Administrator's Guide

• Auction Types Overview
• Dashboard
• Address
• Categories
• Custom Fields
• Listings
• Work Type
• Offers
• Membership

Auction Types Overview

In the context of auctions, the main difference between a reverse auction and a regular (or forward) auction lies in the roles of buyers and sellers, and the direction in which the price moves:

Regular (Forward) Auction:

Example: An art auction where various bidders compete to buy a painting, with the highest bid winning the item.

Reverse Auction:

Example: A company needs a bulk supply of office chairs and invites suppliers to bid. Suppliers compete by offering lower prices, and the company chooses the supplier with the most competitive offer.

In summary, the key difference is that in a regular auction, buyers compete to purchase from sellers, driving the price up. In a reverse auction, sellers compete to fulfill a buyer's need, driving the price down.

Dashboard

Overview

Administration dashboard gives you an overview of all the activities you can do using the JomOffers extension. It provides you a view of all the menu items, system configuration checks, license information, and links to the documentation.

Screen 1: Dashboard screen

Menu Items

The menu items are present in a grid format format for easy access. The following image shows the Menu items present on the dashboard screen.

Screen 2: Menu items area

The following table provides an explanation about different menu items available:

System Configuration Checks

Any configuration problems or current configuration status is displayed in this area as shown in the following screen:

Screen 3: System configuration checks area

Address

Overview

The Address feature, as the name suggests, lets you provide the country, region and city for the respective product listing. The advantage with the Address field in Extensions is that after you configure a particular address, it is shared across various components in the Comdev extension.

Based on the depth of levels you want, such as the continent as Europe, country as the UK and region as Wales, you can configure the Address tree to have unlimited levels. The Address feature provides multilingual support. This means you can specify different names based on your language preference. For more information, see Languages.

Creating A New Address

The following image shows the Address Feature screen. To add an address, click Components > Comdev > Address. Click New to create a new address. 

Screen 1: New Address screen

Let us understand each of the buttons seen on the screen using the following table.

Address Structure

The structure of the Address tree is maintained as follows in our example. You can create any structure as per your requirement.

 <Continent>

-- <Country>

-- – <Region>

-- – -- <City> 

Editing address entries

If you want to edit existing entries, you can either click the entry from the Address screen or select the check box next to the entry, and then click Edit.

After you click the required entry that you need to edit, you can change the configurations based on the options as seen in the following table.

Publishing tab

After you have provided the above information, you can provide the publishing information in the Publishing tab as seen in the following image.

You can change the values for the given options using the following table.

Metadata tab

The metadata tab is used to provide metadata information for a particular address entry. The options for this tab can be seen as shown in the following image.

You can change the values for the given options using the following table.

Meta Description	Meta-description for search-engine listings.
Meta Keywords	Meta Keywords for the search-engine
Author	Content author metadata.
Robots	Robots instructions: Use Global Index, Follow No Index, Follow Index, No Follow No Index, No Follow

Categories

Overview

Categories allow the site owner to categorize listings into appropriate sections. Extension categories are independent from the Joomla category system. Nested categories (sub-categories) are supported in Extension. Component comes with a category named "UNCATEGORIZED", which is the default setting. This category holds listing items that are not attached to any category (same function as the default Joomla system).

You can create a categories menu link under Menus using information provided here. Ensure that for creating this link you use the Item menu type as Categories.

Creating A New Category

The following image shows the Category Feature screen. 

Screen 1: Adding a new category

Let us understand each of the buttons seen on the screen using the following table.

Editing category entries

If you want to edit existing entries, you can either click the entry from the Category screen or select the check box next to the entry, and then click Edit.

New Category tab

The New Category tab is seen as shown in the following image:

Screen 2: New Category tab

After you click the required entry that you need to edit, you can change the configurations based on the options as seen in the following table.

Publishing tab

After you have provided the above information, you can provide the publishing information in the Publishing as seen in the following image.

You can change the values for the given options using the following table. 

Metadata tab

The metadata tab is used to provide metadata information for a particular category entry. The options for this tab can be seen as shown in the following image.

