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Custom login form (authentication) to Basecamp (using PHP, no cURL!, no OpenID)

I have been scouring the internet for the last two days and have finally come up with a custom login form (understand: one doesn’t have to go through http://mycompany.basecamphq.com/login screen) to be deployed on almost every site (even WordPress 2.8+). I was reading the Basecamp forum, browsing through their API but to no avail. There are references to certain “Stickman’s method” and masses (masses! + more + here a little) of people looking for the very same solution. How does one embed/create their own login form to Basecamp on a 3rd party (one’s own) website?!

Well I’m very proud to say I have managed to achieve it. Partly by trial and error, partly through research. I have looked at libraries/wrappers such as “Basecamp PHP API” and “HTTP class for PHP“, both have their advantages but didn’t do what I needed out-of-the-box. I have studied these guys’ code and ended with a few (< 10) lines of my own solution which currently works. 100%. Bulletproof. I say currently because I suspect it might not be intended functionality of the authentication script. But I am also hoping that by the time 37 signals (Basecamp development team) change/disable it they will either PROPERLY describe how to achieve so (using PHP, no cURL and without using OpenID – which not everybody has).

Slightly hesitant to publish the solution not to bring Basecamp’s attention to it, but since I know there are LOADS of people looking for the solution I will tell you how. All I’m after is enough (say 25+) comments here requesting the functionality. Only then I will share. Promise! :)

It is surprisingly easy, the only clue I’ll give you for now is to study the headers the login form sends and follow the redirections.

Demo will follow soon!

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8 Responses to “Custom login form (authentication) to Basecamp (using PHP, no cURL!, no OpenID)”

  1. jt says:
    24 December 2009 at 09:35

    Can we have it please :)
    I’m curious to see and eager to use on my site.

  2. David says:
    16 February 2010 at 01:46

    We would also find it useful. Please let us know when you publish it.

  3. Chris says:
    10 March 2010 at 04:31

    Let’s see it!

  4. Cheryl says:
    15 March 2010 at 22:18

    Don’t be coy! Give!

  5. Kerri says:
    20 March 2010 at 00:21

    Oh, pretty please! :)

  6. Kerri says:
    21 March 2010 at 01:38

    Psst…
    Found this last night on github, posted by 37signals themselves, and works like a charm:
    http://gist.github.com/255012

  7. seddass says:
    24 April 2010 at 14:41

    I need that solution too..

  8. James Buckley says:
    20 August 2010 at 03:07

    Yes please :)

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on Friday, 23rd October, 2009


37 Signals, authentication, basecamp, cURL, custom, form, login, openid, php, redirect


development, troubleshooting


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