614e8f64445e5e39924a6fe9d915e5c4332a2e81
1 ===================
2 Customising Roundup
3 ===================
5 :Version: $Revision: 1.33 $
7 .. This document borrows from the ZopeBook section on ZPT. The original is at:
8 http://www.zope.org/Documentation/Books/ZopeBook/current/ZPT.stx
10 .. contents::
11 :depth: 1
13 What You Can Do
14 ===============
16 Customisation of Roundup can take one of five forms:
18 1. `tracker configuration`_ file changes
19 2. database, or `tracker schema`_ changes
20 3. "definition" class `database content`_ changes
21 4. behavioural changes, through detectors_
22 5. `access controls`_
24 The third case is special because it takes two distinctly different forms
25 depending upon whether the tracker has been initialised or not. The other two
26 may be done at any time, before or after tracker initialisation. Yes, this
27 includes adding or removing properties from classes.
30 Trackers in a Nutshell
31 ======================
33 Trackers have the following structure:
35 =================== ========================================================
36 Tracker File Description
37 =================== ========================================================
38 config.py Holds the basic `tracker configuration`_
39 dbinit.py Holds the `tracker schema`_
40 interfaces.py Defines the Web and E-Mail interfaces for the tracker
41 select_db.py Selects the database back-end for the tracker
42 db/ Holds the tracker's database
43 db/files/ Holds the tracker's upload files and messages
44 detectors/ Auditors and reactors for this tracker
45 html/ Web interface templates, images and style sheets
46 =================== ========================================================
48 Tracker Configuration
49 =====================
51 The config.py located in your tracker home contains the basic
52 configuration for the web and e-mail components of roundup's interfaces. This
53 file is a Python module. The configuration variables available are:
55 **TRACKER_HOME** - ``os.path.split(__file__)[0]``
56 The tracker home directory. The above default code will automatically
57 determine the tracker home for you.
59 **MAILHOST** - ``'localhost'``
60 The SMTP mail host that roundup will use to send e-mail.
62 **MAIL_DOMAIN** - ``'your.tracker.email.domain.example'``
63 The domain name used for email addresses.
65 **DATABASE** - ``os.path.join(TRACKER_HOME, 'db')``
66 This is the directory that the database is going to be stored in. By default
67 it is in the tracker home.
69 **TEMPLATES** - ``os.path.join(TRACKER_HOME, 'html')``
70 This is the directory that the HTML templates reside in. By default they are
71 in the tracker home.
73 **TRACKER_NAME** - ``'Roundup issue tracker'``
74 A descriptive name for your roundup tracker. This is sent out in e-mails and
75 appears in the heading of CGI pages.
77 **TRACKER_EMAIL** - ``'issue_tracker@%s'%MAIL_DOMAIN``
78 The email address that e-mail sent to roundup should go to. Think of it as the
79 tracker's personal e-mail address.
81 **TRACKER_WEB** - ``'http://your.tracker.url.example/'``
82 The web address that the tracker is viewable at. This will be included in
83 information sent to users of the tracker.
85 **ADMIN_EMAIL** - ``'roundup-admin@%s'%MAIL_DOMAIN``
86 The email address that roundup will complain to if it runs into trouble.
88 **MESSAGES_TO_AUTHOR** - ``'yes'`` or``'no'``
89 Send nosy messages to the author of the message.
91 **ADD_AUTHOR_TO_NOSY** - ``'new'``, ``'yes'`` or ``'no'``
92 Does the author of a message get placed on the nosy list automatically?
93 If ``'new'`` is used, then the author will only be added when a message
94 creates a new issue. If ``'yes'``, then the author will be added on followups
95 too. If ``'no'``, they're never added to the nosy.
97 **ADD_RECIPIENTS_TO_NOSY** - ``'new'``, ``'yes'`` or ``'no'``
98 Do the recipients (To:, Cc:) of a message get placed on the nosy list?
99 If ``'new'`` is used, then the recipients will only be added when a message
100 creates a new issue. If ``'yes'``, then the recipients will be added on
101 followups too. If ``'no'``, they're never added to the nosy.
103 **EMAIL_SIGNATURE_POSITION** - ``'top'``, ``'bottom'`` or ``'none'``
104 Where to place the email signature in messages that Roundup generates.
106 **EMAIL_KEEP_QUOTED_TEXT** - ``'yes'`` or ``'no'``
107 Keep email citations. Citations are the part of e-mail which the sender has
108 quoted in their reply to previous e-mail.
110 **EMAIL_LEAVE_BODY_UNCHANGED** - ``'no'``
111 Preserve the email body as is. Enabiling this will cause the entire message
112 body to be stored, including all citations and signatures. It should be
113 either ``'yes'`` or ``'no'``.
115 **MAIL_DEFAULT_CLASS** - ``'issue'`` or ``''``
116 Default class to use in the mailgw if one isn't supplied in email
117 subjects. To disable, comment out the variable below or leave it blank.
119 The default config.py is given below - as you
120 can see, the MAIL_DOMAIN must be edited before any interaction with the
121 tracker is attempted.::
123 # roundup home is this package's directory
124 TRACKER_HOME=os.path.split(__file__)[0]
126 # The SMTP mail host that roundup will use to send mail
127 MAILHOST = 'localhost'
129 # The domain name used for email addresses.
130 MAIL_DOMAIN = 'your.tracker.email.domain.example'
132 # This is the directory that the database is going to be stored in
133 DATABASE = os.path.join(TRACKER_HOME, 'db')
135 # This is the directory that the HTML templates reside in
136 TEMPLATES = os.path.join(TRACKER_HOME, 'html')
138 # A descriptive name for your roundup tracker
139 TRACKER_NAME = 'Roundup issue tracker'
141 # The email address that mail to roundup should go to
142 TRACKER_EMAIL = 'issue_tracker@%s'%MAIL_DOMAIN
144 # The web address that the tracker is viewable at
145 TRACKER_WEB = 'http://your.tracker.url.example/'
147 # The email address that roundup will complain to if it runs into trouble
148 ADMIN_EMAIL = 'roundup-admin@%s'%MAIL_DOMAIN
150 # Send nosy messages to the author of the message
151 MESSAGES_TO_AUTHOR = 'no' # either 'yes' or 'no'
153 # Does the author of a message get placed on the nosy list automatically?
154 # If 'new' is used, then the author will only be added when a message
155 # creates a new issue. If 'yes', then the author will be added on followups
156 # too. If 'no', they're never added to the nosy.
157 ADD_AUTHOR_TO_NOSY = 'new' # one of 'yes', 'no', 'new'
159 # Do the recipients (To:, Cc:) of a message get placed on the nosy list?
160 # If 'new' is used, then the recipients will only be added when a message
161 # creates a new issue. If 'yes', then the recipients will be added on followups
162 # too. If 'no', they're never added to the nosy.
163 ADD_RECIPIENTS_TO_NOSY = 'new' # either 'yes', 'no', 'new'
165 # Where to place the email signature
166 EMAIL_SIGNATURE_POSITION = 'bottom' # one of 'top', 'bottom', 'none'
168 # Keep email citations
169 EMAIL_KEEP_QUOTED_TEXT = 'no' # either 'yes' or 'no'
171 # Preserve the email body as is
172 EMAIL_LEAVE_BODY_UNCHANGED = 'no' # either 'yes' or 'no'
174 # Default class to use in the mailgw if one isn't supplied in email
175 # subjects. To disable, comment out the variable below or leave it blank.
176 # Examples:
177 MAIL_DEFAULT_CLASS = 'issue' # use "issue" class by default
178 #MAIL_DEFAULT_CLASS = '' # disable (or just comment the var out)
180 Tracker Schema
181 ==============
183 Note: if you modify the schema, you'll most likely need to edit the
184 `web interface`_ HTML template files and `detectors`_ to reflect
185 your changes.
