New Plugin Idea. Questions to community...

net-carver · 2011-08-20 22:00:42

All

I’ve started work (theoretical at this point) on a new plugin which I’ve tentatively named sed_patterns. The basic idea behind this plugin is to fuse the package import abilities of smd_admin_themes with the scripting engine from sed_cleaner to produce a plugin that allows you to import, in a single file, an amalgam of plugins, presentation elements, prefs, js and images so that you can quickly and simply import ‘patterns’ of functionality (or just raw resources) into your sites.

The inspiration for this was triggered by some of the replies in a thread Destry started regarding common things folks to in their Txp installs. Additional inspiration has come from a post by Mannequi about website design patterns.

As an example of what might be possible with this plugin, here is one of many possible combinations of elements to give a contact form pattern…

zem_contact_reborn +
zem_contact_lang +
rvm_counter +
a form for the email address +
a form for the thank-you message +
a form to handle rvm_counter integration +
a section for the contact form (if not present already) +
a page to handle the layout of the HTML form for the contact section +
a short config dialog on import to capture the email addresses to put into the email address form.

Now, if you had sed_patterns available to you today, what patterns would you either build using it (it would export as well as import) or want to see available for it? Alternatively, if I’m barking up the wrong tree, let me know now :)

maruchan · 2011-08-21 01:08:13

Custom Application: smd_tabber, bot_everything, glz_custom_fields, rvm_if_priv…basically anything you’d need to rearrange the write tab, implement lots of custom fields, put in a dashboard, and control the workflow. Probably would include things like smd_if, smd_query, etc.

And then there are the ones I just use in every install…rah section modules, soo_if_frontpage…

I use a lot of Wareham products these days too :-)

net-carver · 2011-08-21 02:04:12

Hi Marc

that’s a pretty wide-ranging answer. Could your shotgun approach be broken down into several, more focused, reusable, pieces that might lend themselves to being packaged up as patterns?

Sure, such a plugin could be used as a mass-plugin installer, but I’m more interested in combinations of plugins and other elements, that people here use to solve web-design problems. My initial example of a contact form being one such example. I could list some others that have come to mind but I don’t wish to bias any other suggestions that might come up.

maruchan · 2011-08-21 04:59:59

Huh. Well, I’m out of ideas, love to see what other patterns emerge.

I could list some others that have come to mind but I don’t wish to bias any other suggestions that might come up.

You really should list them anyway. Expressing one’s hopes for more refined responses from the group always seems to be a good way to kill a thread ;-)

colak · 2011-08-21 08:48:52

Although I don’t think that I’ll be using it, I can see how this (possible) plugin will be very usefull to a lot of people here.

My suggestion for it is to allow users to create their own pattern(s). That is, if there is an interface in the extensions, then all they will need to do is click checkboxes of pages, forms and plugins before downloading a gzip which contains them…

Just an idea:)

net-carver · 2011-08-21 21:23:14

I got some time to work on this today. Not much to look at but it can now install some elements (plugins, pages and forms.)

Partial install of the contact form pattern

maruchan wrote:

You really should list them anyway. Expressing one’s hopes for more refined responses from the group always seems to be a good way to kill a thread ;-)

Not wanting to be a kill-thread; how about an updated version of Dale’s old tutorial on a Client Section Pattern for a start?

colak wrote:

I can see how this (possible) plugin will be very usefull to a lot of people here.

Ok, that’s partial validation for putting some time into this. Thank you, Yiannis.

My suggestion for it is to allow users to create their own pattern(s).

That is part of the idea. Not sure, yet, if it will be part of the plugin itself or if I’ll provide another tool to do it. Either way, I hope this could be an enabler for a repository of community-contributed web design patterns.

So back to the original question now — what patterns would you all want to see available?

Bloke · 2011-08-21 22:32:18

Great idea.

How about a shop / e-commerce pattern:

Install yab_shop +
Set useful defaults / strings +
Create shop section +
Create checkout section +
Set up Price custom field +
(optional / configurable?) Set up per-product CFs +
Page for the shop +
Form for article (product) list +
Form for article (product) detail +
Page for the checkout +
Stylesheet for the above +
(optional) Install smd_ipn + inject listener tag into shop Page +
Show brief instructions for adding products (i.e. using the Write tab to add product details and set the relevant CFs)

Too convoluted? Too specific? Too many dependencies? Hmmmm, this is beginning to sound like a *nix package manager ;-)

Last edited by Bloke (2011-08-21 22:33:34)

net-carver · 2011-08-21 22:55:24

Bloke wrote:

Great idea.

Cheers ears, and welcome back!

Too convoluted? Too specific? Too many dependencies? Hmmmm, this is beginning to sound like a *nix package manager ;-)

Looks good. Don’t think we’d need to get to that level of dependency tracking.

