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Manual

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RaidTracker 3 manual

This is incomplete despite having RaidTracker 3 recently released. Some details have changed in the final settling and will be updated soon. This manual covers the web application of RaidTracker versions 3.00 to 3.10, with references to changes from prior versions. The most recent manual and help are always found on RaidTracker's home page at http://raidtracker.druidlove.com

Please note that while this is meant to help everyone using RaidTracker, the master settings are always controlled by the administrator. So, while an effort has been made to group potential people into groups of users, access of features will vary based on what the administrator has set, and the developer has no control to give permissions to you to any RaidTracker installation.

Table of Contents

  1. What's new
  2. Installation
  3. RaidTracker Basics
  4. Accounts
  5. Events
  6. Group
  7. Customize and Admin
  8. Linking accounts
  9. Advanced customization and themes
  10. Appendix A: Log Codes

What's new

RaidTracker 3 has undergone some new features that everyone can enjoy including the following:

Event organizers and administrators may enjoy these changes to RaidTracker:

For administrators, these following features will benefit you and the rest of your users.

Chapter 2: Installation

This is for administrators only. This chapter deals with how to install RaidTracker as well as upgrade over a previous copy.

In general, to install or upgrade, you will need the following:
* A web server (shared or dedicated.)
* MySQL installed (version 5.10 or greater recommended) with minimum 1 database
* PHP version 5.3.0 or greater installed (5.3.7 or higher recommended)

You can upgrade over a version of RaidTracker as early as 2.10, though this will be discussed in the section below about upgrading. You can also link accounts with another copy of RaidTracker 3, see below for linking.

New installation quickstart

RaidTracker installs in a simple process. You do need to be prepared for the install, by having your database information ready, as well as your domain name and the location you plan to install RaidTracker, and also information about your group/guild. You will also need to download the RaidTracker zip file from the RaidTracker homesite (raidtracker.druidlove.com). Unzip the file, and then upload it to your server. You will also need to make sure the /user directory of RaidTracker to be writeable (CHMOD 777). RaidTracker will remind you if you forget.

Once you have done this, open your web browser and go to the location you have installed it. (So, if you installed it in www.example.com/rt, that's what you put in the address bar.) You should then see the RaidTracker install screen on your browser. RaidTracker will walk you through the process. Once it is done, you can then remove the /install directory. Then go back to RaidTracker in the browser, and you can use RaidTracker normally.

Linking quickstart

RaidTracker allows you to link tables across multiple copies of RaidTracker without having to create new accounts on each version. Each copy must reside in its own location (i.e. if you have the first copy on www.example.com/rt, another copy can be in www.example.com/newrt.) RaidTracker 3.x requires the accounts be in the same database as the local tables, though it will only touch the tables you specify. That's why it asks for prefix, to keep the two groups separate.

The process for linking accounts begins the same way as the new installation above. Once you open up RaidTracker on your browser, you select Link accounts. You will need to specify the table names, as well as log in, provided that you are an admin in the other table, for security reasons. But the rest of the install is little different than the new install.

Upgrading RaidTracker

RaidTracker can be used to upgrade your old RaidTracker, provided that it was at least version 2.10. Any version earlier, including the 1.xx are not supported.

Upgrading from 2.x takes a bit more work, but it can be done. You need to download the regular version. In either file, see the readme.txt file for installation instructions. The two files that must be present for an upgrade are /user/db.php and /user/rt.php. Without these, RaidTracker cannot upgrade the database.

Once RaidTracker is installed, you can start the install like above by entering the address in your browser. RaidTracker will recognize the upgrade and seemlessly guide you through the install process. You will need to log in, provided you are an admin (rank 1) on the old RT, and create a password. But once this is done, RT walks you through like any other installation, and copies the old db tables over.

Once RT is installed, you will be set to go. Please note that your old styles are incompatible with RT 3. Some other features like the log and breaking news are also incompatible, and will not copy over.

Customizing RT (Localization)

RaidTracker is customizable in 4 different ways: The visual page style is discussed in the chapter on Themes. There's also what can be shown on the screen, which is in Account and Admin views as described in later chapters. The last two are options that you can control directly.

RaidTracker allows you to change the names for key elements like location, class, rank, status and role. These may be added, modified or deleted after install. But they can also be set up during the install process as well. The ranks (group and RT) do not need icons, but this is also discussed in the Administration chapter below. At some point in the RT install, RaidTracker will ask where to get the names of key elements that are required to make RT work. RaidTracker comes with the elements for World of Warcraft (accurate as of patch 3.5) to get you started. RaidTracker also comes with a basic set, which gives one name for each category. Or, you may provide a file of your own to process it in a batch, thereby saving some time. If you are linking the account table, you also have the option to import the location and rank names from the other DB over for convenience. RaidTracker will also ask you for the status names, which come separate, but can be edited after install.

