If it is possible, If they select existing I would duplicate that image and append the the articleID to the name.

Better to have a few duplicates  and manage them with the articles than untold numbers of orphans that aren't managed.

(long post sorry!)

The idea would be to place all images and files, added to an article via the News Articles "Attachments" section, into a folder specifically created for each article.

Any images or files added by other means can be treated in the same way as external links - they don't 'belong' to the article, because the author doesn't necessarily own them. Authors understand that each article only owns content they themselves have uploaded into it, not content they might have linked to from elsewhere - even if that content is on the same site.

The precedent for all of this is already set by News Articles itself. All article text content is already managed securely per-user per-article. It's a logical step to also manage the remaining image and document file content items securley per-user per-article.

The only thing for an admin to decide is whether one allows other authors to browse these article folders to select images. And in a multi-user system, the general answer is no - that content doesn't belong to them. They must either upload their own content or they can reference the images and files via links - the same as they reference any external material. Currently my users occasionally reference images from Simple Gallery (by copying the image URL - not by browsing folders)and they face the risk that if an album is deleted, then the image will be gone. That is easy for users to understand because the images were not attached to the article, only referenced.

Such a module option could perhaps be seen as "Attachment Management" or "Secure Attachments" or something.

This is all distinct from groups of people who do have a requirement to share content. For such purposes, the admin can create a shared folder. That is really something that needs to be done outside of the News Articles module.

Some more info about the (previous and next, but not current) core blog module's file management methods: The attachments section in that module allows the author to repeatedly upload images and files, not just once, but again and again. On upload it puts each image or file into the article's folder and also immediately inserts it into the text - this is a fantastic user friendly way of adding multiple images without having to work with folders, or even the test editor's image browser. Each image or file is added to a list below the editor and each has a delete button next to it.

The only thing missing from the blog is that it doesn't resample and resize the image on upload. I have requested this (as I do with every module), but it won't make it into the new release. If News Articles gained a similar means of uploading multiple images straight into the content, then it would be a huge score if it also resized them.

You'd solve perhaps 80% of the remaining publishing problems for my users if these options were present.

I realise of course this may be too much work or out of scope for now, so I'm just discussing it because the module is being redeveloped so extensively and to get it on the radar.

Rob

(it's a lot to read, but believe me, it takes a lot longer to think about and write :)

I think one of the issues with "managing images" is that the core HTML/Text module doesn't work with images in the content this way... it simply inserts a properly formatted link to the image.

You would have to build a klugey workaround to do this, that would possibly constitute a "breaking" change at any point in the future when there is a Core upgrade.

Even if you were to build a foreign key table (say, with a PK, the ArticleID, and the ImageID) based on scanning the article content first to pull out any images, that would only a) be another set of records to manage and b) slow down the processing of the News Articles module.

I think it's more a matter of getting the design right from the start so it can be extended.  If you just throw features in there without proper thought it is much more difficult to add functionality later.  You might want to email Scott to see if you can help sponsor the functionality you require immediately.

Steve

Ok. I hope it doesn't deter him from adding this new feature.

Scott, I need this as I want to use this module as community blog module, without allowing bloggers to see into each others folders, therefore, I am willing to sponsor it. Please let me know. Thanks..

I guess it doesn't matter what Scott thinks or can do or is ready to do.

Property Agent as mentioned, and even Simple Gallery, the Repository, Active Forums, UltraMedia/UltraVideo Gallery.. many modules manage thier content files in folders like this.

The trick for securing those folders and files is to remove read and write access from the portal root for all content managers. This hides the folders that modules create and keeps them secure. Then create a 'Content' folder and give read/write access to that. This leaves a clean folder without a confusion of other folders. Other dnn modules and the FCK editor respect this and only offer that folder as an upload destination to content managers. This keeps things real tidy.

Scott,

I'm struggling trying to get the profile image to the left of the comments and the text to align at the top - do you have a template for this?

http://www.ventrian.com/Resources/Articles/tabid/213/articleType/ArticleView/articleId/330/Logging-to-the-EventLog.aspx#Comment1094

Thanks,
Steve