Terminology

What it is and what it isn't

The word tracker is probably a misnomer, form creator is probably better. This Tiki is running, at the time of this writing, 1.9 pre-release (CVS). These docs are geared for the 1.9 trackers but may in part be applicable to 1.8.2.

Trackers are really really cool. They are not perfect but getting better all the time. A huge issue is being able to convert other forms into the tracker interface. Simple text conversions are now possible with the import/export but that doesn't yet work for the tracker items. Please help us finish that part of the trackers!

Here's some new stuff for you folks who are just discovering trackers:

tiki-list_trackers.php

All below can be sorted:
name
description
created
last modif
items

• list all of your trackers or forms.

Admin trackers

tiki-admin_trackers.php

• needs a category sort, large number of trackers renders the trackers almost unusable

tiki-admin_tracker_fields

Tips and Tricks

If you've created trackers in series then use the URL / number to navigate large tracker dbases. The sorting by name can be frustrating, search can be unpredictable. Until there is a sort by category, and you've a large dbase of trackers, then plan to experience navigation issues.

import/ export

Very exciting, very beta right now... take this data and import it into your tracker and report back...

[TRACKER]

trackerId = 187
name = To Kill a Mockingbird Chapter Twenty-six
description = You need to create a total of five questions for each chapter. The questions should focus on elements like the one found in the category > literary terms. Focus on the key themes of the story; use the web to help you in your research for good questions. Good questions are thought provoking, insightful, and interesting.
showStatus = y
defaultStatus = o
showStatusAdminOnly = n
newItemStatus = o
modItemStatus =
writerCanModify = y
writerGroupCanModify = n
showCreated = y
showLastModif = y
defaultOrderKey =
defaultOrderDir = asc
useComments = n
showComments = n
useAttachments = n
showAttachments = n
attachmentsconf = 1,2,4,0,3,0,0,0
categories = 39

On import the tracker is not created and the checkboxes are not ticked. But as a way of ramping up organizations with importing forms... this is very powerful collaboration tool.

Name:

Type:

This is where you choose the type of fields. mose has done some amazing work here and it seems like everyday I need to learn a new and more intriguing tool in trackers

Checkbox options:

put 1 if you need that next field is on the same row.

Numeric options:

1,size,prepend,append with size in chars, prepend will be display before the field append wil be display just after, and initial 1 to make that next text field or checkbox is in same row. If you indicate only 1 it means next field is in same row too.

Text options:

1,size,prepend,append,max with size in chars, prepend will be display before the field append wil be display just after, max is the maximum number of characters that can be saved, and initial 1 to make that next text field or checkbox is in same row. If you indicate only 1 it means next field is in same row too.

Textarea options:

options,width,height,max with option is 1 or 0, rest is size indicated in chars and lines, max is the maximum number of characters that can be saved.

Dropdown options:

list of items separated with commas.

User Selector:

use options for automatic field feeding : you can use 1 for author login or 2 for modificator login.

Group Selector:

use options for automatic field feeding : you can use 1 for group of creation and 2 for group where modification come from. The default group has to be set, or the first group that come is chosen for a user, or the default group is Registered.

Image options:

xSize,ySize indicated in pixels.

Action options:

Label,post,tiki-index.php,page:fieldname,highlight=test

Perhaps the most exciting aspect of trackers is the ability to talk to other tiki and web objects

'action' field type enable the display of a form button with hidden values taken from the current item.

• Label is what is on the button
• post can be get or post, it's the form method
• tiki-index.php is the arbitrary url of the destination of the form
• page:fieldname can be repeated several times, it specifies the
• variable names to pass in the form, as well as value taken from the
• current item fromm field named fieldname
• highlight=test can also be repeated and is useful for fixed values
• params to pass to the form

Register,post,tiki-register.php,name:login,pass:pass,passAgain:pass,email:email,register=register

so you need to have fields named login, pass and email in that tracker scheme.

Category options:

parentId

Item Link options:

trackerId,fieldId links to item from trackerId which fieldId matches the content of that field.

Items list options:

trackerId,fieldIdThere, fieldIdHere, displayFieldIdThere displays the list of displayFieldIdThere from item in tracker trackerId where fieldIdThere matches fieldIdHere.

Email address options:

The options are now 0|1|2 where 0 puts the address as plain text, 1 does a hex encoded mailto link (more difficult for web spiders to pick it up and spam) and 2 does the normal href mailto.

Is column visible when listing tracker items?

Don't use this with big blocks of text...

Column links to edit/view item?

Makes a link of the item content in the column to edit/view it.

Column is searchable?

Whether the content of the column should be searched.

Field is public? (for use thru trackerlist plugin)

Field is hidden? (visible by admin only)

Order

• option to set by 10 as if you mess up the order of your fields and are incrementing by one then you are hosed.. you'll have to readjust manually all of your field ordering... a real nuisance
• needs a help link to a specific support page

RFEs

allow for voting of tracker item

tiki-view_tracker.php

"View Inserted Item" checkbox: This is an "end user" item. If checked when a tracker item is saved then the saved tracker is shown to the user, otherwise the list of items in that tracker is shown.

RFEs

• The view_tracker needs a help link

tiki-view_tracker_item.php

description

• Doesn't support wiki tags but needs to.
• Doesn't support URLs

list trackers

goes to tiki-list_trackers.php

Monitor

links to the monitor option for the current tracker

Admin trackers

goes tiki-admin_trackers.php

Edit this tracker

goes to tiki-admin_trackers.php

tab: name of tracker

tab : insert new item

This is where you click to add a new item

• When editing there needs a link to the owner of the item so to facilitate rapid comms with collaborators.
• When viewing we admin needs to see the description of the tracker to make sure that the client has met the goals of the tracker.

RFEs

report logs
This image is a composite of another tool very much like tracker.

• complete import and export of tracker's fields

• would be nice to have a Vote field that allowed a Tiki end user to vote on a tracker item. It would be nice to allow a mode that only allowed registered users to vote, and applied a quota to the number of items each user could vote on. Number of votes for an item would be a sortable column. As an item was determined to be 'resolved' then the user's vote would be freed up and they would be emailed to be notified that they could vote on another item. This approach is utilized very successfully in the java bug database.

repeat plea for full import and export control as deleting lots of fields from a tracker is a pain in the behind

Trackers

Create trackers
Create/edit trackers

Below are the fields you'll see when editing / creating a tracker.

More Information

See Trackers (on doc.tw.o)
See TrackerExamples - this is a collection of exported trackers that might help (or hinder) a new admin setting up trackers