PHP Classified Ads version 3 - installation instructions and manual

1. Installing the website

2. Configuring the website
2.1. Configuration options
2.2. Setting the listing categories and locations
2.3. Setting the website pricing and packages
2.4. Adding custom fields

3. Administration panel
3.1. General overview
3.2. Main pages in the administration panel

4. Ads Management
4.1. Ad packages
4.2. Approving the ads

5. Website structure and content management
5.1. Structure management, adding new pages
5.2. Modifying the content of the pages
5.3. Website navigation menu
5.4. Custom server side forms
5.5. Languages and language files

6. Front site templates management
6.1. Templates overview
6.2. Adding new templates and modifying the existing ones
6.3. Custom HTML tags
6.4. Adding Google AdSense advertisements or Google Analytics

7. Administration panel users and groups
7.1. User groups
7.2. Adding new users
7.2. Permissions management

1. Installing the website

You may find below information about the PHP Classified Ads integrated setup, the description of all the steps, possible errors and troubleshooting information.

Please note that we offer free installation for all our products, so in a case you prefer that we do the installation for you, you are welcome to contact our support team and we'll try to help asap.

Step 1 - Welcome screen and PHP Classified Ads End User License Agreement

In this first step you'll be able to:
see the general setup welcome message
read the PHP Classified Ads end user license agreement

In order to continue to the next step, you'll have to agree with the PHP Classified Ads end user license agreement by checking the check box (I agree ...).

Troubleshooting

1. I can't find the Continue button and I can't proceed to the next step?

By default the Continue button in this step is hidden and it becomes visible when you click on the check box (I agree ...). If you don't agree with the PHP Classified Ads end user license agreement, the Continue button will not show up and you'll not be able to proceed to the next step.

Step 2 MySQL server information

In this step you'll have to provide the access information for the MySQL server (server name, MySQL user and password) on which you would like to install the main PHP Classified Ads database. The setup needs this information in order to connect to your server and install the MySQL database on it.

In this step, you'll be asked for:

MySQL Server the server where you plan to install the database, usually localhost for most of the hosting packages.

Please note that on some hosting companies like GoDaddy, the MySQL server name is specific for every database, which is created and looks like for example: db_name.db.11111.hostedresource.com
In such cases it's necessary to copy and paste the exact server name, which you may get from the hosting package control panel.

MySQL User and MySQL Password a valid user account for the MySQL Server

Please note on Cpanel hosting package (used by the most popular hosting companies like HostGator, BlueHost, HostMonster, CirtexHosting etc.) if you create a new database and MySQL User you need to explicitly give permissions to this user for the database you created you can do that from the MySQL Database page in Cpanel, at the bottom.

If you are not sure for these settings, please contact your hosting provider or log in to your hosting package control panel, where usually this information can be found on a page called MySQL or Databases.

After you enter these values and click on the Continue button, the setup will try to connect to the MySQL server with the user name and password you entered. If any of values aren't correct (the address of the MySQL server or the MySQL user name and password), then an error message will be displayed and you won't be able to continue until you enter the correct values.

Troubleshooting

1. After you click the Continue button you receive an error message in red saying Server doesn't exist or access is denied.

If this is the case, please check once again the values you have entered. If the problem persists:
make sure that your MySQL server is up and running and that this account is valid
make sure also you enter a correct MySQL server name (on companies like GoDaddy and 1&1 the name isn't the default localhost and may be different for every database)
on CPanel hosting packages, please check if permissions for the database are granted to the MySQL user you entered
- if you have any troubles finding the correct MySQL information for your hosting package, you can also contact your hosting provider and ask them for the MySQL settings for your hosting account


Step 3 - Setup of the main PHP Classified Ads database

In this step you'll be asked if you would like to create a new database for PHP Classified Ads or use an existing one.

If you choose the option to create a new database, you'll be asked to enter the name of the database. We recommend you to use a name, which will be easy to distinguish, like for example classified_ads. Be aware that when choosing this option, the MySQL user you have provided in the previous step should have the rights to create new databases on the MySQL server. If this is not the case, the database creation will fail and such error will be displayed on the screen.

If you choose the option to use an existent database, the PHP Classified Ads database tables will be created in the database chosen by you. All the tables, which will be created will have a prefix websiteadmin_, no data from the existing database and tables will be deleted.

