How to separate categories with a comma only when appropriate

michaelkpate · 2011-06-11 19:21:33

The problem for me was that if I had two categories in a post I wanted them separated with a comma:

Filed under category1, category2

but if there were only one category, I wanted the comma omitted.

Filed under category1

I have been mulling this one over for a while, and since I couldn’t find a solution, I thought I would make a post. smd_if really made this simple, and as a bonus, if neither category is set, Filed under doesn’t even appear. The downside is that it doesn’t take into account if category2 is the only one set, but I decided that was a bad practice and I didn’t feel like writing extra code to support it. You can see examples of all three possibilities.

<txp:smd_if field="category1" operator="isused">

	<txp:smd_if field="category2" operator="isused">

		<txp:variable name="categories" value='<txp:category1 link="1" title="1" />, <txp:category2 link="1" title="1" />' />

	<txp:else />

		<txp:variable name="categories" value='<txp:category1 link="1" title="1" />' />

	</txp:smd_if>

</txp:smd_if>

<p class="post-info">
	Posted by <txp:author link="1" />
	<txp:smd_if field="txpvar:categories" operator="isused">
		 | Filed under <txp:variable name="categories" />
	</txp:smd_if>
</p>

hcgtv · 2011-06-11 19:48:55

Michael, you can do this also:

<a href="<txp:site_url />category/<txp:category1 />/"><txp:category1 /></a>
<txp:if_article_category number="2">, <a href="<txp:site_url />category/<txp:category2 />/"><txp:category2 /></a></txp:if_article_category>

jakob · 2011-06-11 22:01:01

I’ve not tested it, but in theory this should work too with whichever category is marked:

<txp:variable name="numcats" value='<txp:if_article_category number="1">-</txp:if_article_category /><txp:if_article_category number="2">-</txp:if_article_category />' />

<p class="post-info">
	Posted by <txp:author link="1" />
	<txp:if_variable name="numcats" value="">
	<txp:else />
		 | Filed under <txp:category1 link="1" title="1" /><txp:if_variable name="numcats" value="--">, </txp:if_variable><txp:category2 link="1" title="1" />	
	</txp:if_variable>
</p>

Uses one assumption and a trick:

Assumption: txp:category1 / txp:category2 outputs nothing if no category is specified, so you get either one or the other if only one is set
Trick: You only show the comma if you know there are two categories to separate. The variable outputs a dash per category, so if that is the case the variable should have two dashes.

If it works, you can, of course, integrate the same assumption into your code…

els · 2011-06-11 22:22:35

Hey, that’s a nice one, Jakob! I’d love to see this become part of the default article form, this question has been asked countless times.

michaelkpate · 2011-06-12 01:44:33

As cool as smd_if is, I really prefer plugin-free solutions and now there are 2 to choose from. Thanks, guys. I was hoping posting that would get some feedback, but I didn’t expect quite this much.

Els wrote:

I’d love to see this become part of the default article form, this question has been asked countless times.

I completely agree. This is the sort of thing people would naturally expect to be able to do, but it isn’t particularly obvious. Quoting myself:

I don’t know that the default template has to be the be-all end-all, but I actually do think something that really shows off what the templating system can do and would actively work as a teaching tool might be a good choice.

Slightly addition: I can’t find countless times, but after looking some more, I did find one.

Last edited by michaelkpate (2011-06-12 01:51:13)

els · 2011-06-12 11:44:51

michaelkpate wrote:

Slightly addition: I can’t find countless times, but after looking some more, I did find one.

The countless times must be in my memory then ;) but there are some more.

hcgtv · 2011-06-12 15:16:59

Els wrote:

The countless times must be in my memory then ;) but there are some more.

Ah, this forum, a wealth of information.

michaelkpate · 2011-06-12 15:24:59

I don’t mind using Google for a search function – it is just a matter of guessing what keywords people use. My first thought was categories comma – most of the hits use those keywords, but have nothing to do with my original question.

The problem isn’t technology as much as psychology. :)

hcgtv · 2011-06-12 15:50:23

michaelkpate wrote:

The problem isn’t technology as much as psychology. :)

Yeah, it’s like mind reading ;)

I just want to bring up a point Stuart has said on this forum, that template tags allow you to do quite a bit, and you should exercise them before reaching for a plugin. I totally agree with him and I think he has this approach from years of creating templates.

When you create a template for mass consumption, you take a different approach than a designer would take to create a website for a client. A designer might be time constricted, where creating a template is a hobby of sorts and you can take your time and experiment.

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#1 2011-06-11 19:21:33

How to separate categories with a comma only when appropriate

#2 2011-06-11 19:48:55

Re: How to separate categories with a comma only when appropriate

#3 2011-06-11 22:01:01

Re: How to separate categories with a comma only when appropriate

#4 2011-06-11 22:22:35

Re: How to separate categories with a comma only when appropriate

#5 2011-06-12 01:44:33

Re: How to separate categories with a comma only when appropriate

#6 2011-06-12 11:44:51

Re: How to separate categories with a comma only when appropriate

#7 2011-06-12 15:16:59

Re: How to separate categories with a comma only when appropriate

#8 2011-06-12 15:24:59

Re: How to separate categories with a comma only when appropriate

#9 2011-06-12 15:50:23

Re: How to separate categories with a comma only when appropriate

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