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BigSender Administrator Guide
Running BigSender
On this page, you'll learn the different methods for invoking (running) BigSender or a BigSender Gateway to perform various tasks:
Invoking BigSender or a BigSender Gateway Directly
(programming proficiency required: basic)
After uploading BigSender to your server and completing the first-launch Configurator session, your browser will display the user interface / main menu at the URL for BigSender's location on your server (such as http://www.yourdomain.com/cgi-bin/bigsender.cgi). Whether you are logged in as the administrator or any of your website visitors go to that URL, the user interface / main menu will always display.
Invoking BigSender or a BigSender Gateway via Inline Frames
(programming proficiency required: basic)
In addition to invoking BigSender or a BigSender Gateway directly, you may also run it via inline frames technology (now supported by current web browsers). This is the method for "including" the BigSender user interface / main menu into any of your existing HTML pages.
Placing the following tag in the body of an HTML document will cause the BigSender user interface / main menu to display in that position:
<CENTER><IFRAME NAME="BigSender-inline" SRC="/cgi-bin/bigsender.cgi" WIDTH=480 HEIGHT=240 MARGINHEIGHT=0 MARGINWIDTH=0 NORESIZE SCROLLING=AUTO FRAMEBORDER=0><BASE TARGET="BigSender-inline"></IFRAME></CENTER>
Tip: Adjust the WIDTH and HEIGHT parameters to accommodate your intro text and your BigSender Message Archive Index if you've set it for "public." For results to generate an entirely new page (rather than for results to return inside the inline frame within that same page), simply remove the <BASE TARGET="BigSender-inline"> tag.
Inline Frames are a handy solution for putting your site's look and feel around BigSender's interfaces; however, this solution doesn't work well if you have "templates" set in the BigSender Configurator.
Note: When BigSender or a BigSender Gateway is "included" in any webpage on your website, only the user interface will appear – except when you "include" BigSender in any page within the directory set in the Configurator as the "archive directory" – then your Archive Directory index and links to all your documents will display.
Invoking BigSender or a BigSender Gateway via SSI
(programming proficiency required: basic)
You may also run BigSender via "server-side include" technology (if your server supports it). This is another method for "including" the BigSender user interface / main menu into any of your existing HTML pages.
Depending on your server configuration for "including" executables in an otherwise static HTML document, either one of these two directives placed somewhere in the body of your HTML document will cause the BigSender user interface / main menu to display in that position:
<!--#exec cgi="/cgi-bin/bigsender.cgi"-->
<!--#include virtual="/cgi-bin/bigsender.cgi"-->
Tip: On some server configurations, server-side include technology may only be employed from within pages with a .shtml file extension. Check your hosting provider's FAQ or ask your server administrator.
Advanced Tip: A simple line or two in a file named .htaccess located in your domain root directory can instruct the server to parse your .htm and/or .html files so SSIs will run without needing to change your documents' filename extensions.
Here's how:
Create a new ascii text document with Note Pad, Word Pad, SimpleText or other text editor (not a word processor).
type the following as you see it here:
AddHandler server-parsed .html .htm
Save your file as .htaccess (yes, the filename begins with a period) and upload to your server in ascii text mode.
Note: When BigSender or a BigSender Gateway is "included" in any webpage on your website, only the user interface will appear – except when you "include" BigSender in any page within the directory set in the Configurator as the "archive directory" – then your Archive Directory index and links to all your documents will display.
To control the position of the BigSender user interface / main menu when "included" in an existing HTML page layout, simply wrap a <TABLE> structure around it.
To display only the Message Archive Index
When BigSender is invoked directly (as http://www.yourdomain.com/cgi-bin/bigsender.cgi) or via SSI within a document located in a directory you've set as your Message Archive directory, the BigSender subscriber form and the Message Archive Index will be automatically displayed.
To display only the Message Archive Index (without the subscriber form), simply add a special "query string" to the URL when invoking BigSender as http://www.yourdomain.com/cgi-bin/bigsender.cgi?indexonly=yes
Links to any existing page on your site where you'd like to display only the Message Archive Index via SSI, ensure that link contains that special query string as http://www.yourdomain.com/news/webpage.html?indexonly=yes
Tip: Using Inline Frames technology, you can easily add only the BigSender Message Archive Index to any of your existing webpages by using the sample code below:
<CENTER><IFRAME NAME="BigSender-inline" SRC="/cgi-bin/bigsender.cgi?indexonly=yes" WIDTH=240 HEIGHT=480 MARGINHEIGHT=0 MARGINWIDTH=0 NORESIZE SCROLLING=AUTO FRAMEBORDER=0></IFRAME></CENTER>
Using your own HTML Form or Flash Form
(programming proficiency required: moderate)
As an alternate to "including" the BigSender user interface / main menu in a webpage, you may create your own HTML form to collect visitor information. Just be sure the form action is set to the location on your website of your BigSender application. BigSender recognizes both GET or POST "method," whichever you prefer. Don't bother with the ENCTYPE attribute as that form tag attribute is not necessary.
