Project Management with Dotproject: Implement, Configure, Customize, and Maintain Your Dotproject Installation

Lee Jordan1847191649, 9781847191649

This is a simple but complete guide to setting up an internal project management solution quickly and at zero cost using dotProject, the most popular open-source project management system. Maintained by committed volunteers, dotProject is a multi-user, multi-language-enabled project management environment with a sensible web-based user interface and is free to anyone needing to create, track, and maintain any kind of project.This fast-paced, practical beginner’s guide to getting things done with dotProject is for people who need an efficient and flexible project management tool, whether they are IT professionals or have only basic computer and internet skills. Real-world examples and detailed walkthroughs help readers without previous experience of project management get the most from this powerful tool, covering installing and configuring dotProject, using and administering it, customizing its look and feel to fit a corporate identity, and finally Charts, Reports, and Extensions.

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Table of contents :
Project Management with dotProject……Page 1
Table of Contents……Page 7
Preface……Page 13
What is a Project Management Application?……Page 17
What are the Features Required of a PMA?……Page 18
What is dotProject?……Page 19
What are the Core Features of dotProject?……Page 20
Core Features in Details……Page 21
Why dotProject is the Right PMA for You……Page 24
Summary……Page 25
Prerequisites……Page 27
LAMP, WAMP, or WIMP?……Page 28
Windows……Page 29
Installation……Page 30
Installing with an Online Control Panel……Page 31
Browser-Based Installation……Page 36
Secure your Installation with SSL……Page 42
Database Installation Fails……Page 43
JpGraph/Gantt Fonts Error……Page 45
Summary……Page 46
The dotProject Interface……Page 47
User Menu……Page 50
Help (Online)……Page 51
The Todo List……Page 56
Today……Page 57
Main Navigation Bar……Page 58
Companies……Page 59
Projects……Page 60
Tasks……Page 61
Files……Page 62
Contacts……Page 63
Summary……Page 64
Managing Companies……Page 65
Adding New Companies……Page 67
Viewing Companies……Page 68
Updating Companies……Page 70
Adding a New Department……Page 72
Downloading Contacts as a CSV……Page 74
Adding New Contacts……Page 76
Updating Contacts……Page 80
Managing Projects……Page 81
Adding and Editing Projects……Page 82
Best Practices for Creating Projects……Page 84
Basic Task Creation……Page 85
Task Dates Tab……Page 87
Task Dependencies Tab……Page 88
File Management and Version Control……Page 89
Adding New Files……Page 90
Viewing Files……Page 93
Updating Current Files……Page 94
Editing Files……Page 96
Summary……Page 98
System Administration……Page 99
Language Support……Page 100
Adding a Language to dotProject……Page 101
Translation Management……Page 108
System Configuration……Page 110
General Settings……Page 111
User Authentication Settings……Page 118
LDAP Settings……Page 121
Email Settings……Page 123
Session Handling Settings……Page 124
Task Reminder Settings……Page 125
Default User Preferences……Page 126
Lookup Values……Page 127
Custom Fields……Page 130
Billing Code Table……Page 133
Installing Modules……Page 135
Module Activation……Page 136
Administering Users……Page 138
Viewing Users……Page 140
Adding Users……Page 141
Deleting Users……Page 142
Setting Permissions……Page 143
Users……Page 144
Adding New Roles……Page 146
Administrative Roles……Page 151
Summary……Page 165
Setting User Preferences……Page 167
User Interface Style……Page 168
Finding Other Themes……Page 169
Changing Images……Page 171
Changing Fonts……Page 176
Adjusting Links……Page 177
What Styles Should I Leave Alone?……Page 178
Tips for Creating a New Theme……Page 181
Customizing Module Text Strings……Page 182
Summary……Page 184
Standard Modules……Page 185
The Combined Projects View……Page 186
Project Reports……Page 187
Viewing Reports……Page 189
Resources……Page 190
Forums……Page 191
Calendar……Page 193
Smart Search……Page 194
Backup……Page 195
Add-On Modules……Page 196
Installing Add-Ons……Page 198
Eventum Integration……Page 199
Installing the Eventum Integration Module……Page 200
Enabling Support Contracts in dotProject……Page 203
Helpdesk……Page 204
Installation and Configuration……Page 205
Using Help Desk……Page 206
Using Invoice……Page 207
Using TicketSmith……Page 208
How do I Volunteer?……Page 210
Summary……Page 211
Appendix A: Upgrading dotProject……Page 213
Backing Up dotProject……Page 214
Using cPanel Backups for Easy Manual Backups……Page 216
Back Up the dotProject Database Automatically with Cron Jobs……Page 217
Backing Up the dotProject Installation Files for Automatic Upgrades……Page 220
Troubleshooting Upgrades……Page 221
Contacts Issues or User Details Lost During an Upgrade……Page 222
Gantt Chart Error……Page 223
Method 1……Page 224
Individual Project/Task Gantt Display Error (Fonts)……Page 225
Index……Page 227