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Links SQL as content provider?

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Links SQL as content provider?
I was wondering if it would be possible to configure Links SQL to be used to provide content to other websites and have this content appear co-branded using Links ability to switch between the Yahoo, AltaVista, etc, templates?

What I have in mind is a Links SQL directory, www.MyLinks.com, for example. Then providing this information as a co-branded product with another local business.

A visitor to the local busniness' site would click on a link for more <Local Info> and be taken to the www.MyLinks.com site with complete the Local Business/MyLinks logo.

If this is possible, how hard is it to implement? ie: are we talking about the proper placement of some tags or does this require extensive knowledge of unix servers, perl, html, cgi, etc?

Thanks,

--
Rob Van Deren
www.beaverheadriver.com

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Re: Links SQL as content provider? In reply to
I've been asked this, and have been thinking about it.

on the lowest level, it would be just using a different set of templates, either set by passing in the t= tag, or set via a cookie, that in effect set the t= tag.

On a more developed level, you'd need to make some changes to SiteHTML and Links.pm to handle the changes more smoothly. And probably some other changes to other library routines.



PUGDOGŪ
PUGDOGŪ Enterprises, Inc.
FAQ: http://LinkSQL.com/FAQ


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Re: Links SQL as content provider? In reply to
Hi,

No, you would just create a template set for each person you want to brand and tell them to send their users to page.cgi?t=theircode and when they submit searches, to pass in t=theircode as well.

I don't think any programming changes would be neccessary.

Cheers,

Alex

--
Gossamer Threads Inc.
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Re: Links SQL as content provider? In reply to
Ah.. the start of debate :)

As I said, the lowest level is just a change in templates. On a deeper level, there are few changes that make it much easier to do.

I posted them awhile back, but have been working on them through the various betas and versions.

One is allowing the template routines to accept additional subdirectories, rather than default -- at the SAME time. This allows custom branding for parts of the site, while still being able to retain the look of the main site (or vice versa). It also allows things such as grouping templates for the plug-ins for house keeping reasons.

I'm hoping this sort of feature becomes standard :)



PUGDOGŪ
PUGDOGŪ Enterprises, Inc.
FAQ: http://LinkSQL.com/FAQ


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Re: Links SQL as content provider? In reply to
One of my thoughts to customize the content of the co-branded site would be to add an additional field to the Links SQL database and use this field to determine when and how something is displayed.

For example, a radio station might want to determine the most popular songs. The field could/would be used to determine if it appears in the general links listings, and/or the co-branded listings.

Not knowing the logic of the script or perl, this is just a thought.

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Re: Links SQL as content provider? In reply to
You've lost me on that one. If you are talking "targeting" that is something that is being worked on via the plug-in for the banner system.

PUGDOGŪ
PUGDOGŪ Enterprises, Inc.
FAQ: http://LinkSQL.com/FAQ


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Re: Links SQL as content provider? In reply to
As I understand targeting, it would be serving the appropriate banner ad based on the search criteria or the directory category being browsed.

My thought was that Links SQL has a database that can be customized with a variety of field names, like:

Site_URL:
Business_Name:
Description:
Mailing_Address:
City:
State:
Business_Category:

Some Links SQL users (SciFi portal?) use the script as a dynamic message board. You (pugdog) use the script to manage a post card site.

It occured to me that a the Links SQL fields might contain a variety of information with out regard to the Field_Name.

A radio station wanting to track the most popular song submitted by listeners would have a template to add this information to the Links SQL database. The artist's name would be placed in the Business_Name: Field, the song's title would be placed in the Mailing_Address: field, Business_Category: would contain the genre and so on.

An additional field would be added to determine when and how the records would be displayed. Probably something like a 3 or 4 digit code that operated like the Unix CHMOD permissions.

I think that by putting the appropriate html templates in the various directories, a radio station's favorite music listing would appear with Artist, Song Title, Genre, ect.

Likewise, information for a lot of other things like books, real estate, school/military reunions could be kept track of and displayed using one data base.

The additional field (like CHMOD) would determine if it was displayed universally or just to the specific sub group.

This idea came after looking at the CGI Resource Index, where it appears they may be using the same fields to display scripts, jobs, books and resources using the same database and appropriately labeling the output.

According to the resourceindex, the site is hand coded and added to as things went along (not a package and definitely not modular like Links SQL). So it is not a Links SQL site and what appears to be and what actually is may be two totally separate things.

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Re: Links SQL as content provider? In reply to
I've thought about this since the 1.o version.

The problem is the links record would become so bloated, that it would eventually be unusable. All the unused fields for different things.

The most logical thing, and something several of us have been pushing for, is to be able to define a different Links database (and possibly even category database ) for each subcategory. So that if you have a "music" category, you'll various fields that would not be appropriate to an Image Gallery area.

Now, the Image Gallery mod I'm doing may be the first step to this.

I don't know if it will add-on to the existing links, or require a full new license. But, at least for me, and some of the other people here, it would be a first step to see if this sort of concept is possible.

Now that the internals of the libraries are mostly done, Alex and GT will have more time to tune them,and to see about adding functionality in a way that doesn't compromise their licensing.

Maybe by adding a "Multi-Pack" to the license, a library will be updated to allow multiple database formats per Link Instatllation -- ?? That would go well with the GoTo type mod and spider they are doing.



PUGDOGŪ
PUGDOGŪ Enterprises, Inc.
FAQ: http://LinkSQL.com/FAQ


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Re: Links SQL as content provider? In reply to
Hmm...

Content co-branding sounds like a pretty good idea. Smile
May have to consider it in the future.

Robert Blackstone
Webmaster of Scato Search
http://www.scato.com