X-Git-Url: https://projects.mako.cc/source/selectricity-live/blobdiff_plain/cc4532dee83d19baf79b35fadf7064b9b5c3948a..62c17b022f40437c6b8544d867e5c9bb1c2cffa4:/README diff --git a/README b/README index cd9d0ff..547cd9c 100644 --- a/README +++ b/README @@ -1,153 +1,96 @@ -== Welcome to Rails +=============================================== +=== Getting Selectricity ====================== +=============================================== -Rails is a web-application and persistence framework that includes everything -needed to create database-backed web-applications according to the -Model-View-Control pattern of separation. This pattern splits the view (also -called the presentation) into "dumb" templates that are primarily responsible -for inserting pre-built data in between HTML tags. The model contains the -"smart" domain objects (such as Account, Product, Person, Post) that holds all -the business logic and knows how to persist themselves to a database. The -controller handles the incoming requests (such as Save New Account, Update -Product, Show Post) by manipulating the model and directing data to the view. +Selectricity is free software and is distributed under the GNU Affero +General Public License version 3. You are free to use, modify, and +distribute, or rework Selectricity under the terms of that license. Of +course, we'd sure like it if you would send fixes back to us and tell us +about cool stuff you do with our software! -In Rails, the model is handled by what's called an object-relational mapping -layer entitled Active Record. This layer allows you to present the data from -database rows as objects and embellish these data objects with business logic -methods. You can read more about Active Record in -link:files/vendor/rails/activerecord/README.html. +The best way to get Selectricity is just to download it from our source +source repository. You'll need the Git version control system or +source control manager to check it. You can get it here: -The controller and view are handled by the Action Pack, which handles both -layers by its two parts: Action View and Action Controller. These two layers -are bundled in a single package due to their heavy interdependence. This is -unlike the relationship between the Active Record and Action Pack that is much -more separate. Each of these packages can be used independently outside of -Rails. You can read more about Action Pack in -link:files/vendor/rails/actionpack/README.html. - - -== Getting started - -1. Run the WEBrick servlet: ruby script/server (run with --help for options) - ...or if you have lighttpd installed: ruby script/lighttpd (it's faster) -2. Go to http://localhost:3000/ and get "Congratulations, you've put Ruby on Rails!" -3. Follow the guidelines on the "Congratulations, you've put Ruby on Rails!" screen - - -== Example for Apache conf - - - ServerName rails - DocumentRoot /path/application/public/ - ErrorLog /path/application/log/server.log - - - Options ExecCGI FollowSymLinks - AllowOverride all - Allow from all - Order allow,deny - - - -NOTE: Be sure that CGIs can be executed in that directory as well. So ExecCGI -should be on and ".cgi" should respond. All requests from 127.0.0.1 go -through CGI, so no Apache restart is necessary for changes. All other requests -go through FCGI (or mod_ruby), which requires a restart to show changes. - - -== Debugging Rails - -Have "tail -f" commands running on both the server.log, production.log, and -test.log files. Rails will automatically display debugging and runtime -information to these files. Debugging info will also be shown in the browser -on requests from 127.0.0.1. - - -== Breakpoints - -Breakpoint support is available through the script/breakpointer client. This -means that you can break out of execution at any point in the code, investigate -and change the model, AND then resume execution! Example: - - class WeblogController < ActionController::Base - def index - @posts = Post.find_all - breakpoint "Breaking out from the list" - end - end - -So the controller will accept the action, run the first line, then present you -with a IRB prompt in the breakpointer window. Here you can do things like: - -Executing breakpoint "Breaking out from the list" at .../webrick_server.rb:16 in 'breakpoint' - - >> @posts.inspect - => "[#nil, \"body\"=>nil, \"id\"=>\"1\"}>, - #\"Rails you know!\", \"body\"=>\"Only ten..