Re: User roles and UI

["Ilya A. Volynets-Evenbakh" <ilya@total-knowledge.com>]

sergey@total-knowledge.com wrote:
>> How does one become teacher of an object isn't 100% clear to me.
>> I guess one of course authors has to grant this right.
>>
>>     
>
> Here is how this type of functionality may look on UI
> http://gateway.total-knowledge.com/~sergey/UU/CourseViewRepository.html
>
> Example provided for Guest user (logged-in users won't see email address
> field). After clicking on the UMO link from the Repository, user will have
> options to Study/Modify/Translate/Teach the UMO. Clicking on
> Modify/Translate/Teach links will submit the request to all this UMO
> authors. Authors will get a notification by email and also will have an
> option to check all "outstanding requests" related to all UMOs they owe at
> "My Account" page.
> Authors may or may not grant a permission to the user, he will get a
> notification by email, may check "Status" link that will be provided by UU
> on the confirmation page or may see it on his "My Account" page(for
> already existing users).
> If permission by Authors is granted, guest user will be forsed to create
> an account with UU in order to use the UMO that he selected from the
> Repository.
>   
This is more complex then needed.
What I'd do is have a page in author's view, which allows to grant various
permissions/roles to various users, with flow approximately like this:

1. Find user (by user name or by full name or by whatever else)
2. View full public user info (to make sure it is who you think it is)
3. Select roles/permissions to grant (check boxes? multi-select option
list?)
4. Confirm selection

i.e. there is no need for explicit request for permission grant, and
all requesting happens outside (i.e. could be done by email, or through
fora, etc). This will avoid host of problems (like spam through grant
requests)

-- 
Ilya A. Volynets-Evenbakh
Total Knowledge. CTO
http://www.total-knowledge.com