Finally, the text and fields and tooltips can be customized as well (for localization uses.) The /user/local.php contains localization in general, or the /install/data/local.php contains localization messages for install.

RaidTracker basics

RaidTracker 3 is based on the view(point) of views, just like in older RT2. However, the views are simpler in RT 3. There are 7 views, as follows:

Each view except Add has tabs to simplify the view. And while all views can be accessed by adding to the URL like ?view=main, RT links to all views easily through the menu or by links in Group or Main views. The following chapters will describe each of the views in detail.

Accounts

About accounts

RaidTracker requires accounts to interact with it. RaidTracker uses accounts to sign up, plan, organize and track events and attendance. Each account holds personal information including, but not limited to, different characters, personal preferences and log in information. Accounts may also be used across different installations of RaidTracker (see the chapter on sharing accounts). The admin creates an account in a new installation. This chapter deals with creating, and managing an account. What is described is based on a normal installation. If something is not available or changed, contact your administrator.

Creating an account

To create an account, click on the "New Account" button. You will then get a screen where you can enter your information. The e-mail used in the account must be unique (personal to you). RaidTracker does not send mail in its default installation. The e-mail is used as part of a verification in case you forget your password.

The next section is the character information screen. This is to identify your primary (main) character. After you create your first character, you may then get the chance to add other characters, or change any characters.

Log in to your account

If your administrator has upgraded RaidTracker, or you have created your account you can simply log in using any of your characters' name and password. However, if you forgot your password, or don't have one (the latter is likely if RaidTracker was upgraded), you can click on the Forgot password button. You will need your main character, and e-mail (unless the admin has previously reset your account)

Personalizing your account

Once your account is created, and you have logged in, you can then alter your account. To do this, click on the "Account" link in the menu to do this. You will then enter the Account view for your character. The account view is split into 4 tabs to organize the features of your account. While some features have "?" tooltips next to it to help you, I'll describe each feature below

Profile: Account Settings

For your account, this just describes your account and your allowed activity within RaidTracker. These can be changed by an admin or other person with permissions. If the account status is "Inactive", it means you cannot subscribe to events until the admin changes you to Active.

Profile: Log in settings

This just allows you to change your e-mail and password if you need to.

Profile: Visual Settings

This is what makes RaidTracker personalized for yourself. There are some tooltips next to each other. Here is an explanation of each feature:

The local hour adjustment will fix RaidTracker to think in your time zone. If you are not on the same time zone as RaidTracker (the clock is usually in the top right corner), adjust the time zone by entering in hours difference. Once this is done, RaidTracker will now convert times you see (and enter) into your local time.

Date and time formatting will convert dates and times into the format you prefer.* RT uses the PHP date function to format, and the tooltip links to the PHP date function.

* As of 3.00, dates formats in Main (Calendar) view are set systemwide.

The last two features changes how RT looks when you go to the main screen, or the visual theme in RT.

Characters

This tab focuses on characters. The bottom part allows you to add characters, while the top part allows you to modify and delete characters. You must have at least one character for your account, and one character is your main or primary character-- the character RT uses to identify you, and subscribes to events. These are the default features of each character (your admin might have adapted these to suit your version).

Statistics

This tracks your event subscription statuses. None of this is editable here. The top part shows counts over a time period, while the bottom details recent events.

Points

If DKP/points is active, this tracks the points earned and spent from events. None of this is editable here. The top part tracks by character, while the bottom part details recent event transactions with points.

Events

About events

Events are the other staple for RaidTracker. Events are how people can plan events, and find interest, as well as forming the correct party to participate in the event. When this is done accurately, you will also have records and stats that can be used in other views.

It is worth knowing that the views "Add (event)" and Event are very similar in most cases. But where they differ, I will note this specifically. Also, some of these settings may be disabled based on your assigned RT privileges, or even in the administration menu (such as default times.) Do check with your admin if there are any issues.

Creating events

To begin using RaidTracker, you need to create an event. There are two ways of creating an event. You may click on "Add Event" on the menu at the top. Or You can either click on the "+" button on the day in Main | Calendar view. Doing the latter will also pre-fill in the date in the Add view.

When you enter the Add mode, you will see almost the same view that you will see when you view or edit an event, except that it is all in one page. I will explain every feature below. Just specify the options, and then choose Submit at the bottom. Your event will now be created.