187 A tracker schema defines what data is stored in the tracker's database.
188 The
189 schemas shipped with Roundup turn it into a typical software bug tracker or
190 help desk.
192 XXX make sure we ship the help desk
194 Schemas are defined using Python code in the ``dbinit.py`` module of your
195 tracker. The "classic" schema looks like this::
197 pri = Class(db, "priority", name=String(), order=String())
198 pri.setkey("name")
199 pri.create(name="critical", order="1")
200 pri.create(name="urgent", order="2")
201 pri.create(name="bug", order="3")
202 pri.create(name="feature", order="4")
203 pri.create(name="wish", order="5")
205 stat = Class(db, "status", name=String(), order=String())
206 stat.setkey("name")
207 stat.create(name="unread", order="1")
208 stat.create(name="deferred", order="2")
209 stat.create(name="chatting", order="3")
210 stat.create(name="need-eg", order="4")
211 stat.create(name="in-progress", order="5")
212 stat.create(name="testing", order="6")
213 stat.create(name="done-cbb", order="7")
214 stat.create(name="resolved", order="8")
216 keyword = Class(db, "keyword", name=String())
217 keyword.setkey("name")
219 user = Class(db, "user", username=String(), password=String(),
220 address=String(), realname=String(), phone=String(),
221 organisation=String())
222 user.setkey("username")
223 user.create(username="admin", password=adminpw,
224 address=config.ADMIN_EMAIL)
226 msg = FileClass(db, "msg", author=Link("user"), recipients=Multilink
227 ("user"), date=Date(), summary=String(), files=Multilink("file"))
229 file = FileClass(db, "file", name=String(), type=String())
231 issue = IssueClass(db, "issue", assignedto=Link("user"),
232 topic=Multilink("keyword"), priority=Link("priority"), status=Link
233 ("status"))
234 issue.setkey('title')
236 XXX security definitions
238 Classes and Properties - creating a new information store
239 ---------------------------------------------------------
241 In the tracker above, we've defined 7 classes of information:
243 priority
244 Defines the possible levels of urgency for issues.
246 status
247 Defines the possible states of processing the issue may be in.
249 keyword
250 Initially empty, will hold keywords useful for searching issues.
252 user
253 Initially holding the "admin" user, will eventually have an entry for all
254 users using roundup.
256 msg
257 Initially empty, will all e-mail messages sent to or generated by
258 roundup.
260 file
261 Initially empty, will all files attached to issues.
263 issue
264 Initially empty, this is where the issue information is stored.
266 We define the "priority" and "status" classes to allow two things: reduction in
267 the amount of information stored on the issue and more powerful, accurate
268 searching of issues by priority and status. By only requiring a link on the
269 issue (which is stored as a single number) we reduce the chance that someone
270 mis-types a priority or status - or simply makes a new one up.
272 Class and Items
273 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
275 A Class defines a particular class (or type) of data that will be stored in the
276 database. A class comprises one or more properties, which given the information
277 about the class items.
278 The actual data entered into the database, using class.create() are called
279 items. They have a special immutable property called id. We sometimes refer to
280 this as the itemid.
282 Properties
283 ~~~~~~~~~~
285 A Class is comprised of one or more properties of the following types:
287 * String properties are for storing arbitrary-length strings.
288 * Password properties are for storing encoded arbitrary-length strings. The
289 default encoding is defined on the roundup.password.Password class.
290 * Date properties store date-and-time stamps. Their values are Timestamp
291 objects.
292 * Number properties store numeric values.
293 * Boolean properties store on/off, yes/no, true/false values.
294 * A Link property refers to a single other item selected from a specified
295 class. The class is part of the property; the value is an integer, the id
296 of the chosen item.
297 * A Multilink property refers to possibly many items in a specified class.
298 The value is a list of integers.
300 FileClass
301 ~~~~~~~~~
303 FileClasses save their "content" attribute off in a separate file from the rest
304 of the database. This reduces the number of large entries in the database,
305 which generally makes databases more efficient, and also allows us to use
306 command-line tools to operate on the files. They are stored in the files sub-
307 directory of the db directory in your tracker.
309 IssueClass
310 ~~~~~~~~~~
312 IssueClasses automatically include the "messages", "files", "nosy", and
313 "superseder" properties.
314 The messages and files properties list the links to the messages and files
315 related to the issue. The nosy property is a list of links to users who wish to
316 be informed of changes to the issue - they get "CC'ed" e-mails when messages
317 are sent to or generated by the issue. The nosy reactor (in the detectors
318 directory) handles this action. The superceder link indicates an issue which
319 has superceded this one.
320 They also have the dynamically generated "creation", "activity" and "creator"
321 properties.
322 The value of the "creation" property is the date when an item was created, and
323 the value of the "activity" property is the date when any property on the item
324 was last edited (equivalently, these are the dates on the first and last
325 records in the item's journal). The "creator" property holds a link to the user
326 that created the issue.
328 setkey(property)
329 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
331 Select a String property of the class to be the key property. The key property
332 muse be unique, and allows references to the items in the class by the content
333 of the key property. That is, we can refer to users by their username, e.g.
334 let's say that there's an issue in roundup, issue 23. There's also a user,
335 richard who happens to be user 2. To assign an issue to him, we could do either
336 of::
338 roundup-admin set issue assignedto=2
340 or::
342 roundup-admin set issue assignedto=richard
344 Note, the same thing can be done in the web and e-mail interfaces.
346 create(information)
347 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
349 Create an item in the database. This is generally used to create items in the
350 "definitional" classes like "priority" and "status".
353 Examples of adding to your schema
354 ---------------------------------
356 TODO
359 Detectors - adding behaviour to your tracker
360 ============================================
361 .. _detectors:
363 The detectors in your tracker fire before (*auditors*) and after (*reactors*)
364 changes to the contents of your database. They are Python modules that sit in
365 your tracker's ``detectors`` directory. You will have some installed by
366 default - have a look. You can write new detectors or modify the existing
367 ones. The existing detectors installed for you are:
369 **nosyreaction.py**
370 This provides the automatic nosy list maintenance and email sending. The nosy
371 reactor (``nosyreaction``) fires when new messages are added to issues.
372 The nosy auditor (``updatenosy``) fires when issues are changed and figures
373 what changes need to be made to the nosy list (like adding new authors etc)
374 **statusauditor.py**
375 This provides the ``chatty`` auditor which changes the issue status from
376 ``unread`` or ``closed`` to ``chatting`` if new messages appear. It also
377 provides the ``presetunread`` auditor which pre-sets the status to
378 ``unread`` on new items if the status isn't explicitly defined.
380 See the detectors section in the `design document`__ for details of the
381 interface for detectors.
383 __ design.html
385 Sample additional detectors that have been found useful will appear in the
386 ``detectors`` directory of the Roundup distribution:
388 **newissuecopy.py**
389 This detector sends an email to a team address whenever a new issue is
390 created. The address is hard-coded into the detector, so edit it before you
391 use it (look for the text 'team@team.host') or you'll get email errors!
393 The detector code::
395 from roundup import roundupdb
397 def newissuecopy(db, cl, nodeid, oldvalues):
398 ''' Copy a message about new issues to a team address.
399 '''
400 # so use all the messages in the create
401 change_note = cl.generateCreateNote(nodeid)
403 # send a copy to the nosy list
404 for msgid in cl.get(nodeid, 'messages'):
405 try:
406 # note: last arg must be a list
407 cl.send_message(nodeid, msgid, change_note, ['team@team.host'])
408 except roundupdb.MessageSendError, message:
409 raise roundupdb.DetectorError, message
411 def init(db):
412 db.issue.react('create', newissuecopy)
415 Database Content
416 ================
418 Note: if you modify the content of definitional classes, you'll most likely
419 need to edit the tracker `detectors`_ to reflect your changes.
