Chapter 5. Enabling User Interaction

Our social network is really starting to take shape, with a range of collaboration features allowing our users to get active with and contribute to the site. At this stage, however, we don't have a true network; we need to let our users build relationships with one another, as well as communicate and collaborate as a whole and in smaller groups. In this chapter, you will learn how to do the following:

• Use the user relationships module to create a range of relationship types, allowing users to mark each other as friends, colleagues, and acquaintances

• Stream social activity from a user's network of connections with the heartbeat module, using rules to stream custom information

• Enable user communication

• Facilitate tighter user collaboration with organic groups