Viewing or editing events

Once you have created an event, you may edit it, or subscribe to it. Just click on the event, and you will immediately enter the event. Unlike the Add view, the page is split into 4 views: Details, Subscriptions, Transactions, and DKP. Let me walk through each tab:

Details

The top portion contains the information about the event, such as location, notes and times. The bottom portion of the event shows your status in regard to the event. If you are in add view, the Your Status is not shown. Your Status will be covered more completely in subscriptions below. Let me explain each of the other features in this tab:

Times will show when the event happens. If you are in add or edit mode, RT 3 will use the input "date" or "time" HTML5 fields. (If these are NOT used in your browser, just note that dates are in YYYY-MM-DD format, and times are in 24 hour HH:MM format). If you can only view the event, you may see relative times instead for intermediate timepoints. All times are displayed in your local time (set by your account preferences). Here are the meanings of each time block structure:

Note, if you are adding an event, you may skip the times as long as there is a default set in the Admin. (see below).

Subscriptions

The bottom portion shows all the subscriptions, and the status each account has chosen. The top portion shows the number required to participate and how many of each role is desired. The role bar is also shown in add mode. Note that the first number only shows how many are committed on the event list, not in general.

Transactions and points

Transactions show what has been done to this event (like a log for this event.) This can only be viewed. See the appendix for the code explanations. The points tab defines the point system (or DKP). This is explained in the chapter on points.

Subscribing to an event

We have events, now we need people to show interest, or subscribe to the event. RaidTracker has 4 ways to subscribe to an event. The first can be done from the main view. Hover over the event in either calendar or list tabs and click the "OneClick Subscribe™" button automatically subscribes the account to the event as 'Yes' using the main character and role. This is the easiest way to subscribe. The second way is to click on the event, and also use the OneClick Subscribe™ button. The third is in the Event details tab, to fill out the form, and hit submit (not the OneClick button). The final one requires you to have planning permission to add players from the Subscriptions tab.

To change (or add) a subscription, it is done in the "Your Status" section of the details tab. The "OneClick Subscribe™" button is only available if you are logged in and have not subscribed to an event. The status shows your current status, and may allow you to say Yes, No or Maybe. The character may allow you to choose a character eligible for this event. Next to the role shows the role chosen with regard to the character. At this time, this cannot be changed without help from an event planner. The visual note is the primary form of communication between you and the event planner, such as explaining a status, or requesting changes. The Planning note (if visible) does the same among event planners--but may only be changed in the subscriptions tab.

Though you may be able to change your subscription in most cases, there are times when you cannot change this. Reasons include:

Managing subscriptions

Now that you have people signing up, here's where planners can go ahead and manage the subscriptions--to choose who can participate. Managing the subscriptions is needed for several reasons: assigning who can participate, for counting purposes, and even for points management in some cases. First, an explanation on the statuses. If you have used earlier versions of RT, or chose to use the old system, the statuses are in parenthesis after the new names:

*It is not recommended to have anyone with privileges to delete, since, unlike Restricted, it does allow an account to re-subscribe to the event subject to normal time restrictions. Delete is recommended only for bugged subscriptions or compromised accounts.

Moving individual accounts is easy. Hover over an account, and a tooltip shows up. You can click on the new status, or change roles or characters (if any). This does not apply to accounts in the "Not subscribed" list. Click on the + button to add them before you can move them. When an subscription is created in this manner, the account is moved into the "Yes" list.

You can also move a bunch of subscriptions at the same time, or add a note to the account. To do this, select the checkboxes of the subscriptions you want to change, then select the move and/or note options at the bottom. To save some time, you can move by role, class or status at the same time. Selecting a role or class will not impact those subscriptions that have a "No" or "Restricted" status.

Besides moving accounts, you can specify a note, either visual (one that can be seen with the account in question), or a planning note (only among other planners). A visual note is recommended when you want to communicate with the account about the subscription (like why account was moved.) You can also delete messages in a similar matter.

Whiteboard

The whiteboard is a very useful tool to help plan events. While most accounts will not know if they are being committed to the event, other planners can see who they want to participate and discuss before making the list official. In RT 3, the whiteboard appears in the same column as the Committed list, but with whiteboard icons to distinguish the difference between those already committed and those ideally desired. The Whiteboard also has 2 extra buttons: One to approve the list (essentially changing the status to Committed for all on the list), and one to clear the list (moves subscriptions back to the original status).

While whiteboard is useful for planners, there are limitations to this: The whiteboard only protects the status. Changing characters or roles are not protected actions. Also, as whiteboard is not a true status for statistics or for other tables like points. And finally, anyone who has access to the log will see when subscriptions are placed on the whiteboard.

Leaders

In RT 3, an event may have a leader organize an event. A leader is in control of that event, even if a leader cannot normally control other events. Unless the event|leader permission is set, no one can control subscriptions except the leader. Also, the leader is always on the confirmed list, and cannot be removed until the leader passes control up.