421 Customisation of the special "definitional" classes (eg. status, priority,
422 resolution, ...) may be done either before or after the tracker is
423 initialised. The actual method of doing so is completely different in each
424 case though, so be careful to use the right one.
426 **Changing content before tracker initialisation**
427 Edit the dbinit module in your tracker to alter the items created in using
428 the create() methods.
430 **Changing content after tracker initialisation**
431 Use the roundup-admin interface's create, set and retire methods to add,
432 alter or remove items from the classes in question.
434 XXX example
437 Web Interface
438 =============
440 .. contents::
441 :local:
442 :depth: 1
444 The web is provided by the roundup.cgi.client module and is used by
445 roundup.cgi, roundup-server and ZRoundup.
446 In all cases, we determine which tracker is being accessed
447 (the first part of the URL path inside the scope of the CGI handler) and pass
448 control on to the tracker interfaces.Client class - which uses the Client class
449 from roundup.cgi.client - which handles the rest of
450 the access through its main() method. This means that you can do pretty much
451 anything you want as a web interface to your tracker.
453 Repurcussions of changing the tracker schema
454 ---------------------------------------------
456 If you choose to change the `tracker schema`_ you will need to ensure the web
457 interface knows about it:
459 1. Index, item and search pages for the relevant classes may need to have
460 properties added or removed,
461 2. The "page" template may require links to be changed, as might the "home"
462 page's content arguments.
464 How requests are processed
465 --------------------------
467 The basic processing of a web request proceeds as follows:
469 1. figure out who we are, defaulting to the "anonymous" user
470 2. figure out what the request is for - we call this the "context"
471 3. handle any requested action (item edit, search, ...)
472 4. render a template, resulting in HTML output
474 In some situations, exceptions occur:
476 - HTTP Redirect (generally raised by an action)
477 - SendFile (generally raised by determine_context)
478 here we serve up a FileClass "content" property
479 - SendStaticFile (generally raised by determine_context)
480 here we serve up a file from the tracker "html" directory
481 - Unauthorised (generally raised by an action)
482 here the action is cancelled, the request is rendered and an error
483 message is displayed indicating that permission was not
484 granted for the action to take place
485 - NotFound (raised wherever it needs to be)
486 this exception percolates up to the CGI interface that called the client
488 Determining web context
489 -----------------------
491 To determine the "context" of a request, we look at the URL and the special
492 request variable ``:template``. The URL path after the tracker identifier
493 is examined. Typical URL paths look like:
495 1. ``/tracker/issue``
496 2. ``/tracker/issue1``
497 3. ``/tracker/_file/style.css``
498 4. ``/cgi-bin/roundup.cgi/tracker/file1``
499 5. ``/cgi-bin/roundup.cgi/tracker/file1/kitten.png``
501 where the "tracker identifier" is "tracker" in the above cases. That means
502 we're looking at "issue", "issue1", "_file/style.css", "file1" and
503 "file1/kitten.png" in the cases above. The path is generally only one
504 entry long - longer paths are handled differently.
506 a. if there is no path, then we are in the "home" context.
507 b. if the path starts with "_file" (as in example 3,
508 "/tracker/_file/style.css"), then the additional path entry,
509 "style.css" specifies the filename of a static file we're to serve up
510 from the tracker "html" directory. Raises a SendStaticFile
511 exception.
512 c. if there is something in the path (as in example 1, "issue"), it identifies
513 the tracker class we're to display.
514 d. if the path is an item designator (as in examples 2 and 4, "issue1" and
515 "file1"), then we're to display a specific item.
516 e. if the path starts with an item designator and is longer than
517 one entry (as in example 5, "file1/kitten.png"), then we're assumed
518 to be handling an item of a
519 FileClass, and the extra path information gives the filename
520 that the client is going to label the download with (ie
521 "file1/kitten.png" is nicer to download than "file1"). This
522 raises a SendFile exception.
524 Both b. and e. stop before we bother to
525 determine the template we're going to use. That's because they
526 don't actually use templates.
528 The template used is specified by the ``:template`` CGI variable,
529 which defaults to:
531 - only classname suplied: "index"
532 - full item designator supplied: "item"
535 Performing actions in web requests
536 ----------------------------------
538 When a user requests a web page, they may optionally also request for an
539 action to take place. As described in `how requests are processed`_, the
540 action is performed before the requested page is generated. Actions are
541 triggered by using a ``:action`` CGI variable, where the value is one of:
543 **login**
544 Attempt to log a user in.
545 **logout**
546 Log the user out - make them "anonymous".
547 **register**
548 Attempt to create a new user based on the contents of the form and then log
549 them in.
550 **edit**
551 Perform an edit of an item in the database. There are some special form
552 elements you may use:
554 :link=designator:property and :multilink=designator:property
555 The value specifies an item designator and the property on that
556 item to add _this_ item to as a link or multilink.
557 :note
558 Create a message and attach it to the current item's
559 "messages" property.
560 :file
561 Create a file and attach it to the current item's
562 "files" property. Attach the file to the message created from
563 the :note if it's supplied.
564 :required=property,property,...
565 The named properties are required to be filled in the form.
567 **new**
568 Add a new item to the database. You may use the same special form elements
569 as in the "edit" action.
571 **editCSV**
572 Performs an edit of all of a class' items in one go. See also the
573 *class*.csv templating method which generates the CSV data to be edited, and
574 the "_generic.index" template which uses both of these features.
576 **search**
577 Mangle some of the form variables.
579 Set the form ":filter" variable based on the values of the
580 filter variables - if they're set to anything other than
581 "dontcare" then add them to :filter.
583 Also handle the ":queryname" variable and save off the query to
584 the user's query list.
586 Each of the actions is implemented by a corresponding *actionAction* (where
587 "action" is the name of the action) method on
588 the roundup.cgi.Client class, which also happens to be in your tracker as
589 interfaces.Client. So if you need to define new actions, you may add them
590 there (see `defining new web actions`_).
592 Each action also has a corresponding *actionPermission* (where
593 "action" is the name of the action) method which determines
594 whether the action is permissible given the current user. The base permission
595 checks are:
597 **login**
598 Determine whether the user has permission to log in.
599 Base behaviour is to check the user has "Web Access".
600 **logout**
601 No permission checks are made.
602 **register**
603 Determine whether the user has permission to register
604 Base behaviour is to check the user has "Web Registration".
605 **edit**
606 Determine whether the user has permission to edit this item.
607 Base behaviour is to check the user can edit this class. If we're
608 editing the "user" class, users are allowed to edit their own
609 details. Unless it's the "roles" property, which requires the
610 special Permission "Web Roles".
611 **new**
612 Determine whether the user has permission to create (edit) this item.
613 Base behaviour is to check the user can edit this class. No
614 additional property checks are made. Additionally, new user items
615 may be created if the user has the "Web Registration" Permission.
616 **editCSV**
617 Determine whether the user has permission to edit this class.
618 Base behaviour is to check the user can edit this class.
619 **search**
620 Determine whether the user has permission to search this class.
621 Base behaviour is to check the user can view this class.
624 Default templates
625 -----------------
627 Most customisation of the web view can be done by modifying the templates in
628 the tracker **html** directory. There are several types of files in there:
630 **page**
631 This template defines the overall look of your tracker. When you
632 view an issue, it appears inside this template. When you view an index, it
633 also appears inside this template. It will have a ``tal:content`` or
634 ``tal:replace`` command with the expression ``structure content`` which
635 will show the issue, list of issues or whatever.