Troubleshooting
1. I have chosen the option to create a new database but when I click on Continue, I get an error message colored in red and I can't proceed to the next step, why?
- make sure that your MySQL user has CREATE DATABASE permissions on the MySQL server
- make sure that you don't have already a database on your server with the same name as the one you entered

2. I have tried to use the second option, to use an existing database, but I receive an error message saying that the table websiteadmin_admin_users already exists
- this means that you have previously installed the script in this database, so you may either use a new database or delete the old script tables and then continue with the installation

Be aware that in this step the setup creates also the script configuration file. If the process running PHP on your server for your hosting package doesn't have right permissions in the folder where you install PHP Classified Ads you'll receive the following message in the interface:

The process running PHP on this computer doesn't have permissions to create and write the configuration file in the main web folder. You need to create it manually the content will show up in the screen. You need to copy / paste it in a file config.php and upload it in the main web folder (the one in which you uploaded the real estate files). So you could either upload it with FTP or use the File Manager in your hosting package control panel to save the config.php file.

If you experience troubles when doing this or have any additional questions, please don't hesitate to contact us.

Step 4 Installation successful screen

If you reached this step, PHP Classified Ads has been installed successfully on your server/hosting package and you can open the front site and also the administration panel to manage the website and different settings.


2. Configuring the website

2.1. Configuration options

The Settings->Configuration options in the administration panel provides functionality to change the different options on the front site. You may find below a list and description of the different configuration options.


Ads expire in (days)
With this setting you can control the number of days in which the posted ads on the website will expire. The default value is 30, but you can easily change it with another number of days you prefer.
If you set it to: -1 , then the ads posted on the website will never expire.

Enable SEO URLs
The search engines optimized urls look like static html pages and have keywords in the url (which allows better indexing by search engines like Google).
In order to use the SEO links, the system will require the presence of the mod_rewrite module (for Linux / Apche or isapi_rewrite for Windows / IIS). If this module is not present on your server or hosting package, you could deactivate this feature by setting it to NO.

Auto validate the new listings
If set to NO, the listings posted on the front site will need to be validated from the administrator before they show up on the front site. The administrator can see and approve the new listings from the Dashboard page of Ads Management in the administration panel

System Email Address
You can set with it the system email address, which will appear as sender of the system emails sent by the website (like the email when the listings are approved etc.).

System Email From Field
The name of the sender of the system email address, which is used when sending email notifications, welcome emails and others to the users.

Send email when approving listings
If set to YES, an email will be sent to the user once his listing is approved by the administrator. With the settings below it's possible to set the email text and subject of the email message that will be sent.

Approve email subject
This setting allows to modify the subject of the email that will be sent to the user when his listing is approved. The default text is Your listing has been approved! and can be changed with whatever different text the administrator may prefer.

Approve email text
This setting allows to modify the subject of the email that will be sent to the user when his listing is approved. The default text is:
The listing you submitted

{LINK}

has been approved and added on our website.

in which {LINK} will be replaced with the url of the listing.

Number of results per page
By changing the value of this setting, you can control how many results will show up on the front site when the users make a search or browse the listings per make etc.
The default value is set to 10.

Number of category columns
On the front page by default the categories show up in 3 columns if you prefer another number like 4 or 5 columns, you can easily set this by modifying the value of this setting.

Number of listings in Featured section
Use this setting to control the number of featured listings, which will show up in the Featured Listings section to the right. Please note that if there are featured listings on the website than the available positions (number you set in this field), then the featured listings will show up randomly in the Featured Listings section

Message on successful new submission (free listings)
This is the message the user will see when their listing (website) has been submitted successfully.

Message on successful new submission (paid listings)
Use this field and setting to modify the message that the users will see when submitting a paid listing. It's a separate and different message than the free listings, because often the administrator can choose to include information specific for the paid listings (for example your listing will be approved as soon as we receive your payment).

Website currency
By default this setting is set to the US dollar sign $, but you may change it to another one you prefer (like CHF or ). This will change the currency symbol displayed next to the prices on the website.
This applies for all the prices of the listings on the website, pricing for posting listings and banners etc.
Currency Code
The PayPal currency code if the PayPal system is enabled. By default it's set to USD (US dollars), but can be changed to any other valid PayPal currency code like EUR, GBP etc.

