Upload ZIP File As Folder

1 Initial Problem

People have complained to me that 50% of typical users do not understand that ILIAS considers zip-files as files. These 50% of users consider zip files as folders and try to upload their zips files with the Add Folder dialogue. They get a fatal error, no information but a scary screen with a reference to the php line. They are scared, that they broke something.

I know we have the rule "features have exactly one way of accessing them and not two". Anyway I ask the Jour Fixe to consider breaking this rule.

If this is no option (as a great beleaver in rules I will accept this) then please provide a truely instructive error message to these poor people: "You have tried to upload this zip file as a folder. But it is not a folder it is a file. Please upload your file as a file. Thank you!"

2 Conceptual Summary

3 User Interface Modifications

3.1 List of Affected Views

3.2 User Interface Details

3.3 New User Interface Concepts

4 Technical Information

5 Privacy Information

6 Security Implications

7 Contact

• Idea / concept: alexandra tödt toedt@leifos.com
• Maintainer: Alexander Killing
• Development: Feature is to be developed by tbd
• Test Cases by: tbd

8 Funding

9 Discussion

2011-04-28 ILIAS_LM:
This is our observation, too. Users create a folder, zip it, it still looks like a folder (at least with the Windows application) ergo "It IS a folder".
I agree with Alexandra: If the rule is "only one way" so would it be nice if they get a useful/leading system feedback.

Pascal, 28th april
Because I don't believe to much in rules I would brake this one, or even better foget this one. Redundancy isn't bad if it come with features or navigation path.

We worked out that not only windows users think of folders but also mac users. it's because the usualy make an archive (zip) of a folder, not of a file.

Pascal, Mai 2nd
And yes of course, I highly appreciate this feature!

Jour Fixe, 23 May 2011: We highly appreciate this suggestion.

• If a lot of users want to upload a zip archive as folder object we have to think about a second option to upload zip archives. It might improve ILIAS' usability if we allow uploading of zip archives as folder objects, too. We have to discuss this as a feature for ILIAS 4.3 because it is new functionality in the repository.
• The current error message will already be improved as a bug fix, see Mantis #7347.

Zenzen, Enrico [ezenzen], 03 AUG 2022: This request no longer fulfills the requirements of the Feature Wiki. In consultation with the maintainer I change the status of the feature request to "Redundant / outdated". If the request is still relevant, please update template and mockups.

Mela, Alix [ILIAS_LM] 2022-08-02
@alexandra: I've added the needed subtitles in case you'd like to continue.

10 Implementation

…