Search icon CANCEL
Subscription
0
Cart icon
Your Cart (0 item)
Close icon
You have no products in your basket yet
Save more on your purchases! discount-offer-chevron-icon
Savings automatically calculated. No voucher code required.
Arrow left icon
Explore Products
Best Sellers
New Releases
Books
Videos
Audiobooks
Learning Hub
Newsletter Hub
Free Learning
Arrow right icon
timer SALE ENDS IN
0 Days
:
00 Hours
:
00 Minutes
:
00 Seconds
Elgg 1.8 Social Networking
Elgg 1.8 Social Networking

Elgg 1.8 Social Networking: Create, customize, and deploy your very own social networking site with Elgg with this book and ebook

eBook
Mex$722.99 Mex$803.99
Paperback
Mex$1004.99
Subscription
Free Trial
Renews at $19.99p/m

What do you get with a Packt Subscription?

Free for first 7 days. $19.99 p/m after that. Cancel any time!
Product feature icon Unlimited ad-free access to the largest independent learning library in tech. Access this title and thousands more!
Product feature icon 50+ new titles added per month, including many first-to-market concepts and exclusive early access to books as they are being written.
Product feature icon Innovative learning tools, including AI book assistants, code context explainers, and text-to-speech.
Product feature icon Thousands of reference materials covering every tech concept you need to stay up to date.
Subscribe now
View plans & pricing
Table of content icon View table of contents Preview book icon Preview Book

Elgg 1.8 Social Networking

Chapter 2. Installing Elgg

It is time to create your first Elgg site. This will be a test site that you will use throughout the book as we explore what Elgg can do. If you have installed web applications such as Elgg before, the installation should only take a few minutes. If you are new to this, it will take a little longer as you work through each step with the assistance of this chapter.

To install Elgg, you need to:

  1. Check that your server meets Elgg's requirements.

  2. Download Elgg and put its code in the server's web directory.

  3. Create a data directory and set its permissions.

  4. Create a database for Elgg.

  5. Run the web-based installer.

The instructions in this chapter work for a typical server. If there are complications while performing the installation, use the Elgg wiki as a resource (docs.elgg.org) for assistance. It has detailed information about server requirements, installing on particular types of servers, and troubleshooting.

Preparing the server


Elgg is a server application, so you need a server to run it. Your server options fall into three categories:

  • Local server: If you are at school or the office, there may be a server already configured with a web server that you can use for Elgg.

  • Web hosting provider: A popular option is renting space on a server. The hosting company handles the maintenance of the server, provides technical support, and may even provide a one-click installer for Elgg. Chapter 10, Moving to Production includes a section on selecting a web hosting package when preparing to launch a live website.

  • Home computer: You can use your desktop or laptop computer, whether it runs Windows, Mac, or Linux. There are packages available for download, like XAMPP, that include everything you need for running Elgg. This is a great way to test out Elgg before you select a server for your site.

Tip

Platform specific instructions

There are detailed, step-by-step installation instructions specific to your operating...

Run Elgg's installer


Once the server is configured and the database is created, you are ready to run the web-based installer. The installer creates tables in the Elgg database, sets basic parameters of the site like its name, and creates the administrative account. To launch the installer, use your web browser to view your site. The URL depends on the server and where you put Elgg's code. If you put the code in the root of your web directory, this will be your main URL. If you put the code in a subdirectory, you will need to add that to the URL. You should see the following:

There are six installation steps and each page will follow this same design with the steps listed on the left and helpful links at the bottom. After clicking on the Next button, the requirements checker runs and displays its results as shown in the following screenshot:

In the preceding screenshot, the check of the web server's URL rewriting has failed. This is the most common issue experienced by those installing Elgg...

Summary


This chapter guided you through the installation of Elgg. With the site set up, you are ready to start using it. The next three chapters help you explore what Elgg can do and provide commentary that assists you in designing and building your own Elgg site.

Left arrow icon Right arrow icon

Key benefits

  • An updated version of the very first book on Elgg
  • Detailed and easy-to-understand analysis on building your very own social networking site with Elgg
  • Explore the vast range of Elgg's social networking capabilities including communities, sharing, profiles and relationships
  • Learn to create plugins and themes with extensive tutorials
  • Written by Cash Costello, a core developer of the Elgg team, with a foreword from Dave Tosh, Elgg co-founder.