Use CAPTCHA images to prevent spamming
A good way to avoid automatic form submissions when creating a web form is to add some kind of verification. One of the best ways is to use an image verification, called also captcha. What it does is to dynamically create an image with a random string displayed on it. Then visitor is asked to type that string in a text field and once the form is submitted it checks if the string on the image matches the one inputted by the user.
The usage of the captcha images is enabled by default, but if you would like to disable it (for example if the PHP graphics library - GD isn't installed on your website), you could change the value of this setting to NO.

Website time zone
With this setting you can change the default time zone on the website. The time zone coming by default for most of the downloads is Europe/London.
List of the supported time zones can be found on: http://www.php.net/manual/en/timezones.php

Some examples of supported time zones are:

America/Buenos_Aires
America/Chicago
America/Los_Angeles
America/Mexico_City
America/New_York
Asia/Singapore
Asia/Tokyo
Europe/Berlin
Europe/Madrid
Europe/Moscow
Europe/Zurich


PayPal ID
When the PayPal system is enabled, in this field, the administrator/website owner has to enter the PayPal account (registered PayPal email address) he would like to use to charge the users on the website.

2checkout ID
When the 2checkout system is enabled, in this field, the administrator/website owner has to enter the 2checkout SID (Seller ID) of the 2checkout account he would like to use to charge the users on the website. The seller id can be obtained from the 2checkout website (during a new registration for the new users) or from the admin panel for the registered ones.

Cheques address
In this field the administrator has to enter the address, which has to be used for the cheques to be sent if the cheques payment options is enabled on the website.

Bank account information
In this field the administrator has to enter the full information for the bank account to be to be used when the bank transfer payment option is enabled on the website.

Amazon Payments ID, PayFast ID, InterKassa ID, Google Checkout ID, Skrill/Moneybookers ID , PayMate ID
To enable any of the following system in order to charge the users, it's enable to enter your ID for them in the corresponding text fields on the Configuration Options pages.
If you wish to disable any the systems in the future, it's necessary to simply delete the corresponding ID.

SEO text to be appended to the category page title
When clicking on a category, the default page title will be the category name. By adding custom text in this field, you can customize the titles of the category pages, which will be then the Category Title + Your Text (so in this way you can create unique titles for better search engines optimization).

SEO text to be appended to the category page meta description
By adding a text in this field, you can add a text, which will be appended to the default meta description for SEO purposes.

SEO text to be appended to the category meta keywords
By adding a text in this field, you can add a text, which will be appended to the default meta keywords for SEO purposes.

Website date format string
By entering a valid PHP date format string, you can change the format of the date displayed on the website.
Full information on the supported date format strings can be found on:
http://www.php.net/manual/en/function.date.php

Here are a few examples:
"F j, Y, g:i a" // March 10, 2001, 5:16 pm
"m.d.y" // 03.10.01
"j, n, Y" // 10, 3, 2001
"H:i:s" // 17:16:18

Show number of listings in category
If set to yes, will show the number of listings in each category on the front site. Keep set to NO, if you don't wish these numbers to show up.



2.2. Setting the listing categories

The software comes with a list with predefined categories, that can be easily modified from the Ads Management → Categories page in the administration panel.

The new categories have to be entered as a list, one per line, with a starting number (it's not required that these are successive numbers).



The script supports unlimited level of categories, the levels and hierarchy can be defined with the starting numbers, here is an example:

1. Main Category
1.1. Sub category of the main category
1.2. Another sub category
1.2.1. Sub sub category
1.2.1.1. Level 4 category
2. Another Main Category


Please note that on the front site the sub categories will be alphabetically sorted, so you may not sort them in the list and also you may not follow the order of the numbers for example you can have

1.1. First Category
1.5. Second Category
1.2. Third category

In difference of the sub categories, the main top level categories are not sorted, this can help the administrator to set the order in which he would like the main categories to show up.

Modifying the locations works in exactly the same way as the categories the new locations list has to be pasted as a list on the Locations page in the administration panel with starting numbers allowing to define the hierarchy (like explained above for the categories).

2.4. Adding custom fields

As administrator, you can add custom fields for selected categories from the Ads Management → Fields page in the administration panel.


