This guide will walk through each of the steps required to successfully install the jTips component and standard Dashlets. While this guide is written for Joomla! 1.5, it will be mostly similar for Joomla! 1.0. Graphics and step-by-step howto's will help you understand the installation process and how to configure various aspects of the system.
Firstly, we will look at how to install the main component using the Joomla! Extension Manager. This secion will describe navigating to various areas in your Joomla! Administrator area as well as uploading the component and troubleshooting common problems with installation. Secondly, we will see how to install the Dashlets to be used in conjunction with the main jTips component.
It is important to note that this guide is for jTips 2.1. Many of the steps outlined here will not be relevant to jTips 2.0 or below.
Unpacking jTips
jTips comes bundled with three standard dashlets. To get started, we will need to extract this bundle to get to each part.
Locate the file you downloaded with your Download Key. The file is called 'jTips (Unzip First).zip'
Open the file (double-click) then, in Windows, click on Extract All Files and follow the prompts to extract the files to a location of your choice. The Desktop is a handy location for now.
You should now have the following files in the location you extracted to (Desktop):
The three files with 'Unzip First' in the name will also need to be extract. Repeat steps 1 and 2 to extract the contents of each file.
If you are using Joomla! 1.5, you will need the following files handy:
jTips Component.zip
jTips Competition Ladder Dashlet (1.5).zip
jTips My Tips Dashlet (1.5).zip
jTips Team Ladder Dashlet (1.5).zip
If you are using Joomla! 1.0, you will need the following files handy:
jTips Component.zip
jTips Competition Ladder Dashlet (1.5).zip
jTips My Tips Dashlet (1.5).zip
jTips Team Ladder Dashlet (1.5).zip
Installing the Component
Now we will go through the process of getting the main part of jTips installed on your website.
Log in to your Joomla! Administration area. This is found in the administration/ directory of your website. For example: http://www.mywebsite.com/administrator
In the main navigation menu, go to Extensions » Install/Uninstall. This will load Joomla!'s component manager.
Click the 'Browse' button in the 'Upload Package File' section, then, locate the 'jTips Component.zip' file you have extracted.
Click the 'Upload File & Install' buttonThis process can take up to a few minutes to complete. It is important you do not try to click any other links or buttons on the page after you have clicked 'Upload File & Install' button.
The jTips Component will now be uploaded and installed. This will do a number of actions in the background. When it completed, you will be presented with the jTips installation confirmation page.
If you are using Joomla! 1.5!, congratulations! You have completed the first part of the installation. Now proceed to the next section on installing the Dashlets.
If you are using Joomla! 1.0!, proceed to step 7 below.
Click the continue button to return to the list of installed components. Now go to Components » jTips from the main menu. You may see some error messages displayed here. This is ok.
Click on the About tab. At the bottom of this panel you will see the following:
If you need to rebuild the database tables for jTips, » click here «
Click on the link to rebuild the jTips database tables.
Go to Components » jTips to reload the page. Congratulations! You have completed the first part of the installation. Now proceed to the next section on installing the Dashlets.
Installing the Dashlets
Now that the main jTips component is installed, we can install the bonus dashlets to add more functionality and features to the jTips Dashboard.
In the Joomla! Administrator area, go to Extensions Install/Uninstall.
Click the 'Browse' button and locate the jTips Competition Ladder Dashlet (1.5).zip file.
Once, selected, click the 'Upload File & Install' button to upload and install the Dashlet.
Joomla! will upload the dashlet and install it and present a confirmation page with a short description of the dashlet just installed.
Repeat steps 1 to 4 to install the jTips My Tips Dashlet and jTips Team Ladder Dashlet.
The jTips Dashlets are now installed and ready to be configured.
Configuring the Dashlets
Each of the bonus dashlets will be configured separately. Firstly, go to Extensions » Module Manager. Then ensure you can see the jTips Dashlets in the list. The dashlets can mostly be configured in the same manner as any other Joomla! module, with an important exception regarding the module position.
Competition Ladder Dashlet
Find the jTips Competition Ladder Dashlet in the modules list and click it to configure.
Make sure you change the setting for 'Enabled' to Yes.
In the 'Position' field, rather than selection an option using the dropdown menu, click your cursor in the text of the dropdown. Now, delete the text there and enter:
jTipsDash
This must be entered in exactly this way, with the capital T and D and make sure there are no spaces before, or after the entry.If the module position is set to a standard postition (anything other than 'jTipsDash', your website will display errors on the page).
