Ring Master Guide:

Every ring needs a home. That is, a site (usually not included in the ring) that introduces the community, provides basic ring links (i.e. to the list of members), explains how to join, and provides the HTML code members need to display on their sites. If you're transferring to Diarist.Net Ringlink from another system, chances are you've already got most of what you need.

Basic Links:

These are some useful links for ringmasters to put up at the ring homepage. Of course, you should replace 'YOURRINGID' with your actual Ring ID (i.e. 'sample'):

List Sites in Ring:
http://diarist.net/ringlink/list.pl?ringid=YOURRINGID

Add New Site:
http://diarist.net/ringlink/addsite.pl?ringid=YOURRINGID

Visit Random Ring Site:
http://diarist.net/cgi-bin/ringlink/rand.pl?ringid=YOURRINGID

Note that altough Diarist.Net Ringlink allows you to make many ring functions transparent (i.e. hosting forms on your own site), it is a good idea to prominently display your Ring ID in case any member logs in directly through this site to manage his account. You don't want them guessing and joining the wrong ring!

Member Site HTML Fragment:

Of course, the ring won't work without each member site displaying special links that allow visitors to travel back and forth around it. Diarist.Net Ringlink automatically provides a very minimal example that will work as-is, but chances are you'll want to use something more elegant.

Here's some sample code that takes advantage of all the variables presently supported (and here is what it looks like). In these and any custom HTML fragments, be sure to replace YOURRINGID with your Ring ID.

To change the code automatically provided to members when they join, log into Ring Management, click on "Customize," then on "HTML Code."

Of course, it's always helpful to make the same HTML code available on your ring's home page.

Remote 'Join Ring' Form:

Although joining a ring through the Diarist.Net Ringlink site is fairly painless, you might want to remotely host your own "Join Ring" form. This cuts out a few steps and new members won't have to remember your Ring ID. Provided you're comfortable with HTML and have some familiarity with web forms, you can use code like this (that looks like this).

Customization:

Much of a ring's management (and editing of sites by members) is handled through the simple Diarist.Net Ringlink interface. You can, however, customize the colors and add a ring logo to the pages Diarist.Net Ringlink displays for your ring.

Just log into Ring Management, click "Customize," and then select "Appearance."

Note that you can also customize the page that appears after a new site has been added, as well as the e-mail message that is sent to the member after his or her site has been added.