You can change the values for the given options using the following table. 

Meta Description	Meta-description for search-engine listings.
Meta Keywords	Meta Keywords for the search-engine
Author	Content author metadata.
Robots	Robots instructions: Use Global Index, Follow No Index, Follow Index, No Follow No Index, No Follow

Custom Fields

Overview

Custom fields are a powerful tool to build content. We provide a variety of field types with the ability to outline into groups. Each field can be assigned into a single category or all categories.

Creating a Custom Field

Creating a custom field involves setting certain options. To create a custom field, click New as shown in the following image.

Screen 1: Custom Field screen

The following table explains the different options available on the screen.

Editing Custom Fields

If you want to edit existing entries, you can either click the entry from the Custom Fields screen or select the checkbox next to the entry, and then click Edit.

Custom Field Edit

After you click the required entry that you need to edit, you can change the configurations for the fields as shown in the following image.

Screen 2: Custom Field Edit tab

The following table explains the different options seen on the screen:

Custom Field Values

This area lets you create values when the field type requires multiple options to be provided. 

For custom fields that can have values, to add multiple values, navigate to the custom fields listing screen. Click the  icon next to the field where you want to add values as shown in the following image.

Screen 3: Adding values to custom fields area

Here, the Field Type is selected as Checkbox and the Field Database Type has been stated as String. This means the Custom fields value area should provide options that can be seen when editing listing and displayed on the component front page. Hence, the Sample Values are provided in this area as Street, Garage, Underground. The following screen shows the values added at the back end. Click Delete to delete the entry.

Screen 4: Values added to custom field area

The following image shows how the field looks on the add listings page.

Screen 5: Custom Field as seen on new listing page

The custom field is seen on the listings page as shown in the following image:

Screen 6: Custom Field as seen on published listing page

Field Types

With Extension extension, you get several field types that you can create based on your requirement. The following image shows the available field types.

Screen 7: Field Types

The following table explains the different options seen on the screen.

Publishing tab

After you have provided the above information, you can provide the publishing information in the Publishing tab.

You can change the values for the given options using the following table.

Status	Based on the status seen here, the visibility changes as follows: Published - Entries are visible on the front-end.  Unpublished – Entries are invisible in the front-end, but can be published later.  Archived – Older entries that are not ready for deletion yet.  Trashed – Older entries that should be removed.
Language	Select the language for the address entry. To create a custom field that applies to a particular language, you need to select the appropriate language from the drop down. For each language that you want it to appear for, create a separate entry.
Created Date	Date when the entry was created.
Start Publishing	Date when publishing needs to start in case of limited viewing of the field.
Finish Publishing	Date when publishing needs to stop in case of limited viewing of the field.
Modified Date	Date when the entry was modified.

JomEstate custom fields: Beds, Baths, Garage

For custom fields such as Bed, Bath, and Garage, icons are displayed alongside. To change the style css for these icons, edit the jomestate.css file located in the components/com_jomestate/assets/css folder. These icons are only available for the single language. If the site is multilingual than additional suffixes are added, therefore additional styles needs to be created.

.beds .jd-lab-horizontal-float-icon {background: url("../images/beds.png") 0 50% no-repeat;}
.baths .jd-lab-horizontal-float-icon {background: url("../images/baths.png") 0 50% no-repeat;}
.garage .jd-lab-horizontal-float-icon {background: url("../images/car.png") 0 50% no-repeat;}

Listings

Overview

Listings are essentially auctions, encompassing both reverse auctions and standard bid auctions. Each listing is associated with a specific category. They are created in the same way as Joomla articles, although they are not defined as Joomla articles.

Creating A New Auction

Screen 1: Listing screen

The following table explains the different options seen on the screen.

Edit Auction

If you want to edit existing entries, you can either click the entry from the Listings screen or select the checkbox next to the entry, and then click Edit.