This functionality can be useful to define specific fields for the different categories, for example Year, Color, Body Type for the Cars categories or Salary field for the Jobs category etc.

To add a new field, it's necessary to first click on the category name and then enter the field name and possible values if the field is drop down select menu (if the possible values field in this form is left empty, then the new field that will be added will be a text field).



2.3. Setting the website pricing and packages

The software allows to create different listing packages free and paid that can differ on their price, and featured status (the featured listings show up with different background color, always on top of their categories and also randomly in the Featured Ads section to the right).

The new packages can be added from the Ads Management → Packages page, by clicking on the Add a new package at the top of the page.



When creating a new package, it's necessary to enter his name and description, price and if the package offers dofollow links, featured status or not.


The description shows up on the front site to the user and helps him select a package, so the administrator can explain with it the advantage of choosing a paid package (like for example that when the ad is featured it will have better exposure etc.).
The field Active with possible values YES or NO allows to temporarily deactivate a package (for example if you temporarily don't wish to offer paid packages) or activate again after some time.


3. Administration panel

When creating the software, we tried to design the administration panel to be as easy to use and intuitive as possible and to allow fast and effective website management. The administration panel doesn't include only functionality for managing the listings and packages, but it includes also other features allowing to manage the website structure (add new pages, modify or remove the current ones), manage the site design / template and navigation menu, see statistics for the website visits, create custom server side forms or custom HTML tags and expand the existing functionality with your own php files and many others.
The administration panel has Standard view (version optimized for computers and larger screens) you may see it to the left and also Mobile view (optimized for mobile devices and small screens) you can see it to the right.





3.1. General overview

The administration panel is the main tool available to the PHP Classified Ads administrator to manage the website, change its settings, templates and design, pages content etc.

The features in the admin panel are divided in categories. The main administrator and the members of the Administrators group have access to all the categories and pages in them.

The PHP Classified Ads administration panel functionality is divided in 8 categorie / menus in the main start menu:

- Home (welcome / dashboard page, modification of password, log in report)
- Ads Management (management of the listings, packages and options)
- Website (front site structure and content management, navigation menu settings)
- Extensions (custom extensions and extension files and different modules)
- Templates (front site templates management)
- Statistics (reports and referrals for the website visits)
- Users (management of the administration panel users, groups and permissions)
- Settings (management of the categories, regions, banner areas and others)


3.2. Main pages in the administration panel

You may find below a quick overview and brief information about the most used pages in the administration panel and functionality on it.

Home → Welcome

The Welcome page in the administration panel provides quick information about the new listings waiting to the approved and statistics, as well as links to the main pages in the administration panel for easier navigation.







Home → Log in Report

The log in report shows a log of the administration panel log in attempts the successful and failed log ins with their date and IP address.







Home → Change Password

This page can be used to change the password of the user for the administration panel. To change the password it's necessary to enter the old password and the new one and confirm it after the password is changed successfully, the user will be logged out and asked to log in again with his new password.









Ads Management → Dashboard


The Dashboard page has links to the main pages for approving the links, configurations options, settings the listing packages and categories.






Ads Management → Approve, Ads Management → Current Listings


The Approve and Current Listings pages can be used to manage the new and existing listings on the website, approve, delete or modify them.









Ads Management → Categories


You can use the functionality on this page to manage the current categories and modify them. The listing categories has to be set as a list, one category per link. Please check Categories Management in the manual for more information about this.

Ads Management → Packages


As administrator you can can create different listing packages from this page you can have free or paid listings, featured or standard and also set if the links from the website should be dofollow or nofollow links.







Ads Management → Locations


The page can be used to modify the locations showing up on the front site (on the Browse by Location page and also on the page for submitting new ads).







Ads Management → Fields

The functionality on the Fields page can be used by the administrator to add custom and specific fields for selected categories like Property Size for Properties, Salary for Jobs or Year, Color for Cars etc.






Ads Management → Settings


The page has many different options that you can use to configure your website in the way you prefer set your timezone and currency, configure the preferred payment options and many others. Please find detailed description of the different settings in 2. Configuring the website




Website → Management


This is the main page to be used to manage the website structure and content add new pages, remove or rename the current ones, modify the pages content, the page title meta keywords or meta description or set custom php extension to be executed for a page.






