Better resources for class contributors - PHP Classes blog

By Manuel Lemos
manuellemos.net
<email contact>

Several authors of complex class packages have asked to provide support to a easier way to upload package files. Finally I made some time to work on it because it is of the interest of all users that classes of greater utility become available in the site.

So, from now on, anybody willing to contribute classes with many files can do it using file upload forms. For now, you still have to upload one file at a time, but that is still better than the text edit forms, that are still available, but usually are less than adequate.

I plan to make available later a method to upload many archives at once. For now, the file upload method should be more encouraging than the original copy and paste method. So, I hope this encourages more authors to start contributing with more complex classes now.


As you may have noticed, now there is a page that explains the requirements and recommendations to contribute to the site:

http://www.phpclasses.org/contribute.html

This should help authors willing to contribute with their packages, to do so in an adequate way, thus reducing the time that each class usually takes to be approved.

If you are willing to contribute. Please read this page carefully.


Another feature that I made available to any site user, is the ability to upload a file of a picture of the face. The intention is to use that image, if made available, to display in the pages about the contributions that each one has made like it is demonstrated in these pages.

http://www.phpclasses.org/browse/author/1.html

http://www.phpclasses.org/browse/package/1.html

For now, the pictures of the users will appear in the pages of the classes that each one contributes. Later, I will also make the pictures be displayed in the pages about other types of contributions that the users have made, like those that participate in the friends of the site initiative.

http://www.phpclasses.org/friends.html

Uploading a picture file is optional and can be made in the user options page:

http://www.phpclasses.org/user_options.html

If you decide to upload your picture file, notice that only photos of your face will be accepted. Do not upload caricature images or other types of images other than of yourself. Please provide a serious picture. Failure to do so will make me remove your picture without prior warning.

The images must have a size not larger than 120x90 pixels and not smaller than 60x45. The site may scale the image if necessary. The file size limit is 20KB and the images must be opaque. Acceptable formats are JPEG, GIF and PNG but the site may convert to JPEG, especially if the image needs to be rescaled, because of restrictions Unisys regarding the patent of the LZW algorithm that is used to compress GIF images.

I hope this idea helps making contributions made to the site by each author more credible. I will also let the users specify the birth date in the user options page, so I can display their current age in their classes pages if they wish.

So, keep contributing more and better classes for the joy of the community of users of the site.