Symphony.

Description

Install this ensemble and use Symphony to manage your Flash content.

This ensemble is provided by Silex Labs. It is targeting Flash developers and Silex designers.

Login in Symphony as admin and you can define new structures which will generate forms to be filled by the user in user mode. The user logs in as a user and he can create lists of objects with these structures. For example, we included a structure called "gallery element", so that the user mode lets you create new elements for a galery, with a name, description and a file upload form.

With Silex or Flash, you can do templates or sites which display the data entered by the user. In Silex, no programming skills is needed and in Flash, you will develop in ActionScript needed. Here is a demo of Symphony+Silex: http://demos.silexlabs.org/dynamic_demo/ . And here is the full Silex server + symphony ensemble for installation on your server: http://hoyau.info/transfert/dynamic_demo.zip

In symphony you will be able to - define structures which will be seen by the user as very simple forms, with text fields, color pickers, calendars, upload forms... - generate URLs where Flash or Silex can get XML "files" created by the user

you will - load the XML data and parse it into a structure you like - display the data as a gallery, a menu or use the data as constants and configuration data

In symphony, the users (your clients) can - manage content in Symphony to display it in Flash or Silex - create elements for a list which is defined in Symphony admin mode - upload files, enter description, chose a date in a calendar... - manage the elements - delete, ducplicate, edit, ...

Q&A

What is the difference between a Silex theme and a Silex template?

The theme is a Silex publication - usually a web site, which is filled with dummy content.

What we call a Silex template, or "dynamic theme" is a publication with content coming from an external source.

What is Silex Labs exchange platform?

The exchange platform is accessible at http://exchange.silexlabs.org/ and contains Silex elements to download: themes, plugins, fonts, language files, animation layouts, tools, loaders and dynamic templates. It also contains amfPHP plugins and services, and Oof components - these are other projects of Silex Labs.

It is a WordPress powered platform, which means, a WordPress blog with the "exchange platform" plugin for WordPress installed - http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/exchange-platform/ . This plugin is open source, developed by Silex Labs and make it easy for anyone to post elements for the different projects. It handles dependencies between plugins, themes, etc. and versions.

For Silex plugins, themes, templates, etc. there is a corresponding plugin, the "exchange platform" plugin for Silex, which let Silex users install elements in one click from within the manager, and be notified there when new versions are available - here is how: http://community.silexlabs.org/silex/help/?p=1447

What is an accessor in Silex?

In Silex, an accessor is a variable accessible to the designers in the visual editing tools. It can be manipulated visually and it is replaced by its value at runtime. This value usually comes form an external source.

For example, I can put this in a text field in Silex:

Your version of Silex is: <<silex.config.version>> On the stage, I will see "Your version of Silex is 1.6.1RC1", but in the text editor, I see the accessor. And also I can format the accessor and the text field, it will be kept when the value will be changed.

Note that an accessor can also take a color as a value, or

What is a Silex+Symphony template?

It is a pair of 1 symphony ensemble + 1 corresponding Silex theme.

The symphony ensemble produces the XML feeds awaited by the Silex theme and it contains with a website made in Symphony to administrate the content in a user friendly interface, a back end specifically made to drive the Silex templates.

The ensemble is packaged as a Silex plugin called "Symphony back end". This means that there is a php file to describe the plugin, and the Symphony ensemble which contains the dummy content and the back end.

How are the templates will be distributed?

Each template can be used out of the box. Once Silex and Symphony are installed, it shows a dummy content in the template. The user can enter the admin site to manage the content, or Silex WYSIWYG to edit the design.

What are the next steps?

Please read the issues and you will understand

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