For BigSender to recognize the submitted data, you must use the field names BigSender expects for particular fields. Following are the default field names in the context of an input tag that you'll need to know to create your own custom form in HTML or Flash:
for task fields:
<INPUT TYPE=RADIO NAME="task" VALUE="add">add
<INPUT TYPE=RADIO NAME="task" VALUE="modify">modify
<INPUT TYPE=RADIO NAME="task" VALUE="remove">remove
or for a hidden task field:
<INPUT TYPE=HIDDEN NAME="task" VALUE="add">
for email address field:
<INPUT TYPE=TEXT NAME="email">
for full name field:
<INPUT TYPE=TEXT NAME="name">
for separate first name and last name fields:
<INPUT TYPE=TEXT NAME="fname"> <INPUT TYPE=TEXT NAME="lname">
If you have set BigSender to record "labels" in your list, you may override the default value you've set in the Configurator by providing a special "label" value in your custom form. The form field name must be "label" (lowercase) and we recommend you choose one of the following field types: HIDDEN, RADIO, or SELECT.
If you want your subscribers to have the option of including themselves in more than one group, use the following field types: HIDDEN, CHECKBOX or use SELECT (with the MULTIPLE attribute). Data submitted from more than one field with the same name will be saved in that record's field each separated by a "comma" character
Your custom form may also contain as many Custom Fields (a field other than the the reserved name, fname, lname, email, label, task, etc.) that you'd like to define. However, be sure you have defined that field in the BigSender Configurator or data submitted from that field will not be saved in your subscriber's record.
By using your own form to collect and submit data to your BigSender list, you may exercise even more control over its "look and feel" and you can maintain one central list to which it will be easy to target your messages using this label feature. For more information about setting BigSender to add a label field or adding Custom Fields, click here.
Including the 'Activator Request' in your emails
(programming proficiency required: moderate)
You can insert a BigSender Activator Request into any email your other applications send out. When your user clicks on that link in their email, they will be automatically added to your recipient list.
The following code will work no matter what your setting is for Activator Request in the BigSender Configurator:
within your CGI's print MAIL statement, insert this line (URL must be on one line):
\n\nActivate your subscription to XYZ News:\n
http://yourdomain.com/cgi-bin/
bigsender.cgi?email=$form{'emailvariable'}
&name=$form{'namevariable'}&task=add
Hooking into BigSender from Other Applications
(programming proficiency required: expert)
Your other web applications can hook into BigSender to access its "add" and "remove" functions.
This may be especially handy if you have a form on your website that collects information from users for a contest you're running, for example, or from an inquiry form, etc., and you want to automate the "capture" of those submissions to your mailing list while taking advantage of BigSender's redundancy checker.
If the new recipient was successfully added, BigSender will return the value of 1 for the variable $hookrtn.
If the new recipient already exists in your email list, BigSender will return the value of 2 for the variable $hookrtn.
Somewhere in the sequence of events in your "parent" script after the name and/or email address have been validated, your programmer can paste the code below that is appropriate for your BigSender Configurator settings:
to add a record with the full name in a single field:
&subscribe;
sub subscribe {
# substitute the proper variable in the two statements below:
$in{'name'}="$form{'namevariable'}";
$in{'email'}="$form{'emailvariable'}";
# the full path (from the server root) to the Configurator profile:
$config="$ENV{DOCUMENT_ROOT}/cgi-bin/.bigsender.txt";
$hook=1;
require "$ENV{DOCUMENT_ROOT}/cgi-bin/bigsender.cgi";
&add;
}
to add a record with the first name and last name in two separate fields:
&subscribe;
sub subscribe {
# substitute the proper variable in the three statements below:
$in{'fname'}="$form{'firstnamevariable'}";
$in{'lname'}="$form{'lastnamevariable'}";
$in{'email'}="$form{'emailvariable'}";
# the full path (from the server root) to the Configurator profile:
$config="$ENV{DOCUMENT_ROOT}/cgi-bin/.bigsender.txt";
$hook=1;
require "$ENV{DOCUMENT_ROOT}/cgi-bin/bigsender.cgi";
&add;
}
to remove a record:
&subscribe;
sub subscribe {
# substitute the proper variable in the statement below:
$in{'email'}="$form{'emailvariable'}";
# the full path (from the server root) to the Configurator profile:
$config="$ENV{DOCUMENT_ROOT}/cgi-bin/.bigsender.txt";
$hook=1;
require "$ENV{DOCUMENT_ROOT}/cgi-bin/bigsender.cgi";
&remove;
}
Note: When hooked to, BigSender will not perform submission validation and will not send confirmation email messages despite any settings in the Configurator as it is presumed your "parent" application will perform those tasks. BigSender will, however, perform its redundancy check.
Tip: The Configurator settings file always begins with a period, is the same name as the BigSender application with a .txt extension. Because the file name begins with a period, the Configurator profile is considered a "hidden" file unless you have set AdminPro or other FTP software to view hidden files.
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