Website → Navigation Menu

Modifying the menu item template from this page can be useful when customizing the website look and feel or when integrating a custom design / front site template.






Website → Manage the forms

The custom server side forms can be useful if you would like to create custom contact or feedback forms or any other type of forms to get information or inquiries from the users. When creating a new form you can add in it the fields you prefer it's possible to create text fields and drop down menus by entering the possible values for them.
The data sent by the users can be seen from the administration panel and / or to be forwarded to an email address set by the administrator (the email address and message that will be shown on successful form submission can be set when clicking on the Settings icon for a selected form).

Website → Posted Data

The page shows the data posted by the users from the custom server side forms (like the Contact form on the website). You can also choose this data to be forwarded to an email address you prefer, from the Settings page of the form.






Extensions → Files


The page shows the current files in the /extensions folder, which can be used for extensions of the pages or custom tags. Please note that files that should be used for custom tags have _tag at the end of their name. A file can be set to be executed as extension for a page from the Website → Management page and for a tag from Extensions → Tags



Extensions → Tags


You can use this page to see the current tags, delete any of them or add new tag. Please check the chapter Custom Tags to read more about their usage and functionality.








Extensions → News, Extensions → FAQ Manager, Extensions → Newsletter


These are some basic WebSiteAdmin modules loaded by default allowing to post news on the website, create a page with frequently asked questions and send newsletter to the users who have subscribed for it.




Templates → Modify, Templates-> Select a Template, Templates → Add a New Template


These pages can be used to modify the front site template, select a different template or add a new template by pasting its HTML code.

For more information about the templates and their structure, please check the section Templates Management' in this manual.





Statistics → Reports


The page shows brief information about the website visits and also displays a chart for them.

Please note that the integrated website visits tracking and statistics information is basic and simple, for more advanced tracking and information, we recommend using an external system such as Google Analytics, which can be easily added on the website.











Statistics → Referrals

You can see on this page the last referrals, so you can easily track who is linking to your website and from where the traffic to your website comes from.





Users → User Groups, Users → New User, Users → User Permissions


Using these pages, you can add new administrator users to your website, put them in groups and set their permissions. This can be useful if you would like to have multiple users working on the website with permissions limited to just some selected pages. For example have a News Administrators group with permissions to access only the News Management functionality in the administration panel etc.



Settings → Language Versions

If you would like to run a multi language website, it's necessary to add the additional languages from this page in the administration panel. Please note when you a add a new language, it's necessary to upload also the language file for it in the /include folder on your website. Please refer to the Languages and language files for more information and description of the language files and languages management.



4. Listings Management

In the latest version of the software, we tried to make the listings and packages as easy as possible you may find below information about the main pages in the administration panel related to the listings approval and management.


The Dashboard page provides quick links to manage and approve the links by package as well as create new listing packages and manage the different configuration options.

4.1. Listing packages

The software allows to create different listing packages free and paid that can differ on their price and featured status (the featured listings show up with different background color, always on top of their categories and also randomly in the Featured Listings section to the right) or normal status.

The new packages can be added from the Ads Management → Packages page, by clicking on the Add a new package at the top of the page.



When creating a new package, it's necessary to enter his name and description, price and if the package offers featured status or not.
The description shows up to the user and helps him select a package, so the administrator can explain with it the advantage of choosing a paid package.
The field Active with possible values YES or NO allows to temporarily deactivate a package (for example if you temporarily don't wish to offer paid packages) or activate again after some time.


4.2. Approving the ads

The administrator can see the new listings to be approved on the Ads Management → Dashboard page and also directly on the home screen when he logs in if there are new listings to be approved, a message like There are 5 new ads waiting to be approved will show up.

The Dashboard page lists also the new listings to be approved per packages, this makes easier to manage for example the paid listings first and with priority and the free ones with lower priority.


To approve the new listings, please click on the Approve button on the Dashboard page or alternatively you may click on the package name for the package you would like to approve the new listings. The next page that will show up, will have the list of the listings waiting to be approved with the information about the listing, person who has posted it etc.
It's easy to approve multiple listings at once just click on the listing check box and the on the Approve button at the bottom. If you would to approve all the listings on the page, you can use also the Select All checkbox click it and then click on Approve.