636 **home**
637 the default page displayed when no other page is indicated by the user
638 **home.classlist**
639 a special version of the default page that lists the classes in the tracker
640 **classname.item**
641 displays an item of the *classname* class
642 **classname.index**
643 displays a list of *classname* items
644 **classname.search**
645 displays a search page for *classname* items
646 **_generic.index**
647 used to display a list of items where there is no *classname*.index available
648 **_generic.help**
649 used to display a "class help" page where there is no *classname*.help
650 **user.register**
651 a special page just for the user class that renders the registration page
652 **style.css**
653 a static file that is served up as-is
655 How the templates work
656 ----------------------
658 Roundup's templates consist of special attributes on your template tags. These
659 attributes form the Template Attribute Language, or TAL. The commands are:
662 **tal:define="variable expression; variable expression; ..."**
663 Define a new variable that is local to this tag and its contents. For
664 example::
666 <html tal:define="title request/description">
667 <head><title tal:content="title"></title></head>
668 </html>
670 In the example, the variable "title" is defined as being the result of the
671 expression "request/description". The tal:content command inside the <html>
672 tag may then use the "title" variable.
674 **tal:condition="expression"**
675 Only keep this tag and its contents if the expression is true. For example::
677 <p tal:condition="python:request.user.hasPermission('View', 'issue')">
678 Display some issue information.
679 </p>
681 In the example, the <p> tag and its contents are only displayed if the
682 user has the View permission for issues. We consider the number zero, a
683 blank string, an empty list, and the built-in variable nothing to be false
684 values. Nearly every other value is true, including non-zero numbers, and
685 strings with anything in them (even spaces!).
687 **tal:repeat="variable expression"**
688 Repeat this tag and its contents for each element of the sequence that the
689 expression returns, defining a new local variable and a special "repeat"
690 variable for each element. For example::
692 <tr tal:repeat="u user/list">
693 <td tal:content="u/id"></td>
694 <td tal:content="u/username"></td>
695 <td tal:content="u/realname"></td>
696 </tr>
698 The example would iterate over the sequence of users returned by
699 "user/list" and define the local variable "u" for each entry.
701 **tal:replace="expression"**
702 Replace this tag with the result of the expression. For example::
704 <span tal:replace="request/user/realname"></span>
706 The example would replace the <span> tag and its contents with the user's
707 realname. If the user's realname was "Bruce" then the resultant output
708 would be "Bruce".
710 **tal:content="expression"**
711 Replace the contents of this tag with the result of the expression. For
712 example::
714 <span tal:content="request/user/realname">user's name appears here</span>
716 The example would replace the contents of the <span> tag with the user's
717 realname. If the user's realname was "Bruce" then the resultant output
718 would be "<span>Bruce</span>".
720 **tal:attributes="attribute expression; attribute expression; ..."**
721 Set attributes on this tag to the results of expressions. For example::
723 <a tal:attributes="href string:user${request/user/id}">My Details</a>
725 In the example, the "href" attribute of the <a> tag is set to the value of
726 the "string:user${request/user/id}" expression, which will be something
727 like "user123".
729 **tal:omit-tag="expression"**
730 Remove this tag (but not its contents) if the expression is true. For
731 example::
733 <span tal:omit-tag="python:1">Hello, world!</span>
735 would result in output of::
737 Hello, world!
739 Note that the commands on a given tag are evaulated in the order above, so
740 *define* comes before *condition*, and so on.
742 Additionally, a tag is defined, tal:block, which is removed from output. Its
743 content is not, but the tag itself is (so don't go using any tal:attributes
744 commands on it). This is useful for making arbitrary blocks of HTML
745 conditional or repeatable (very handy for repeating multiple table rows,
746 which would othewise require an illegal tag placement to effect the repeat).
748 The expressions you may use in the attibute values may be one of the following
749 three forms:
751 **Path Expressions** - eg. ``item/status/checklist``
752 These are object attribute / item accesses. Roughly speaking, the path
753 ``item/status/checklist`` is broken into parts ``item``, ``status``
754 and ``checklist``. The ``item`` part is the root of the expression.
755 We then look for a ``status`` attribute on ``item``, or failing that, a
756 ``status`` item (as in ``item['status']``). If that
757 fails, the path expression fails. When we get to the end, the object we're
758 left with is evaluated to get a string - methods are called, objects are
759 stringified. Path expressions may have an optional ``path:`` prefix, though
760 they are the default expression type, so it's not necessary.
762 XXX | components of expressions
764 XXX "nothing" and "default"
766 **String Expressions** - eg. ``string:hello ${user/name}``
767 These expressions are simple string interpolations (though they can be just
768 plain strings with no interpolation if you want. The expression in the
769 ``${ ... }`` is just a path expression as above.
771 **Python Expressions** - eg. ``python: 1+1``
772 These expressions give the full power of Python. All the "root level"
773 variables are available, so ``python:item.status.checklist()`` would be
774 equivalent to ``item/status/checklist``, assuming that ``checklist`` is
775 a method.
777 Information available to templates
778 ----------------------------------
780 Note: this is implemented by roundup.cgi.templating.RoundupPageTemplate
782 The following variables are available to templates.
784 **context**
785 The current context. This is either None, a
786 `hyperdb class wrapper`_ or a `hyperdb item wrapper`_
787 **request**
788 Includes information about the current request, including:
789 - the url
790 - the current index information (``filterspec``, ``filter`` args,
791 ``properties``, etc) parsed out of the form.
792 - methods for easy filterspec link generation
793 - *user*, the current user item as an HTMLItem instance
794 - *form*
795 The current CGI form information as a mapping of form argument
796 name to value
797 **tracker**
798 The current tracker
799 **db**
800 The current database, through which db.config may be reached.
801 **nothing**
802 This is a special variable - if an expression evaluates to this, then the
803 tag (in the case of a tal:replace), its contents (in the case of
804 tal:content) or some attributes (in the case of tal:attributes) will not
805 appear in the the output. So for example::
807 <span tal:attributes="class nothing">Hello, World!</span>
809 would result in::
811 <span>Hello, World!</span>
813 **default**
814 Also a special variable - if an expression evaluates to this, then the
815 existing HTML in the template will not be replaced or removed, it will
816 remain. So::
818 <span tal:replace="default">Hello, World!</span>
820 would result in::
822 <span>Hello, World!</span>
824 **utils**
825 This variable makes available some utility functions like batching.
827 The context variable
828 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
830 The *context* variable is one of three things based on the current context
831 (see `determining web context`_ for how we figure this out):
833 1. if we're looking at a "home" page, then it's None
834 2. if we're looking at a specific hyperdb class, it's a
835 `hyperdb class wrapper`_.
836 3. if we're looking at a specific hyperdb item, it's a
837 `hyperdb item wrapper`_.
839 If the context is not None, we can access the properties of the class or item.
840 The only real difference between cases 2 and 3 above are:
842 1. the properties may have a real value behind them, and this will appear if
843 the property is displayed through ``context/property`` or
844 ``context/property/field``.
845 2. the context's "id" property will be a false value in the second case, but
846 a real, or true value in the third. Thus we can determine whether we're
847 looking at a real item from the hyperdb by testing "context/id".
849 Hyperdb class wrapper
850 :::::::::::::::::::::
852 Note: this is implemented by the roundup.cgi.templating.HTMLClass class.
854 This wrapper object provides access to a hyperb class. It is used primarily
855 in both index view and new item views, but it's also usable anywhere else that
856 you wish to access information about a class, or the items of a class, when
857 you don't have a specific item of that class in mind.
859 We allow access to properties. There will be no "id" property. The value
860 accessed through the property will be the current value of the same name from
861 the CGI form.
