I have just come back from doing more tests - this time using Foundry rather than the theme file we have used. It’s all working fine in Foundry! So looks like we’ll have to rebuild the site completely. Wasn’t the plan but its much better than switching.
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I discovered RapidWeaver quite by chance back in 2007 when I needed to make a website but didn’t fancy the steep learning curve of DreamWeaver (or the price tag). RW has served us incredibly well over the past 13 years - I’m far from a professional webs designer but have managed to build the websites that support our various business activities. Until now…
We have a website that requires a major upgrade and then daily, or certainly weekly ‘under the bonnet’ tinkering. It’s too much for me to do on my own but I have a colleague at another location. The idea is that I’ll do the ‘core’ work and he’ll fill in the gaps (eg. populating pages with content). We both have the same set up: RW 8.5, Stacks 4.04 etc. and the RW files are on our shared DropBox. The principle seems to work - the RW file opens from Dropbox and the pages are displayed correctly for me - but minus their banner images for my co-worker. I’m testing this on a second Mac and the same thing happens here. If I re-import the banner images into Resources on the second Mac, they don’t then appear on the first Mac. BTW, we are not working on the file at the same time and we make sure the file is fully saved before it’s opened by a different user/Mac.
I can’t believe I’m the only person who’d like to work collaboratively on a RW website. Am I missing something? Is there a better way, or, since this is how we want to be able to work going forward, are we going to have to jump ship to fully web based website creator?
Unfortunately, Rapidweaver isn’t designed to be a “collaborative” builder. Yes people have found ways over the years to share project files on 2 or more Macs (using Dropbox and stuff like that), but in the end, this type of issue always seems to pop up. You could really be in a bind if 2 or more people are working on the same RapidWeaver project at the same time, something that happened to me once, and really messed stuff up. Good thing for backups!
Really the only way to do this, is to use one of the many RapidWeaver CMS’s - do the tinkering through one of those. A lot of choices, including Armadillo, Poster, Total CMS, Pulse, WebYep, GO CMS, and at least half a dozen others. No shortage of choices!
I don’t know your setup and Im no pro, but when I upload to my server, RW also uploads a backup project file (the option to do so is in the Publishing settings) which can be downloaded as needed by both of you. If you warehouse all your images, banner images, video, etc these will show for both of you. I use Instacks Repo stack for my server side warehoused content and images and link everything back to my project.
Does this help ??
Otherwise its a CMS solution. But this is a simple way to do it.
Thanks, will have a look at this at a possible workround. Thought it was all going well with Foundry but now count that some of the features aren’t working on the second Mac.
This method works with any theme including Foundry, but you both need to have the same stacks addons in order to be able to edit the project file. Only one of you needs to have the RepoStack as it resides on the server. Then upload all of your images, files, media etc into it and organise it as you want. What I like with Repo, is that both of you can access it via your web browser to upload and manage your online/server content. Also its handy for linking images etc, (simple click the link option and its copied ready to be pasted into your project. Its very easy and simple.
What is left then is to be sure you edit the latest online version of the project. This can be set in Publishing settings
I know nothing is fool proof and in the electronic world of digits, things will always happen. But this is an uncomplicated, basic starting point.
I have one project flle that goes back and forth between myself and another person. I had continual missing image problems until I discovered the Site Resources “copy into the document” setting as teeters explains above. That setting will likely resolve your problem if the project file is Zipped before it goes into dropbox (on both ends). For collaborative projects, I would try to use image “warehousing” as much as possible. Additionally, we try to do updates (RW and stacks) in unison so we both always have the exact same version RW and add ons.
Hi, I have 3 workstations, in three different places: 1 iMac 2010, 1 mac air 2012, 1 macbook pro 2019.
I created in iCloud a folder “sites” where with subfolders I keep all the RW files, always in iCloud, I put the Stacks, Themes and Plugins in another iCloud folder calling it “RapidWeaver”, then from RW preferences I put the address of this folder in “Addons location”.
In every created RW file I set in “Advanced” -> Site Resources -> Copy into the document.
Once the file was saved in the subfolder, with the name of the site created, of the Sites folder in icloud, I created a folder called “resources” where I save the original jpg, svg, png, font etc.
Basically everything is saved in iCloud.
Now, anywhere I open the RW file, just set it in the RW Addons location application (iCloud “RapidWeaver” folder, as I did with the macbook pro) and everything works perfectly.
Any change made on a mac, just give it a bit of time, just a couple of minutes, that opening it with another mac you can see the change.
The images are either embedded in the RW file or located in the “resources” folder that I created in icloud, they are always read and the RW file updated to the last modification.
The only thing to do in case you open the RW file with a new Mac (with RW just installed) is to reinsert the RW serials and the RW plugins serials you have purchased.
It’s looking as though co-working on RW is not what it was designed for. Which is a shame - and is maybe something realm could think about for RW9.0. It sounds as though it’s workable if you both you and your co-worker follow the protocol…
Thanks - some great tips here. I may do this for another project that I often need to tinker with when I’m on the road (actually, away in my camper…).
As for this particular project, I think we are going down a more segregated workflow approach. My co-worker will prepare content as markdown, which I will then paste into cloned RW pages. He will also prepare all the images (we’re using Nick Cates’ amazing Superflex ‘remote’ stack) and just upload them with Transmit. Probably the safest way for us. Page looks like this: https://www.greenercamping.org/campsites/uk/wales/south-wales/pembrokeshire/st-davids/002-typarke. We have 49 of them to do. Big thanks everyone.
