I AM ALPHA -

Module Checklist

Wed, 14 Jun 2006 13:37:30 -0400

Here's a handy-dandy checklist to follow when creating modules that should help you get from beginning to end. If it helps, great. If not, please let us know on the message board.

Use the Module Maker to create your skeleton
Create a directory that uses your "module name" as its title.
Save your skeleton in that directory as index.html
Write some markup
Write some CSS that stays local to your module.
Validate your module. If it doesn't, check out the validation checklist (we like checklists).
Zip up your module directory
Upload it, but don't check the "deploy to AIM Pages" box.
Go to the playground and test it (it'll be in the User Created folder)
Make sure it works in both in at least Internet Explorer 6 and Firefox 1.5
Go back and re-upload your module and this time, you can check the "deploy to AIM Pages" box.
Go to AIM Pages and try it out (it'll still be in the User Created folder)!
Tell all your friends about your butt-kicking module, and then maybe go see a movie, read a book, take a nap, or go back to step one and create another module!

If you run into trouble with any of those steps, come tell us.

The Module Maker

Tue, 16 May 2006 09:46:39 -0400

This form allows you to pre-populate the module skeleton with your data, and even fill in the view if you want. You can also create a javascript skeleton (the last checkbox at the end of the form). We don't validate any information in this step, so you should still run your markup through module validator before you try to upload it.

Remember, create a directory for your module with the same name as your "module name". The skeleton should be saved inside it, and should be called "index.html". To upload, you need to zip up that directory before going to the uploader.

AIM Pages Module License Agreement

Tue, 02 May 2006 12:03:07 -0400

Welcome to the online AIM Pages Module Program (the "AIM Pages Program"). Through the AIM Pages Program, you will be able to develop and enable modules that AOL will host for use on AOL’s AIM Pages developer and end user service ("AIM Pages Service"). In order to participate in the AIM Pages Program, you must be an AOL registered user with an AOL-issued or AOL-authorized (i.e., AOL, AIM, ICQ, mac.com) screen name (a "Screen Name") and be in compliance with all terms of service and end user license agreements for the applicable AOL-provided online service (each an "AOL Service"). In addition, you must complete the registration process displayed to you and agree to the terms and conditions in this Agreement.

Module Developer Agreement

Tue, 02 May 2006 11:58:57 -0400

FOR USERS WHO ARE CREATING A MODULE (PUBLISHER LANGUAGE)

Please take a moment to review the AIM Pages Module Release now. By clicking on the "I Agree" link below, you agree that you have read and understand the terms of the Release, and that you agree to these terms. If you do not agree with these terms, click the “Cancel” button below, and do not create your module.

AIM Pages Module Release language:

By creating a module on AIM Pages (the "Content"), you hereby grant AOL LLC, its affiliates, subsidiaries, assigns, licensees and legal representatives ("AOL") the irrevocable, perpetual, worldwide right to use, reproduce, edit, market, store, distribute, have distributed, publicly and privately display, communicate, publicly and privately perform, transmit, have transmitted, create derivative works based upon and promote the Content (as such may be edited and modified by AOL in its discretion), or any portion thereof, through the AOL brand service and any other other products or services as AOL may designate, and any other web sites not designated by AOL, in any medium now known or hereafter devised, online or offline and by any means of delivery, for editorial, commercial, promotional and all other purposes. You acknowledge and agree that the Content may be shown on any web site, whether within or outside the AOL service. AOL is not obligated to include the Content in this or any program, and AOL reserves the right to remove the Content for any reason at its sole discretion. In addition, AOL cannot guarantee that technical difficulties will not occur during the upload of the Content or that the Content will upload successfully. While you retain ownership of all right, title, and interest in the Content itself, you agree that AOL owns all right, title, and interest in any compilation, collective work, or other derivative work created by AOL using or incorporating the Content. You represent and warrant that (i) the Content does not and shall not infringe on any copyright or any other third-party right nor violate any applicable law or regulation, (ii) you have the right to grant any and all necessary rights and licenses provided herein, including, without limitation, all necessary copyright and other related rights to the Content, free and clear of all claims and encumbrances without violating the rights of any person or entity, including any right to privacy or publicity. You hereby hold AOL harmless from and against any third-party claim arising from use of the Content. You waive any right to privacy. You waive any right to inspect or approve uses of the Content or to be compensated for any such uses. You hereby represent and warrant that you are at least 16 years of age and that you have read this release and are fully familiar with its contents.

