Using schema.org or RDFa microformatting with Wordpress? - wordpress

Wordpress tends to strip out all kinds of code in VISUAL mode, including microformatting. The current WP (3.2.1) seems beyond compatibility with earlier widgets, including wp-RDFa (which I thought showed promise). As discussed in [this Google group post]https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/schemaorg-discussion/E72kDkuguk4/discussion, clients often need to use VISUAL, thus the problem in using any kind of microformatting with Wordpress. Yet we want to start using microformats of some kind. (Damn you wordpress!)
Suggestions please?

Still early days for this plugin, but give it a try...
http://schemaforwordpress.com/

Related

Should we still use the media_upload_tabs filter to add tabs in the Media Manager after WordPress 3.5?

Since WordPress 3.5, the old media manager filter (media_upload_tabs) is still working, however the UI has moved away from the ThickBox used before.
I haven't been able to find any information that suggests a new approach to add tabs and I wonder if WordPress is going to stick to the old way of adding tabs, or switch to the new way in future.
Does anyone have any insight into the best way to add tabs to the Media Manager?
Unfortunately it's very difficult to predict whether or not someone will make changes in WordPress, as an Open Source project you yourself could make that decision, contribute code and have the outcome you desire to some extent.
Fundamentally however the old adage 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' applies here.
It is hard to know from your question exactly what you are trying to do but there is a lot of criticism by the community as the Media Manager is now very dependent on jQuery and JavaScript and so you may have trouble implementing your functionality in the old way.

WP Plugins won't coexist

I am using these 2 plugins:
HTML Page Sitemap
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/html-sitemap/installation/
SyntaxHighlighter Evolved
http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/syntaxhighlighter/
When activating SyntaxHighlighter, HTML Page Sitemap won't render anymore (no output created).
Any idea as to why this may happen?
It's weird because I'd assume these aren't really playing in the same space...
Help is appreciated!
Have a good day!
Wordpress being a wide open playing ground for any number of programmers, beginners and experts alike, can lead to conflicts in a huge number of ways.
My best guess, without looking into the anatomy of each plugin you listed, would be that they are using some common element. Like, for example, a common function name or a common DOM element ID in output.
If the plugin is active, it can be called on every page load. It all depends on who wrote the plugin. You should crack them both open and do some inside investigation.

Seeking opinions on the best CMS platform for designers and front end developers

I have so far been a dedicated Wordpress user, but have been researching other CMS solutions of late, specifically, looking for something that could potentially allow me to EASILY convert an XHTML site into a CMS site for most projects.
I don't care for PHP - and find adding the appropriate tags to Wordpress a bit of a challenge. I am building fairly simple sites and simple blogs - I don't need a lot of extensibility.
I have heard good things about ModX and Textpattern and have today installed them on a localhost and started playing with them. Each has a bit of a learning curve, but I like what I see in terms of their tag codes (which looks a lot more like html than php).
I'd like to design websites where most pages are distinct from one another and don't necessarily have to fit into a template. I am looking for an automagical solution where I can directly input my html, css, javascript code into a CMS platform and it spits out my website exactly as I'd imagined it. Is this just a dream?
With so many solutions out there, just wondering about other web designer's and non-hardcore developers preferences?
I guess it's like asking if ipod or blackberry or n900 or htc etc.
While there are vast differences in how it works under the hood, for the most part you can expect about the same functionality, and it comes down to the provider and a particular feature you prefer in one over the other. In this case instead of your carrier you need to worry about you host, whether they offer the php version required aand the database you need etc. But for most part, you should be fine.
Modx Evo requirements : http://modxcms.com/learn/general-requirements.html
Modx Revo requires: http://rtfm.modx.com/display/revolution20/Server+Requirements
TextPattern requirements: http://textpattern.com/about/119/system-requirements
I find this an important thing to start with, while my server can handle either, you never know what server your clients are running(there still are some old configurations out there)
I haven't used Revo much yet, but it looks like there are quite a few really nice enhancements. One of them is installing packages. Previously you have to create TVs snippets chunks, so installing a package wasn't always so straight forward.
Modx Evo however has the import html feature, where you can load put your html site in a folder set the tag that holds the content, and modx will automatically create and fill the resources(pages), pretty nifty, but I've only used it to see what it does :)
Modx lets you get away with not knowing any php, but as your requirements change, you might find yourself needing an extra feature of script that is easy to add. I've found that using modx for the past 2 years or so has vastly improved my php abilities because of these additional functions required.
While I haven't worked with textpattern much I do remember installing it and playing around, but it just wasn't love at first sight, like with modx.
I also think modx is pretty easy for clients to navigate with some minimal coaching, but that is more of a comparison with joomla and drupal etc.
Bottom line, I think few people have spent enough time with both to REALLY understand both in terms of differences/advantages and mostly what you'll get is "the one I use is better; evidence being me using it" (myself included) or worse yet "I see you're mentioning CMSes, here's my favorite one"
To wrap up, one more important aspect (and this one is really important if you don't know your way around backends and php much) the community. If you run into problems, how likely is the modx vs textpattern forum.community willing to help. A good indication is community size. While I can't see the numbers for textpattern, currently modx forums show "255 Guests, 46 Users (3 Hidden)"
good luck
If you're comfortable with HTML then Textpattern's method of adding markup like tags into templates for content will probably be relatively straightforward for you to pick-up. The biggest issue most people seem to have in understanding Textpattern is its semantic model, there's a great page on the semantic model on Textpattern's Textbook site that should help.
I'm a big fan of Textpattern for building simple but powerful small to medium sites that do not require complicated user groups. It's quick to build well designed sites and the admin interface is really simple.
The Textpattern community is extremely friendly and helpful if you ever need help. Best place to ask things is on the Textpattern Forum.
You may want to consider sNews CMS in addition to MODx/Textpattern. It is quite minimalistic
PHP code is single file (excluding language translations).
You need to import one SQL script on phpMyAdmin and you are set.
After that its only styling and content.