863 There are several methods available on these wrapper objects:
865 =========== =============================================================
866 Method Description
867 =========== =============================================================
868 properties return a `hyperdb property wrapper`_ for all of this class'
869 properties.
870 list lists all of the active (not retired) items in the class.
871 csv return the items of this class as a chunk of CSV text.
872 propnames lists the names of the properties of this class.
873 filter lists of items from this class, filtered and sorted
874 by the current *request* filterspec/filter/sort/group args
875 classhelp display a link to a javascript popup containing this class'
876 "help" template.
877 submit generate a submit button (and action hidden element)
878 renderWith render this class with the given template.
879 history returns 'New node - no history' :)
880 is_edit_ok is the user allowed to Edit the current class?
881 is_view_ok is the user allowed to View the current class?
882 =========== =============================================================
884 Note that if you have a property of the same name as one of the above methods,
885 you'll need to access it using a python "item access" expression. For example::
887 python:context['list']
889 will access the "list" property, rather than the list method.
892 Hyperdb item wrapper
893 ::::::::::::::::::::
895 Note: this is implemented by the roundup.cgi.templating.HTMLItem class.
897 This wrapper object provides access to a hyperb item.
899 We allow access to properties. There will be no "id" property. The value
900 accessed through the property will be the current value of the same name from
901 the CGI form.
903 There are several methods available on these wrapper objects:
905 =============== =============================================================
906 Method Description
907 =============== =============================================================
908 submit generate a submit button (and action hidden element)
909 journal return the journal of the current item (**not implemented**)
910 history render the journal of the current item as HTML
911 renderQueryForm specific to the "query" class - render the search form for
912 the query
913 hasPermission specific to the "user" class - determine whether the user
914 has a Permission
915 is_edit_ok is the user allowed to Edit the current item?
916 is_view_ok is the user allowed to View the current item?
917 =============== =============================================================
920 Note that if you have a property of the same name as one of the above methods,
921 you'll need to access it using a python "item access" expression. For example::
923 python:context['journal']
925 will access the "journal" property, rather than the journal method.
928 Hyperdb property wrapper
929 ::::::::::::::::::::::::
931 Note: this is implemented by subclasses roundup.cgi.templating.HTMLProperty
932 class (HTMLStringProperty, HTMLNumberProperty, and so on).
934 This wrapper object provides access to a single property of a class. Its
935 value may be either:
937 1. if accessed through a `hyperdb item wrapper`_, then it's a value from the
938 hyperdb
939 2. if access through a `hyperdb class wrapper`_, then it's a value from the
940 CGI form
943 The property wrapper has some useful attributes:
945 =============== =============================================================
946 Attribute Description
947 =============== =============================================================
948 _name the name of the property
949 _value the value of the property if any
950 =============== =============================================================
952 There are several methods available on these wrapper objects:
954 =========== =============================================================
955 Method Description
956 =========== =============================================================
957 plain render a "plain" representation of the property
958 field render a form edit field for the property
959 stext only on String properties - render the value of the
960 property as StructuredText (requires the StructureText module
961 to be installed separately)
962 multiline only on String properties - render a multiline form edit
963 field for the property
964 email only on String properties - render the value of the
965 property as an obscured email address
966 reldate only on Date properties - render the interval between the
967 date and now
968 pretty only on Interval properties - render the interval in a
969 pretty format (eg. "yesterday")
970 menu only on Link and Multilink properties - render a form select
971 list for this property
972 reverse only on Multilink properties - produce a list of the linked
973 items in reverse order
974 =========== =============================================================
976 The request variable
977 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
979 Note: this is implemented by the roundup.cgi.templating.HTMLRequest class.
981 The request variable is packed with information about the current request.
983 .. taken from roundup.cgi.templating.HTMLRequest docstring
985 =========== ================================================================
986 Variable Holds
987 =========== ================================================================
988 form the CGI form as a cgi.FieldStorage
989 env the CGI environment variables
990 url the current URL path for this request
991 base the base URL for this tracker
992 user a HTMLUser instance for this user
993 classname the current classname (possibly None)
994 template the current template (suffix, also possibly None)
995 form the current CGI form variables in a FieldStorage
996 =========== ================================================================
998 **Index page specific variables (indexing arguments)**
1000 =========== ================================================================
1001 Variable Holds
1002 =========== ================================================================
1003 columns dictionary of the columns to display in an index page
1004 show a convenience access to columns - request/show/colname will
1005 be true if the columns should be displayed, false otherwise
1006 sort index sort column (direction, column name)
1007 group index grouping property (direction, column name)
1008 filter properties to filter the index on
1009 filterspec values to filter the index on
1010 search_text text to perform a full-text search on for an index
1011 =========== ================================================================
1013 There are several methods available on the request variable:
1015 =============== ============================================================
1016 Method Description
1017 =============== ============================================================
1018 description render a description of the request - handle for the page
1019 title
1020 indexargs_form render the current index args as form elements
1021 indexargs_url render the current index args as a URL
1022 base_javascript render some javascript that is used by other components of
1023 the templating
1024 batch run the current index args through a filter and return a
1025 list of items (see `hyperdb item wrapper`_, and
1026 `batching`_)
1027 =============== ============================================================
1029 The db variable
1030 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1032 Note: this is implemented by the roundup.cgi.templating.HTMLDatabase class.
1034 Allows access to all hyperdb classes as attributes of this variable. If you
1035 want access to the "user" class, for example, you would use::
1037 db/user
1038 python:db.user
1040 The access results in a `hyperdb class wrapper`_.
1043 The util variable
1044 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1046 Note: this is implemented by the roundup.cgi.templating.TemplatingUtils class.
1048 =============== ============================================================
1049 Method Description
1050 =============== ============================================================
1051 Batch return a batch object using the supplied list
1052 =============== ============================================================
1054 Batching
1055 ::::::::
1057 Use Batch to turn a list of items, or item ids of a given class, into a series
1058 of batches. Its usage is::
1060 python:util.Batch(sequence, size, start, end=0, orphan=0, overlap=0)
1062 or, to get the current index batch::
1064 request/batch
1066 The parameters are:
1068 ========= ==================================================================
1069 Parameter Usage
1070 ========= ==================================================================
1071 sequence a list of HTMLItems
1072 size how big to make the sequence.
1073 start where to start (0-indexed) in the sequence.
1074 end where to end (0-indexed) in the sequence.
1075 orphan if the next batch would contain less items than this
1076 value, then it is combined with this batch
1077 overlap the number of items shared between adjacent batches
1078 ========= ==================================================================
1080 All of the parameters are assigned as attributes on the batch object. In
1081 addition, it has several more attributes:
1083 =============== ============================================================
1084 Attribute Description
1085 =============== ============================================================
1086 start indicates the start index of the batch. *Note: unlike the
1087 argument, is a 1-based index (I know, lame)*
1088 first indicates the start index of the batch *as a 0-based
1089 index*
1090 length the actual number of elements in the batch
1091 sequence_length the length of the original, unbatched, sequence.
1092 =============== ============================================================
1094 And several methods:
1096 =============== ============================================================
1097 Method Description
1098 =============== ============================================================
1099 previous returns a new Batch with the previous batch settings
1100 next returns a new Batch with the next batch settings
1101 propchanged detect if the named property changed on the current item
1102 when compared to the last item
1103 =============== ============================================================
1105 An example of batching::
1107 <table class="otherinfo">
1108 <tr><th colspan="4" class="header">Existing Keywords</th></tr>
1109 <tr tal:define="keywords db/keyword/list"
1110 tal:repeat="start python:range(0, len(keywords), 4)">
1111 <td tal:define="batch python:utils.Batch(keywords, 4, start)"
1112 tal:repeat="keyword batch" tal:content="keyword/name">keyword here</td>
1113 </tr>
1114 </table>
1116 ... which will produce a table with four columns containing the items of the
1117 "keyword" class (well, their "name" anyway).
