Installation: Installing the component via the administration interface Joomla. During installation, plugins systems are installed and are automatically published. If, however Plugins directory does not have permission in writing, an error and warned the user. The component will be reinstalled after amendment rights in the directory Plugins.

Upgrade: all custom rules are preserved instead points to users. No needs to uninstall the previous version. Just install the latest version, then go to in admin panel, check and save the general configuration if new settings.
If you want uninstall the previous version before, just uninstall and install the latest version, then go to in admin panel, check and save the general configuration. Go to in menu manager and edit each menu linked to AlphaUserPoints and save again.

Control panel:

Button / menu Configuration 
This menu lets you configure the basic parameters for the use of component.

Button / menu Rules
This menu provides access to the list of rules to award points according to some actions of the registered user. The descriptions of the rules will give you information on their roles and conditions for awarding points. To install new rules inter-acting with third components, see To go further.

Button / menu Users
This menu displays all registered members of the site with their respective IDs AlphaUserPoint, total points for each current members and a link to the details of every action having reported points.

Button / menu Plugins
This menu allows you to add new rules inter-acting with third components. For more information on this menu, see developer documentation.

Button / menu Sync. users
This menu allows, after the first installation, synchronize Together members already registered on the site to their assigned an AlphaUSerPoints identifier (referral id). Before synchronize users, please read the Getting Started section.

Button / menu Recalculate
This menu allows you to launch a recalculation of the total number of points for each member after removal or modification of action points by an administrator.

Button / menu Reset all points
This menu reset all the counters to zero points for all registered members. You can set this counter manualy for each member (menu Users Statistics)

Button / menu Set max points
This menu sets a maximum limit of points can be assigned to all registered members of the site. 0 or blank if you do not set limits. You can set max points manualy for each member (menu Users Statistics).

Button / menu Purge expires points
This menu allows purging the shares with a deadline of validity. Important: This action results in an immediate recalculation (auto) of all points and for all users.

Button / menu Coupon Codes 
This menu allows to create Coupon Codes for extra points for your users. Code generator.

Button / menu Raffle
This menu allows to create raffle, lottery or promotions... for your users. 1 to 3 winners for each raffle.  

Button / menu Ranks/Medals 
This menu allows to create ranks and medals for your users. Both can be combined.

Button / menu Statistics
This menu display Top 10 winning points and Top 10 Points spent by users. Filter by date.

Button / menu Export active users (CSV)
This menu launches export in CSV file first fifty of the most active members (with the most points).

Button / Menu Export e-mails (CSV)
This menu launches export in CSV file of all email addresses stored in the table details of the component following an action-type invitation/recommendation, recommend an article ...

Button / menu About
Information on the component.

Button / menu How to create a plugin
This menu displays a help file explaining how to integrate the API AlphaUserPoints in a third component and how to generate an XML file installation of the new rule concerning this third component.

Button / Help menu
Displays help file.

Getting Started:

Setting pre-existing rules
Via the administration interface Joomla! Click on the menu components then on the menu AlphaUserPoints. Then click on the submenu rules or click the rules if you are already in the control panel of AlphaUserPoints component . When you launch the device for the first time, an informational message appears in the control panel component. This message informs you that you must first synchronize users / members registered with AlphaUserPoints. However, if you want to award points to each registering a new user, and not to penalize the former members, you must set the rule for new members before making synchronization. Edit this rule and assign a number of points for each new member. Save this rule. You are now able to synchronize all members. These will be credited with points. As soon as a new member will, it will be credited with the number of points specified in the rule.
Set and activate other rules according to your needs. The descriptions of the rules will give you information on their roles and conditions for awarding points.

Note: The rule for new users can not be disabled. You can only save to zero the number of points awarded for this rule if you do not wish to assign point on this action.

Creating menus
AlphaUserPoints includes 8 options for creating a menu frontend.

