• OpenID is complex, limited and hard to use for users
• Facebook / Twitter / Myspace / Google / MS-LiveId / AOL connections require different libraries and knowledge
• Multiple heterogeneous providers are hard to map to a single user

• Use RPX for universal and usable user login
• Use view/controller helpers for easy integration

• Get an API key @ RPX
• run MIGRATION
• Build login view
• Communicate with RPX API in controller to create or login User
• for more advanced features have a look at the RPX API Docs

• As Rails plugin: script/plugin install git://github.com/grosser/rpx_now.git
• As gem: sudo gem install rpx_now

Example application, go play around!

#'mywebsite' is your subdomain/realm on RPX
<%=RPXNow.embed_code('mywebsite', url_for(:controller=>:session, :action=>:rpx_token, :only_path => false))%>
OR
<%=RPXNow.popup_code('Login here...', 'mywebsite', url_for(:controller=>:session, :action=>:rpx_token, :only_path => false), options)%>

###Options :language=>'en' rpx tries to detect the users language, but you may overwrite it possible languages
:default_provider=>'google' possible default providers
:flags=>'show_provider_list' possible flags

###Unobtrusive / JS-last popup_code can also be called with :unobtrusive=>true ( --> just link without javascript include).
To still get the normal popup add RPXNow.popup_source('mywebsite', url_for(:controller=>:session, :action=>:rpx_token, :only_path => false), [options]).
Options like :language / :flags should be given for both.

Rails::Initializer.run do |config|
  config.gem "rpx_now"
  ...

  config.after_initialize do # so rake gems:install works
    RPXNow.api_key = "YOU RPX API KEY"
  end
end

skip_before_filter :verify_authenticity_token, :only => [:rpx_token] # RPX does not pass Rails form tokens...

# user_data
# found: {:name=>'John Doe', :username => 'john', :email=>'john@doe.com', :identifier=>'blug.google.com/openid/dsdfsdfs3f3'}
# not found: nil (can happen with e.g. invalid tokens)
def rpx_token
  raise "hackers?" unless data = RPXNow.user_data(params[:token])
  self.current_user = User.find_by_identifier(data[:identifier]) || User.create!(data)
  redirect_to '/'
end

# getting additional fields (these fields are rarely filled)
# all possibilities: https://rpxnow.com/docs#profile_data
data = RPXNow.user_data(params[:token], :additional => [:gender, :birthday, :photo, :providerName, ...])

# including raw profile data
RPXNow.user_data(params[:token], :additional => [:raw])[:raw]['verifiedEmail']

# raw request processing
RPXNow.user_data(params[:token]){|raw| {:email=>raw['profile']['verifiedEmail']} }

# raw request with extended parameters (most users and APIs do not supply them)
RPXNow.user_data(params[:token], :extended=>'true'){|raw| ...have a look at the RPX API DOCS...}

RPXNow.api_version = 2

You can map your primary keys (e.g. user.id) to identifiers, so that
users can login to the same account with multiple identifiers. RPXNow.map(identifier, primary_key) #add a mapping RPXNow.unmap(identifier, primary_key) #remove a mapping RPXNow.mappings(primary_key) # [identifier1,identifier2,...] RPXNow.all_mappings # [["1",['google.com/dsdas','yahoo.com/asdas']], ["2",[...]], ... ]

After a primary key is mapped to an identifier, when a user logs in with this identifier,
RPXNow.user_data will contain his primaryKey as :id.
A identifyer can only belong to one user (in doubt the last one it was mapped to)

class User < ActiveRecord::Base
  include RPXNow::UserIntegration
end

user.rpx.identifiers == RPXNow.mappings(user.id)
user.rpx.map(identifier) == RPXNow.map(identifier, user.id)
user.rpx.unmap(identifier) == RPXNow.unmap(identifier, user.id)

Retrieve all contacts for a given user: RPXNow.contacts(identifier).each {|c| puts "#{c['displayName']}: #{c['emails']}}

Send a status update to provider (a tweet/facebook-status/...) : RPXNow.set_status(identifier, "I just registered at yourdomain.com ...")

Post a users activity, on their e.g. Facebook profile, complete with images, titels, rating, additional media, customized links and so on ... RPXNow.activity( identifier, :url=>href, :action=>'Im loving my new', :user_generated_content=>'Im loving my new ... ', :title=>product.title, :description=>product.description, :action_links=>[{:text=>'view >>', :href=>product_url(product, :only_path => false)}], :media=>[{:type=>:image, :src=>product.image_url, :href=>product_url(product, :only_path => false)}] }

• add provider / credentials helpers ?

rpx_now_gem mailing list

###Contributors

• Amunds
• Bob Groeneveld
• DBA
• dbalatero
• Paul Gallagher
• jackdempsey
• Patrick Reagan (reagent)
• Joris Trooster (trooster)
• Mick Staugaard (staugaard)
• Kasper Weibel

Michael Grosser
grosser.michael@gmail.com
Hereby placed under public domain, do what you want, just do not hold me accountable...