Contributor access
What you can do in the catalog with and without contributor access, how to ask for it, and how an admin reviews the request.
What anyone signed in can do
You don't need contributor access to take part. Once signed in, you can:
- draft new parts in the catalog editor and new devices in the device modeler;
- use your drafts in your own projects right away;
- fork other people's entries into your namespace;
- submit your drafts for review, for an admin to publish;
- report entries, listings and model files.
What contributor access adds
Contributors can also:
- publish in their own namespace themselves, by approving their own submitted revisions, and review revisions in namespaces they maintain;
- in the device modeler, Publish a device with its model file in one step, where others see Submit for review (see Publishing);
- upload model files (GLB or STL) with their licence and credits;
- add listings: where equipment, parts and materials are sold, online or in a physical store, with prices and stock reports.
Without it, the app says so where it matters: the Model file section of the catalog editor and the Where to get it card on an entry's page point you to where you can ask.
Asking for it
- Sign in and open the catalog.
- Open the Contribute panel (on smaller screens, the Contribute tab next to Browse). It holds the Contributor access card.
- Say in a sentence or two what you would like to add, for example "models of the switches I own" or "prices from my local store". The note needs at least 10 characters.
- Select Ask for contributor access.
The card then shows your request as waiting for an admin. Meanwhile, everything in the first list above keeps working, and your drafts work in your own projects.
You can have one request waiting at a time, and send up to five a day.
How requests are reviewed
An admin reads each request in the Contributor requests card of their Pending work panel and approves or declines it.
- Approved: you are a contributor from then on. The Contribute panel goes away, and the upload and listing forms appear.
- Declined: the admin may say why. Their reply shows on your Contributor access card, and you can ask again.
Admins can also grant or take away contributor access directly. Every request and decision is recorded in the site's audit log.
Namespaces
How catalog ids work, the namespace that belongs to your handle, copying an entry into yours with credit, and maintainers.
Authoring parts
Write a catalog entry in the catalog editor, from a quick device to a full part with sockets, checks and expressions; attach model files and add listings.