1119 Displaying Properties
1120 ---------------------
1122 Properties appear in the user interface in three contexts: in indices, in
1123 editors, and as search arguments.
1124 For each type of property, there are several display possibilities.
1125 For example, in an index view, a string property may just be
1126 printed as a plain string, but in an editor view, that property may be
1127 displayed in an editable field.
1130 Index Views
1131 -----------
1133 This is one of the class context views. It is also the default view for
1134 classes. The template used is "*classname*.index".
1136 Index View Specifiers
1137 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1139 An index view specifier (URL fragment) looks like this (whitespace has been
1140 added for clarity)::
1142 /issue?status=unread,in-progress,resolved&
1143 topic=security,ui&
1144 :group=+priority&
1145 :sort==activity&
1146 :filters=status,topic&
1147 :columns=title,status,fixer
1149 The index view is determined by two parts of the specifier: the layout part and
1150 the filter part. The layout part consists of the query parameters that begin
1151 with colons, and it determines the way that the properties of selected items
1152 are displayed. The filter part consists of all the other query parameters, and
1153 it determines the criteria by which items are selected for display.
1154 The filter part is interactively manipulated with the form widgets displayed in
1155 the filter section. The layout part is interactively manipulated by clicking on
1156 the column headings in the table.
1158 The filter part selects the union of the sets of items with values matching any
1159 specified Link properties and the intersection of the sets of items with values
1160 matching any specified Multilink properties.
1162 The example specifies an index of "issue" items. Only items with a "status" of
1163 either "unread" or "in-progres" or "resolved" are displayed, and only items
1164 with "topic" values including both "security" and "ui" are displayed. The items
1165 are grouped by priority, arranged in ascending order; and within groups, sorted
1166 by activity, arranged in descending order. The filter section shows filters for
1167 the "status" and "topic" properties, and the table includes columns for the
1168 "title", "status", and "fixer" properties.
1170 Filtering of indexes
1171 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1173 TODO
1175 Searching Views
1176 ---------------
1178 This is one of the class context views. The template used is typically
1179 "*classname*.search".
1181 TODO
1183 Item Views
1184 ----------
1186 The basic view of a hyperdb item is provided by the "*classname*.item"
1187 template. It generally has three sections; an "editor", a "spool" and a
1188 "history" section.
1192 Editor Section
1193 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1195 The editor section is used to manipulate the item - it may be a
1196 static display if the user doesn't have permission to edit the item.
1198 Here's an example of a basic editor template (this is the default "classic"
1199 template issue item edit form - from the "issue.item" template)::
1201 <table class="form">
1202 <tr>
1203 <th nowrap>Title</th>
1204 <td colspan=3 tal:content="structure python:context.title.field(size=60)">title</td>
1205 </tr>
1207 <tr>
1208 <th nowrap>Priority</th>
1209 <td tal:content="structure context/priority/menu">priority</td>
1210 <th nowrap>Status</th>
1211 <td tal:content="structure context/status/menu">status</td>
1212 </tr>
1214 <tr>
1215 <th nowrap>Superseder</th>
1216 <td>
1217 <span tal:replace="structure python:context.superseder.field(showid=1, size=20)" />
1218 <span tal:replace="structure python:db.issue.classhelp('id,title')" />
1219 <span tal:condition="context/superseder">
1220 <br>View: <span tal:replace="structure python:context.superseder.link(showid=1)" />
1221 </span>
1222 </td>
1223 <th nowrap>Nosy List</th>
1224 <td>
1225 <span tal:replace="structure context/nosy/field" />
1226 <span tal:replace="structure python:db.user.classhelp('username,realname,address,phone')" />
1227 </td>
1228 </tr>
1230 <tr>
1231 <th nowrap>Assigned To</th>
1232 <td tal:content="structure context/assignedto/menu">
1233 assignedto menu
1234 </td>
1235 <td> </td>
1236 <td> </td>
1237 </tr>
1239 <tr>
1240 <th nowrap>Change Note</th>
1241 <td colspan=3>
1242 <textarea name=":note" wrap="hard" rows="5" cols="60"></textarea>
1243 </td>
1244 </tr>
1246 <tr>
1247 <th nowrap>File</th>
1248 <td colspan=3><input type="file" name=":file" size="40"></td>
1249 </tr>
1251 <tr>
1252 <td> </td>
1253 <td colspan=3 tal:content="structure context/submit">
1254 submit button will go here
1255 </td>
1256 </tr>
1257 </table>
1260 When a change is submitted, the system automatically generates a message
1261 describing the changed properties. As shown in the example, the editor
1262 template can use the ":note" and ":file" fields, which are added to the
1263 standard change note message generated by Roundup.
1265 Spool Section
1266 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1268 The spool section lists related information like the messages and files of
1269 an issue.
1271 TODO
1274 History Section
1275 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1277 The final section displayed is the history of the item - its database journal.
1278 This is generally generated with the template::
1280 <tal:block tal:replace="structure context/history" />
1282 *To be done:*
1284 *The actual history entries of the item may be accessed for manual templating
1285 through the "journal" method of the item*::
1287 <tal:block tal:repeat="entry context/journal">
1288 a journal entry
1289 </tal:block>
1291 *where each journal entry is an HTMLJournalEntry.*
1293 Defining new web actions
1294 ------------------------
1296 XXX
1299 Access Controls
1300 ===============
1302 A set of Permissions are built in to the security module by default:
1304 - Edit (everything)
1305 - View (everything)
1307 The default interfaces define:
1309 - Web Registration
1310 - Web Access
1311 - Web Roles
1312 - Email Registration
1313 - Email Access
1315 These are hooked into the default Roles:
1317 - Admin (Edit everything, View everything, Web Roles)
1318 - User (Web Access, Email Access)
1319 - Anonymous (Web Registration, Email Registration)
1321 And finally, the "admin" user gets the "Admin" Role, and the "anonymous" user
1322 gets the "Anonymous" assigned when the database is initialised on installation.
1323 The two default schemas then define:
1325 - Edit issue, View issue (both)
1326 - Edit file, View file (both)
1327 - Edit msg, View msg (both)
1328 - Edit support, View support (extended only)
1330 and assign those Permissions to the "User" Role. New users are assigned the
1331 Roles defined in the config file as:
1333 - NEW_WEB_USER_ROLES
1334 - NEW_EMAIL_USER_ROLES
1336 You may alter the configuration variables to change the Role that new web or
1337 email users get, for example to not give them access to the web interface if
1338 they register through email.
1340 You may use the ``roundup-admin`` "``security``" command to display the
1341 current Role and Permission configuration in your tracker.
1343 Adding a new Permission
1344 -----------------------
1346 When adding a new Permission, you will need to:
1348 1. add it to your tracker's dbinit so it is created
1349 2. enable it for the Roles that should have it (verify with
1350 "``roundup-admin security``")
1351 3. add it to the relevant HTML interface templates
1352 4. add it to the appropriate xxxPermission methods on in your tracker
1353 interfaces module
1357 Examples
1358 ========
1360 Adding a new field to a roundup schema
1361 --------------------------------------
1363 This example shows how to add a new constrained property (ie. a selection of
1364 distinct values) to your tracker.
1366 Introduction
1367 ~~~~~~~~~~~~
1369 To make the classic schema of roundup useful as a todo tracking system
1370 for a group of systems administrators, it needed an extra data field
1371 per issue: a category.