If you would like a listing inappropriate and would like to remove it, you can use click on the delete icon, which will delete the listing.

There is also a Modify icon for every listing, allowing to modify the listing information before approving it.












When approving the listings, if you have set on Settings → Configuration Options the value of Send email when approving listings to YES, then an email will be sent to the user as soon as you approve the listing.
Please note you can edit the subject and text of the email and set the text you prefer from the Configuration Options page (so you can include in this way information you think will be important to your users or advertisements).



5. Website structure and content management

The functionality, different menus and options on the Website → Management page allow the administrator to manage the website structure add new pages, rename or remove the existing ones etc. and also manage the content of the website, edit the content of the different pages, set extensions to be executed for them and others.



5.1. Structure management, adding new pages

Changing the front site pages meta title and description

In order to change the front site pages meta title, keywords or description, the administrator has to log in in the admin panel and go to the Website->Management page.
On this page, he will see the available website pages as a tree. He has to left click with the mouse on a page in order to select it and then choose from the Context menu which will show up Page Settings.


A new page will show up containing various page fields including also the page meta title description. The administrator has to enter the new values and click Save.

Adding new pages to the website

The PHP Classified Ads admin panel offers the possibility to freely edit the website structure add, edit or delete the pages of the front site.


Please note that you need to define the website structure separately for the different language versions available (you could switch between the language versions by selecting the language from the big drop down menu at the top of the Website → Management page).
In order to add a new page to the front site you need to click on the New Page button at the top of Website → Management



This will enter the form for adding a new page -



with the following fields:

- Link Text , the name of the link, which will show up in the main navigation menu
- Page Type, it can be either a main page or a sub page of an already existing page
- Title, the title of the page, which will show up in the title tag
- Meta Description, the meta description of the page, which will appear in the meta description tag to be used for search engines optimization purposes
- Meta Keywords, the meta keywords of the page, which have to be entered as a list and will appear after that in the meta keywords tag on the page, to be used for search engines optimization purposes


Changing the pages hierarchy

You can modify the front site pages hierarchy by clicking on the Change Hierarchy button at the top of Website → Management using the form at the bottom of the Website->Management page.7


This will open the change hierarchy form - this form there allows to make a page of the website either a main page or a sub page of an existing main page.



Changing the position of two pages

By changing the position of 2 pages, you'll change the order of the pages in the main navigation menu (for example replace the positions of the Home and About us pages).

Near every page on the Website->Management page, you could see 2 arrows indicating the up and bottom directions, you have to click on them in order to change the position of the pages.


Please note that you can change the position of 2 pages only if they are on the same level in the website hierarchy (for example main pages, or sub pages of the Home page etc.)



5.2. Modifying the content of the pages

The content of the pages can be modified from the Website->Management page in the admin panel. On this page, the administrator see the pages as a tree.

If the website is multi language, you need to choose the language version to manage by using the drop down to the left on Website → Management - this will switch between management of the pages of the different language versions.

Please note that if you would like to modify the content of a page and the website is multi language, you need to do this for every language. For example modify the Contact page in the English version, then the Contacto page in the Spanish version etc.


To edit the content of a page like for example the Contact us page, the administrator has to click on it and then choose either Launch WYSIWYG editor or the Edit HTML code option.



When using the Edit the HTML code option, you will be able to directly modify the html code of the page, while with the first (Edit the page), a WYSIWYG (what you see is what you get) editor will open, allowing to modify the content of the page.



Please note that the pages for which php files are set to be executed (the Set Custom Extension option) can't be modified directly with the WYSIWYG editor. These pages can be easily distinguished on the Website->Management page, near their name one could see with red font the name of the php file to be executed, for example for Latest Links this is latest_links.php.
The reason is that the code for these pages is rendered by the system, for example in the case of the Latest Links page, it's generated by the file /extensions/latest_links.php (which is the jobseekers sign up form), so the php code for it can't be modified with the WYSIWYG editor.

The page can be modified by editing directly the file for it or if only some texts need to be changed, this may be done by modifying the language file (/include/texts_en.php for English).


5.3. Website navigation menu

To give maximum flexibility to modify the style of the front site menu, the administration panel provides also an option to edit the menu item template from the Website → Navigation Menu page in the administration panel.