Leaders may be chosen at creation or while editing. At the same time, leadership may be changed while editing. To create a leader as an event is created, the setting may be set in Admin | Events. The leader may be created automatically, or may be asked as the event is created. The leader at creation of the event is the account who creates the event. If a leader is chosen or switched at edit time, only accounts with a current subscription may be chosen. Once an account is selected, they immediately move to Confirmed status and cannot be moved.

Leaders have access to nearly every property of the event regardless of permissions set for other events. They can alter event details, change numbers, moving subscriptions, switch characters and roles, and set notes. They may even pass leadership to another account. They may even deactivate the leader by setting it to "None". Once this happens, this reverts to normal control.

Leaders will not be able to delete subscriptions, unless the permission is normally set. They will also not be in control of the points system for this event unless they normally have that permission.

Group

The Group view lists all accounts on the same page. This view also allows access to individual accounts from this view. The Group view is split into 3 tabs: Active accounts, Inactive accounts, and All characters.

One of the only difference between active accounts and inactive accounts is the active flag being set. But both views have virtually the same information. The main character, the note about the main character, and any stats about subscriptions over a certain period, as well as any possible points earned. The active view also shows guild rank and RT rank privileges that apply to the character. From this view, you can select an account to view the account's settings that apply to you. In this case, the account view shows the characters and detailed statistics. But an admin may be able to go to the account to reset the password if the user cannot do so.

In the Active or Inactive tab, an admin may activate (or deactivate) accounts, or delete accounts in a batch. The difference between inactive vs. deleting is that deleting is permanent--and if the accounts are linked with multiple RT installations (see the chapter on sharing below), it will have an affect on all copies. An inactive account will restrict access for the account on the current installation.

On the Active accounts tab, one can also change guild rank or RT rank to a bunch of accounts at once. Just select the accounts, and select the rank you wish to change to.

The characters tab just shows an alphabetical list of characters, their note, the link to the account they belong to, and any possible DKP awarded. Nothing can be changed from this tab.

Customize and Admin

Now that we have covered the essentials for everyone, here's a chapter devoted soley to the administrator. This is essentially how to adapt RaidTracker for your site's purpose, or to make it easier. There are very few things that can be used by anyone other than admins, but it can help for everyone's sake. The Admin view is split up into multiple tabs to make the task easy to find.

Newstickers

News is how to bring up important notices to RaidTracker, such as pointing out important events, or planned maintenance to RT. This shows up on the main view, or on all views depending on the "Show Newstickers" option below. Unlike previous versions of RT, you can have up to 3 at a time, and have them disappear (expire) at a certain time.

In the news tab, the top part contains the newstickers, and the bottom contains settings related to newstickers in general. Each newsticker contains 2 parts: a short headline (in bold), and the text of the newsticker, or to explain the news. Newstickers can also expire naturally (giving a date and time), and they can be deleted manually. Also shown is the person who created the ticker. This cannot be edited.

To create a newsticker, add your text in the New line. Editing the newstickers is as easy as editing the line that needs fixed. And to delete a ticker, check the checkbox next to the ticker you want to delete. In any case, hit submit after all changes are made.

The bottom portion changes features involving newstickers. You can choose to show the newstickers on every view, just the main view, or not at all. If you choose none at all, everything else in this tab is useless until turned on again. You can also choose to have newstickers show to individuals if they are on the event's committed list. The earliest time before invite sets the earliest someone can know with a newsticker one is on the Committed status for the event. Bear in mind, this requires the user to be on the Committed status, and not whiteboard. If this is set the time will be no later than when the user is put on Committed status (whether moved, or approved from whiteboard).

Terms of Service

You can have a TOS (Terms of Service) page to remind individuals of their responsibility when using RaidTracker. If this is enabled, users must read the screen and approve it before one can continue to use RaidTracker--even on subsequent changes. Fortunately, it's not a nag screen in that one must read it every time one logs in: only when it is created and changed. This is controlled through the TOS tab. It starts off deactivated (blank). The screen is very simple: Just put in your text (or change the text), and click "Save Settings". You may then see a TOS screen afterwards. If you choose to deactivate the TOS, just click the "Deactivate" button, and it is no longer in use.

Display

The display tab customizes how RaidTracker looks. Often, this will be a one-and-done customization. Most of these are self-explanatory, and the tooltips are a great help. Some features do need clarification, which I'll explain by category:

Themes

This allows you to set a default theme, and also whether others can use any installed themes you have. The "Convert disabled input to text" is a new setting. Since RT 3 uses HTML5 controls like date and number, some browsers may display ugly scrollbars or other features in these controls when users do not have the permissions to edit it. Setting this to yes will change such controls to text when possible.

