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Contact Directory
Written by Chantal Bisson   

As I'm on the edge of beginning my project for GSoC and still in the conception phase, I would very much like if you, the community, help me to make the best contact and directory component possible this summer, by writing, down below, any comments you may have or functions you would like to see implemeted in the future component.

This project is basicly being created with the future prospect of being implemented in Joomla! itself and the more you get involved, better are the chances that the new component meets your needs and asperations. I will do my best to add as many of your ideas into the component, as long as it stays feasable during the time frame.

Thank for your help in making this project a successful one and I can't wait to read all the incredible ideas you may have.

 
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12 Comments

  1. Jay makes this comment

    In order for a directory function to be truly useful, I think it would need the following features: 1) ability to add custom data fields to display in the directory 2) ability to restrict some fields to public viewing and others to private viewing (let members of the site see certain contact information that the general public cannot) 3) ability to add a picture 4) ability to group and search on various data associated with a contact For an example of such a directory/contact form, see http://directory.jmsa.org

    Sat 03 May 2008 11:41:46 EDT

  2. Chantal Bisson makes this comment

    Hey Jay, I would like to thank you for your comment. Your idea about the ability to restrict some fields to public viewing was an idea that I had not thought about and that I think would enhance the component.

    Mon 05 May 2008 00:10:29 EDT

  3. Jörg makes this comment

    It would be very very nice to have some (up to 10?) custom fields for the contact component and the possibility of custom ordering. Many customers have their own wishes like number of fields, description, ordering etc. Another great idea ist the integration of spam protection. (like security images)

    Mon 05 May 2008 10:34:08 EDT

  4. Jan makes this comment

    Hello! I would like to see the possibility to make groups and connect contacts to one or several of these groups. Then the possibility to search and filter these groups in frontend. Ex. If you have a big organization and want to find all people that are working with webdesign or programming...

    Tue 06 May 2008 10:26:52 EDT

  5. Charles Schaefer makes this comment

    Architecturally saying, an event system would be appreciated. Why? Well, thinking in the current contact module, the fact that it only sends the contact by e-mail is annoying. I should be able to see all the contacts made through my site in an admin interface or in a CRM system (if i have one). So, if the new module has an event triggered when a contact is made, I would be able to easily develop a connector between joomla and a CRM system or to develop an admin interface to list the contacts. I don't know (yet) if this is easy inside the Joomla! architecture, but this is a good feature to the module.

    Wed 07 May 2008 11:35:50 EDT

  6. Charles Schaefer makes this comment

    Architecturally saying, an event system would be appreciated. Why? Well, thinking in the current contact module, the fact that it only sends the contact by e-mail is annoying. I should be able to see all the contacts made through my site in an admin interface or in a CRM system (if i have one). So, if the new module has an event triggered when a contact is made, I would be able to easily develop a connector between joomla and a CRM system or to develop an admin interface to list the contacts. I don't know (yet) if this is easy inside the Joomla! architecture, but this is a good feature to the module.

    Wed 07 May 2008 11:36:52 EDT

  7. Chantal Bisson makes this comment

    Thank you all for your comments. I will be posting very shortly a list of features that I plan to be working on this summer.

    Sat 10 May 2008 11:10:27 EDT

  8. Elin makes this comment

    It would be great to have the ability to use one of the mapping apis for contacts. You might want to look at how civicrm has done this.

    Sat 10 May 2008 20:15:06 EDT

  9. Hitesh makes this comment

    I've tested and been through several different components and versions of components. One of the frustrating things is adding the contact itself and more importantly updating the contact. Import from spreadsheet is a start but would like to see options to be able to add from Email client like Thunderbird (or Outlook). Also having ability to add / edit from frontend. I think Sigusi (SOBI2) is good example to look at and has options for payment - which means contact management can double up as a Business Directory.

    Mon 12 May 2008 14:17:03 EDT

  10. Nate makes this comment

    Try not to include too much! The custom fields is a great addition, the privatization of fields is a needed improvement. Try not to get sucked in too much by attempting a directory structure other than a very basic one. A simple import function would be nice, but again don't get carried away! You are creating a very needed item but please dont let it get bogged down with a ton of features. Best of Luck!

    Wed 14 May 2008 12:45:04 EDT

  11. Omar makes this comment

    Hello Chantal! I think most of the suggestions have already been mentioned within your original abstract and I think this will be a great project. I think one of the best things is the A-Z feature, which will be nice very nice in my case (I'm the webmaster for a college here in California), along with the extra views (at the moment one can always tell a Joomla site whenever one views the Contact Us page)...greater flexibility there in the layout would be a welcome improvement :-). Good luck!

    Thu 22 May 2008 02:15:32 EDT

  12. Carsten makes this comment

    Hello Chantal! I would really appreciate the possibility to maintain contact information through the frontend so that a registered user is able to modify his own contact information. Good luck with your project!

    Thu 22 May 2008 10:49:21 EDT

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