This is still my distributed maintenance question but it's now more precisely about WebDAV (webdav.org) and the Apache module mod_dav, and so I start a new thread for it.

From a look at webdav.org I got the impression this is exactly what I need to let various peoples edit files on my site. Am I right?

How ist this with installing Apache modules: Is that a big hassle for a host or could I just ask them to install this mod_dav module thingy for me?

Any opinions about WebDAV/mod_dav in general?

If you are on a shared host, I doubt you will be able to convince him to support this but you might.

The WebDAV specification allows for editing files and using HTTP as the base specification for managing files, however it is not a content management system, so you are not going to get anything in the way of check-in/check-out solutions.

It also needs a client. I don't believe you can simply point you web browser at the WebDAV Server and get anyting... Clients certainly exist, but they are all young.

MacOS X includes a nice client :)

-t

Hmm, if not check in/out, so there seems to be a locking mechanism at least.

This is from webdav.org, FAQ/Major benefits:


WebDAV provides a network protocol for creating interoperable, collaborative applications. Major features of the protocol include:

Locking (concurrency control): long-duration exclusive and shared write locks prevent the overwrite problem, where two or more collaborators write to the same resource without first merging changes. To achieve robust Internet-scale collaboration, where network connections may be disconnected arbitrarily, and for scalability, since each open connection consumes server resources, the duration of DAV locks is independent of any individual network connection.


Yes, I'm on a shared server. And on a cheap one :)

The thing to keep in mind about WebDAV is that it's a protocol, not a tool. You'll need to have a client tool to use the protocol.

The protocol supports file locking. You need a client tool to take advantage of the protocol and implement a check-in/check-out system.

-t

hmm yep. Anyway, I like this concept.

I just emailed SourceForge support to see if they have the mod_dav installed, but it's not. It's quite high up in their to do list though, but that doesn't help much.

Now I'll ask my own host.

Since there's a protocol and an Apache module for it, there must also be a free client thingy, I hope.

Internet Explorer 5 seems to contain a WebDAV client:


Web Folders is a new Web authoring component included with Internet Explorer 5 that enables you to manage files on a WWW Distributed Authoring and Versioning (WebDAV) or Web Extender Client (WEC) server using a familiar Windows Explorer or My Computer interface. WebDAV is an extension to the Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) that defines how basic file functions such as copy, move, delete, and create folder are performed using HTTP. WEC is a Microsoft FrontPage protocol that is used for Web publishing.


To install Web Folders while you are installing Internet Explorer 5, choose the Customize option, and then select Web Folders under Web Authoring Components. If Internet Explorer 5 is already installed, you can add Web Folders by following these steps:

Select Start > Settings > Control Panel
Double-click Add/Remove Programs
On the Install/Uninstall tab, click Microsoft Internet Explorer 5, and then click Add/Remove
Click Add a component to Internet Explorer, and then click OK
Under Web Authoring Components, select Web Folders
Click Next, and then follow the instructions on your screen to complete the installation of Web Folders

Web Folders installs as a shell extension with an icon in My Computer (root object in Windows Explorer). This root object is a container for shortcuts to your Web publishing sites. You can use Windows Explorer to view, move, copy, rename, delete, create new, sort/group files by properties, and view property sheet information for files in a Web Folder depending on your authoring and security permissions on the Web server.

astra, I think what you were describing earlier is different from what this module supports. What I understood is that you want several authors (of content) to publish their articles. This is a more complex issue than trnasporting the data. The biggest problem you will have -- and I think WebDAV doesn't tackle it, is how will these articles be formatted for the web? and where will they be linked at?

This is what a CMS system (like ezPublish, typo3, phpNuke, eGrail, etc...) do for you. The authors need only worry about the content they develop (the text of their articles) while the actual HTML design is implemented using a pre-defined template (or set of templates) by the CMS automatically.

Hmm, yes, ... this is like a vicious circle. Mainly I want these peoples to maintain different sections of the site. Of course I'll set some style guidelines to get a coherent look of the site. On the other hand I want to let them some freedom for page layout and they shall also be able to create new pages (in their respective section) and the CMS template aproach usually brings quite a few constraints which I don't like. This isn't going to be a portal type site, where all pages look about the same.

On the other hand, you're right, the HTML skill level isn't terrific for all the editors. So I'm looking for some sort of editor thingy and I guess you're right that's not what I get from WebDAV.

Actually I have no clear idea how one would work with IE5 Web Folders. If this just allows to download the file and then edit it with any editor, this might work ok.

Another problem is that I'm maybe not gona find a host with WebDAV support. So probably I'll see if my current host can give me a number of FTP users for my one webspace, and then simply arrange with my colleagues for who edits which file...

I think Zope will satisfy your requirements of multiple templates and still allow authors some degree of independance.
Take a look at http://zope.org