Date and Time

These settings are the default formatting strings for dates and times used in general (the top two), or in the calendar view depending on weeks/months displayed. The format strings are the same as PHP's date function.

Tracking and Sorting

You can choose to sort the lists in subscription view by class and name, or by time as secondary sorting, after being sorted by role. If you choose time, note that this is in the order the subscription was created, and not when the subscription was changed or moved.
The count stats is the default value used on views counting stats like group or account views. These count the subscription status of the most recent days chosen. Unless it is a 'life' value, only previous events that have started will be counted. Life is a special value in that it counts all subscription statuses, past or future.

Home view

These settings affect the home view. The default view is the one chosen for new accounts and those not logged in. It can also be the view you want others to see if Force View is turned on. (This will also disable the tabs.) The navigation bars allow accounts to hit previous or next links at the bottom of the list or calendar.

Calendar settings

These values affect the calendar view. You can choose to have it show the entire month, or show a certain number of weeks (1-6). The starting day can be set to a specific day, or if you are using the week option, a certain number days back (to keep today's date set in the same spot.) You cannot use the days back on a month calendar.
The Special days will highlight the day column head in the calendar as a subtle reminder something special happens this day.

List Settings

These settings affect the List view. You can set a certain number of events to show, or to limit the views to past or future events if you wish.

System

These are settings that are systemwide. These settings are often set once and left alone, with the exception of links. Some of these may need explanation, and I'll break it down by subheading

Group Settings

These settings are to identify name of group and where the group is located. The group name is shown on the Main view and in the browser title bar, while the location is in the title bar. For example, a guild in World of Warcraft would put the guild name in the first box, and what realm they play on in the second box. If you don't have a location, it's okay to leave it blank.

Server location

This provides information about the server and the cookie it shares for perpetual logins. The domain is just the domain name of the server where RaidTracker is installed. The path is the next portion, from the root of the domain to the path RT is installed. For example, if you installed RT on http://www.example.com/rt, the domain is http://www.example.com and the path is rt (do not include the initial or final /).

The cookie name is the name of the cookie used to tie users to this copy of RaidTracker. This is important as the cookie helps keep users logged in while navigating RT. If this cookie name is changed, all users will be logged out. It is extremely important to have different cookie names if you have multiple installations of RaidTracker installed and do not link accounts or are different versions. Even if the two link accounts, it's recommended to have a different cookie for each version in the case of upgrades.

Links

In RT 3, you may have 2 links in your menu that link to other pages (like a forum, or to another copy of RT for example.) You will need to provide a name and the complete URL to the source you wish users to have access to.

Maintenance

Maintenance mode is used when creating, installing or testing addons, themes, or any extra customizations to RaidTracker that may not be ready for full use. Only users with RT rank 1 (or what is commonly called Admin or superadmin) privs can log in at this time. No accounts can be created, and all other users will see the maintenance screen until the setting is turned off. Please leave it in the off position for general operation.
Note: While RaidTracker is free software, customizations to the core software are done at your own risk.

Events

This tab is vital to all events created and modified on RaidTracker. Below are the sections:

Sync with server

RaidTracker uses the start time of each event as the key time. All times are based on the location which is the core for the group. The server offset is to adjust the time, in hours, from the server RT runs on to the core time.

For example, a guild in World of Warcraft on the European servers is setting up RT. The WoW EU server is in Paris (GMT +1). The server RT is on is based in London (GMT +0), and the guildmaster lives in Denver, CO, USA (GMT -7). The number to put in the Server offset in the Admin menu is 1 (1 hour ahead to WoW server time), and the number the guildmaster puts in the Account view "Local hour adjustment" is -8 (since Denver is 8 hours behind WoW server time.) When these numbers are put in, the time at the top right should reflect the correct time as the guildmaster lives in.

Event settings

* End subscriptions and withdrawls at the same time allows you to simplify the two times into one if you don't have different requirements. Having this turned off allows subscribing to end at an earlier or later time than withdrawing. This may be useful for groups that allow signing up up to beginning, but stop cancellations earlier for planning purposes.
* Hide irrelevant times and Relative times: In event view, the date, start time and end time will always be shown regardless of current time. Invite time, and end subscription/withdrawl times may be irrelevant once current time has passed. If hide irrelevant times are turned on, these times will not show (unless pressing "Show all times") once time has expired. Turning on Relative times will show an approximate time till the next timepoint happens (for example: "Invites start 15 min".
* Require minimum levels: When a minimum level is set for an event, new subscriptions will be prevented to characters who do not have that level. This will also affect current subscriptions from moving or swapping a character lower than the minimum. It will not, however, change subscriptions already present.
* Leader at creation: When an event is created, it is possible to make the creator the leader of the event as well. If this is set to "Prompt", the creator will have the opportunity to say yes or no. This may allow an opportunity to turn RaidTracker into a community calendar, where users can only manage their own events, provided that users have the permission Event|add turned on. Check out chapter 5, Events, for details about leaders vs. normal controls

Event defaults

Sometimes creating events can be tedious, especially if you are an active group which has regular, or semi-regular events. The defaults will help prefill in fields for you. Any fields left blank will be left for you to fill in with each event.