ReCaptcha
To use ReCaptcha (anti-spam), you must first obtain keys for use on the sitehttp://recaptcha.net/api/getkey.

To create a menu selected AlphaUserPoints component in the interface for creating menus Joomla! then choose the type menu to create among the three. Enter a name for this menu, then set it if necessary. For more information on creating menu under Joomla! See you using Joomla!.

Disabled user congratulation message on frontend
Use the menu Configuration and enabled or disabled the message on frontend.

Change the prefix identifier
You can change the prefix identifier AlphaUserPoints in Configuration menu. You can enter a particular prefix for users to register themselves on your site and another for users by referrer. 7 characters maximum.

Modify Referral ID type
You can change the type of identifier AlphaUserPoints in Configuration menu. Choose between randomize or Username as the referral Identifier.

Limit daily points: 
If you want to limit user points earned by day, you can enter a number in Configuration menu, otherwise leave empty.

Raffle system:
First step: If you want offer a raffle to you users, you must enabled the rule "Raffle". Then, add a raffle and settings it. You can choose to offer points or coupon code to your registered users.
Second step (optional): If you have choose a registration for a raffle, you can put in a content article this following tag to activate the Joomla content plugin: where ID is the ID of your raffle. This tag display a button to raffle registration to your registered users.

Level/Rank and Medals : 
Both can be used together or individually. Ranks or medals can be awarded automatically when a user reaches a certain number of points (enter a number of points in the rank/medal) or can be assigned manually to a user (Set to zero point). In all cases, the rank or medal can be modified manually by administrator directly in the detail user. When you assign a medal to a user, you can add a description or a reason for award. If you leave blank, the default description of the medal is assigned. The default ranks and medals created during installation of the component can be removed without problem if you do not use them. If there is no rank/medal, the columns to display the icons or the number of medals will not be displayed in users management.

To go further:

Installing third plugins
To add new rules or from inter-acting with components third, click on the menu or Plugins button control panel component, and then select the file. Zip or. Xml containing the new rule. Upload the file. If the file is uploaded correctly, a new rule will add to the existing list. Set this new rule and enable there to suit your needs. The fact that click New in the list of rules can also add a plugin via the same function.

If you want more information on how to create a plugin, see developer documentation.

AlphaUserPoints - API integration in a Third party component (advanced)

This documentation is priorly dedicated to developpers and anyone with a sufficient knowledge of php and joomla components development.

A plugin creation (new rule creation for a 3rd party component) is done in 2 steps.

Step1 - API insertion in a component

Just insert the following API in the component code where needed. The best is to make it follow a user action that could give the users some points or take some. For exemple in a comment system component or in a forum, just add the API after the comment or topic INSERT query in the database.

a) Use - Basic API

$api_AUP = JPATH_SITE.DS.'components'.DS.'com_alphauserpoints'.DS.'helper.php';
if ( file_exists($api_AUP))
{
require_once ($api_AUP);
AlphaUserPointsHelper::newpoints( 'function_name' );
}

function_name is the name of the rule that will be used to attribute points to the current user (if logged in). For each AlphaUserPoints integrated rule (system rules), names syntax is as follows:

example: sysplgaup_newregistered for new users points attribution

It is convinient to keep the same name syntax for third party components plugin as follows:

plgaup_functionname

Example: plgaup_newcomment or plgaup_newtopic for a comment system or forum API integration. To name a rule that would give points when adding a new topic in Fireboard:plgaup_newtopic_fb.

Keep in mind that this method only gives points to the current user. This is the Basic API.

b) Attribute points to another user:

To give points to anothe user than the one connected, only the user id is required. To get his AlphaUserPoints (AUPID) Identity, we just need to use the getAnyUserReferreID(). This method is the one used to give points to an article author when the article is being read by someone on the site.

