Openbiz Cubi is a robust PHP application framework giving developers the ability to create business applications with minimal effort. In this two-part series I'll explain the concepts and steps necessary to create your own business web applications with Cubi. We'll look first at the challenges web developers face and how Openbiz Cubi can help, and then how to install Cubi. In part 2 we'll see how to create our own modules.

They start off by describing the tool and some of the features that come with it (including user management and the XML data object structure). Complete installation instructions are included and a screenshot is included of the end result. They include a "quick tour" of Cubi's features and some of the modules that come with it like the System, Menu and User modules. In part two of the series, they'll show you how to create a custom module.

This was discussed in our PHPSP UG and we tried to think of different structures to get past these issues, some ideas came and went but I also left and moved to Amsterdam. As it happens my community-drive did not stop and I started to feel that old itch, and ended up causing the start of AmsterdamPHP. [...] So we do not have leaders, we just have a group of enablers, people who want to help, or do, or have great ideas or contacts, and that seems to be a great title and description for what we are doing. It removes those misconceptions and it opens space for anyone to be an enabler, all the time, some of the time, whenever they want. It still gives credit where credit is due and it allows the people who deserve to help the group find a direction do exactly that.

He notes that by not trying to fill the traditional conceptions of a "leader" role and being more of the "guiding people" kind of person, you can sometimes do more to help others find their passion.

I have really come to love the title and all the "meaning" it holds, maybe it even takes the pressure off the usual labels and let's us focus on breaking down barriers.

In this article I will discuss my personal favorite approach: role based access control (RBAC). RBAC is a model in which roles are created for various job functions, and permissions to perform certain operations are then tied to roles. A user can be assigned one or multiple roles which restricts their system access to the permissions for which they have been authorized.

He starts with a warning that, if not properly maintained, a role-based system like this can get to be somewhat chaotic so a rules should be in place around the adding and removing of permissions at certain times. His functionality is based on a few database tables - roles, permissions and cross-reference tables between users/roles & permissions/roles. All of the code you'll need to implement the system is included in a Role class, the PrivilegedUser class and the methods you'll need to add/remove/check the logged in user's permissions.

Every now and then I see questions about ACL and how to use it. A lot of web developers are using it without actually knowing what it is and how it works, even though it's powering one of the most important part of applications - user access management.

He starts off with the base level of what an ACL is and how it would work in your application (illustrated by a wrong and right way to handle a simple permission in an application). He talks about roles, resources and privileges as well as how applications using the MVC design pattern make it simple to check the current resource. He also mentions an issue that could be confusing - inheritance.

Although the operations are simple, it is vital that they be handled correctly. It is generally a poor principle to allow access to the mechanisms of a system rather than providing an interface through class methods. The latter approach ideally allows the creation of a robust interface that changes relatively infrequently, while details of implementation can be modified without affecting the rest of the system.

Their code includes methods to get all roles for a user, check to see which they are permitted to use, add a "permit" role and remove it back out. The tutorial is an excerpt from the Packt book PHP5 CMS Framework Development (Martin Brampton).

As George put it in his email: "I am very excited to announce that Laura Thomson has been promoted to the position of Principal. " My role will include focusing on securing new business and improving the quality and effectiveness of service delivery.

Congratulations, Laura! Best of luck in this new position!

Andi Gutmans, a cofounder of the company and its vice president of technology, spoke with InfoWorld Editor at Large Paul Krill this week at the Zend/PHP Conference & Expo in San Jose, Calif., about PHP, the company's blockbuster deal with Microsoft, and other happenings.

They talk about the significance of the move, the role Zend is going to play, how PHP compares and fits in the market, Zend's IDE project, and the IBM work that's being done.