For 'Menu Assignement', you can leave this set to 'All' - the jTips Dashlets will only appear on the jTips Dashboard.
In the Module Parameters section, there should be no need to set 'Load Mootools' to Yes. You should only change this option if you experience issues with this dashlet.
Click the Save button to publish the jTips Competition Ladder Dashlet to the jTips Dashboard.
My Tips Dashlet
Find the jTips My Tips Dashlet in the modules list and click it to configure.
Make sure you change the setting for 'Enabled' to Yes.
In the 'Position' field, rather than selection an option using the dropdown menu, click your cursor in the text of the dropdown. Now, delete the text there and enter:
jTipsDash
This must be entered in exactly this way, with the capital T and D and make sure there are no spaces before, or after the entry. If you created the jTipsDash module position in the previous step (Configuring the Competition Ladder Dashlet), you will now find that the jTipsDash module position is available as an option in the dropdown list. You can now safely use the dropdown list to select this option.If the module position is set to a standard postition (anything other than 'jTipsDash', your website will display errors on the page).
For 'Menu Assignement', you can leave this set to 'All' - the jTips Dashlets will only appear on the jTips Dashboard.
In the Module Parameters section, there should be no need to set 'Load Mootools' to Yes. You should only change this option if you experience issues with this dashlet.
Click the Save button to publish the jTips My Tips Dashlet to the jTips Dashboard.
Team Ladder Dashlet
Find the jTips Team Dashlet in the modules list and click it to configure.
Make sure you change the setting for 'Enabled' to Yes.
In the 'Position' field, rather than selection an option using the dropdown menu, click your cursor in the text of the dropdown. Now, delete the text there and enter:
jTipsDash
This must be entered in exactly this way, with the capital T and D and make sure there are no spaces before, or after the entry. If you created the jTipsDash module position in the previous step (Configuring the Competition Ladder Dashlet), you will now find that the jTipsDash module position is available as an option in the dropdown list. You can now safely use the dropdown list to select this option.If the module position is set to a standard postition (anything other than 'jTipsDash', your website will display errors on the page).
For 'Menu Assignement', you can leave this set to 'All' - the jTips Dashlets will only appear on the jTips Dashboard.
In the Module Parameters section, there should be no need to set 'Load Mootools' to Yes. You should only change this option if you experience issues with this dashlet.
Setting 'Show Team Logos' to 'Yes' will display a small logo for each team in this dashlet. The image will only be displayed if one has been uploaded for the Team (from the Team Management section of the jTips Component).
The 'Team Field' setting allows you to configure which value for each team that should be displayed. The list of teams in the dashlet will be order by the selected option here. Normally, this can be left as 'Points' to display the total accumulated points for each team.
Click the Save button to publish the jTips Team Ladder Dashlet to the jTips Dashboard.
You have now configured each of the jTips Dashlets. Continue to the next section to learn how to prepare a menu item to link to parts of jTips.
Creating a Menu Item
With Joomla! 1.5, jTips allows you to create links to parts fo jTips for each season/competition you have setup.
To begin creating a new menu item, go to Menus » Main Menu (or select another appropriate menu).
You will then see the list of menu items that already exist for the menu you selected. Click the New button on the toolbar.
Select jTips from the list of available components. You will then be able to select which part of jTips you want this menu item to link it. The default option is the Dashboard - you should have at least this as a menu item. The Menu Layout and User Preferences Layout have both been marked as NOT USED - these options should not be selected.
Configuring the menu item for jTips is easy. Simply select which season/competition this menu item corresponds to. This will ensure that only information relevant to that selected season/competition is displayed when a user clicks on this menu item link. Other menu item settings are standard and allow you to publish the link and also determine who should have access to the link.
When you have fully configured the new menu item, click the Save button in the toolbar to save the settings.
You can repeat this process to create other jTips menu items to link to other parts of jTips or other competitions.
Congratulations!
You have successfully installed jTips! In this guide we have covered:
Unpacking the jTips Package
Uploading and Installing the main component
Installing and setting up the three basic dashlets
Creating a new menu item to link to jTips
After Upgrading to jTips 2.1
There have a been a few changes from jTips 2.0 to jTips 2.1 that require a little bit more tweaking to complete your upgrade. These changes are mainly in the Configuration as new options have been added and the way some options work has changed.
