[horde] intro & horde version questions

[Hans Lellelid]

Hi --

I wanted first off to introduce myself.  I'm interested in helping out 
with Horde framework development.  I have been studying and working with 
a few of the application architectures out there -- and have been very 
keen on Horde (and have always felt humbled by the fine code that makes 
up this package).  I've also been managing / lead developer for PHlexDB 
(phlexdb.org), a PHP/MySQL content management framework; PHlexDB doesn't 
have any direct application to Horde, I don't think, since its strenght 
lies at the SQL-level (building queries, etc.) and Horde seems to be 
very much datastore independent (which I think is a huge asset).  That 
said, I'm interested down the road in working on Giapeto, or an 
unrelated CMF/CMS solution for Horde.

Most immediately, I am looking to use Horde in a re-architecting of a 
fairly large private-messaging and discussions application.  I don't 
think that any of the existing modules will meet my needs -- but I think 
the framework would provide lots of time-saving benefits.  I'm trying to 
figure out which version of Horde I should use.  I see a pretty big 
discrepancy between Horde 2.1 and the CVS repository.  Frankly, I really 
like some of the stuff that has been added to CVS, but am not sure how 
well the CVS version works (or how much it will change, etc.).  I feel, 
however, that I could provide help with the Horde framework development 
if I were using the latest version.

My main concern is choosing a platform that will give me the greatest 
Permissions and Auth flexibilty.  I need to implement a hybrid Role and 
Identity-based permission system that is fairly complex.  The 
authentication will be against a SQL db, but I need the ability to have 
multi-part authentication (e.g. IP addr & username/password, etc.). 
 Additionally, there will be several modules [horde applicaitons?] 
(private messaging, and discussions to start) that all need to share 
this common auth/permissions framework.  Does the newer Horde provide 
significant advantages for complex auth/perm work? (I notice the Share 
class which seems like it might be very useful.)

Also, are there developer / theory docs for the new code?  I've read 
most (all?) of the presentations in /papers but still feel pretty low on 
the learning curve.

Thanks!
Hans
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