Accounts

These settings affect account creation and access. The first option defines the default (pre-filled value) when an account or a new character is created. The next two sections define privileges for the account.

The account activation allows the admin to control how accounts are created. An active account has access to RaidTracker subject to the privileges given by their RT rank (which is discussed shortly). An inactive account does not even have access to subscribe to events. All an inactive account can do is change their own account settings, including characters (subject to self options below.) Setting the level to low will allow new accounts and all linked accounts who log in to this installation of RT to be active. Setting this to medium will still allow new accounts to be active, but any accounts created by another copy of RT and linked will need an admin to activate. In other words, medium is no different from low for created accounts. Setting it to high will require an admin, or other account with the account|inactive priviledge to activate any account, created or linked.

The initial group settings and initial RaidTracker privileges define what rank is assigned to activated accounts. Group settings or group rank is shown in account and group views, and is purely cosmetical. RT privileges or RT rank defines what can be accessed in RaidTracker. The permissions tab (described below) details the privileges.

The final section, "Self Options" defines what accounts can do about their own characters. In previous versions of RaidTracker, these were set using the "self override" checkbox in Privileges. Only your group policy defines if any of these need to be restricted. Edit characters must be set for most of these to take effect.

Points

This will be discussed at a later time in the Points chapter.

Permissions

Permissions are designed to control access to certain features to certain people. In RaidTracker, permissions are given by rank. Also, permissions are cascaded, so that ranks higher than the assigned level also have the same permissions.* Some of the permissions affect what can be seen. Others can affect what can be edited.

Each category has properties that control certain aspects of RaidTracker. Hover over each property's question mark to learn what it does. You can set the rank as low as needed to access the property. Two additional levels may be set: The "None" rank allows no one to access this, not even the super admin. The other special rank is "All", which allows everyone, including those logged out (and inactive accounts) to access or view. Some properties require other properties to be set--which may be listed in the tooltip. When done, click submit.

*The only exception is when a leader is set, and a rank does NOT have the leader override (Event/leader) set.

For those who have used RT2, the 'self override' is no longer here. It has moved primarily into the Account tab of Admin.

Rank Names, System Names, Character options

These 3 tabs customize the names and options used in RaidTracker. As these three tabs do essentially the same thing, I group them into one section, and discuss the sections here. Unless otherwise specified, you can add, delete or rename individual options within a category.

Guild and RT rank names

These are the ranks used within RT. Guild names are purely cosmetical, as they show up to remind the whole group what rank a person has. RT Ranks may only be viewed to those with permissions to change ranks in certain places, and are the basis for what properties users may have. It is important to note that changing names here does not affect the permissions a player has.

Unlike the other tabs, these are ordered, so that 1 is the top most rank. You can reorder the ranks to insert a rank name in between, or delete a rank in between. RaidTracker will properly renumber the ranks as needed. Only the Administrator (rank 1 in RT rank) cannot be renumbered, nor will RT accept anything values below 1. If one deletes a rank, RaidTracker will move affected accounts down a rank, or to the lowest rank possible if the last rank is deleted.

Locations

Locations (in System names) show the locations used for events in RT. The locations are almost always shown as icons, and the nickname is used to identify an event. The long name is identified in drop boxes and in alt text (for accessibility). One may be added or deleted anywhere possible.

Note: the 'none' location will not be deleted. If a location is deleted, the event locatation will be changed to 'none'. And finally, if a location is added, the location icon must be stored in /images/location/(nickname).png on your installation.

Statuses

Statuses are basically the bread and butter of the subscriptions. The names can be localized to your language or purpose. Unlike other categories, the statuses cannot be added, deleted, or altered other than the name. But you can also change the icon look. They are stored in /images/status/(nickname).png.

Class and role

Classes and roles (in Character options) show what character class and/or role one might take on. They are used as early as creating an account, new character, or even editing a character. Roles can even be used in subscriptions.