Description

As an updated version of the first ever Elgg book, this is an excellent resource for those interested in Elgg development due to its attention to detail, clearly written style and knowledgeable author. - Dave Tosh, Elgg co-founder. In his book, Cash Costello makes full use of his skills in development and communication to tackle the complex subject of Elgg social networking. This easy-to-read guide gives end users, new developers, and old pros alike a solid base to start their venture into social media with Elgg. I highly recommend it as a useful and enjoyable read. - Brett Profitt, Elgg Lead Developer The web is becoming increasingly social as millions of people use it to blog, share, post, 'friend', 'unfriend' (which was made the Oxford word of the year in 2009), comment, and chat. Elgg ñ your award-winning open source social networking engine ñ is tailor-made to create any social networking or social media website you can imagine. If you want to create a social networking website from scratch using Elgg, then this book is exactly what you need.Elgg 1.8 Social Networking covers everything you need to know about building a social networking site with Elgg. It begins with instructions for installing Elgg, continues with a guided tour of its capabilities, and finishes with practical advice on deploying Elgg on a production server. And in between, it is packed with information on configuring and customizing Elgg through plugins and themes.This book is a learn-by-doing guide to creating your own social networking site. It includes three sample case studies on how Elgg could be used as an e-learning tool, an intranet application for organizations, and a niche social networking site. Step by step it takes you through the installation, configuration, and customization of Elgg. Valuable advice is sprinkled throughout the book to enable you to build your site like an expert. For developers, this book provides a multitude of options. First, there is a tutorial-based section that systematically teaches you how to build plugins. Soon you will have ten plugins for use on your site in addition to all the knowledge you have gained. Second, if you prefer a quick overview, this book has an appendix that describes Elgg using the terminology and design patterns common in web development. Third, if you are interested in creating a theme, it also includes a design tutorial and a catalog of Elgg's view templates. The book then goes on to describe what is involved in running a production website. It has sections on selecting a hosting provider, configuring and tuning the server, backing up the site, and dealing with spammers.

Who is this book for?

If you want to create a social networking site using Elgg and do not have a background in software development, this book provides all the information and advice that you need written just for you. If you are a developer, it also contains valuable tutorials and reference material so that you can begin writing code right away.

What you will learn

  • Install your very own site using Elgg and learn to administer it.
  • Customize your site using the plugins available from the Elgg plugin repository.
  • Build your own plugins from scratch while following the step-by-step tutorials.
  • Create your own theme by selecting recipes from the theming cookbook.
  • Learn how to share content with other users.
  • Deploy Elgg in a production environment with ample advice on server configuration, back-ups, site monitoring, and daily administrative tasks.
  • Examine the design of Elgg from a developer s perspective.
  • Learn how you can contribute to the vibrant and ever growing Elgg community

Product Details

Country selected
Publication date, Length, Edition, Language, ISBN-13
Publication date : Feb 01, 2012
Length: 384 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781849511308
Tools :

What do you get with a Packt Subscription?

Free for first 7 days. $19.99 p/m after that. Cancel any time!
Product feature icon Unlimited ad-free access to the largest independent learning library in tech. Access this title and thousands more!
Product feature icon 50+ new titles added per month, including many first-to-market concepts and exclusive early access to books as they are being written.
Product feature icon Innovative learning tools, including AI book assistants, code context explainers, and text-to-speech.
Product feature icon Thousands of reference materials covering every tech concept you need to stay up to date.
Subscribe now
View plans & pricing

Product Details

Publication date : Feb 01, 2012
Length: 384 pages
Edition : 1st
Language : English
ISBN-13 : 9781849511308
Tools :

Packt Subscriptions

See our plans and pricing
Modal Close icon
$19.99 billed monthly
Feature tick icon Unlimited access to Packt's library of 7,000+ practical books and videos
Feature tick icon Constantly refreshed with 50+ new titles a month
Feature tick icon Exclusive Early access to books as they're written
Feature tick icon Solve problems while you work with advanced search and reference features
Feature tick icon Offline reading on the mobile app
Feature tick icon Simple pricing, no contract
$199.99 billed annually
Feature tick icon Unlimited access to Packt's library of 7,000+ practical books and videos
Feature tick icon Constantly refreshed with 50+ new titles a month
Feature tick icon Exclusive Early access to books as they're written
Feature tick icon Solve problems while you work with advanced search and reference features
Feature tick icon Offline reading on the mobile app
Feature tick icon Choose a DRM-free eBook or Video every month to keep
Feature tick icon PLUS own as many other DRM-free eBooks or Videos as you like for just Mex$85 each
Feature tick icon Exclusive print discounts
$279.99 billed in 18 months
Feature tick icon Unlimited access to Packt's library of 7,000+ practical books and videos
Feature tick icon Constantly refreshed with 50+ new titles a month
Feature tick icon Exclusive Early access to books as they're written
Feature tick icon Solve problems while you work with advanced search and reference features
Feature tick icon Offline reading on the mobile app
Feature tick icon Choose a DRM-free eBook or Video every month to keep
Feature tick icon PLUS own as many other DRM-free eBooks or Videos as you like for just Mex$85 each
Feature tick icon Exclusive print discounts

Frequently bought together


Stars icon
Total Mex$ 3,363.97
Liferay Portal Systems Development
Mex$1353.99
Elgg 1.8 Social Networking
Mex$1004.99
XNA 4.0 Game Development by Example: Beginner's Guide - Visual Basic Edition
Mex$1004.99
Total Mex$ 3,363.97 Stars icon

Table of Contents

10 Chapters
Social Networking and Elgg Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Installing Elgg Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
A Tour of Your First Elgg Site Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Sharing Content Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Communities, Collaboration, and Conversation Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Finding and Using Plugins Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Creating Your First Plugin Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Customization through Plugins Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Theming Elgg Chevron down icon Chevron up icon
Moving to Production Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Customer reviews

