📖 XOOPS Glossary¶

Comprehensive glossary of XOOPS-specific terminology and concepts.

A¶

Admin Framework¶

The standardized administrative interface framework introduced in XOOPS 2.3, providing consistent admin pages across modules.

Autoloading¶

The automatic loading of PHP classes when they are needed, using PSR-4 standard in modern XOOPS.

B¶

Block¶

A self-contained content unit that can be positioned in theme regions. Blocks can display module content, custom HTML, or dynamic data.

// Block definition
$modversion['blocks'][] = [
    'file'      => 'myblock.php',
    'name'      => 'My Block',
    'show_func' => 'mymodule_block_show'
];

Bootstrap¶

The process of initializing XOOPS core before executing module code, typically through mainfile.php and header.php.

C¶

Criteria / CriteriaCompo¶

Classes for building database query conditions in an object-oriented manner.

$criteria = new CriteriaCompo();
$criteria->add(new Criteria('status', 1));

CSRF (Cross-Site Request Forgery)¶

A security attack prevented in XOOPS using security tokens via XoopsFormHiddenToken.

D¶

DI (Dependency Injection)¶

A design pattern planned for XOOPS 2026 where dependencies are injected rather than created internally.

Dirname¶

The directory name of a module, used as a unique identifier throughout the system.

DTYPE (Data Type)¶

Constants defining how XoopsObject variables are stored and sanitized: - XOBJ_DTYPE_INT - Integer - XOBJ_DTYPE_TXTBOX - Text (single line) - XOBJ_DTYPE_TXTAREA - Text (multi-line) - XOBJ_DTYPE_EMAIL - Email address

E¶

Event¶

An occurrence in the XOOPS lifecycle that can trigger custom code through preloads or hooks.

F¶

Framework¶

See XMF (XOOPS Module Framework).

Form Element¶

A component of the XOOPS form system representing an HTML form field.

G¶

Group¶

A collection of users with shared permissions. Core groups include: Webmasters, Registered Users, Anonymous.

H¶

Handler¶

A class that manages CRUD operations for XoopsObject instances.

$handler = xoops_getModuleHandler('item', 'mymodule');
$item = $handler->get($id);

Helper¶

A utility class providing easy access to module handlers, configurations, and services.

$helper = \XoopsModules\MyModule\Helper::getInstance();

K¶

Kernel¶

The core XOOPS classes providing fundamental functionality: database access, user management, security, etc.

L¶

Language File¶

PHP files containing constants for internationalization, stored in language/[code]/ directories.

M¶

mainfile.php¶

The primary configuration file for XOOPS containing database credentials and path definitions.

MCP (Model-Controller-Presenter)¶

An architectural pattern similar to MVC, often used in XOOPS module development.

Middleware¶

Software that sits between the request and response, planned for XOOPS 2026 using PSR-15.

Module¶

A self-contained package that extends XOOPS functionality, installed in the modules/ directory.

MOC (Map of Content)¶

An Obsidian concept for overview notes that link to related content.

N¶

Namespace¶

PHP feature for organizing classes, used in XOOPS 2.5+:

namespace XoopsModules\MyModule;

Notification¶

The XOOPS system for alerting users about events via email or PM.

O¶

Object¶

See XoopsObject.

P¶

Permission¶

Access control managed through groups and permission handlers.

Preload¶

A class that hooks into XOOPS events, loaded automatically from preloads/ directory.

PSR (PHP Standards Recommendation)¶

Standards from PHP-FIG that XOOPS 2026 will fully implement.

R¶

Renderer¶

A class that outputs form elements or other UI components in specific formats (Bootstrap, etc.).

S¶

Smarty¶

The template engine used by XOOPS for separating presentation from logic.

<{$variable}>
<{foreach item=item from=$items}>
    <{$item.title}>
<{/foreach}>

Service¶

A class providing reusable business logic, typically accessed via the Helper.

T¶

Template¶

A Smarty file (.tpl or .html) defining the presentation layer for modules.

Theme¶

A collection of templates and assets defining the site's visual appearance.

Token¶

A security mechanism (CSRF protection) ensuring form submissions originate from legitimate sources.

U¶

uid¶

User ID - the unique identifier for each user in the system.

V¶

Variable (Var)¶

A field defined on an XoopsObject using initVar().

W¶

Widget¶

A small, self-contained UI component, similar to blocks.

X¶

XMF (XOOPS Module Framework)¶

A collection of utilities and classes for modern XOOPS module development.

XOBJ_DTYPE¶

Constants for defining variable data types in XoopsObject.

XoopsDatabase¶

The database abstraction layer providing query execution and escaping.

XoopsForm¶

The form generation system for creating HTML forms programmatically.

XoopsObject¶

The base class for all data objects in XOOPS, providing variable management and sanitization.

xoops_version.php¶

The module manifest file defining module properties, tables, blocks, templates, and configuration.

Common Acronyms¶

🔗 Related Documentation¶

• Core Concepts
• API Reference
• External Resources

xoops #glossary #reference #terminology #definitions¶