In this template [LINK_TEXT] will be replaced by the text of the link (page name) as set by the administrator on the Website → Management page and [LINK_HREF] with the link to the page (generated by the script).


5.4. Custom server side forms

The custom server side forms functionality is a feature allowing the administrator to create and publish on the front site forms (such as contact forms) with custom fields defined by the administrator. Adding a new custom server side form can be done on 2 steps - the first one is to enter the form name and a brief description and the second one is to add the form fields. For every field the administrator should specify its name, type, the text displayed near it, its size and if it's an obligatory field (available only for some of the fields) and the message which will show up if the user leaves empty an obligatory field.
The new forms can be added from the Website → Manage the forms page and then clicking on the New Form at the top.



while the existing forms can be managed from the Tools → Manage the forms page in the admin panel.

The forms can be deleted, modified, copied (in order to copy forms on different pages on the front site) and also their settings can be modified.

The settings that can be modified are:
the form name (the name can be used for identification of the form, by default it doesn't show up on the website)
the form description
the text, which will show up on the submit button (like Send or Enviar etc.)
message displayed after the user has successfully submitted the form
and also the email to which the forms data will be sent, the administrator can fill in this field his preferred email address to which the data sent by the users will be forwarded (it will be also available in the admin panel on the Tools → Posted Data page)



5.5. Languages and language files

The language files contain the text and words shown on the user interface. For every language there is one language file located in the /include folder.
The name and location of the language file is: /include/texts_[CODE OF THE LANGUAGE].php
or for example /include/texts_en.php for English. The language file contains the different messages as PHP variables, for example:

$M_HIDE_RECENT_SEARCHES="hide recent searches";
$M_CLEAR_ALL="clear all";
$M_SEE_ALL="see all";
$M_WEBSITE_HOME="Website Home";


Translating the language file consists of translating the messages enclosed in brackets to the right, for example for Spanish:

$M_HIDE_RECENT_SEARCHES="ocultar bsquedas recientes";
$M_CLEAR_ALL="borrar todos";
$M_SEE_ALL="ver todos";
$M_WEBSITE_HOME = "Sitio Web - Inicio";

In order to add a new language on the website, it's necessary to add the translated file in the /include folder and also the administrator has to use the form on the Settings → Language Versions page and enter the name of the new language for example Deutsch and the code for the new language, for example DE.
The language code shows up after in the page links and is also used to for the name of the language file (in this case the language file will be /include/texts_de.php) and it's important to be 2 characters (like EN, DE, PT, TR etc).





6. Front site templates management

6.1. Templates overview

A template for the front site represents a standard HTML code mixed with some special WebSiteAdmin tags (the compatibility with the WebSiteAdmin template system, makes possible the usage of templates and features from other products using it, as well as combining different scripts and software products to work on one website).
Please find below a brief description of the template system and tags and check also 6.3. Custom HTML tags to see how you may create also your own custom tags with custom php files and code executed for them.

By default the page is rendered, the special tags inserted in the template are replaced by the corresponding content - let's consider the following example with a simple template:







...

When the page is rendered, for example the tag will be replaced with the page title (in general the page titles can be set by the administrator from the Website → Management page), so will become:




Please note that presence of none of these tags is obligatory, so you could combine them as you wish in order to create the website and layout suiting the best your specific needs. Be aware also that WebSiteAdmin allows you to create your own tags (from the Custom tags in the back office) and set php files created by you to be executed and the generated content to be used in real time to replace the tag with it.

Here are some most common tags used in the default templates of the different scripts based on WebSiteAdmin:

- Title of the web page
- Meta description of the web page
- Meta keywords of the web page
- Main navigation menu of the website
- The languages menu of the website
- The main content of a page
- The custom server side forms for this page if there are any
- The main log in form of the website
- The quick search form on the front site
- The news (the administrator can manage them from the News page in the ADMIN)
- The block displaying the featured ads
- The bottom menu displayed at the bottom of the site (it contains the same items as the main navigation menu)

Please note that depending on the current product or script you are using, not all these tags may be available on it.

To see your current template, the tags in it or modify it, please go to Templates in the administration panel.