How can I improve working with Drupal?

For about a year and a half I used Codeigniter to build my sites. Then a client begged me to build theirs in Wordpress. I soon found the joy of using a CMS (if Wordpress can be called that). So for about the last 8 months I have been using Wordpress as much as possible to buld my sites - I made the content fit the design.
Well, I began to grow very tired of the limitations of Wordpress - I needed more control and flexibility over my sites. So, I have recently started using Drupal 7 (not 6.x - I really like the admin panel).
After working with Drupal now for a little under two months - I have begun to feel like I'm using Stone Age Tools to build Space Age equipment.
So my question is: does Drupal get any better? Do you really have to use Views to display your content? Asking for help on the forums is just a shake better than asking a wall. I feel like to do anything requires a module. Why? Is one better off sticking to a framework?
"After working with Drupal now for a little under two months - I have begun to feel like I'm using Stone Age Tools to build Space Age equipment."
Well, my intiial reaction is that this is what you're going to feel like you're doing when you're working with Drupal 7, which isn't out of alpha yet. A good number of the folks who maintain modules haven't started upgrading to 7 yet, and that means that you're missing out on one of the great features of Drupal, which is it's wide and deep space of premade modules.
Try 6.
Do you need to use views to display all content? No, not at all. You can go in, create a new module, and write the sql and presentation that you want. Or you can find a module that will display things for you. Or, depending, you might be able to get the effect you want just by adjusting the theme you're using.
(As a side note, using an admin theme really pretties up the Drupal experience. I'm fond of rootcandy, although Rubik is nice too. Problem with Rubik is that it's not on drupal.org.)
The strength of Drupal is that by using modules, you don't have to re-write code that someone else has written - you can instead take that code and modify it (with hooks) to do what you want. This means you don't have to write an authentication/autherization system again - it's there in core. You don't need to write up openid handlers - it's in core. You don't need to write code to integrate with twitter directly - there's a module that contains an api that helps out. You don't have to write an xmlrpc server from scratch - you can use the services module.
You don't need to write a website from scratch. Instead, you can start with Drupal, add most of the functionality you need, and then spend your time making it fit what your client wants.
Firstly, you can install the Admin module to pretty up Drupal 6 admin. You don't have to use 7. 7 is still in alpha, by the way. Garland sucks, but, Garland is just a theme- its not 'the' admin itself. The Drupal admin can take the form of any Drupal theme, which is useful in its own right, depending on the use-case.
In Drupal, you can create content types clicking through the interface in Drupal 6 or 7. As far as I can see in WP3, you have to script it. A few clicks vs scripting, the choice for me is not hard there. The first way is a lot more efficient, and a task you can hand off to a non coder to get done.
You don't HAVE to use Views to display content.
You -can- use Views to make the display of content easier, by telling Drupal to gather data and provide a Page, Block, or Feed to display . This lets you create specific sections of content for areas of the site. Otherwise, you would have to create a node, and hijack its template, run a direct sql query yourself AND write the pager functions just to show something easy like the latest 10 "Press Releases" content type. Then, if someone added a new field to that content type, you have to update all that SQL code and display code. Views makes your life easier in that respect. In minutes you can flesh out site sections and arrange content in a myriad of ways. In Wordpress, this method of arranging content without functionality of Views is/was a modern nightmare and a reason I do not want to use it at all unless its a blog and nothing more.
The Drupal Support Forum is tricky. Not all modules are as active as say, Views or Pathauto (being two of the most popular modules). However, SO is also at your disposal. I answer a lot of Drupal questions here. The trick to the Forum there is you have to ask it in the right spot. True, sometimes you may have to wait a few days to get an answer, then again no one -owes- you an answer for a free product. Thats the nature of open source.
Every developer has their favorite modules to use with Drupal, and more often than not, its the same 20 or so modules. It depends on what you are doing, what you are trying to implement. It's not that 'everything needs a module' its that Drupal is such a vanilla install because Drupal does not want to assume your purpose nor overwhelm with options. The UX is something they are trying to improve anyway, and popular modules are making their way into core.
Well, I began to grow very tired of
the limitations of Wordpress - I
needed more control and flexibility
over my sites. So... I have recently
started using Drupal 7
Why not go back to CI? Drupal certainly has it's strengths, but I don't think Drupal will give you any more "control and flexibility" than Wordpress.
If the standard modules/plugins, themes/templates, from WP, Drupal, or Joomla, fill your needs, then using a CMS can be a lot faster than building a site from scratch. But, if those CMSs do not fill your needs, you could find yourself "fighting the framework" and never really getting what you want.
You're just coming out from WordPress, which has great support and is relatively easy to extend to overcome what you call its limitations, if you know basic PHP, HTML, CSS & JavaScript. Every framework has its own potential/limitations.
As a user of WordPress my humble opinion is that you should have stayed with it.
As of you last question, It depends, to stick with one and only one framework has its advantages and disadvantages, the best of all is that you get to know it very well and eventually learn how to extended it. The bad part is that very often frameworks lose popularity and you are left to you own without an active user community and support.
Regards.
All of the popular CMS products (I'd maybe add Expression Engine to the mix) are great for 80% of what you want to accomplish and a huge pain to handle the other 20%.
That's just the nature of the beast.
On the plus side, it's OS so there's lots of people hacking away at it just like you which opens up the potential for someone else already having invented the wheel.
And with bulky enterprise CM solutions like SharePoint I find that you have to reverse the equation to 20/80 (ugh!).
If you're discouraged with Drupal and prefer to stick with WP, WordPress has many thousands of plugins, including ones that can overcome the limitations you're running into and make WP behave more like a normal CMS.
Just do a Google search for "top Wordpress CMS plugins." There's a lot of articles out there that can recommend ways to get WP to do exactly what you want.

