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Progress report: Browsing MySource Matrix within MySource Mini

We are currently developing a bridge between MySource Mini and MySource Matrix so that MySource Matrix content can be brought into a MySource Mini system. When this development is complete you will not only be able to browse your MySource Matrix system from MySource Mini, but also:

  • Link to Matrix pages from within MySource Mini WYSIWYG content
  • Create a new link between a Matrix page and a MySource Mini page, giving the Matrix page a MySource Mini URL
  • Edit Matrix pages within the MySource Mini interface via a new Matrix simple edit interface
  • Apply MySource Mini metadata, designs, permissions etc. to a Matrix page through the standard MySource Mini interface

To create a connection between MySource Matrix and MySource Mini, you will first need to configure the MySource Matrix SOAP interface. Once you have the URL of the SOAP server, you can use a new Connection wizard within MySource Mini to bridge the two systems.

Connection wizard 

Along with the standard fields, the required fields for this connection are:

  • The URL of the SOAP server you configured within MySource Matrix
  • A username and password to use for connecting to the SOAP server
  • The ID of an asset within MySource Matrix to use as the root node of the connection

Currently, development has been completed to allow you to browse your MySource Matrix asset tree from within MySource Mini. Work is now starting on the remaining features around linking and editing of MySource Matrix content.

But you want some proof of course.

This image shows a simple MySource Matrix asset tree with a number of different asset types.
Note that the number in brackets is the asset ID and not the number of children.

Matrix asset map 

This image shows the asset tree being browsed from within MySource Mini, using the Site asset as the root node of the connection.

Mini asset finder 

To achieve this, we've made an important addition to the MySource Matrix SOAP API. You are currently able to retrieve all the information you require to build an asset tree, but we've added a new API functionGetAssetsInfo() that allows you to pull out this information in one call to significantly improve performance.

This is an example of how you use the new API function:

<?php
$soap_url    = "http://[SYSTEM_ROOT_URL]/_web_services/soap-server?WSDL";
$authen_info = array (
                'login'    => root,
                'password' => root,
               );

$client  = new SoapClient($soap_url, $authen_info);
$request = array(
            'AssetIDs'         => [Root AssetID],
            'FinderAttributes' => array(
                                   'Children',
                                   'type',
                                   'name'
                                  )
            );
   
$assetsInfoResult = $client->GetAssetsInfo($request);       
?> 

This is what the returned result looks like:

Array (
 [0] => Array (
           'AssetID' => '90',
           'AssetType' => 'backend_user',
           'AssetTypeAncestor' => 'user',
           'AssetName' => 'Dan Green',
           'AssetChildren' =>
          array (
            0 => '91',
            1 => '92',
        ),
  [1] ......
)

Please note that this new SOAP API function is not yet available in a stable release of MySource Matrix, but will be in a future 3.26 release.

Squizlabs

Squiz Labs is the research and development arm of Squiz, the company behind the MySource Matrix and MySource Mini open source content management systems.

Our PHP and JavaScript developers are responsible for producing innovative enterprise-quality software while our interface designers and testing team ensure our products both look great and are easy to use.

Take a look at our product line-up:

MySource Matrix

MySource Matrix is a robust, scalable Content Management solution for the enterprise. It competes effectively with and surpasses the offerings of other CMS's such as Vignette and Interwoven.

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MySource Mini

MySource Mini is the next generation CMS from Squiz boasting the first true inline editing experience. Simplicity is the key to MySource Mini with enterprise features as easy to use as common editing tools.

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PHP_CodeSniffer

PHP_CodeSniffer is a tool that tokenises and sniffs PHP, JavaScript and CSS files to detect violations of a defined coding standard. It is an essential development tool that ensures your code remains clean and consistent.

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