1373 This would let sysads quickly list all todos in their particular
1374 area of interest without having to do complex queries, and without
1375 relying on the spelling capabilities of other sysads (a losing
1376 proposition at best).
1378 Adding a field to the database
1379 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1381 This is the easiest part of the change. The category would just be a plain
1382 string, nothing fancy. To change what is in the database you need to add
1383 some lines to the ``open()`` function in ``dbinit.py``::
1385 category = Class(db, "category", name=String())
1386 category.setkey("name")
1388 Here we are setting up a chunk of the database which we are calling
1389 "category". It contains a string, which we are refering to as "name" for
1390 lack of a more imaginative title. Then we are setting the key of this chunk
1391 of the database to be that "name". This is equivalent to an index for
1392 database types. This also means that there can only be one category with a
1393 given name.
1395 Adding the above lines allows us to create categories, but they're not tied
1396 to the issues that we are going to be creating. It's just a list of categories
1397 off on its own, which isn't much use. We need to link it in with the issues.
1398 To do that, find the lines in the ``open()`` function in ``dbinit.py`` which
1399 set up the "issue" class, and then add a link to the category::
1401 issue = IssueClass(db, "issue", ... , category=Multilink("category"), ... )
1403 The Multilink() means that each issue can have many categories. If you were
1404 adding something with a more one to one relationship use Link() instead.
1406 That is all you need to do to change the schema. The rest of the effort is
1407 fiddling around so you can actually use the new category.
1409 Setting up security on the new objects
1410 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1412 By default only the admin user can look at and change objects. This doesn't
1413 suit us, as we want any user to be able to create new categories as
1414 required, and obviously everyone needs to be able to view the categories of
1415 issues for it to be useful.
1417 We therefore need to change the security of the category objects. This is
1418 also done in the ``open()`` function of ``dbinit.py``.
1420 There are currently two loops which set up permissions and then assign them
1421 to various roles. Simply add the new "category" to both lists::
1423 # new permissions for this schema
1424 for cl in 'issue', 'file', 'msg', 'user', 'category':
1425 db.security.addPermission(name="Edit", klass=cl,
1426 description="User is allowed to edit "+cl)
1427 db.security.addPermission(name="View", klass=cl,
1428 description="User is allowed to access "+cl)
1430 # Assign the access and edit permissions for issue, file and message
1431 # to regular users now
1432 for cl in 'issue', 'file', 'msg', 'category':
1433 p = db.security.getPermission('View', cl)
1434 db.security.addPermissionToRole('User', p)
1435 p = db.security.getPermission('Edit', cl)
1436 db.security.addPermissionToRole('User', p)
1438 So you are in effect doing the following::
1440 db.security.addPermission(name="Edit", klass='category',
1441 description="User is allowed to edit "+'category')
1442 db.security.addPermission(name="View", klass='category',
1443 description="User is allowed to access "+'category')
1445 which is creating two permission types; that of editing and viewing
1446 "category" objects respectively. Then the following lines assign those new
1447 permissions to the "User" role, so that normal users can view and edit
1448 "category" objects::
1450 p = db.security.getPermission('View', 'category')
1451 db.security.addPermissionToRole('User', p)
1453 p = db.security.getPermission('Edit', 'category')
1454 db.security.addPermissionToRole('User', p)
1456 This is all the work that needs to be done for the database. It will store
1457 categories, and let users view and edit them. Now on to the interface
1458 stuff.
1460 Changing the web left hand frame
1461 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1463 We need to give the users the ability to create new categories, and the
1464 place to put the link to this functionality is in the left hand function
1465 bar, under the "Issues" area. The file that defines how this area looks is
1466 ``html/page``, which is what we are going to be editing next.
1468 If you look at this file you can see that it contains a lot of "classblock"
1469 sections which are chunks of HTML that will be included or excluded in the
1470 output depending on whether the condition in the classblock is met. Under
1471 the end of the classblock for issue is where we are going to add the
1472 category code::
1474 <p class="classblock"
1475 tal:condition="python:request.user.hasPermission('View', 'category')">
1476 <b>Categories</b><br>
1477 <a tal:condition="python:request.user.hasPermission('Edit', 'category')"
1478 href="category?:template=item">New Category<br></a>
1479 </p>
1481 The first two lines is the classblock definition, which sets up a condition
1482 that only users who have "View" permission to the "category" object will
1483 have this section included in their output. Next comes a plain "Categories"
1484 header in bold. Everyone who can view categories will get that.
1486 Next comes the link to the editing area of categories. This link will only
1487 appear if the condition is matched: that condition being that the user has
1488 "Edit" permissions for the "category" objects. If they do have permission
1489 then they will get a link to another page which will let the user add new
1490 categories.
1492 Note that if you have permission to view but not edit categories then all
1493 you will see is a "Categories" header with nothing underneath it. This is
1494 obviously not very good interface design, but will do for now. I just claim
1495 that it is so I can add more links in this section later on. However to fix
1496 the problem you could change the condition in the classblock statement, so
1497 that only users with "Edit" permission would see the "Categories" stuff.
1499 Setting up a page to edit categories
1500 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1502 We defined code in the previous section which let users with the
1503 appropriate permissions see a link to a page which would let them edit
1504 conditions. Now we have to write that page.
1506 The link was for the item template for the category object. This translates
1507 into the system looking for a file called ``category.item`` in the ``html``
1508 tracker directory. This is the file that we are going to write now.
1510 First we add an id tag in a comment which doesn't affect the outcome
1511 of the code at all but is essential for managing the changes to this
1512 file. It is useful for debugging however, if you load a page in a
1513 browser and look at the page source, you can see which sections come
1514 from which files by looking for these comments::
1516 <!-- dollarId: category.item,v 1.3 2002/05/22 00:32:34 me Exp dollar-->
1518 Next we need to setup up a standard HTML form, which is the whole
1519 purpose of this file. We link to some handy javascript which sends the form
1520 through only once. This is to stop users hitting the send button
1521 multiple times when they are impatient and thus having the form sent
1522 multiple times::
1524 <form method="POST" onSubmit="return submit_once()"
1525 enctype="multipart/form-data">
1527 Next we define some code which sets up the minimum list of fields that we
1528 require the user to enter. There will be only one field, that of "name", so
1529 they user better put something in it otherwise the whole form is pointless::
1531 <input type="hidden" name=":required" value="name">
1533 To get everything to line up properly we will put everything in a table,
1534 and put a nice big header on it so the user has an idea what is happening::
1536 <table class="form">
1537 <tr><th class="header" colspan=2>Category</th></tr>
1539 Next we need the actual field that the user is going to enter the new
1540 category. The "context.name.field(size=60)" bit tells roundup to generate a
1541 normal HTML field of size 60, and the contents of that field will be the
1542 "name" variable of the current context (which is "category"). The upshot of
1543 this is that when the user types something in to the form, a new category
1544 will be created with that name::
1546 <tr>
1547 <th nowrap>Name</th>
1548 <td tal:content="structure python:context.name.field(size=60)">name</td>
1549 </tr>
1551 Finally a submit button so that the user can submit the new category::
1553 <tr>
1554 <td> </td>
1555 <td colspan=3 tal:content="structure context/submit">
1556 submit button will go here
1557 </td>
1558 </tr>
1560 So putting it all together, and closing the table and form we get::
1562 <!-- dollarId: category.item,v 1.3 2002/05/22 00:32:34 richard Exp dollar-->
1564 <form method="POST" onSubmit="return submit_once()"
1565 enctype="multipart/form-data">
1567 <input type="hidden" name=":required" value="name">
1569 <table class="form">
1570 <tr><th class="header" colspan=2>Category</th></tr>
1572 <tr>
1573 <th nowrap>Name</th>
1574 <td tal:content="structure python:context.name.field(size=60)">name</td>
1575 </tr>
1577 <tr>
1578 <td> </td>
1579 <td colspan=3 tal:content="structure context/submit">
1580 submit button will go here
1581 </td>
1582 </tr>
1583 </table>
1584 </form>
1586 This is quite a lot to just ask the user one simple question, but
1587 there is a lot of setup for basically one line (the form line) to do
1588 its work. To add another field to "category" would involve one more line
1589 (well maybe a few extra to get the formatting correct).
