admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

Skubidu · 2006-08-22 18:49:23

Since my very first web project with Textpattern the order of the textareas for the body and the excerpt confused me. I usually use the excerpt as the first introductive paragraph of an article. The body itself does not repeat the content of the excerpt. It’s a usage very similar to newspapers, where the first paragraph is used as abstract of the article. In article lists, I usualy just use the excerpt and link to the full article with excerpt and body text.

By now the order of textareas in the admin interface looks like this:

[title]
[body]
[excerpt]

The way I use bodies and excerpts the following order would fit more:

[title]
[excerpt]
[body]

Would it be possible to create an admin preference to customize the order of these textareas? Something like:

Show body before excerpt?   [x] yes  [ ] no

steventer · 2006-08-22 19:04:31

This is one of the things I find most irritating about TXP in my day-to-day use. It just makes sense to start with a title, enter the excerpt and then move on to the body of the article.

vittorio · 2007-09-17 17:40:25

Has anybody found a solution to this issue? I would really appreciate it. A hack too could be useful…
Thanks

ruud · 2007-09-17 17:52:07

Either edit the textpattern.css stylesheet to reposition the textareas (not sure exactly how, but I think it’s possible) or write a admin side plugin that uses javascript to swap the textareas or (but this is not recommended) hack /textpattern/include/txp_article.php and swap it there.

colak · 2007-09-17 18:05:36

I find that the title>body>excerpt order is more logical as, semantically thinking, without the body there can be no excerpt.

iblastoff · 2007-09-18 01:18:13

BACK UP YOUR OLD TXP_ARTICLE.PHP! this is for textpattern 4.0.5

hacked txp_article.php

shuffles around the Write area like so:

[title]
[excerpt]
[body]

played around and did it with css but it messes up the tab indexes since they’re hardcoded in. so heres a hacked txp_article.php that shuffles around the Write area and preserves the tab indexing (had to add some inline styles in order to push down the text/preview/html tabs)

Last edited by iblastoff (2007-09-18 01:24:10)

vittorio · 2007-11-03 15:21:14

iblastoff wrote:

BACK UP YOUR OLD TXP_ARTICLE.PHP! this is for textpattern 4.0.5

hacked txp_article.php

shuffles around the Write area like so:

[title]
[excerpt]
[body]

played around and did it with css but it messes up the tab indexes since they’re hardcoded in. so heres a hacked txp_article.php that shuffles around the Write area and preserves the tab indexing (had to add some inline styles in order to push down the text/preview/html tabs)

Thank you iblastoff,
I am currently using your hacked txp_article.php on my site, and I must say i prefer it. Good job!

@Colak:
Yes, the classical order is more logical, semantically speaking. But, i find more useful this inverted order, as normally excerpts contain something that has to be read before the body (even though it’s been written after), like the first paragraph/s of the article, an intro, etc. This way, it’s easier to read/edit the whole post in the admin, as the first part (excerpt) comes before the second (body).

Last edited by vittorio (2007-11-03 15:31:16)

Sono Juventino · 2007-12-25 23:53:08

I agree with you, vittorio. Thank you very much, iblastoff. Nice plugin.

And btw. Il Bianconeri per sempre.

Last edited by Sono Juventino (2007-12-25 23:53:44)

iblastoff · 2007-12-26 02:28:25

that wasn’t a plugin but just a simple hack to a core file. a plugin would be preferred (so core files wouldn’t have to be altered) but i can’t be arsed to write one for this :P

Sono Juventino · 2007-12-26 03:05:29

Ofc not. If something works, why fix it? ;)

Sono Juventino · 2008-03-16 18:03:42

Does this still work on 4.0.6?

vittorio · 2008-03-17 01:19:34

Sono Juventino wrote:

Does this still work on 4.0.6?

yes it does. but backup the original files, just in case… ;)

jakob · 2008-03-17 08:59:07

that’s the hack, right? The principle will work the same way in 4.06 but there are sure to have been other changes to the file that will go missing if you simply swap the 4.06 file with an older hacked file from 4.05.

The best way would be to compare the hacked txp_article.php from steve with the backup from 4.05 to discern what changes have been made. Then open up a copy of txp:article.php from 4.06 and carefully make the same changes to that file.

It should be pretty simple – I’m sure steve just rearranged the block of code beginning //-- excerpt -------------------- to be in front of //-- body -------------------- instead of behind it.

the1design.cn · 2008-11-29 12:02:25

sorry,i post wrong

Last edited by the1design.cn (2008-11-29 12:10:48)

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#1 2006-08-22 18:49:23

admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

#2 2006-08-22 19:04:31

Re: admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

#3 2007-09-17 17:40:25

Re: admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

#4 2007-09-17 17:52:07

Re: admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

#5 2007-09-17 18:05:36

Re: admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

#6 2007-09-18 01:18:13

Re: admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

#7 2007-11-03 15:21:14

Re: admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

#8 2007-12-25 23:53:08

Re: admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

#9 2007-12-26 02:28:25

Re: admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

#10 2007-12-26 03:05:29

Re: admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

#11 2008-03-16 18:03:42

Re: admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

#12 2008-03-17 01:19:34

Re: admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

#13 2008-03-17 08:59:07

Re: admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

#14 2008-11-29 12:02:25

Re: admin interface: changeable order of body and excerpt textareas?

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