Training on a stick

From OrganicDesign Wiki

Note: We're also developing our own wiki-on-a-stick solution called MediaWikiLite

Objective

The purpose of this article is to give people access to the latest content of the wiki training here on OD in a common environment in the form of "Wiki on a stick". Mediawiki and related training tools, content and training material, are all able to run on a 200 MB USB drive!

You can also download and run this from your local computer WITHOUT a USB drive. The USB drive just makes this training "portable" and available "offline."

• This is good for practicing Admin functions
• This is NOT good for practicing notification or collaboration!

Why Use Uniform Server

There are many windows based serves such as WAMP, XAMPP, etc. We are using Uniform Server for the simple reason that it does NOT have a windows installer. It can run off the stick with no registry dust. The trade off is that we cannot process email.

Prerequisites

• Computer with Windows XP or Vista (we need a mac/*nix solution!)
• Ideal: Internet connection

Download This

currently~50 MB

• http://div0.com/trainingonastick.zip
• version .003 (please update image and version and note changes here)

added extensions and uniform server automatically loads wiki now

updated navigation

includes geany and filezilla now

Start Uniform Server

• navigate to E:\Uniform Server, where 'E' is the drive letter of your USB Drive
• Click on UniControler.exe
• Click on Start. the "W:" drive is default, probably no need to change that.

Administrate Uniform Server

• http://localhost/apanel/

MediaWiki

• http://localhost/wiki
• Login as WikiSysop, password is changeme

Update your training content

• using Export_MediaWiki_pages, download the content and upload it to your running wiki.

Troubleshooting

• tested to run on XP, Vista, and 64bit Vista
• make sure that Norton Anti-Virus is disabled
• make sure you are NOT running skype at the same time! uses same port as Uniform Server!
• some XP instances will ask if you want to Continue Blocking Apache, etc when Uniform Server is starting. Be SURE to allow all the services to run!

Contents

Contents of Training On A Stick

• Mediawiki (latest version)
  • Extensions - need to pick the "best" ones - might as well just go for these --Milan 22:38, 13 January 2009 (NZDT)
• Content for workshop - MediaWiki workshop and Category:MediaWiki workshop, linked to from home page?
• Filezilla - FTP
• Geany for text editing
• Firefox -tabbed browsing
  • Flashplayer - for Firefox plugin, Youtube, etc.
• Freemind - Mindmapping
  • Java - Required for Freemind

Roll Your Own

Cost was $100 USD for the logo, $5.00 each USD for the USB drives (250 M). They can pre-load content for .40 USD per drive. I didn't have this content ready at the time of the order, but have successfully tested moving it on another USB drive using the process below.

• download/extract uniform server

http://uniformserver.com/

• copy to your USB drive
• install mediawiki

http://wiki.uniformserver.com/index.php/Installing_MediaWiki

• export training content you want

...

• import training content

See also

• Create a LiveCD

To do

• Tree view (can't seem to get tree view working on the local WOS...any ideas?--phalseid 10:56, 20 February 2009 (NZDT))
• Next/Prev
• Incorporate with demo.od?
• move/set this up under http://training.oranicdesign.co.nz or or somtething like that.
• Update Training content, but also "wiki way" content.
• Figure out a way to update content on WOS easily by script.
• change default port of Apache from :80 so it doesn' conflict with other programs.
• edit .htaccess to allow remote access to apache web service (only localhost access works right now)
• update logo in wiki to the WX logo
• configure WikiSyop account with generic password
• update redirect.html to load /wiki/index.php instead of uniformserver cpanel
• add link to unformserver control panel in wiki navigation
• add link to MediaWiki_workshop in wiki navigation
• add link to Training_on_a_stick in wiki navigation
• add link to Workshop_Evaluation_Form in wiki navigation
• add other files below to image
• Figure out Mac/*nix solution

Notes

• can we configure it such that it allows skype to be used since it is a bp to skype when doing collab?--Milan 18:56, 9 January 2009 (NZDT)

seems to work if you load Uniform Server FIRST, then skype....--

updated to do, i have a way to fix this now. --phalseid 09:39, 22 January 2009 (NZDT)

Phalseid 19:44, 9 January 2009 (NZDT)

• yes, it is slow. 5-30 second load time :(
  • Seems pretty snappy to me!--Milan 18:56, 9 January 2009 (NZDT)