Important: Please read before upgrading to version 2.1Features introduced in jTips 2.1 require PHP version of at least 5.1 (5.2 is preferred). Please ensure your web server is running this version or has this version available. If you are unsure, please contact your host or system administrator.Always backup your website and database before upgrading any application or software.
If you are currently running jTips 2.0.12 or later on Joomla! 1.0 you will need to take some additional steps prior to upgrading via OneClick. If you are using Joomla! 1.5, you will be able to upgrade immediately.
The the extensive work done for jTips 2.1 we have identified an issue that prevents jTips from upgrading when used on a Joomla! 1.0 system. This issue can be resolved by editing a single file. However, if you are not comfortable with editing scripts or code, or you have no desire to know how to do so, please contact our Support Desk to arrange a suitable time for us to apply the fix for you. Alternatively, a clean install will bypass this issue. If you would like to proceed with a clean install, contact our Support Desk for the latest version.
If you are confident you know what you are doing, please read on.
This article may be out of date due to changes in the PayPal user interface.
Before You Start
If you don't already have a PayPal account, you'll need to sign up.
When you have an account, log in. You will need to upgrade your account to either a Premier or Business account. It should be fairly easy to find a link to upgrade. If you are unsure if you need to upgrade, try to continue.
Click on the My Account tab, then, in the sub-menu click on Profile.Under the Selling Preferences heading, click on Website Payment Preferences. You should then be able to turn on AutoReturn. If you don't see this option, you will need to upgrade your account first. Once you have selected On for AutoReturn, enter your website for the Return URL, then click the Save button at the bottom of the page.
Now click on the Merchant Services tab, then, in the menu that appears on the left hand side of the page, click on Website Payments Standard. In the menu that then appears below, click on Feature List. From here, you can select either a Buy Now button, or a Subscription button depending one the type of payment you would like to set up. Click the Set it Up link for your choice of button.
AutoReturnmust be set to On in order for jTips to register the user has having paid
Buy Now
Get the PayPal Code
Fill in the details for the Item Details area and select your Button Style.
Select No for Button Encryption.
Click the Create Button Now button to continue.
On the next page, select the code in the HTML Code for Websites area and copy it to the clipboard (Edit > Copy, or CTRL+C).
Setting Up jTips
Log in the to Adminstrator area of your Joomla! system and navigate to the jTips Configuration page.
On the General tab, set Payments to PayPal.
Now, click on the PayPal tab.
Set Use PayPal Subscriptions to No and paste your PayPal code into the PayPal Code field.
Subscriptions and Recurring Payments
Fill in the details for the Subscription Details area.
Skip the Trial Periods section, then enter your preferred billing period in the Regular Billing Cycle area, then select your Button Style.
Select No for Button Encryption.
Click the Add More Options button.
On the next page, scroll down and chose an Unsubscribe Button Style, then click Create Button Now at the bottom of the page.
On the next page, select the code in the HTML Code for Websites area and copy it to the clipboard (Edit > Copy, or CTRL+C).
Leave this page/window open.
Setting Up jTips
Open a new window/tab in your web browser and log in the to Adminstrator area of your Joomla! system and navigate to the jTips Configuration page.
On the General tab, set Payments to PayPal.
Now, click on the PayPal tab.
Set Use PayPal Subscriptions to Yes and paste your PayPal code into the PayPal Code field.
Flick back to the PayPal page and select the code in the second box under Copy 'Cancel Subscriptions' Button HTML (the code inside this box should start with 'https', not ' Copy, or CTRL+C).
Now flick back to the jTips Configuration page and, paste the code into the PayPal Unsubscription Code.
Fine Tuning
Finally, before you save, click inside the PayPal Code field and scroll to the bottom. The very last line should be:
Better BadWordsYou can use Regular Expressions in your BadWord filters to filter against a range of comments in one hit! For example, enter 'd.+mn' to match anything like 'damn', 'd4mn', 'd@mn', 'd#mn', or even 'd_this_entire_phrase_will_match_mn'!
The jTips Demo Site is now available for you to check out the intricacies of the jTips system. The Demo Site is loosley based on the Australian NRL competition. However, the demo data is completely refreshed and randomized every 12 hours! Not everything can be randomized however, so the Comments and BadWords features have been disabled. You can log in to the Demo Site in both the front end and administration areas to really get a feel for how the system works.