Top Reviews
Rating distribution
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Half star icon 4.3
(9 Ratings)
5 star 66.7%
4 star 22.2%
3 star 0%
2 star 0%
1 star 11.1%
Filter icon Filter
Top Reviews

Filter reviews by




William Hebler Jul 19, 2015
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Love it!
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Darwin Ramos Cuervo Mar 12, 2012
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
I have found this book very helpful to start coding plug-ins and configuring all the stuff Elgg offers. Elgg Official documentation is not well organized for beginners so it is quite difficult to be an early plug-in developer. Elgg 1.8 Social Networking covers exactly this failure and let you learn all Elgg basics in a sequential and very clear and well organized order. This book is highly recommended for everyone who pretends to develop Elgg plug-ins or configure customized social networks from scratch.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Gonzalo Oviedo Lambert Jun 14, 2013
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
My english is very poor, but i will try to give my opinion about it.The books is great for begginners. Now, i understand the concept behind elgg. On the Internet is very hard to evenly grasp the clarity of this book. Totally recommended for an introductory Elgg begginner and Social Network behind this technology.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Robert Crowe Sep 13, 2014
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Best source I've seen for coming up to speed on Elgg.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
cbosch Jan 01, 2013
Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon Full star icon 5
Even if you don't have any experience creating social networks, this book guides you from the basics to the advanced ones.
Amazon Verified review Amazon
Get free access to Packt library with over 7500+ books and video courses for 7 days!
Start Free Trial

FAQs

What is included in a Packt subscription? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

A subscription provides you with full access to view all Packt and licnesed content online, this includes exclusive access to Early Access titles. Depending on the tier chosen you can also earn credits and discounts to use for owning content

How can I cancel my subscription? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

To cancel your subscription with us simply go to the account page - found in the top right of the page or at https://subscription.packtpub.com/my-account/subscription - From here you will see the ‘cancel subscription’ button in the grey box with your subscription information in.

What are credits? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Credits can be earned from reading 40 section of any title within the payment cycle - a month starting from the day of subscription payment. You also earn a Credit every month if you subscribe to our annual or 18 month plans. Credits can be used to buy books DRM free, the same way that you would pay for a book. Your credits can be found in the subscription homepage - subscription.packtpub.com - clicking on ‘the my’ library dropdown and selecting ‘credits’.

What happens if an Early Access Course is cancelled? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Projects are rarely cancelled, but sometimes it's unavoidable. If an Early Access course is cancelled or excessively delayed, you can exchange your purchase for another course. For further details, please contact us here.

Where can I send feedback about an Early Access title? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

If you have any feedback about the product you're reading, or Early Access in general, then please fill out a contact form here and we'll make sure the feedback gets to the right team. 

Can I download the code files for Early Access titles? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

We try to ensure that all books in Early Access have code available to use, download, and fork on GitHub. This helps us be more agile in the development of the book, and helps keep the often changing code base of new versions and new technologies as up to date as possible. Unfortunately, however, there will be rare cases when it is not possible for us to have downloadable code samples available until publication.

When we publish the book, the code files will also be available to download from the Packt website.

How accurate is the publication date? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

The publication date is as accurate as we can be at any point in the project. Unfortunately, delays can happen. Often those delays are out of our control, such as changes to the technology code base or delays in the tech release. We do our best to give you an accurate estimate of the publication date at any given time, and as more chapters are delivered, the more accurate the delivery date will become.

How will I know when new chapters are ready? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

We'll let you know every time there has been an update to a course that you've bought in Early Access. You'll get an email to let you know there has been a new chapter, or a change to a previous chapter. The new chapters are automatically added to your account, so you can also check back there any time you're ready and download or read them online.

I am a Packt subscriber, do I get Early Access? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Yes, all Early Access content is fully available through your subscription. You will need to have a paid for or active trial subscription in order to access all titles.

How is Early Access delivered? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Early Access is currently only available as a PDF or through our online reader. As we make changes or add new chapters, the files in your Packt account will be updated so you can download them again or view them online immediately.

How do I buy Early Access content? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Early Access is a way of us getting our content to you quicker, but the method of buying the Early Access course is still the same. Just find the course you want to buy, go through the check-out steps, and you’ll get a confirmation email from us with information and a link to the relevant Early Access courses.

What is Early Access? Chevron down icon Chevron up icon

Keeping up to date with the latest technology is difficult; new versions, new frameworks, new techniques. This feature gives you a head-start to our content, as it's being created. With Early Access you'll receive each chapter as it's written, and get regular updates throughout the product's development, as well as the final course as soon as it's ready.We created Early Access as a means of giving you the information you need, as soon as it's available. As we go through the process of developing a course, 99% of it can be ready but we can't publish until that last 1% falls in to place. Early Access helps to unlock the potential of our content early, to help you start your learning when you need it most. You not only get access to every chapter as it's delivered, edited, and updated, but you'll also get the finalized, DRM-free product to download in any format you want when it's published. As a member of Packt, you'll also be eligible for our exclusive offers, including a free course every day, and discounts on new and popular titles.