Selectively allow unsafe html tags in Plone

I'm searching for a way to put widgets from several services (PicasaWeb, Yahoo Pipes, Delicious bookmarks, etc.) on the community site I host on Plone (currently 3.2.1). I'm looking for a way to allow a group of users to use dangerous html tags.
There are some ways I see, but I don't know how to implement those. One would be changing safe_html for the pages editors own (1). Another would be to allow those tags on some subtree (2). And yet another finding an equivalent of "static text portlet" that would display in the middle panel (3). We could then use some of the composite products (I stumbled upon Collage and CMFContentPanels), to include the unsafe content on other sites.
My site has been ridden by advert bots, so I don't want to remove the filtering all together. I don't have an easy (no false positives) way of checking which users are bots, so deploying captcha now wouldn't help either.
The question is: How to implement any of those solutions?
(I already asked that on plone mailing list without an answer, so I thought I would give it another try here.)
Solution (3):
Use TAL portlet to add non-filtered HTML/JS snippets
Use ContentWellPortlets to show these portlets above or below your content.
I haven't used Plone 3.2 but there were some tools in the root directory of the Plone site when using the ZMI that allowed this. I can't remember if it was in "portal_transforms" or not, but I think so. It allows you to specify what tags in the HTML are allowed. I don't remember if it was something that you could control using the security settings (e.g. role based) or whether it was just a site wide setting.
Sorry for the vagueness but I just figured since you haven't gotten an answer that I'd tell you what I knew (little as that may be).
In Plone Site Setup there is a configlet for HTML Filtering. That may be useful.
PS: SO makes it so hard to help if your points is less than 125. May be I will just stick to the plone users mailing list.
PPS: That should make the answer "more complete"

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