Uncategorized

You are currently browsing the archive for the Uncategorized category.

SVN and SSH for Installing and Updating Sites

April 27, 2008 in open source, Technology, Uncategorized | No comments

One problem with administering multiple programs on several websites is keeping all the software up to date. Sometimes there seems to be an endless string of security updates and it can add up to quite a chore. It is easy to fall behind and leave scripts outdated and vulnerable. This site is a case in point.

I decided to finally get around to updating my WordPress installations. I was getting ready to go through the process of downloading the new version, unpacking it and uploading the files to the server as the instructions dictate. While looking through the WordPress Site, I ran into “Installing/Updating WordPress with Subversion.” This has totally changed how I manage websites.

Let’s start with some background information. SSH is an abbreviation for Secure Shell. It is a way to access a server using a command line interface through a terminal. If you have a Mac or Linux box, you already have this installed. If you have Windows you can download a terminal such as PuTTY or some other such software.

In order to use SSH, you need an account with a webhost that allows SSH access (I would definitely make that a consideration when selecting a host), or a server allowing such access. You launch the terminal and type (don’t type the $–that just indicates a new command):

$ ssh username@ipaddress

If all goes well, you will be prompted to type in a password and you are in your root folder. From that point you can navigate to folders and execute functions using simple commands.

Subversion is a revision management system that many open source communities use to manage different versions of a particular software package. In order to use subversion, a client must be installed on the servering hosting your site (again, if I were looking for a webhost, I’d want that feature).

Once all the requirements are in place, installing software is a cinch. Log into the server as shown above. Navigate to your public_html folder:

$ cd public_html

Create a new folder:

$ mkdir newsoftwarefolder

Go to that folder:

$ cd newsoftwarefolder

Install from subversion server:

$ svn co http://whateverthepathistotheversion/ . (you need the space period and the trailing slash)

You many be prompted to log in–if so login as anonymous with password. That’s it. Instead of downloading, extracting and uploading, you just transferred the files saving much time and effort. Proceed with the rest of the install (ie set up the database and run the browser installer). You can have a site up and running in less than 5 minutes.

The best part come next–future upgrades. If you want the new files of the same version, just navigate to the directory and type:

$ svn up

It then will upload any change files. If you want to upgrade to a newer version just navigate to the directory and type:

$svn sw http://whateverthepathistothenewversion/

Again, it will only update change files leaving your custom files, themes, and plugins alone.

The article linked at the top also outlines how to change an existing installation to a subversion installation. I have applied the same idea to software other than WordPress with great success.

Now this is not for the total novice, but if you are already upgrading software manually, as opposed to using a cpanel to do so, you are probably proficient enough to do this. You’ll save a lot of time and effort, freeing you to concentrate more on teaching!

Tags: , , , , , ,

Blogging: Shift from Technology to Pedagogy

January 16, 2008 in Uncategorized | No comments

My students and I are finding our way through WordPressMU (WPMU). I have worked through security, configuration, and administrative work flow. The kids post and comment. Now we focus more on learning.

Students customized their sites using themes, widgets, and blogroll. I set them to contributor so the posts would be moderated before appearing. Comments are also moderated. It was time consuming and awkward to trudge through each site to approve everything, so I set the blogs to email me any time new content is submitted. The email includes the message and handy administrative links to approve or delete. There is only one glitch–when a new post (as opposed to comment) is created, it is not put into a moderation cue, so I have to either have a contributor tell me when they have submitted content for review, or check through their drafts for content not posted. It appears to be a known issue and I hope to work through the hacks to make it work. I’d love to ask for a fix in the WPMU support forum, but unfortunately it is not a very friendly place and I suspect the response would be that I have no business using the software with my lack of PHP coding knowledge.

Most students have made a few posts. Now they use the blogroll links to visit each other and comment upon each others’ posts. It’s interesting to watch the interaction among the students. Our district superintendent asked for a login and replied to student posts.

Beyond that, I  will shifting my attention from the technology to the teaching aspects of using blogs with my students. Right now, I am watching an on–line community start to take shape among my students.

Tags: , , , ,

Students Begin Blogging

January 11, 2008 in Uncategorized | No comments

My students began blogging today. As mentioned earlier, we are taking baby steps, but baby has taken several steps already. There were a few obstacles and unexpected little glitches, but went very well. The kids are incredibly excited.

To begin, I had to create an account for each child. As a security measure, registration was set so that users had to be created by an admin, rather than allowing anyone to create a login. Users must be created one by one–no big deal with my small class size. Unfortunately, WPMU requires a unique email address for each user. While a few children had email accounts, most did not. Others could use a parent’s email addresses. A surprising number had no access to the Internet at home. I ended up creating email accounts to receive the passwords that WordPress generated. Entering a class of 25 students would be a chore. I’m sure there is a way to do this through the SQL database, but that is beyond me at this point.

