Mini DB Apps?
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Hi,
I am wondering if there is a way to make little apps where users enter data on the backend that can be displayed through a block on the frontend.
Here is an example:
I would like to have a staff listing on the backend where all of the staff members input their various contact info into fields.
On the frontend I would like to build a block where someone can choose a member of the staff and insert their contact info. This way if someone's info changes, you can change it once on the backend, rather than on every page where it appears.
Any ideas?
I am wondering if there is a way to make little apps where users enter data on the backend that can be displayed through a block on the frontend.
Here is an example:
I would like to have a staff listing on the backend where all of the staff members input their various contact info into fields.
On the frontend I would like to build a block where someone can choose a member of the staff and insert their contact info. This way if someone's info changes, you can change it once on the backend, rather than on every page where it appears.
Any ideas?
Hi J Garcia,
Actually after playing around with the system a bit more it seems like I can just add a single page at dashboard/my_page with a custom php form that adds/edits data in a database.
Then I would just need to build a custom block to pull the data out of the database in the way I want into a page.
This way I could connect to databases that are already populated with data, but edit the content within C5, which would spare me some data migration in the short term...
(Hopefully I'm not wrong about this.)
Actually after playing around with the system a bit more it seems like I can just add a single page at dashboard/my_page with a custom php form that adds/edits data in a database.
Then I would just need to build a custom block to pull the data out of the database in the way I want into a page.
This way I could connect to databases that are already populated with data, but edit the content within C5, which would spare me some data migration in the short term...
(Hopefully I'm not wrong about this.)
I think you've got the right idea carvedhearts...
but i think there's something interesting to what jgarcia is talking about as well. I've been pondering the idea of a "dynamic data" toolbar elements in the content editor that would let you drop variables we know about the site or visitor into content ala mail merge...
if we had something like that, your form might point to a different page (like the search block can) and that new page might contain dynamic data fields that you populate with your form.
but i think there's something interesting to what jgarcia is talking about as well. I've been pondering the idea of a "dynamic data" toolbar elements in the content editor that would let you drop variables we know about the site or visitor into content ala mail merge...
if we had something like that, your form might point to a different page (like the search block can) and that new page might contain dynamic data fields that you populate with your form.
i'm thinking you could build a form using the form block. this form would include whatever fields you need for the staff contact info...name, phone, email, etc.
the part that has yet to be built is this: a form response display block. this block would display the results of a particular form according to an HTML template specified within that block. responses would be filled via placeholders in the template.
there's a heck of a lot you can do with this...filtering, searching, sorting through the responses.
so i know that doesn't really answer your question, since it doesn't exist yet, but does that sound like it would solve the problem if it does exist? it's something that I think would be useful to me, and if it's useful to other, that might motivate me more to take the time to build it :)