Like in the Locations category, one may add, edit or delete a classr or role. Do be aware that there may be some unwanted consequences if a class or role is deleted while other characters use it. However, the most important thing to note is that characters and accounts may be linked across different copies of RT. So, if one copy adds a class, all copies must also have the icon installed. See more on sharing later. The class icons are in /images/class/(nickname).png and the role icons are in /images/role/(nickname).png

Log

The log shows what has happened on RaidTracker. Most transactions, from log in, to account creation and character and even event creation shows up in the log. Unlike the transaction log for each event, the log view in the admin menu will not show details in each event like subscriptions or swap characters (to avoid overburdening the view.) See the appendix for the list of codes and their meanings.

Reset accounts

Users who cannot log into their accounts should be able to use the Forget Password link to get access. However, if an account is compromised or unable to enter (like upgrading to RT 3 and did not have a valid e-mail address), an admin may reset the account for the user. In the group view, click on the account to enter that account's view. From there, click on the Reset button.

It is important to note that once an account is reset, the account owner must log in using the Forgot link. Once an account is reset, any other accounts will be logged out.

Linking accounts

Introduction

So you already have one copy of RaidTracker up and running now. But now you want to utilize the system to create an alliance with another group in running activities together. And all in all, you don't like your own group to have to sign up again? Great! Now you got the idea of linking accounts.

RaidTracker 3 allows you to have multiple copies installed, while at the same time, allowing one sign-in to work for all copies. The uses for this are endless. In addition to the above of having one for an alliance, you could create another for "non-sensitive" group activities, like a group calendar. Or you could have one be for a subset (like leaders) to sign up for leadership events.

Setting up to link accounts

To link a copy among 2 or more copies of RaidTracker, the first one must be installed already. The 2nd one must be uploaded in a different area, and access the install just like you would the first copy. However, you will be asked for the database information. At this time, you will need the same server info, login and database as the one holding the accounts. Then select "Link" and enter a new table prefix for all the local data. Unfortunately, 3.00 is limited to the same database for both account and local data. But using a different table prefix helps.

You will then be asked to log in (to verify you are indeed an admin on the linked account tables.) Once that is verified, then you'll proceed through the rest of the install like normal. Once install is complete, you'll be set to link accounts.

There are a couple settings you'll need to change, either during the install, or after. I'll show where they are after the install. In the Admin menu, in the system tab, there is a setting to change the cookie name. It's highly recommended to change the name so it does not interfere with other installations of RT, even with the linked accounts. The other setting is in the Accounts tab of Admin view. The setting called "Account Activation". This may be important depending on how much control you want to have over accounts. At the high level, an admin or anyone with account|inactive privs must activate accounts. Basically, this allows you to screen all accounts before you decide whether they can access this version of RT. The low value will automatically activate all accounts, whether it's a newly created account, or one that was created on another copy and linked by this one by logging in to this copy.

Details behind linked accounts

What it means to "link accounts", there are 3 tables that are shared between the installations of RaidTracker. The account info (including password as crypted), all the characters, and the table that contains information about characters--this currently contains classes and roles. With this, an user can log in to any copy of RT that has these tables (shares these tables).

What is not included in linking? Everything that is local to the installation. This means that in the account profile, the visual settings will not be linked. This is because each copy of RaidTracker may be using a different time point, or themes available. Locations and ranks (Group or RT rank) do not get linked. This allows a person to have planning rights on one copy, but not on another. Locations may also vary from copy to copy. Also, DKP is considered local to RT and does not get linked. Finally, it is obvious that events and subscriptions are local and do not get linked, even for stats.

Despite disclosing what is or is not linked, there is one caveat: when an account or character is deleted from one copy, all copies will have it deleted. But only the copy that deletes the player or character will also delete the subscriptions tied to it. Other copies may have unpredictable results.

Advanced customization and themes

RaidTracker is extremely customizable. The best part of all is that it is completely customizable for language. Let me go over the features that are customizable:

Localization

Localization is the local language used in RT. This is what allows you to change the language in description, or even to change "class" to something more meaningful. Localization happens in different ways. The main part of localization is found in the /user/local.php file. This file contains all the strings needed for RaidTracker. RT 3 unfortunately supports only one language at a time. But this file contains 95% of the customization you'll need.

What cannot be changed in /user/local.php can be changed in other locations. For sake of argument, I'll list the default location names for these changes. You can change the names of ranks, locations, statuses, and classes/roles in the Admin view (Rank Names, System names, Character options). Group name is also in Admin view/System. Times can also be localized either in your Account/Profile or globally in Admin/Display.

Addons

RaidTracker can be expandable beyond what is currently included. This includes the rights to add views, add javascript, or extras to the page. While it may seem obvious, the developer CANNOT give support for addons, or for RaidTracker with these modifications involved. You are on your own here.

Versions 3.01 or later have support for addons. The basic procedure is this:

  1. Your addon must be in its own folder in /addons (e.g. /addons/myaddon)
  2. Include a line in /user/addon.php to include your file
  3. If your addon can live without a tab bar (in the Main view), it can include
Addons can reside in the main view (provided they use tabs 3-9), or a link on the menu, or they may reside in the Admin view, though the tabs are crowded already.