Once I dealt with this, all went fairly well. I guided them through the log in process on the class blog. Then we created profiles (after a long discussion of Internet safety), and changed their passwords to something secure, yet memorable. Next, I showed them how to comment upon a post that I had created. After they commented on two posts, we went on to the next step.

Since they caught on so quickly, I created a blog for each student. I had to give them admin access to their sites to allow them to customize them with templates and widgets. For the sake of security, I set the each blog’s privacy setting so that they only could be viewed by me and the individual student. Once done with customization, I will set their privileges to contributor, and open their sites to the world. With this setup. I will be the administrator for their sites and will moderate all posts and comments.

Overall, I think I have the security figured out and I am beginning to establish an administrative workflow. The kids feel empowered and energized. I also have one one of our high school teachers ready to do the same with one of his elective classes.

Tags: , , ,

Classroom Blogging: Babysteps

January 8, 2008 in Uncategorized | No comments

My fifth grade class will begin blogging next week. Once our New York State English Language Arts Tests are over on Wednesday, we will focus on real learning as opposed to test prep. I’m pretty satisfied that I have WordPress MU figured out well enough to get going.

We will start with a class blog in which I am the administrator and the students are authors. I will set it up so it is viewable by the the public, but only blog members (my students and I) can comment and they will be moderated. We’ll start by working together on the “look” of the site by choosing a template, customizing it, and placing the widgets. I will model creating and commenting on a post.

We’ll start by asking the students to reflect on the NYS ELA test that they just took. After that, I’ll have them respond to a book that I am reading to them: Running Out of Time.

They are excited as am I. Once we have it up and running, I’ll post a link.

Tags: , , , ,

WPMU for School: Security Quick Overview

December 28, 2007 in Uncategorized | 6 comments

WordPress Mu is now installed on our school’s shared server space. It appears to be functioning as I’d like it–now that I hacked together a nice .htaccess redirect making it easier to access individual blogs. Before we actually let the students loose on their blogs, I need to think through security and make sure I can deliver on the promises made at our last tech meeting.

First, can it be set up so that individual students can submit content that will only be published upon administrative approval? The answer is yes–although there are limitations. Let’s explore the roles/permissions system:

  • Subscriber: can view site (only relevant if blog is set to be visible only by subscribers).
  • Contributor: Can write and edit posts, but they are not published until and administrator approves the content.
  • Author: Can write, edit, publish, and delete own posts
  • Editor: in addition to author permissions, can moderate comments, manage categories, edit pages, and other people’s posts.
  • Administrator: Has control over any option or setting in the blog, including moderating posts and comments.

Clearly, in terms of security, students would be best set at the Contributor level. I worked through a post as a contributor–indeed it worked as expected. Just to be sure, I went back to my test post to see if I could edit it as a contributor after is was published/approved by the admin. I couldn’t–that is a good thing from a security point of view. With Joomla, an administrator must change a post’s ownership to ensure that it is not edited after.

Unfortunately, the Contributor setting does not allow a student to customize their website/blog. There really isn’t another setting that would allow adults to moderate posts by students, so there is no other choice. Perhaps a teacher could log in and change their template.

Comment is another area of concern. At first glance, it appears that comment settings must be done on a blog-by-blog basis. Comments can be disabled, held for moderation, or allowed to appear when created. These options may be over-ridden on a post by post basis. At first glance, it looks like we can satisfy the tech committees needs, by moderating comments, although I will be testing this further examining all aspects of the commenting and notification of comments via email.

Registration can be disabled allowing only an administrator to create new accounts. Unfortunately, this requires a unique email for each user. This can be a hassle as you need a working email account to receive WPMU generated password. Not good news for elementary teachers whose students often don’t have email addresses. I will be looking for a hack to change this.

Finally, you have a few means of controlling who can view the site. First of all, each blog post can be password protected–effective in keeping non users out (which I have mixed feelings about). That’s about it if it weren’t for a plugin called private blog. Normally the privacy tab only allows you to keep out search engines. With private blog, you can set each blog be visible to only members of the individual blog, the blog community (by all users of the school’s WPMU installation), or only to administrators. While I feel that blocking the general public from a blog defeats its purpose to some degree, there may be times and circumstances where a “walled garden” is appropriate or the only acceptable option in accordance with policies.

Overall, WPMU appears to provide the security options needed to proceed. In some cases, implementation could be less awkward. I would like to see more of this controlled globally rather than at the blog level. I will be testing it more closely with dummy accounts to more closely examine any potential security problems, and to work through a workflow to administer the site. If anyone would like to help out, let me know!

Tags: , , ,

« Older entries § Newer entries »