| CARVIEW |
Now that we have installed e107 and had a chance to view the front page, you are probably thinking to yourself, there is not much available. Trust me, there are plenty of options available, which we will explore together as we make our website. Before we start, keep in mind that with a CMS, you have a front end and a back end. If you are familiar with word processing programs then it is just like a mail-merge document. The theme (front end) is analogous to the document body in a theme. It then fills in the various fields with the information contained in the database (back end), which in turn then displays what look like individually prepared letters. If you are new to making websites or have never done mail merge, think of a theme as that one meal that you make that comes out perfect every time but then tell each of the people that have eaten it that it was prepared especially for them. The principle is the same, just a different technology.
The front end, also known as the theme, is the web page that our site visitors will see. Looking at the screenshot on the next page, you can see how the theme's front page is divided into several smaller areas that are as follows:
Header
Search Box
Front Page
Area 1
Area 2
Area 3
Area 4
Site Disclaimer
Of course, you are not restricted to this particular layout when you develop your own site. Themes are flexible and provide you with a quick method to change the look of your entire site with just a couple of clicks of your mouse. You can make a selection from one of the many free themes that are included with e107, develop your own theme, or hire a designer to make a customized theme. While customizing a theme is beyond the scope of this book, we will look at customizing the layout of an existing theme in Chapter 4.
Many web administrators like to control the display of information on their website to its visitors. E107 assumes during the install that you will want to register users. You can allow all visitors to view your front page and then you can prompt for username and password to access the rest of your site. You can also create different levels of user groups and restrict access based on groups, which we will cover later.
For the purpose of Cuddle Care, we would like our visitors to register before using any of the features such as using the forums or uploading pet photos, and also so that we can notify the users of important information that may affect their pet's health, send holiday or birthday greetings, etc. Take a moment now, and go to the login block at the upper left corner under the header. Just under where it says, Remember Me you will see the Sign Up link as shown in the screenshot below. If you have been on the Web and have signed up on CMS websites you may think I am insulting your intelligence by explaining and showing screenshots on this but you are going to encounter some visitors who want to become members that have never registered on a CMS site. Nine out of ten times the reason that they cannot register, is that they entered the username and password and then clicked the Login
Click on the Signup link. The first thing you will see is the COPPA (Child Online Protection and Privacy Act) statement.
This site complies with The Children's Online Privacy Protection Act of 1998 (COPPA) and as such cannot accept registrations from users under the age of 13 without a written permission document from their parent or guardian. For more information you can read the legislation here. Please contact the main site admin here if you require assistance.
Please certify you are 13 or over the age of 13.
No Yes
Select Yes and then the Continue button. The next page is the user-registration page.
Let's create a user named Registered User. To do this, enter in the information as follows:
Display Name: This field will allow you to enter the name that people will see online. We will enter Registered User here.
Login Name: This will allow you to enter the login name that you wish to use.
Real Name: This field will allow you to enter your legal name. This information is not shown on the website. Most administrators use this as part of an identification process when there are problems with logins.
Password: This field will allow you to enter the password you wish to use. (The best way is to use a combination of upper and lowercase letters mixed with numbers.)
Re-Type Password: This is done to confirm whether you have entered the same password as that in the previous field. If the two passwords do not match you will get an error message.
Email Address: This field will allow you to enter the email address that you wish to use. (E107 will then send you an email with a link to validate your registration.)
Re-type Email Address: This is done to confirm whether you have entered the same email address as that in the previous field. If the two email addresses do not match you will get an error message.
Hide email: This field will allow you to select Yes or No depending upon your preference.
Signature: You can leave this field blank. For the purpose of showing what it is used for I have provided a sample signature of my company. (See screenshot on the next page.)
Avatar: This is optional. An avatar is an 80 x 80 pixels or small graphic used to represent an individual. Avatars can be as simple as a photo that has been shrunk to these proportions or drawings or logo avatars created by artistic individuals.
Timezone: This field will allow you to enter the appropriate time zone for your location from the drop-down list. If you are unsure what your time zone is, then you can go to https://wwp.greenwichmeantime.com/gmt-converter2.htm for a complete listing.
Enter code visible in this image: This field will allow you to enter the code you see in the text box below it. This is a security measure meant to thwart computer programs from automatically registering on your site.
Click on the Register button.
The next step is for you to go check your email. You should receive an email with a subject line that says Registration details for e107 Powered Website, as shown in the screenshot below. This email also contains a registration completion link. To complete the registration process you must click on the link or cut and paste the link into your browser. If you have completed this step you will be transported to your e107 site and see the following message:
Thank You!
This stage of registration is complete. You will receive a confirmation email containing your login details. Please follow the link in the email to complete the signup process and activate your account.
If you do not click on the registration completion link, you will not be a registered user. Your information will stay in the system as incomplete until you complete the last step or an administrator manually approves the registration.
Now go over to the login section in the upper-left corner and enter the username and password of the registered user that you just now registered, and press the Login button. You will now see the member's front page as shown in the screenshot below:
It looks just like the visitor front page except you will notice that a small menu has replaced the area where the login was located. Just beneath that menu, you will see a light blue area that shows that your status is online and what section of the site you are viewing. Beneath this information are some general statistics about the number of people who have been online at a particular time, how many were members, how many were guests, and the date and time details. Just below that are the total number of members and the name of the newest member to join your site.