables you to grant admin pemrission to multiple forums at one time.

To grant admin permission to a user, enter their username in the text field and click on the Grant Admin Permission button. If there are users who have already been granted admin permission to that forum, they will be listed at the top of the page. To revoke admin permission, check the checkbox next to the user and then click on the Revoke Admin Privilege button below the table.

Create a new forum

To create a new forum, choose the name of the new forum, the optional description, the optional header and footer settings, and which conferences will include the forum. The default header and footer settings are the default choices when creating a new forum. To include the forum in a conference, just highlight the conference name(s) in the select list. You may choose one, multiple, or no (none) conferences.

Default Forum Options

The default forum options are simply the header and footer settings for new forums. Unlike the default options for new conferences, the default forum header and footer settings are not automatically used when creating a new forum. However, they are the selected choices on the Create a new forum screen.

Forum Status

This screen enables you to change the status of all forums at one time, and delete inactive forums. This is a slightly confusing screen, but only at first. A forum can be active, inactive, or archived. This screen enables you to change the status of forums from one status to another.

• To make an active forum inactive, highlight those forums in the Active Forums select list and then click on the ">" button at the top.
• To make active forums archived (read-only, searchable) click on the ">>" button at the bottom.
• To make an inactive forum active, highlight those forums in the Inactive Forums select list and then click on the "<" button at the top.
• To make inactive forums archived, click on the "\/" button in the middle-right.
• To make an archived forum active, highlight those forums in the Archived Forums select list and then click on the "<<" button at the bottom.
• To make archived forums inactive, click on the "/\" button in the middle-right.

If you are changing the status of multiple forums, it may take a little while to do as a lot of things are happening in the background. Do not hit the Stop button on your browser. Results will be outputted to the browser periodically as actions are completed to assure you that the system is functioning properly. Just don't go crazy and change the status of dozens of forums at one time. Also, note that you can only perform one action at a time.

Group

For instance, user A belongs to groups 1 and 2. For conference B, Group 1 has permission only to read messages, post messages, and subscribe to messages. and group 2 has permission to read messages, post messages, upload attachments, and create new forums. User A would thus have the combined total of these permissions: read messages, post message, subscribe to messages, upload attachments, and create new forums.

Edit an existing Group

Name, description

Each group must have a unique name. The description is optional. It is not actually used for anything. It is simply there for you to make any notes about that group.

List, remove users from group

This presents a list of all users in the group, enabling you to remove users from the group. Removing a user does not actually delete the user from the user database. It merely removes them from that group, meaning they no longer have the permissions of the group. To remove users, simply check the checkbox next to the user, check the checkbox at the bottom of the table below the form buttons, and then click on the Remove Users From Group button. The checkbox must be checked to avoid accidently removing the users.

Add new users

This screen is similar to the Edit User screen in that the interface depends on the number of users in the user database. If there are less than 100 users in the user database who are not a member of this group, Emaze Forums presents 3 select lists: userID, username, and name (last, first). Simply choose the users you would like to add from any or all the three select lists, then click on the Add Users button. Choosing by userID is useful if you recently imported a list of users as their userIDs will be in numerical order. Do not worry about choosing the same user more than once as Emaze Forums will only add the user once. Emaze Forums will then add the users to the groups.

If more than 100 users are not a member of this group, Emaze Forums will present 3 select lists: userID range (by 100), username range (by letter), and last name range (by letter). Choose the range of users by highlighting any or all options in the three select lists. Then choose the order in which you want the users listed: last name, first name, username, or userID. Finally, click on the List Users button. Emaze Forums will then output a list of users in your chosen order which meet that criteria in a table. For each user you want to add, check the checkbox next to that name and then click on the Add Users button at the bottom of the table.

Change conference(s) permissions

Choose the conference(s) for which you want to change the group permissions. Emaze Forums will present a list of the six permissions available in each conference. Simply check which permissions that group should have in each conference, and then click on the submit button.

