What is Project Distributor?
Project Distributor is an application which stores tools, widgets and even code snippets on a per-user or
per-group basis.
How do I get a Group so that I can start uploading Projects?
To create and upload projects you must first have a group and, presently,
the only way to get a group is to request one via the site administrator.
You can do this via the Feedback Form.
Your group needs a Name and also a FriendlyName. The name will be unique
and used for UrlMapping while the FriendlyName will be the name that gets
displayed on the site. So when you send your Group request to the site administrator
please ensure that you include your preferred Group name.
Finally, you must also have a user account before you can get a group, so,
if you haven't already done so, be sure to create an account before requesting
your group.
Isn't it just the same as SourceForge or GotDotNet User Samples?
The intention of Project Distributor is to be more "ad-hoc" than some of the existing sites and there
is an emphasis on storing small tools and snippets. Project Distributor is designed to be like a
developers "toolbox".
Is there any way that I can syndicate my projects on my own site?
Every feature which is accessible via the site will also be exposed as a webservice. This means that
you could easily create a control to expose your Group projects or to manage your Releases back on your own site.
What are Groups?
Groups are containers for projects. A Group can have 1 or more users and a user can be a member of more than
1 Group.
Projects can be transferred between Groups. This allows for some interesting scenarios; a user who has a
Group might create a tool and work on it for a while after which a few friends decide that they'd all like to
work on it together. These friends could create a separate Group to focus on that single tool and have the
Project transferred from the original Group into the new Group. A link will remain on the originating Groups
to track Project transfers - this is so that, people who had previously accessed the tool via that Groups site
will still be able to locate it after it has moved.
Why do I need a User Account?
User accounts serve 2 purposes. To create a Group you must first have a User account. Additionally,
users can use their account to store bookmarks to their favourite projects.
What are Bookmarks?
Bookmarks allow users to store links to internal and external resources. Your bookmarks are displayed on your
User page. These bookmarks allow users to configure "virtual toolboxes" so that all of their favourite
resources are recorded in a single place.