Category Archives: Not Code

Plugin Directory Sort and Filter

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The plugin directory has been upgraded to include the possibility to filter by product type e.g. Raiser’s Edge, NetCommunity, etc. This is slightly limited as it is currently only possible to give each plugin one product category even though some span two products.

 I have also added sort functionality so that you can sort alphabetically, by most highly rated and most highly viewed (based on the click through to more information).

 As previously if you have had any experience with any of the plugins add your comments as it will help others to decide their usefulness.

Here is the link again: http://www.zeidman.info/php/plugins.php

API 7.82 – The Silent Revolution

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I normally keep up with the latest changes in the Raiser’s Edge version.  I thought that the jump from 7.81 to 7.82 was not that great. I knew that there were fixes so that RE would work with Office 2007, there were some more changes to optional modules (I was only really familiar with events), there were new names for items in query and export, another change to Gift Aid and that was about it. At least that was it until I saw an item on the conference pages talking about the new Batch API code that had been made available. What?? Batch API! This is something that I have been asking for forever and it completely threw me when I just stumbled across it. Continue reading API 7.82 – The Silent Revolution →

Plugin directory updated

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I am pleased to announce phase 2 of the plugin directory!

You can now rate the plugins and add your own comments about them. If you have had some experience of some of the plugins listed then please do add your comments. Unlike adding or editing the plugins listed comments are not moderated so feel free to add what you think about them. The average rating is also given.

Adding ratings requires that you are “registered” this is so that plugin ratings are not skewed. Adding comments does not required any registration and can indeed be anonymous.

Check out the new features here:

http://www.zeidman.info/php/plugins.php

Look forward to reading your comments!

Phase 3 will include sorting and filtering by product, rating and date added. Watch this space…

How I would improve the API

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If I have often wondered if I were in charge of the API at Blackbaud how I would change it. Well unfortunately I don’t wield that kind of power and secondly I am not sure that a major overhaul is required. It is clearly not a modern API being COM based but for the main it works well. However there are still quite a few areas that I would improve upon. I don’t suppose that these will ever happen. Changing the API is no doubt lower on Blackbaud’s list of priorities. With the imminent arrival of the Infinity platform (and, yes, its name does seem to have influenced the pace at which it is being released) , the ability to develop any interface into the system seems a real possibility. RE API by comparison appears somewhat staid and limited. I would imagine it no longer commands the attention at Blackbaud those of us using it would like.

That being said I would love to be proven wrong so Blackbaud if you are listening here are the areas that I would change: Continue reading How I would improve the API →

Blackbaud Labs RE7 code sample

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I just noticed Blackbaud have added a code sample to their Blackbaud Labs site. This appears to be the same code sample as was released on CodePlex but it will no doubt get a larger audience here.

My initial thought about this code are that it is unnecessarily complicated. Creating an embedded HTML resource, creating a specific control, putting in the correct GUID into to the HTML page and then getting it all to work seems to be somewhat of a long winded approach. Continue reading Blackbaud Labs RE7 code sample →

Installing IDLookup

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Update: IDLookup is a legacy application that is no longer available for download. Almost all of the functionality has been incorporated into Importacular and we recommend that product instead.

In this post I hope to offer some help in installing IDLookup. Many people have downloaded it but it may not be so straight forward to install. Note that these instructions can also be used for installing Query Manager.

If you do not know what IDLookup is here is a brief outline. IDLookup is  a plugin that I have created to lookup records in Raiser’s Edge given a list of constituents and their address details. This is useful where you have a third party list given that does not contain your constituent ids (such as many giving sites e.g. JustGiving, FirstGiving, CharityWeb, etc)  or cold lists that you want to ensure really are cold. The application can be found on Zeidman Development ->IDLookup. This is a demo version that is tied to the sample database.

When you download IDLookup from Zeidman Development you receive a zipped up file consisting of one installation file. After extracting the installation file (IDLookup Setup.msi) double click on it and follow the guide that will install all the files in their correct location. In the plugins directory you will then see a link for IDLookup. However we are not ready to start just yet.

Continue reading Installing IDLookup →

Is the API really that expensive?

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I get a lot of questions asking me if a certain change to The Raiser’s Edge can be done. Here is a typical (if somewhat abbreviated conversation)

Them: “We would like to add an attribute every time a constituent is saved. Then we want to synchronize our online giving application with Raisers Edge. Lastly we want to validate fields when entering gifts into Batch.”

Continue reading Is the API really that expensive? →

A Non-production database

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There has been some discussion on the Blackbaud forums and on the Blackbus forum about using a second non-production database.  This article will highlight some ways of doing this. 

Before I begin I want to categorically state that if you believe what I am writing in this post breaks your Blackbaud contract then do not do it. A long time ago I was told by Blackbaud that it was perfectly acceptable and I hold by that but I know that others who have been told otherwise (including various support people at Blackbaud who will give you a different ruling depending on who you speak to!) Just to reiterate I am in no way encouraging you to break the law!
Continue reading A Non-production database →