Create new group

To create a new group, simply enter a name for the group and the optional description. The description is not used, but is there for your own reference purposes. You must enter a unique name for the group. If the name is already being used, Emaze Forums will ask you to choose another name. Please note that new groups do not have permissions in any conferences.

Delete groups

This screen will present a list of all groups and their respective descriptions. To delete a group, just check the checkbox next to that group, check the checkbox at the bottom of the screen below the form buttons, and then click on the Delete Groups button. The checkbox below the buttons must be checked for the group(s) to be deleted. A group does not have to be empty (i.e., no users are members) to be deleted. User records will simply be updated to reflect that the group no longer exists.

User

Edit existing users

This screen is similar to the screen where you add new users to a group in that the interface depends on the number of users in the user database. The Edit User screen is split into 2 vertical frames. The left frame will contain the list of users you wish to edit, and the right frame will contain the form to actually edit the user information. The right frame initially contains some help information until you choose to edit a user.

If there are less than 100 users in the user database, Emaze Forums presents 3 select lists: userID, username, and name (last, first). Simply choose the users you would like to edit from any or all the three select lists, then click on the Edit Users button. Choosing by userID is useful if you recently imported a list of users as their userIDs will be in numerical order. Do not worry about choosing the same user more than once as Emaze Forums will only list the user once.

      If more than 100 users, Emaze Forums will present 3 select lists: userID range (by 100), username range (by letter), and last name range (by letter). Choose the range of users by highlighting any or all options in the three select lists, and then click on the List Users button.

For both types of searches, you can choose the order in which you want the users to be listed: userID, username, last name, or first name. You can also choose to search for the user(s) you wish to edit by searching based on first name, last name, username, or email address. If you are looking to edit a specific user, this can be much easier than scrolling through the whole list.

Emaze Forums will then output a list of users which meet your criteria in a table. For each user, it will list the useID, username, last name and first name. To edit a user, click on the userID. This will bring up that user's information in the right frame, where you can edit it. After editing the user's information, click on the Edit User button and Emaze Forums will update the information and return a message that the information was updated.

      If you change the username or password, Emaze Forums will also check that the new username is not already taken, or that the password was verified properly. Please note that the password field is blank. You cannot actually view the password for that person. But there is no need to enter a new password unless you want to change it. Submitting the form with both password fields blank will simply not change the password.

There is also a checkbox next to each user which allows you to delete that user from the user database. For each user you want to delete, check the checkbox next to that name and then click on the Delete Users button at the bottom of the table. You must also check the checkbox below the buttons to delete the users.

      If you delete a user who has posted messages to any forum, Emaze Forums will update the message to that of a message posted by an anon user so that the user's name and email address are still available when the messages posted by that user are displayed.

Create new users

To create a new user, you must enter at least a username and password. The password must be entered twice to verify it was entered correctly. You can also choose to enter the first name, last name, and email address of the user. The default group(s) for new users created via the Admin screens are the new user default groups set in the System options. You can choose to assign the user to any combination of groups you want though.

Finally, you can grant that user admin permission to any or all forum(s), regardless of the conference they are in. Admin permission gives the user the ability to delete all messages in the forum and moderate messages, i.e., approve, reject or ignore messages in moderated conferences which need approval before users may read them.

After entering the user information, click on the Create User button to add the user to the database. Emaze Forums will check that the username is not already taken. If the username is already being used, it will ask you to choose another username. Emaze Forums will also verify that the password was entered the same both times. If not, it will ask you to re-enter the password. If all is well, the screen will reload with a blank add user form, telling you that the user has been added and enabling you to add another user.

Import new users

You can import users via a comma-delimited text file. The text file may contain the following fields:

• username
• password
• first name
• last name
• email

If the username is included in the list, Emaze Forums will only add those records which have unique usernames. It will return a list of users which were not added though.

Copyright 1998, Emaze Software Corporation. http://www.emaze.com
If you have any questions, please email us at sales@emaze.com .