Form Scripts and HTML Uploads on MediaWiki

Yo Discussion conForumists,

I have struggled with trying to configure MediaWiki to allow HTML uploads (specifically form scripts) within my wiki pages. I basically want to insert sign-up forms allowing folks to subscribe and/or unsubscribe to the announcement mailing list I created through the DH control panel.

Ironically, an apparently working example of the form is embedded in the DreamHost KB wiki here (just underneath the form code below the "How can people subscribe to my mailing list?" subhead):
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/wiki.phtml?title=KB_/_Web_Programming_/_CGI,_PHP_&_Databases_/_Announcement_Mailing_List
...but I'm not clever enough to figure out how they're getting it to work by looking at the page source.

Below are the help resources I've used. I've followed all instructions only to have none of them actually "work."

I have also submitted a support ticket to DH; their response was to post a help request in this forum.

--- begin help pages I've consulted ---

Manual:Allowing HTML Uploads
http://www.mediawiki.org/wiki/Manual:Allowing_HTML_Uploads
- Note: April 11, 2007: Tried installing "Allowing HTML Uploads" as instructed at above Manual page. Didn't work. Uninstalled all changes.

Help:Inputbox
http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Help:Inputbox
- Note: April 11, 2007: Tried installing "Inputbox" as instructed at above help page. Didn't work. Uninstalled all changes.

KB / Web Programming / CGI, PHP & Databases / Announcement Mailing List: How can people subscribe to my mailing list?
http://wiki.dreamhost.com/wiki.phtml?title=KB_/_Web_Programming_/_CGI,_PHP_&_Databases_/_Announcement_Mailing_List

Help:HTML in wikitext
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:HTML_in_wikitext

--- end help pages I've consulted ---

Do any of you have any recommended help resources I should be using?

Thanks,

-dave myers

Dave,

That's an interesting problem! Frankly, I would *not* recommend enabling html uploads on a wiki installation for security purposes (it's probably just as well that it didn't work! ) as it introduces a significant potential security hole into the system.

Also, don't feel bad that you couldn't decipher the code to put the form int the wiki page as described here, as that is a little misleading - the form is *not* really *in* that page at all , it is just a .jpg of a form used for illustration purposes.

The other potential solutions you investigated involving allowing html directly into the wiki text (input box - which *says* it requires version 1.5, and *may not* be compatible with the later wikimedia versions, and the html in wikitext reference) are, in my opinion, also less than desirably secure for many of the same reasons that allowing html uploads are potentially dangerous.

While I only took a quick google, I didn't find any "wiki-based" solutions to this; there may well be one out there- I just have not located it .

That said, I would approach the problem in a different way. Rather than trying to embed the form in a wiki page, I would either embed the form in the "skin" (template) of mediawiki (if you want it to show on every page), *or* simply build an "off wiki" html page(s) to house the form(s) related to your list management and a link back to the wiki pages, and link to *those* from within a wiki page wherever you want to make them available.

You could make them *appear* to be "part" of the wiki by starting with a "view" source of an "empty" wiki page, and save that as a "skeleton" for your static html page - just edit and include the form and tweak any links as necessary before saving.

Does that make any sense?

--rlparker

Hey rlparker,

Thanks for your informative response! Ha, ha... I guess I should have clicked on that embedded "form" image to see where it would lead instead of just looking at the source and getting all confused ;-)

Both of your suggestions are great; I'm leaning toward the off-wiki solution for this particular project. I am intrigued by the form embedded into the MediaWiki template, however, for potential use in another project. Do you have a suggested resource you can link me to so I can investigate that further?

Thanks again!

-dave

You're most welcome! Actually, I have not researched it far enough to have a real reference for you (other than suggesting that you start with http://meta.wikimedia.org/wiki/Skins and it's talk page), but I'm thinking google may throw out a hint or two.

Granted, "tweaking" MediaWiki templates/skins is arguably more complicated than such things are in some other systems, but it really shouldn't be that difficult an exercise.

If you decide to tackle that, I'd be very interested to see what you come up with!

--rlparker

Thanks rlparker! You won't mind if I just call you "rl" will you? ;-)

It's probably gonna be awhile before I mess with wiki skins; my boss is already threatening another round of "waterboarding" if I don't get the newsletter project figured out soon. (Not to worry, though; the advantage of being the official company "jack-ass of all trades" is that I can occasionally go all "court jester" on 'em if need be.) But when I do, I'll absolutely try to remind myself to post the solution here.

Again, thanks for your help!

-dave

Ha ha! You can call me anything you want (and believe me when I tell you I've been called damn near everything on these forums at one time or another. )

Good luck with the boss and that "waterboarding" thing - it couldn't hurt to remind him now and then that if he "breaks" his "jack-ass of all trades", *then* where would his precious project(s) be?

--rlparker

Blah, blah, blah, blah, HTMLets.

emufarmers.com
Very little to do with either emus or farmers!

In reply to:

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HTMLets.

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That looks interesting - thanks!

--rlparker

Wow! Thanks for this tip, ye Farmer of Emus. I shall try it out.
-dave myers