Edit Auction tab

This tab provides options to add title, description, select category, and other options for the Listing as seen in the following image:

Screen 2: Edit Listing screen

The following table shows the options available:

Understanding the Location area in Edit listing tab

Let us understand how to provide the address and Street/House No for providing the exact locations on the map. When you provide the address, street and House No. in the backend when creating listings, the location position automatically. If the House No. is not provided, additional location fields needs to be used.

Mapping using longitudes and latitudes

If you provide the latitudes and longitudes, and the Maps Search setting is left blank, the location mapping is done based on these parameters as shown in the following image.

Screen 3: Map using longitudes and latitudes values

Mapping with Map Search values 

If the Map Search field has a value provided to it, it takes precedence as shown in the following image. If the Map Search field value is given as “London”, the location will map to this location.

Screen 4: Map using Map Search Field values

Custom Fields tab

This tab includes all the custom fields created for a particular category. If the custom field is not applied to a specific category, it can be seen for all categories when creating a listing. The following image shows the Custom Fields tab screen.

Screen 5: Custom Fields tab

For more information about creating custom fields, see Custom Fields.

Images tab

This tab includes information about images and videos attached to the listing. Before you can add images to the listing, you must save your listing at least once. This ensure that all the other data you have filled for the listing does not disappear after the images are added.

The Images tab can be seen as shown in the following image:

Screen 6: Images tab

Provide the options as shown in the following table.

Cron job for BIDS - Regular auctions

For regular auctions a cron job needs to be added to clear auctions which have been finished, interval should be set to 1 or  5 minutes:

curl -s 'http://extdev.comdev.eu/index.php?option=com_jomoffers&task=auction.check'

Instruction how to set cron job for Plesk panel can be found here:

https://support.plesk.com/hc/en-us/articles/115003121073-How-to-add-a-scheduled-task-in-Plesk-UI-using-crontab-syntax-

Work Type

Overview

Work Type for Reverse Actions defines the location where you want to avail the services required in the listing. For example, for a service such as gardening, the Work Type would be On Place or Remote. But, in case of accountant services, the Work Type would be In House. 

Creating a Work Type

Creating a custom field involves setting certain options. To create a custom field, click New as shown in the following image.

Screen 1: Work Type screen

The following table explains the different options available on the screen.

Editing a Work Type

If you want to edit existing entries, you can either click the entry from the Work Type screen or select the checkbox next to the entry, and then click Edit.

Work Type Edit

After you click the required entry that you need to edit, you can change the configurations for the fields as shown in the following image.

Screen 2: New Category tab screen

After you click the required entry that you need to edit, you can change the configurations based on the options as seen in the following table.

Publishing tab

After you have provided the above information, you can provide the publishing information in the Publishing tab as seen in the following image.

You can change the values for the given options using the following table.

Status	Based on the status seen here, the visibility changes as follows: Published - Entries are visible on the front-end.  Unpublished – Entries are invisible in the front-end, but can be published later.  Archived – Older entries that are not ready for deletion yet.  Trashed – Older entries that should be removed.
Access	Access level for site users is as follows: Public access grant access to everybody. Superusers access grants access to only users Registered access grants access only to registered and logged in users. Special access only grants access to users specified as “Special”.
Language	Select the language for the address entry.
ID	Address ID, which can be used in modules, plugins and menus.
Created by	User name who created the entry.
Created Date	Date when the entry was created.

Offers

Overview

For every listing made, contractors or companies can provide an offer. This offer includes information such as pricing, time taken to complete the task and description about the services provided. 

Making an Offer

The following image shows the offer screen.

Screen 1: Making an offer

Let us understand each of the buttons seen on the screen using the following table.

Editing the Offers

The following screen shows the offers made for all the listings available.

Screen 2: Offers for all listings

If you want to edit existing entries, you can either click the entry from the Offers screen or select the check box next to the entry, and then click Edit.

Screen 3: Editing an offer

After you click the required entry that you need to edit, you can change the configurations based on the options as seen in the following table.

