# How to create an app plugin?

**URL:** <https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/how-to-create-an-app-plugin/91985>\
**Category:** Rails\
**Created:** [April 14, 2007, 12:18am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/how-to-create-an-app-plugin/91985 "2007-04-14T00:18:30Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![sbusso](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@sbusso](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/sbusso)\
**Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 12:18am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/how-to-create-an-app-plugin/91985/1 "2007-04-14T00:18:30Z")

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Hi all,

I would like to create a ‘piece’ of application, a poll system, and  
want  
to make it as a plugin.

I found many information about plugins, most about mixin and extending  
core, but not so much for making plugin with controllers and views.

First, Do I think the wrong way with plugin ?

Then I found the following on techno weenie:

for your model :

```
models_path = File.join(directory, 'app', 'models')
$LOAD_PATH << models_path
Dependencies.load_paths << models_path

```

for the controllers it’s quite the same:

```
controller_path = File.join(directory, 'app', 'controllers')
$LOAD_PATH << controller_path
Dependencies.load_paths << controller_path
config.controller_paths << controller_path

```

And finally to include views, you should integrate in your controller:

```
self.template_root = File.join(File.dirname( __FILE__ ), '..',

```

‘views’)

Is it a good practise ? Is it the good way to share a piece of  
application?

And other questions come to my mind:

```
* How standardize the way of communicate between application and

```

plugin ?  
\* In the same topic, I have 2 parts in the plugin, one for admin  
and  
one for front user, How should I do to easily provide a plugin knowing  
every application have a different way to authorize or authenticate  
users?

Please feel free to share any knowledge on these subjects 🙂

–  
Stephane  
[http://www.rubynaut.net](http://www.rubynaut.net)

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![sbusso](https://www.ruby-forum.com/letter_avatar_proxy/v4/letter/s/cc9497/32.png) [@sbusso](https://www.ruby-forum.com/u/sbusso)\
**Post date:** [April 14, 2007, 12:34am UTC](https://www.ruby-forum.com/t/how-to-create-an-app-plugin/91985/2 "2007-04-14T00:34:31Z")

</div>

Engines ([http://rails-engines.org/](http://rails-engines.org/)) are typically the way to go to  
share complete MVC slices among applications.

–  
Building an e-commerce site with Rails?  
[http://agilewebdevelopment.com/rails-ecommerce](http://agilewebdevelopment.com/rails-ecommerce)

Meet up at RailsConf:  
[http://railsconf2007.conferencemeetup.com/](http://railsconf2007.conferencemeetup.com/)