6.2. Adding new templates and modifying the existing ones

In the PHP Classified Ads administration panel you may find the following pages related to the front site templates management:

Templates → Select a Template
The page offers the possibility to the administrator to select a template which will be used for the front site between the currently available templates. Please note that in order to be able to select a template for a given website, you need to add first the template (if it doesn't still exist)

Templates → Add a New Template
This page can be used to add new templates to the website. The administrator can add the new template by directly pasting its HTML code.

Templates → Modify

On this page the administrator can see the available templates and modify a selected template. In order to select a template for modification, the administrator should click on the Modify icon and then a new text area having the full template code will appear.


6.3. Custom HTML tags

The custom HTML tags provide a great way to expand the current functionality by creating your own php scripts to be executed and the content they output to be shown precisely in a selected position by the administrator.
This can be for example a php script calendar_tag.php showing a custom calendar, which needs to be added at the top right corner of all pages of the website.

Creating a new custom tag is simple - the first step is to upload the corresponding PHP file in the /extensions folder on your site.
Please note the file names of php files, which will be used for tags should end with tag in their name for example calendar_tag.php or news_tag.php etc.
Then from the Extensions → Tags page in the administrator panel, fill the tag name (for example: calendar) and click on the Add button. This will create the tag - in this example and it will appear on the Tags page.

The tag should be defined from Extension → Tags and then inserted in the template or in the page content. When the page is rendered all the custom defined tags will be replaced by the content generated by the script you set.
The Tags page shows the current tags with their name, html code, the file to be executed (with a drop down listing all the uploaded tag files in the /extensions folder and a small delete icon allowing to delete the tag).

The final step when creating a new tag is to associate your tag with the php file you uploaded this can be done by simply selecting the file from the File dropdown (calendar_tag.php in this example) and click on the Save button at the bottom of the page.


After doing this, you can start using the tag by inserting it in the front site template (from Templates → Modify page) at the position you prefer in the template.


6.4. Adding Google AdSense advertisements or Google Analytics

Very often the administrator may need to add external HTML code on website, it can be for example the HTML code for Google AdSense or other type of advertisements or Google Analytics code or a code provided by Google WebMaster Tools to verify the website.

Such HTML codes need to be pasted in front site template, which can be done from the Templates → Modify page in the administration panel. On this page, it's necessary to click on the Modify icon this will show the HTML code of the template and paste the piece of HTML code for the banners, Google Analytics or similar.


When adding a counter or other tracking code like Googl Analytics, usually the best it to place it at the end of the template, for example just before the closing tag.

For the advertisements the position will depend on what position exactly in the template (for example, top or bottom or to the right of the website pages etc.) the administrator would like to add them.

If you experience any difficulties when doing this, please don't hesitate to contact us and our support team will try to assist you asap.



7. Administration panel users and groups

The administrator has the possibility to create additional user groups for the main administration panel, add users in them and assign their permissions. This can be done from Users in the administration panel.


This functionality can be used if for example there are multiple persons working on the website (for example person A validating the listings posted by the users, person B responsible for the design of the website and templates management, person C adding news on the website etc.)

7.1. User groups

The user groups make easier the permissions management for the users instead of setting individually the permissions for every users, it can be be possible to create different user groups, add the users in them and manage the permissions per group.
For example, it can be possible to create a group of users who will be responsible only for posting news on the website NewsAdministrators and won't have access to the other pages like the ones for validating the listings etc.

To create a new user group, the only field the administrator has to fill is the group user name.


The page shows below also the list of the groups with their ID and a check box allowing to select one or many groups and delete them.





7.2. Adding new users

To add a new user, it's necessary to click on the New User button at the top of the User Groups page or choose directly from the main start menu Users → New User.

When adding a new user, it's necessary to select its Type or User Groups between the ones added by the administrator, enter his username, password, phone and email.

To see a list of the current users or modify their information, it's necessary to go to the Users List page (can be selected from the start menu Users → Users List or using the top buttons while in the Users category in the administration panel)


7.2. Permissions management


To set the permissions for the different user groups, it's necessary to go to the Users → User Permissions page in the administration panel.
The page shows a list of all the pages available by default in the administration panel and a check box for every box to grant a permission for a selected page, it's necessary to check the box for it and when when ready, to click on the Save button at the bottom of the page.


This will save the permissions sets for the user group.

An user, member of an user group, which has been granted access to only some pages in the administration panel will see just these pages in the menus when he logs in.

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