Title	Title of the offer made.
Price	Price mentioned by the contractor for the services offered.
Price Negotiable	Enabled if price is negotiable.
Status	Edit status, if required from the following options. By default, every offer made is in the Published state. Published Unpublished Trashed Archived
Offer Status	After reviewing the offer, set the state of the offer to one of the following states. Not Accepted (Default status) Accepted Rejected
Time to Complete (days)	Number of days to complete the services required.
ID	Offer ID, which can be used in modules, plugins and menus.
Created by	User name who created the entry.
Description	Description about the serviced offered.

Membership

Overview

Memberships in Extension are required to set user group level based on the monthly/Yearly pay plan the user selects. Using membership plans, you can decide how much to charge a user and how many listings a user can make for a particular membership plan.

Create a new Membership Plan

Click Components > Extension > Membership Plans > New to create a new membership plan as shown in the following image:

Screen 1: Create new membership plan

Edit Membership Plan

If you want to edit existing entries, you can either click the entry from the Membership screen or select the check box next to the entry, and then click Edit. 

The following image shows the Edit Plan screen.

Screen 2: Edit Plan screen

The following table explains the different options seen.

Adding paid custom fields to the Membership plans

For adding a custom field to the membership plan, the field group needs to be set to Paid item. Click Extension > Custom Fields. Click the field you want to add to the membership plan as a paid item. Change the Field Group to Paid item for the Item view and Paid items for the Items view as shown in the following image:

Screen 4: Adding a paid custom field

This field needs to be enabled in the membership plan as shown in the following image.

Screen 5: Enabling the paid custom field

This field can be seen in the front admin under the membership plan as follows:

Screen 6: Viewing the paid custom field

Membership expiry email configurations

Before the membership expires, an email can be sent to a user that informs them about his membership nearing expiration. The setting can be seen in the following image:

Screen 3: Configure expiry email field

Cron Setting for Membership expiry check

Under your hosting panel a link needs to be added that launches a script. This script checks all users’ membership and sends an email if membership is about to expire:

curl -sS 'http://yourdomain.com?option=com_jomdirectory&task=expiry.send'

or

wget -q -O /dev/null 'http://yourdomain.com?option=com_jomdirectory&task=expiry.send'

If you are unaware about where the cron setting needs to configured in the hosting panel, contact your hosting support center.

Ensure that the script is launched every day at a particular time consistently.

Set Single User expiry date and group

To set plan expiry and attach a group for each user, do the following:

1. Click Users > User Manager.
2. Click the user for whom you want to set the membership expiry.
3. Click the Additional Options tab.
4. Provide the expiration date in the Plan expiry field.
   
5. Click the Assigned User Groups tab.
6. Select the check box next to the group you want to attach the user to for a particular membership plan as shown in the following image.
   
7. Click Save.

For more information about membership expiration setting, see Configuration documentation.

Creating a new Group for Membership Plans

In order to add users to groups for membership plans, you must create a super group named JomOffers. Then, under it you must create groups for each of your membership plan. These groups are used to provide Group ID when creating a membership plan. Users created using User Manager can be linked to each of these membership plan groups.

To create the JomOffers group and other groups, do the following:

1. Click Users > Groups > Add New Group.
2. Provide a name for the group. We need to create JomOffers group before creating other groups. So, provide the name as JomOffers

1. Repeat steps 1 and 2, but select the parent as JomOffers.
   

   

   
   
2. Click Save.
   

User Permissions based on groups

For the users to access Front Admin certain user permissions need to be granted. These settings need to be done in the JomOffers and Comdev Options.

To provide user permissions for JomOffers, do the following:

1. Click Components > JomOffers
2. Click Options from the right-hand side of the screen.
3. Click Permissions.
4. Provide the permissions as shown in the following image.
   

   

5. Click Save.
   

User permissions also need to be set for Comdev extension as explained here.

1. Click Components > Comdev.
2. Click Options from the right-hand side of the screen.
3. Click Comdev.
4. Provide the permissions as shown in the following image.
   

   

   
   
5. Click Save.

Users, which belongs to Joomla group JomOffers, will now have access to Front Admin.

If Permissions for the Comdev component are not set, users would not be able to upload images. A 500 error would show that permissions are denied.