[Request] Multiple categories...

[Xeriar]

Checking this out, it seems pretty awesome, will likely be using it on a few sites.  Anyway, I have a bit of a pet peeve regarding categorization - for forums, this is minor, but when it comes to files and -especially- image galleries, it's a big deal:

Basically, I want to be able to assign multiple categories or albums to a file.  That is, rather than storing an image within an album (say), an image would instead be associated with one or more albums/categories, and if users wanted to restrict their search further, they could move on down the line.

Hopefully that was explained well enough :-)

[bloc]

It is. And I understand completely.

As of now, the categories are tied to permissions - or will be lol. But adding sections to articles will solve the "multiple categories" problem then, because sections won't be tied to permissions, it will rather be a pure archiving and searching tool. Actually, "section" is a bit misleading word for this..

[Xeriar]

Yes, I think you should consider a name-swap :-p

[bloc]

got any suggestions..? Bearing in mind that categories is a one-per-item affair, and these will be rather "assignment categories".

Hm, "tags" maybe? Or "labels"?

[Xeriar]

Well my suggestion was to swap the names - call what you now call 'categories' 'sections' to free up 'categories' for this.  It breaks with SMF a bit but honestly IMO they should do the same thing.  'Labels' also works, I don't rightly like 'tags' as that implies some sort of administrative property.  'Albums / galleries' is sort of specific to audio/visual files.

Users should have their own, too, for favorites both public and private.

[bloc]

I think it will only confuse if i change "categories" to "sections" now, even if "category" is a attribute and really the appropiate one. A better name would be labels really, as it s slightly familar from the PM section, where you label multiple things.

[Xeriar]

Could a similar deal be done for articles, too?  'Categories' that only certain people could access, write to, and so on.

Merging it could be nifty, as you could have a standardized comment system between galleries, albums, download sections, articles, etc.  Just assign a board to each one, treat the 'topic initiator' as the post, and go at it.

Need to make php editing a security option though >_>

[bloc]

Articles will have access permissions..and those will be tied to "categories" like the Download manager is. So labels would then take care of the rest.

[Xeriar]

Nifty.  Hopefully we'll see it soon :-)

Also, could the shoutbox be instead tied to posts?  IE to keep an archive of them all just have them threads (by day or some configurable option) in a board.

[IchBin]

Tying shouts to posts would not be good IMO.

[Xeriar]

Why not?  A given database is a single file (basically) anyway, at least for MySQL.

[IchBin]

A shout is a shout, not a post. Creating a post for every shout is unecessary work for TinyPortal. Thats just my $.02

[Xeriar]

On the other hand I find creating a separate table for a shoutbox to be unnecessary.

[IchBin]

Yes, but then you don't have to run it through the SMF routine and worry about it. A shoutbox is made to be simple. Adding it to SMF is far to complicated IMO. I think TP has bigger fish to fry. I'd like to see articles pulled from topics. This type of thing makes much more sense. Comments on articles would be posts in the topic.
With a shoutbox there's no topic. Theres just posts. If you get what I mean....

[Xeriar]

Worry about what?

All it would need would be a predefined subject, and a character limiter.  In the case of a board-specific shoutbox, it would be that board, of course, while the forum-wide one would be by month, week, day, hour, etc. as needed.

I'm a fan of making good use of powerful generic tools like threads.  Your suggestion is another example of that.