Well, I wasn't sure that it could be done, but I do enjoy a challenge!
;-) I spent some time the past several nights researching and then
implementing a way to interact with the DML (read & post messages) via the web.
I am posting this message via the web, in fact. :-)
This implementation changes absolutely nothing about the current e-mail or
newsgroup versions of the list, while adding the capability to read and post
via the web. Essentially, its a web based newsreader, which interacts with
the newsgroup version of the list. I had some trouble finding web based
newsreaders that would work for us, but I did finally find one that I figured
would suffice (after some modification). It doesn't really do threading
per-se, but then again neither does a web forum... It does seem to do a good
job of keeping all the replies to a thread in the same place when you sort by
subject though. You can also sort by author or date. (it is *somewhat*
similar to reading the DML via the archives except that it remembers which
posts you have already read and hides them by default, and allows you to post
messages and replies to the list.) Anyway, I was able to put the system
together using freely available, open source software combined with a few
scratch built utilities.
In order to access this web version of the DML (which I am calling the
Web-News Gateway for lack of a better name), you must log in with a usercode
and password. The usercode you log in with is actually your e-mail address.
There is a separate utility, which I am calling the DML Web-News Gateway
Registration System, which you must use to set up an account. Once you have
set up an account and chosen a password, you can access the Web-News gateway.
You can use this registration system to change your password to whatever you
want at any time, and there is a feature to e-mail your password to you in case
you forget it.
The link to access the Web-News gateway and the link to the registration
system to set up a password can both be found on the DML home page at
http://www.dakota-truck.net
For those of us used to threaded news clients, this web version is a bit
cumbersome, but for anyone who wants to be able to read and post via the web,
it is certainly better than nothing. :-) If nothing else, it may be useful
for folks away from home who can now interact with the DML using nothing more
than a web browser.
Oh, BTW, when you sign in for the first time, you will automatically be
subscribed to the DML and DML Offtopic groups. The gen2dakota and dakotart408
groups are also available, and you can subscribe to them and interact with them
as well if you so choose. Also, when you first sign in, the DML group will
contain somewhere around 2000 messages or so. You have probably read most (or
all) of them already, so you might want to click on the "catchup" button which
will mark them all read and hide them. Then, new posts will start to show up.
If anyone has any questions, problems, suggestions etc. please feel free to
e-mail or post here on the DML and I'll help however I can.
Enjoy!
---Jon-
.---- Jon Steiger ------ jon@dakota-truck.net or jon@jonsteiger.com ------. | I'm the: AOPA, DoD, EAA, NMA, NRA, SPA, USUA. Rec & UL Pilot - SEL | | 70 Cuda, 90 Dak 'vert, 92 Ram 4x4, 96 Dak, 96 Intruder 1400, 96 FireFly | `------------------------------------------ http://www.jonsteiger.com ----'
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