Themes

Themes (formerly Styles) can be used to visually style up RaidTracker to be usable. RaidTracker comes preset with one theme, bluesocial. But others may be added at your own desire.

If you are familiar with RT2 styles, they are not compatible with 3.x. In fact RT 3 themes are much easier to create: You just create the logo.png, the CSS (rt-style.css), and put it in its folder under /theme. Then you're set.

More specifically, RaidTracker allows you to create styles based on viewpoints. Here are the specific sizes and CSS filenames required. Only the first one is required: All files must reside in the same folder as your theme (so if you have a theme named "bluesocial", they all reside in /theme/bluesocial

* are required files
** not supported in version 3.00 only
*** in 3.00 only, this is rt-style-hh.css
+ No official support for IE browsers lower than 8.00. In fact, it's recommended to upgrade to the latest version (10 as of this writing) or better.

Appendix A: Log codes

Log codes are always 3 numbers. The first is the category it belongs in. The second is the subcategory, and the 3rd brings out the actual value. When an x is used, it stands for any number, while y stands for a certain number as given.

System: 100s

11x: System changes 12y: Log changes (121 entire log, 122 system log, 123 event log for event, 124 all log events before date)
13y: TOS changes (y is boolean 0/off, 1/on)
News changes for 14y-17x as follows:
14y: adds news ticker for ticker y
15y: modifies newsticker for ticker y
16y: deletes newsticker y
17x: Other newsticker changes.

Account: 200s

21y: Created account. (y is boolean for active: 0/off, 1/on) 22y: Logged in account (Unless y=2, y is boolean for active 0/off, 1/on)
222: Relogged in account (Already in system)
The difference between 220/221 and 222 is that 220/221 applies to linked accounts logging in the first time.

Account admin: 230s

230 Activated account
231 Deactivated account
232 Deleted account
233 Forced reset of account
234 Changed group rank
235 Changed RT privs on account

Account characters: 240s

241 Adds character
242 Changes character
243 Deletes character
244 Changes main characters

e-mail/password: 250s

251: Self changes e-mail/password
252: Uses forget to change password
253: Uses forget to change password and is active
254: Uses forget to change password and is inactive
253 and 254 are for linked accounts

TOS acceptance: 26x

Event structure: 300s

With the exception of the 30x, these will appear only in the event log

301: Adds event
302: Modify date
303: Modifies event name
304: Deletes event

Times: 310s

31y codes mark time changes (1/start, 2/end, 3/invite 4/close sub 5/close withdraw)

Other data: 320s-330s

321: Change visual note
322: Changed planning note
323: Changed leader
324: Removed leader
325: Changed location
330: Changed total required
331: Changed role distribution required
332: Changed minimum level

Subscriptions: 400s

All codes in this section apply only to event logs
41y: New subscription created where y is the status (except 410)
(1/Confirmed 2/Yes 3/Maybe 4/No 5/Restricted)*
410: Used One-Click button (usually same thing as 412)
42y: Changed subscription where y is status above
431: Substituted character for event
432: Changed role
433: Changed own visual note
434: Deleted own visual note

Planning Subscriptions: 500s

All codes in this section apply only to event logs
51y: unless stated below, moved a subscription to the following list:
(1/Confirmed 2/Yes 3/Maybe 4/No 5/Restricted)*
510: Added subscription
516: Deleted subscription
517: Moved to whiteboard
518: Moved off the whiteboard
521: Swapped subscription's character
522: Changed character's role
531: Changed subscription's visual note
532: Deleted subscription's visual note
533: Changed subscription's planning note
534: Deleted subscription's planning note
54y: Batch move a group to the status listed above
546: Batch move a group to the whiteboard
547: Batch move a group off the whiteboard
548: Batch delete subscriptions
55y: Whiteboard (where y: 1/approve or 2/clear)
Version 3.00 may use 531 and 532. this is a bug

Points/DKP 600s

Only the 60x line will show up in events. The others show up in system log.
601: Award points
602: Penalize points
603: Purchase with points
604: Zero sum points award
605: Zero sum points purchase
606: Auto-award active players (time based)
607: Auto-penalize restricted players
608: Delete point changes
610: Activated system
611: Deactivated system
612: Changed points system name
620: Turned Zero-sum off
621: Turned Zero-sum on
622: Turned point share off (share among own characters)
623: Turned point share on (share among own characters)
624: Turned item table off
625: Turned item table on
629: Changed settings

* Names are based on RT 3 type. They coordinate to the statuses in Admin/System names