Re: html newsletter generation module

> Folks,
>
> I have included a description of our newsletter module below along
> with the things that need to done before it can be released.
>
> if someone or some group in the community wants to step up and
> generalize the module let me know.
>
> if anyone has a better idea than what is described below, please speak up.
>
> if I hear nothing, at some point, when time allows, we will generalize
> and release the module.
>
> peace,
>
> -Shane
>
>
> ===================
> Tasks
> ===================
> # the data and presentation layers in the code are all mixed together
> which makes it impossible to use templates at the moment. so those
> layers need to be abstracted from one another
>
> # I would like to include a few templates that are known to be "safe"
> in major email providers like google, yahoo and AOL.  The big
> providers will strip and mess with the css and other html elements and
> it can be a real pain to get things working well.  so providing some
> basic vanilla templates that work well with the the big email
> providers might be nice.
>
>
> ======================
> Module Overview
> ======================
>
> The module allows for certain node types to be included in a mailing.
> in our system currently, this is facilitated through two categories
> (vocabularies), a "newsletter" node type and custom module code
> called, you guessed it, "newsletter":
>
> newsletter issue (category)
> newsletter section (category)
> newsletter (node type)
> newsletter (drupal module)
>
> to make a node available in a mailing, the node type must be added to
> the categories.
>
> the process for creating a newsletter goes as follows:
>
>    1. Add a new term to the newsletter issue category (vocabulary)
> that correlates to the mailing that will be sent (we have 12
> predefined that are the monthly newsletters)
>
>    2. The user creates node content of the various types that have
> been assigned to the above mentioned categories.
>
>    3. When the node is saved, the user chooses to assign it to a
> particular newsletter issue and a particular newsletter section in
> that issue.  This is done for all of the nodes that will be included
> in a particular newsletter.
>
>    4. next, the user creates a newsletter node that would serve as the
> actual newsletter.  when they do this they are given a list of choices
> that are the terms in the category that have *not yet* been associated
> with a mailing.  the user chooses the appropriate term (mailing) and
> saves the node (newsletter).  when the node is accessed in the future
> it aggregates all of the node content that was assigned to the
> newsletter issue and displays the content (there are ways to define
> article teasers, etc.)
>
>    5. next the user will use the custom newsletter module to create
> HTML and text versions of the newsletter.  the html version is "safe"
> for google, yahoo. and aol such that the css ans styling are not
> stripped.   the flow for this is pretty simple.
>
>           * the user is presented with a list of newsletters in the system,
>           * the user chooses a newsletter and a version(text or html)
> (at some point there will be a choice for a template here)
>           * the user clicks the generate button and they are presented
> with a textarea that is filled with the newsletter content from start
> to finish
>
>    6. The user needs to copy the content of the two newsletter
> versions (text and html) and create two files that will be loaded into
> civicrm.  these two files can be tweaked as necessary for presentation
> reasons.
>
>    7. the user then goes though the standard civimail process for
> sending the emails.
>
>
> On 8/23/07, Shane Hill <shane@...> wrote:
>  
>> On 8/23/07, Emily E Frazier <emily.e.frazier@...> wrote:
>>    
>>> Hey Shane,
>>>
>>> I was just wondering if this has gotten released yet?
>>>      
>> no.  not  yet,   we are very busy getting ready to launch the SMTP
>> service.  we will get to it as soon as possible, lots of orgs want
>> this.  :)
>>
>> we will announce when it is ready.   :)
>>
>> -Shane
>>
>>    
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