\", \"id\"=>\"2\"}>]" - >> @posts.first.title = "hello from a breakpoint" - => "hello from a breakpoint" - -...and even better is that you can examine how your runtime objects actually work: - - >> f = @posts.first - => #nil, "body"=>nil, "id"=>"1"}> - >> f. - Display all 152 possibilities? (y or n) - -Finally, when you're ready to resume execution, you press CTRL-D - - -== Console - -You can interact with the domain model by starting the console through script/console. -Here you'll have all parts of the application configured, just like it is when the -application is running. You can inspect domain models, change values, and save to the -database. Starting the script without arguments will launch it in the development environment. -Passing an argument will specify a different environment, like console production. - - -== Description of contents - -app - Holds all the code that's specific to this particular application. + http://git-scm.com/ -app/controllers - Holds controllers that should be named like weblog_controller.rb for - automated URL mapping. All controllers should descend from - ActionController::Base. +Once you have it, getting the source code is pretty easy. You just need +to check out a branch with a command like this: + + git clone http://projects.mako.cc/source/selectricity/.git + +By default, this will create a working copy with the latest +*development* version of our code. If you want the latest production +version (i.e., what we're running on the site), you need to switch to +the live version of the software which is kept in a branch called +"live." Once you cloned the repository above, you can switch into the +directory (i.e., run "cd selectricity") and then run the following +command: + + git checkout -b live origin/live + + +=============================================== +=== Dependencies ============================== +=============================================== + +To use Selectricity, you'll need to install the following gems in +addition to Ruby on Rails (gem:rails), MySQL (gem:mysql), and its +dependencies: + + * rmagick + * gruff (http://nubyonrails.com/pages/gruff) + * sparklines (http://nubyonrails.com/pages/sparklines) + +To use Selectricity in development mode, you'll need to install the +following gems: + + * ruby-debug + +Also, you will need install the other applications installed first: + + * imagemagick (http://www.imagemagick.org/) + +On Ubuntu, you can install install the dependencies with: + apt-get install imagemagick libmagick9-dev ruby1.8-dev libwmf-bin rdoc \ + libopenssl-ruby1.8 libreadline-ruby1.8 libmysqlclient15-dev + +Our server configuration uses Mongrel (installed from gems) behind an +Apache2 load balancing proxy using mod_proxy. + +You'll also need to have a MTA installed. We use Postfix and have not +tried it with any other system. Presumably though, anything that +provides '/usr/bin/sendmail' should work. + +=============================================== +=== Contributors to Selectricity Include ====== +=============================================== + + * Benjamin Mako Hill + * John Dong + * Justin Sharps + +===================================== +=== XML-RPC INFO == +====================================== + +The XML-RPC API is still under development, but is somewhat functional already: + +To instantiate a client in Ruby, try something like: +client=ActionWebService::Client::XmlRpc.new(SelectricityAPI,"http://localhost:3000/selectricity_service/vote") + + +Getting the results of a quickvote is quite simple: +?> client.get_quickvote_results("test") +=> # + +Casting a quickvote: +client.cast_quickvote("test",1,[[1,2]]) + +To figure out what you're voting for: +>> client.get_quickvote_candidate_map("test")=> # -app/models - Holds models that should be named like post.rb. - Most models will descend from ActiveRecord::Base. - -app/views - Holds the template files for the view that should be named like - weblog/index.rhtml for the WeblogController#index action. All views use eRuby - syntax. This directory can also be used to keep stylesheets, images, and so on - that can be symlinked to public. - -app/helpers - Holds view helpers that should be named like weblog_helper.rb. - -config - Configuration files for the Rails environment, the routing map, the database, and other dependencies. -components - Self-contained mini-applications that can bundle together controllers, models, and views. - -lib - Application specific libraries. Basically, any kind of custom code that doesn't - belong under controllers, models, or helpers. This directory is in the load path. - -public - The directory available for the web server. Contains subdirectories for images, stylesheets, - and javascripts. Also contains the dispatchers and the default HTML files. -script - Helper scripts for automation and generation. -test - Unit and functional tests along with fixtures. -vendor - External libraries that the application depends on. Also includes the plugins subdirectory. - This directory is in the load path.