Download FAQ

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written by Robin Luckey
sep 10 2008

What is the Ohloh download service?
Who can use this?
Is this free?
How do you make money?
How do I sign up?
How do I link to my downloads from an external site?
How do I get download logs for my downloads?
How do I get help?



What is the Ohloh download service?

Ohloh is providing a download service for open source projects. The main features are:

  • built on a world-class, global storage and distribution network
  • clean UI to administer packages, releases and files
  • console upload service to simplify automated uploads
  • comprehensive access logs
  • straight-forward downloading experience for end-users
Who can use this?

Managers of any open source project on Ohloh can use this service.

Is this free?

Yes.

How do you make money?

We run discreet advertisements.

How do I sign up?

All that's required is to be a project manager. Click on "I'm a manager" on your project's Ohloh page. First applicants are automatically approved - subsequent applicants must be approved by existing managers. From there, click on "Packages & Releases".

The easiest way is to navigate to your project's desired download page and copy/paste the URL. However, ohloh has a reasonably simple download URL scheme, described below. Every path below assumes it's preceded by your project's ohloh URL (e.g.: http://www.ohloh.net/projects/).

  • /download: shows all packages in a project.
  • /download?auto=t: 'auto-everything', will show packages if more than one, if there's only one package, then it will show the files in that package's latest release.
  • /download?filename=x: will display the download page for file x, which in turns begins the actual download.
  • /download?package=x: all releases (and their files) of the of the given package.
  • /download?package=x&release=y: will show all the files in release Y of package X. The package param MAY be omitted, although it might result in a conflict if there are two releases with the same name in the given project.
  • /download?package=x&release=latest: similar to previous, however the 'latest' keyword will yield the latest release package X - unless, of course, there IS a release with that name.

How do I get download logs for my downloads?

Ohloh will update download count for individual files. However if you're interested in more detailed information, we offer 2 additional methods.

Web log access: we provide you the raw "apache-style" web logs. Follow the "Access Log" link from your project's Ohloh page.

Custom Logging: We also offer the ability for you to add your own logging to your download pages. A common scenario here is to use a javascript-based "urchin" approach. Click on "Download Options" from your project ohloh page and add your "urchin" to the "Extra Download HTML" field.

How do I get help?

You can reach us a number of ways: Ohloh Forums, email or IRC at irc.freenode.net in #ohloh.