$api_AUP = JPATH_SITE.DS.'components'.DS.'com_alphauserpoints'.DS.'helper.php';
if ( file_exists($api_AUP))
{
require_once ($api_AUP);

$aupid = AlphaUserPointsHelper::getAnyUserReferreID( $userID );

if ( $aupid )  AlphaUserPointsHelper::newpoints( 'function_name', $aupid );
}

c) Prevent from attributing points more than once for the same action:

To avoid that a user would get points many times for something allready done, we can add a reference key. When calling the AlphaUserPointsHelper::newpoints function, a pre check is done on this reference key. This method is used in the rule where a user reading an article would give points to the author.

$api_AUP = JPATH_SITE.DS.'components'.DS.'com_alphauserpoints'.DS.'helper.php';
if ( file_exists($api_AUP))
{
require_once ($api_AUP);
AlphaUserPointsHelper::newpoints( 'function_name', '', 'reference_key');
}

d) Adding information datas:

To add information datas to be displayed in the action details, just add a new parameter as follows:

$api_AUP = JPATH_SITE.DS.'components'.DS.'com_alphauserpoints'.DS.'helper.php';
if ( file_exists($api_AUP))
{
require_once ($api_AUP);
AlphaUserPointsHelper::newpoints( 'function_name', '', '', 'information_datas');
}

e) Using different amounts of points on the same rule:

A component might also need to add or to take points for different amounts. For example, when buying goods with points. Products have diferent prices, a fixed amount in the rule would'nt make it. The API $randompoints parameter comes instead of the amount of points set in the rule. It can be negative in case of purchases or penalities.

$api_AUP = JPATH_SITE.DS.'components'.DS.'com_alphauserpoints'.DS.'helper.php';
if ( file_exists($api_AUP))
{
require_once ($api_AUP);
AlphaUserPointsHelper::newpoints( 'function_name', '', '', '', -1450);
}

f) Get the result from a successfull operation:

In a more advanced code, if the component routine needs to know if the operation has been successfull or not, (enough amount of points for a purchase in a user account), we can add a 'feedback' parameter. It has a Boolean type value.

Code example:

$api_AUP = JPATH_SITE.DS.'components'.DS.'com_alphauserpoints'.DS.'helper.php';
if ( file_exists($api_AUP))
{
require_once ($api_AUP);
if (AlphaUserPointsHelper::newpoints( 'plgaup_purchasewithvirtuemart', '', 'payment ID: 20080831-YHMU', 'Product reference: AM-5245', -1290, true))
{
[... code continued ...]
}
}

g) Remove the constraint on the type of user:
In a customized code component, you can force and remove the constraint on a rule to the user level by adding the parameter force = 1. The existing rule will be available now for guest,registered and special.

h) API full implementation:

AlphaUserPointsHelper::newpoints( string$pluginfunction, [string$AUPIDotheruser = ''], [string$keyreference = ''], [string$data = ''], [integer$randompoints = 0], [boolean$feedback = false], [integer$force=0]);

Note: If a the operation is a points substraction, the account has to have at least the same amount of points. If not, a notice warns the user that he doe'snt have enough points to complete the action.


Step 2 - XML file creation
Then we have to create an xml file to make easier theinstallation process in the AlphaUserPoints component.
5 elements have to be filled in:

Rule name, its description, the name of the component using that rule (com_example), the used function name (eg: plgaup_vm_purchase) and the last parameter: fixed_points to specify if points are fixed or could change (boolean true or false). If set to false, attributed points for this rule would be zero and points have to be set by the api code parameter included in the third party compnent (as stated in this documentation).

This xml file has to be utf-8 encoded (required) and can then be zipped (not required)

Plugin installation

Install the new rule (plugin) using the Plugins button in the AlphaUserPoints component administration panel or from the menu: Components -> AlphaUserPoints -> Plugins. The plugin installation can also be completed from the 'New' menu item in AlphaUserPoints 'Rule manager'.

Download: You can download AlphaUserPoints and his modules here.

You can also vote/review this component at official Joomla! Extentions Directory.

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