Reviews with Nickname

[acetate]

Just throwing my 2c in - a nickname system for reviews would be really useful.

However I think it would be far better to add an extra field to the new user sign up form and allow them to set a nickname there, then store this in the DB for that new account. Then mod the reviews_info page to display the nickname instead of the full name.

As long as the nicknames are unique it removes some of the anonyminity associated with the previously mentioned system of choosing a random nickname when the review is posted.

Any l33t coders out there....

I really need to start learning php :)

Come to think of it nicknames stored with a user account could be useful in other areas to e.g. phpBB integration

[acetate]

Hang on a sec... to answer my own post after a little further reading - you get a nickname field when registering for a new account if phpBB integration is installed???

I set Enable phpBB linkage to true in Configuration >> My Store but no nickname field appeared? Does phpBB need to be installed if I just wanted the nickname field to be stored in the zencart DB and have really nothing to do with phpBB?

Should be too hard once the nickname in the DB to pull it out and display it with the review instead of the full name.

[paulm]

I don't agree that it would be better to use the phpBB nick or ask for a nick at account creation. I rather ask my customers as little as possible during the account creation. But of course that just my personal opninion :-)

Also note that the reviews are not really anonymous. I know someone implied the reviews will be completely anonymous (I think it was the author of the older version), but that's not true. The reviews are still connected to the customers id, so if you really want or need to know who wrote the review it's still possible. It's also possible to show the nick in the catalog, but mail the original name + nick the to admin (needs a small code change)

[acetate]

Hi paulm,

Thanks for the feedback and yes I now see you are right in that the reviews are not anonymous as such.

I still wanted to use a single nick associated with each user for reviews on my site though, for reasons I won't bore everyone with here.

So I seem to have it working and thought I would post what I did in case it's of use to anyone else (this may or may not be right - use at your own risk - I am certainly no expert - all corrections welcome).

First to get the nickname field to appear on the customer account creation page you need to install and enable phpBB integration:
- I installed phpBB to a subfolder in my zencart folder.
- Ran the phpBB index.php file to setup phpBB and installed it into the same database as zencart with a phpBB_ prefix on all tables.
- Opened the includes/configure.php zencart file and edited the following line to reflect the location of my phpBB install: define('DIR_WS_PHPBB', '/');
- In zencart admin went to Configuration >> My Store and set Enable phpBB linkage to true

So now you get a customers_nick field in the customers table and customers must enter a unique nickname when they sign up for an account.

Then I edited this file /includes/modules/pages/product_reviews_write/header_php.php (*which is a core file!!!! proceed at your own risk*) and added " , customers_nick " to the end of this line:

$customer_query = "SELECT customers_firstname, customers_lastname, customers_email_address

Now I changed this line from this:
$sql = $db->bindVars($sql, ':customersName', $customer->fields['customers_firstname'] . ' ' . $customer->fields['customers_lastname'], 'string');

to this:
$sql = $db->bindVars($sql, ':customersName', $customer->fields['customers_nick'], 'string');

That's it - all entries in the reviews table now use the customers nickname as the name of the reviewer and this is what is displayed in the catalog. Done on v1.3.7

[vik007]

Hi,

Was wondering whether you would be able to help me.

In the my account page i wish users to be able to view their nick name. what coding would i need to enter and where?

thanxs in advance

[nabrown78]

So after all that bickering was there ever a public module for this released?

[amopro]

Sound good

[dogmatic69]

First to get the nickname field to appear on the customer account creation page you need to install and enable phpBB integration:
- I installed phpBB to a subfolder in my zencart folder.
- Ran the phpBB index.php file to setup phpBB and installed it into the same database as zencart with a phpBB_ prefix on all tables.
- Opened the includes/configure.php zencart file and edited the following line to reflect the location of my phpBB install: define('DIR_WS_PHPBB', '/');
- In zencart admin went to Configuration >> My Store and set Enable phpBB linkage to true

So now you get a customers_nick field in the customers table and customers must enter a unique nickname when they sign up for an account.

Then I edited this file /includes/modules/pages/product_reviews_write/header_php.php (*which is a core file!!!! proceed at your own risk*) and added " , customers_nick " to the end of this line:

$customer_query = "SELECT customers_firstname, customers_lastname, customers_email_address

Now I changed this line from this:
$sql = $db->bindVars($sql, ':customersName', $customer->fields['customers_firstname'] . ' ' . $customer->fields['customers_lastname'], 'string');

to this:
$sql = $db->bindVars($sql, ':customersName', $customer->fields['customers_nick'], 'string');

That's it - all entries in the reviews table now use the customers nickname as the name of the reviewer and this is what is displayed in the catalog. Done on v1.3.7

did this exactly how you said (i think). got phpbb2 and zen linked cool. everything is working except with your changes now it says:
review blaa blaa by:
Nobody?
no name no user name nothing
no errors on the site

i think i have the newest zencart 1.3.7
is that mabey the reason

thanks
www.freelance-sa.co.za if you wanna see

[acetate]

When you first do the mod your existing user accounts don't have any nickname set. Thus you get the issue you describe if you write a review with those pre-existing accounts.

After you enable phpBB integration new account signups need to specify a nickname and this is what is used in the mod. Try creating a new user account and ensuring a nickname is set and give it a go then.

Can also check the customers table in MySql and ensure there is a customers_nick field, and have a look at the values. If it isn't there the phpBB integration didn't work.

[Suuntzuu]

I am getting back into coding stuff after a few years off. I wished I kept my hand in it as I am floundering quite a bit.

I am working with a publishing company and many of the readers and authors want to write reviews under pseudonyms or nicknames.

I need to make reviews anonymous.

Did anyone create a module to complete this process without installing the phpBB that I do not really need?

This is a very necessary step that was brought to my attention only after we went live...today.


So if anyone could point to a module that I am missing or a suggestion for how to get started on modifying what is needed I would greatly appreciate.

Zencart Rocks!!!

Sincerely,
Larry Clements
Webmaster Torquere Press Inc.

www.torquerebooks.com