1591 Adding the category to the issue
1592 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1594 We now have the ability to create issues to our hearts content, but
1595 that is pointless unless we can assign categories to issues. Just like
1596 the ``html/category.item`` file was used to define how to add a new
1597 category, the ``html/issue.item`` is used to define how a new issue is
1598 created.
1600 Just like ``category.issue`` this file defines a form which has a table to lay
1601 things out. It doesn't matter where in the table we add new stuff,
1602 it is entirely up to your sense of aesthetics::
1604 <th nowrap>Category</th>
1605 <td><span tal:replace="structure context/category/field" />
1606 <span tal:replace="structure db/category/classhelp" />
1607 </td>
1609 First we define a nice header so that the user knows what the next section
1610 is, then the middle line does what we are most interested in. This
1611 ``context/category/field`` gets replaced with a field which contains the
1612 category in the current context (the current context being the new issue).
1614 The classhelp lines generate a link (labelled "list") to a popup window
1615 which contains the list of currently known categories.
1617 Searching on categories
1618 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1620 We can add categories, and create issues with categories. The next obvious
1621 thing that we would like to be would be to search issues based on their
1622 category, so that any one working on the web server could look at all
1623 issues in the category "Web" for example.
1625 If you look in the html/page file and look for the "Search Issues" you will
1626 see that it looks something like ``<a href="issue?:template=search">Search
1627 Issues</a>`` which shows us that when you click on "Search Issues" it will
1628 be looking for a ``issue.search`` file to display. So that is indeed the file
1629 that we are going to change.
1631 If you look at this file it should be starting to seem familiar. It is a
1632 simple HTML form using a table to define structure. You can add the new
1633 category search code anywhere you like within that form::
1635 <tr>
1636 <th>Category:</th>
1637 <td>
1638 <select name="category">
1639 <option value="">don't care</option>
1640 <option value="">------------</option>
1641 <option tal:repeat="s db/category/list" tal:attributes="value s/name"
1642 tal:content="s/name">category to filter on</option>
1643 </select>
1644 </td>
1645 <td><input type="checkbox" name=":columns" value="category" checked></td>
1646 <td><input type="radio" name=":sort" value="category"></td>
1647 <td><input type="radio" name=":group" value="category"></td>
1648 </tr>
1650 Most of this is straightforward to anyone who knows HTML. It is just
1651 setting up a select list followed by a checkbox and a couple of radio
1652 buttons.
1654 The ``tal:repeat`` part repeats the tag for every item in the "category"
1655 table and setting "s" to be each category in turn.
1657 The ``tal:attributes`` part is setting up the ``value=`` part of the option tag
1658 to be the name part of "s" which is the current category in the loop.
1660 The ``tal:content`` part is setting the contents of the option tag to be the
1661 name part of "s" again. For objects more complex than category, obviously
1662 you would put an id in the value, and the descriptive part in the content;
1663 but for category they are the same.
1665 Adding category to the default view
1666 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
1668 We can now add categories, add issues with categories, and search issues
1669 based on categories. This is everything that we need to do, however there
1670 is some more icing that we would like. I think the category of an issue is
1671 important enough that it should be displayed by default when listing all
1672 the issues.
1674 Unfortunately, this is a bit less obvious than the previous steps. The code
1675 defining how the issues look is in ``html/issue.index``. This is a large table
1676 with a form down the bottom for redisplaying and so forth.
1678 Firstly we need to add an appropriate header to the start of the table::
1680 <th tal:condition="request/show/category">Category</th>
1682 The condition part of this statement is so that if the user has selected
1683 not to see the Category column then they won't.
1685 The rest of the table is a loop which will go through every issue that
1686 matches the display criteria. The loop variable is "i" - which means that
1687 every issue gets assigned to "i" in turn.
1689 The new part of code to display the category will look like this::
1691 <td tal:condition="request/show/category" tal:content="i/category"></td>
1693 The condition is the same as above: only display the condition when the
1694 user hasn't asked for it to be hidden. The next part is to set the content
1695 of the cell to be the category part of "i" - the current issue.
1697 Finally we have to edit ``html/page`` again. This time to tell it that when the
1698 user clicks on "Unnasigned Issues" or "All Issues" that the category should
1699 be displayed. If you scroll down the page file, you can see the links with
1700 lots of options. The option that we are interested in is the ``:columns=`` one
1701 which tells roundup which fields of the issue to display. Simply add
1702 "category" to that list and it all should work.
1705 Adding in state transition control
1706 ----------------------------------
1708 Sometimes tracker admins want to control the states that users may move issues
1709 to.
1711 1. add a Multilink property to the status class::
1713 stat = Class(db, "status", ... , transitions=Multilink('status'), ...)
1715 and then edit the statuses already created through the web using the
1716 generic class list / CSV editor.
1718 2. add an auditor module ``checktransition.py`` in your tracker's
1719 ``detectors`` directory::
1721 def checktransition(db, cl, nodeid, newvalues):
1722 ''' Check that the desired transition is valid for the "status"
1723 property.
1724 '''
1725 if not newvalues.has_key('status'):
1726 return
1727 current = cl.get(nodeid, 'status')
1728 new = newvalues['status']
1729 if new == current:
1730 return
1731 ok = db.status.get(current, 'transitions')
1732 if new not in ok:
1733 raise ValueError, 'Status not allowed to move from "%s" to "%s"'%(
1734 db.status.get(current, 'name'), db.status.get(new, 'name'))
1736 def init(db):
1737 db.issue.audit('set', checktransition)
1739 3. in the ``issue.item`` template, change the status editing bit from::
1741 <th nowrap>Status</th>
1742 <td tal:content="structure context/status/menu">status</td>
1744 to::
1746 <th nowrap>Status</th>
1747 <td>
1748 <select tal:condition="context/id" name="status">
1749 <tal:block tal:define="ok context/status/transitions"
1750 tal:repeat="state db/status/list">
1751 <option tal:condition="python:state.id in ok"
1752 tal:attributes="value state/id;
1753 selected python:state.id == context.status.id"
1754 tal:content="state/name"></option>
1755 </tal:block>
1756 </select>
1757 <tal:block tal:condition="not:context/id"
1758 tal:replace="structure context/status/menu" />
1759 </td>
1761 which displays only the allowed status to transition to.
1764 Displaying entire message contents in the issue display
1765 -------------------------------------------------------
1767 Alter the issue.item template section for messages to::
1769 <table class="messages" tal:condition="context/messages">
1770 <tr><th colspan=3 class="header">Messages</th></tr>
1771 <tal:block tal:repeat="msg context/messages/reverse">
1772 <tr>
1773 <th><a tal:attributes="href string:msg${msg/id}"
1774 tal:content="string:msg${msg/id}"></a></th>
1775 <th tal:content="string:Author: ${msg/author}">author</th>
1776 <th tal:content="string:Date: ${msg/date}">date</th>
1777 </tr>
1778 <tr>
1779 <td colspan="3" class="content">
1780 <pre tal:content="msg/content">content</pre>
1781 </td>
1782 </tr>
1783 </tal:block>
1784 </table>
1786 -------------------
1788 Back to `Table of Contents`_
1790 .. _`Table of Contents`: index.html