Django-powered API for services & content
Currently the union is not in control of backend, leading some areas of poor UX, reliance of the CMS provider adding features 'one-day' or at cost. We've been able to improve services via 'serverless' helpers via AWS Lambda, but lack of persistent is limiting.
Falmer houses service API's to explore what can be achieved with more control.
An main rule of the services that Falmer provides while still existing as an experiment is the idea that if required services can be wound down with minimal refactoring.
- Search API proxy parsing the CMS results; next up: result curation such as pinning and filtering
- Enhanced Events Syncing MSL-managed events, enhancing them with additional features such as named venues (think: accessibility, directions) and proper categorisation and filtering.
- Image management; think tagging, collections, usage information, image server integration
- Storing structured data to be used on specific website pages where the current solution is a pain point; think staff contact page
- Enhanced Student Groups Syncing MSL-managed groups, enhancing them with additional features such as awards, types, proper categorisation and filtering.
- Management of feature flags, time sensitive changes, global changes without bundle changes; think homepage hero management, enabling/disabling site wide modals
- Forms and process for students accessing services; think creating a society
- Housing auxiliary information where current systems are inflexible; think committee members tagging their own societies
- Slack automation; auth via, report issues, log usage