Implement and Add a Pluggable Library or View

To create and add a pluggable library or pluggable view

1. Create the folders needed for the pluggable library or view. See Figure . The root folder for the pluggable view or library must match the view or library ID.

2. Write or download the code needed for this view or library:

For pluggable views, you must Implement a Pluggable View Class using the MashZone NextGen View API and add this to the library’s /js folder.

For pluggable libraries that use resources hosted externally, skip this step.

For all other pluggable libraries, you may download resources for third-party libraries and add them to the library’s folders. Or write the necessary JavaScript code and add it to the /js folder.

3. Optionally, add CSS Styles, Help and Thumbnails for Pluggable Views or any other resources needed for the pluggable library or pluggable view.

4. Optionally, define additional configuration that MashZone NextGen may need to import and manage the view or library. Configuration is defined in either:

A library properties file that you save in the root library folder. See Import Pluggable Library/View Examples for more information and examples.

An Apache Ant™ build file to import pluggable views and libraries if you have Ant in your development environment. See Ant Tasks and Sample Build File to Import Pluggable Views or Libraries for more information and examples.

Additional configuration is required to register a pluggable library as a pluggable view or to register a pluggable library with external resources. You may also use library configuration to:

Define basic metadata such as a description and version or identifying a pluggable library as a pluggable view.

Identify images and help to use with a pluggable view library.

Declare dependencies for this library or view on libraries bundled in MashZone NextGen or other custom or third-party libraries added to MashZone NextGen.

Define the external resources for pluggable libraries that have no local resources.

5. Upload the pluggable view or pluggable library using either the MashZone NextGen importLib command or using Ant with a build file. See Import Pluggable Views and Libraries for examples and instructions.