FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS (FAQs)
What are the correct permission settings for phpESP files?
In a Unix environment, phpESP files should be set as 644 to be readable by Apache. For tighter security, phpESP.ini.php should be set 640, owner root and it's group set to the Apache process's group.
TopI'm getting an error that says PHP is running in a unsupported mode.
This error is an indication that your web server is running PHP in CGI mode instead of SAPI. phpESP can function in this configuration but authentication must be disabled. (See disabling authentication in this FAQ.) (See the PHP manual for more information on CGI VS SAPI.)
TopCan I disable authentication for the managment interface?
Authentication can be disabled by setting auth_design to false in phpESP.ini.php. Warning, makeing this change could pose a security risk.
Change this:
$ESPCONFIG['auth_response'] = true;
and
$ESPCONFIG['auth_design'] = true;
To this:
$ESPCONFIG['auth_response'] = false;
Does register globals need to be on?
No.
TopI'm running Windows and keep getting a blank screen - Help!
If is is not a path problem in phpESP.ini.php, then copy gnu_gettext.dll (or libintl-1.dll) and
php_gettext.dll (both usually found in the PHP install directory) into the system directory of windows. For
Win95/98 the system directory is something like c:\windows\system and on WinNT/2000/XP the system
directory is something like c:\windows\system32.
After you have copied these dll's to the proper place, edit your php.ini file and comment out the
line "extension=php_gettext.dll".
Then stop and restart the web server.
Where do I set the MySQL login password?
The MySQL server name, user, and password that phpESP will use are set in the file phpESP.ini.php -- further details are in the INSTALL file.
TopDoes phpESP support databases other than MySQL?
As of version 1.7 database abstraction has been implemented using the ADOdb library. MySQL is the most fully tested, Postgres has not been fully tested and SQLite has some known issues. We would welcome help makeing Postgres and SQLite support as strong as MySQL.
TopI'm having trouble changing the default language, what should I do?
Check the results of the phpESP system test page, then see the TRANSLATIONS file.
TopYes, there is an unlisted function http://......./phpESP/admin/manage.php?where=purge
Be very careful when using it, you cannot recover from it.
How can I display only 1 question per page?
You can put a section break between each question to emulate this behavior.
TopCan I change the number of options on a rank question?
Yes, change the length field.
TopCan I prevent multiple votes (ballot stuffing)?
Well, if you give each respondent a username and password and have them login, you can limit multiple voting. If you don't force respondents to log in, it becomes more difficult (e.g., you could analyze the data by IP.)
TopCan I limit the number of times someone takes a survey if they have to login?
Yes, set max login to the number of times you want to allow someone to take the survey. This may be done from the Survey Access page.
TopCan a respondent complete part of a survey, log out, then log back in later to finish?
Yes, see the Save/Restore option on the Survey Access page.
TopWhat are handler.php and handler-prefix.php, and how do I use them?
They are used to embed a survey in another block of html/php code. For private surveys, handler-prefix.php should be included before handler.php. Look at the source of handler-prefix.php for an example.
TopHow do I publish survey results?
You can make public results by doing the following, though note that it
will make all results public. Make a copy of public/survey.php then edit
your copy to uncomment approximately on line 48:
//$results = 1;
then use your copied/edited page just like the survey.php page. It should then display
results instead of the survey. The same applies to custom
survey templates, setting $results to one before calling handler{-prefix}
will switch to results mode.
Can phpESP support large numbers of respondents?
Yes, large surveys (100 questions) and large respondent groups (4,000+) can be handled without a problem. Throughput issues are generally a function of the speed of the web server, the speed of the MySQL server, and available network bandwidth.
Top