Caucus Technical Library

The technical library is divided into a small number of categories; some documents may be listed in more than one category.  For a more general introduction to Caucus, see the Caucus Tutorial.

Installing Caucus

Unix Installation Guide Caucus Architecture Description (This document is useful for understanding, in a global sense, what Caucus is doing when you install it on your host.)

What's New in Caucus

Detailed change log (very technical) Summary: what's new in the 4.6 "Sirius" release, October 2004. CSS integration Course Conferences Summary: what's new in 4.50 Usage Statistics and relational databases. An integrated chat and whiteboard tool (separate add-on module). Summary: what's new in 4.4 New Caucus login method Summary: what's new in 4.36 Brief Summary of New Features in 4.30 Technical Description of New Features in 4.30 Caucus LDAP "How-To" E-mail Notification of new activity Notifies conference participants of new activity, via e-mail. CSNAP Capture a static "snapshot" of a Caucus conference to archive, or to publish on the web. Bonanza A package of improvements in 4.3 relating to easy customization of the Caucus Center page and user registration page.

Technical FAQ

Architecture What is the architecture of Caucus?  How does it really work? How does Caucus user authentication work?  How can I use a different authentication method? How can I integrate Caucus with other web-based software so that they'll share user authentication? How can I use virtual hosts with Caucus?  (How can I have two different hostnames bring users into two different Caucus interfaces, but using the same conferences?) What are the security considerations? How do I make Caucus use https?  (How do I use Caucus with SSL encryption?) Y2K Issues in Caucus?    Management What is a Caucus Manager?  What can they do?  How can I make someone a manager? How can I install Caucus 4.3 and still use the 4.0 interface?   How can I pre-register Caucus users? How can I run CML scripts without a browser?  What is sweba? User and Usage questions How do I upload files into Caucus? What are Caucus "macros"?  (What are the %-things that appear in my response text when I upload a file?) How do I use Caucus with a pop-up blocker? So-called "pop-up blocker" software blocks the pop-up windows associated with annoying advertising, but also blocks some Caucus features. How much load does Caucus place on a server? How can I use the (old!) "text" Caucus interface?  Why am I having problems with Apple's 'Safari' browser? Why Do You Call It "Caucus"?

Reference & Usage Guides

CML 4.4 Reference Guide Describes the Caucus Markup Language in detail.  Caucus 4.3 Interface Data Definitions Reference list of data elements used in the CML files (that are distinct from actual Caucus item, response, and person data).   Caucus Feature & History Log Detailed "change history" of Caucus versions. RFC2068: HTTP 1.1 The official definition of the HTTP 1.1 protocol.  Available on-line here for convenience. Conference Organizer's How-To.  Basic "how-to" information for the new conference organizer. Guide for Conference Organizers.  Planning and philosophy behind organizing a conference. Multiple Interfaces: tying a user interface to a registration interface Providing multiple distinct interfaces to the same Caucus site, and linking a specific (new-user) registration interface (look & feel) with a specific user Caucus user interface.

Caucus and E-mail

Caucus E-mail Participation Interface Provides a means for users without browser access to participate in Caucus conferences via e-mail. E-mail Notification of new activity Notifies conference participants of new activity, via e-mail. Metamail package used by Caucus for sending data as e-mail attachments.

Text interface documents

Older versions of Caucus used a completely text-based interface.  Documents relating to this interface include: Caucus 2.7 User's Guide in RTF  or in HTML The complete command-line user's guide.  (The HTML version was produced by the Twin-Cities Freenet, and is slightly modified for their site.) Caucus 2.7 Menu User's Guide (in RTF) The complete guide for using the menu interface(s). Caucus 2.7 Customizing Guide (in RTF) How to customize the user inteface. Caucus 2.7 Unix Installation Guide