Workshop Five: Building A Module From an Existing Document

Tue, 02 May 2006 11:23:53 -0400

If you've already got a Web page, or a piece of a Web page that would make a cool module, why not reuse it? We certainly can't think of a reason not to, so we created these instructions so you can transform your existing HTML into modules like magic.

Requirements

First the bad news: Not just any old page will work as a module. There are some things that a module requires that a lot of pages out there on the Web don't have. Here's are two requirements:

Workshop Four: Building a Module Using Ajax

Tue, 02 May 2006 11:22:39 -0400

This is where we take everything we learned in Workshop 3 and push it up to the next level by consuming another RSS feed, this time on the client side with AJAX (XmlHttpRequest). (We're going to need to use the JavaScript SDK, and our local development environment for this one, too.) Okay, let's go!

Workshop Three: An RSS Module

Tue, 02 May 2006 11:20:30 -0400

Now we are going to build a module that consumes an RSS feed on the server side. Server-side modules are mostly for folks who have web services and transformations in place. The two pieces that you need on your server are the RSS feed and an XSL transformation file. In our example, we'll take the CNN Top Stories RSS feed and use an XSL stylesheet on a different server to display it all gorgeously.

Workshop Two: A Module With Flash

Tue, 02 May 2006 11:18:55 -0400

One of the easiest ways to create a great-looking module is to embed a Flash movie into the module view. This workshop will show you how to do just that.

Adding Flash to the Module View

Inserting Flash content is pretty simple. We begin by taking the module we created in Workshop 1 and adding the HTML for the Flash movie at the correct location in the document:

Workshop One: Building a Simple Module

Tue, 02 May 2006 11:17:16 -0400

This workshop will take you from start to finish building a brand new module. Hopefully, by the end of this workshop, you'll be able to build your own modules without looking back.

Module Workshops

Tue, 02 May 2006 11:16:28 -0400

Tutorials for building modules, from easy to crazy.

Our Javascript Toolkit

Mon, 01 May 2006 14:12:21 -0400

We're working on documentation for our SDK, but for now, you can check out the JSDOC and our introduction to the Dojo Toolkit.

Everything You Need To Know About CSS

Mon, 01 May 2006 11:24:07 -0400

Everything you need to know about CSS as it relates modules and themes.

Setting Up Your Local Dev Environment

Mon, 01 May 2006 11:13:57 -0400

Chances are, you'll want to do module development on your own machine. It's only logical, right? This document should make that process a little easier.

Pieces You'll Need

A Web server
Module skeleton
A local proxy
JavaScript SDK (if you're going to do Ajax modules)
A local server-side module processor (if you're going to build server-side modules)
A cautious approach to security

Setting Up A Web Server

If you're going to use our local proxy or server-side module processor, you'll need Apache and PHP5 (or another Web server running PHP5 if you're into that sort of thing). We're not able to provide support for setting up your own Web server, but if you want to, this is probably the way to go. This tutorial over at webmasterstop is a good one for getting Apache and PHP5 up and running on a Windows machine. For OS X folks, you've already got a fine Apache install working for you disguised as web sharing. All you need is the PHP5 Apache module package from Marc Liyanage.

Modules and Javascript

Sun, 30 Apr 2006 15:10:53 -0400

Introduction

If you've read through the workshops and are now looking for some more information on how JavaScript works inside modules, and what we recommend you do, you're in the right place! JavasScript is powerful stuff, and in the wrong hands, can do all kinds of damage. We certainly have—you have no idea how many times we've crashed browsers with one line of JavaScript. Here are some guidelines for avoiding that kind of frustration.

Frequently Asked Questions

Wed, 26 Apr 2006 14:49:40 -0400

What is I Am Alpha?

I Am Alpha is a site where developers and other curious folks can play around with the underlying technology behind a whole new crop of cool AIM products. We're not done with it, but we want people to get excited about it, and more importantly, start creating modules! See "What is a module?" for some more details about modules.