(optional) Install smd_ipn + inject listener tag into shop Page +

Not sure I like the sound of that — couldn’t smd_ipn be installed & those tags be present in the ‘Page for shop’ further up in your list? User could delete them easier than adding them. If not, and some inject is needed into existing pages/forms, then perhaps putting that in a post-auto-install manual steps would be better than making assumptions about where to inject? Perhaps some kind of marker in the shop page for injection points of optional features (???) Hmmm, optional portions (or lack thereof) will need some thought.

Thank you for the feedback Stef.

Bloke · 2011-08-21 23:52:22

net-carver wrote:

couldn’t smd_ipn be installed & those tags be present in the ‘Page for shop’ further up in your list?

Yeah, would be much easier. But if it was optional then there’d need to be some way to omit the parts you didn’t have, else there’ll be tag errors if a plugin was skipped but its tags were left in play.

perhaps putting that in a post-auto-install manual steps would be better than making assumptions about where to inject?

I like the idea of post-install options / instructions, even if it’s just a brief hunk of info displayed after the summary result sheet. In this plugin’s case it doesn’t actually matter where on the page the listener occurs because normal page flow ignores the tag: it’s only an IPN message that triggers the tag to wake up. But I agree in most other plugin cases it gets messy to figure out where to inject markup so setting the Page template up first makes sense.

optional portions (or lack thereof) will need some thought.

Aye. Wizardish behaviour — collect optional info up-front to configure what happens, build the script based on the input and then let it fly at the end — would be how I’d approach it. That was how I planned to tackle that import plugin I talked with you and Jeff about ages ago that I never started.

rsilletti · 2011-08-22 00:39:36

A pattern that always seems to emerge when folks specify their desires on a site is event management. Best approach at present to my experience is smd_calendar supported by a variety of associated task handlers depending on what is being done. The smds : countdown, featured, horizon and lately recommend themselves along with whatever support plugins they may require.

Someone more aware and experienced with how these behave individually or in concert maybe should make the selections for the actual pattern, in order to address a general purpose audience for them; which sounds like what you’re aiming at.

jpdupont · 2011-08-22 12:56:06

Hello Steve !
Nice idea !
Is this under the scope of the new plugin :

A. Install 4 admin plugin like adi_notes, bot_write_tab_customize, smd_thumbnails, smd_macros

.. then …

B. Fill these plugins tables with pre-made customisations :

End user help in adi_notes table
Habitual parts in write tab hidden
Thumbnails settings and macros code inserted in the smd_thumbnails and smd_macros tables

Thanks for the big works !

Zanza · 2011-08-22 13:08:53

A pattern for image galleries or img+some html text sliders? Not sure I understand how that could be actually done, but I’m looking forward to see this, it seems a great idea!

net-carver · 2011-08-22 17:16:53

rsilletti wrote:

A pattern that always seems to emerge when folks specify their desires on a site is event management. <snip>

Thanks Rick, noted.

Stef wrote:

I like the idea of post-install options / instructions, even if it’s just a brief hunk of info displayed after the summary result sheet

Yes, that’s on the to-do list.

Techie aside: Regarding insertions into pages, should be possible to do insertions into pages & forms that sed_patterns is about to install as the content of those will be known to the pattern author. Authors could add insertion markers that are just HTML comments into those two types. Something like…

<txp:some_tag>
  <!-- insert.smd_ipn If you want IPN integration, replace this comment with smd_ipn tags. -->
</txp:some_tag>

sed_patterns can do a preg_replace on the entire comment using a regex that targets the ‘<!— insert.smd_ipn’ as the start of the marker. Such a comment can still be understood by folks reading the code if the insertion fails or if an optional insertion is skipped — kind of self-documenting. Insertions into pages & forms that are pre-existing in the installation, where sed_patterns has no knowledge of the contents, is not ground I will be straying onto.

jpdupont wrote:

A. Install 4 admin plugin like adi_notes, bot_write_tab_customize, smd_thumbnails, smd_macros

That should be possible.

B. Fill these plugins tables with pre-made customisations : <snip>

Hmm. Not something I’d initially thought of. I don’t see why a simple SQL import couldn’t be included, or a simple integration (.php) file that adds the data. However, I’d guess that this would be a pretty subjective set of customisations that would probably be more suited to individual use rather than community use. Still, in principle, I don’t see why it couldn’t be done.

Zanza wrote:

A pattern for image galleries or img+some html text sliders? <snip>

Thanks Zanza, gallery pattern on the list. I guess there could be many versions of this one.

tye · 2011-08-23 06:35:38

I like the idea of this… and hope I’ve understood it correctly – are you are after patterns of plugin installations which would make workflow life easier… if so.

How about one for a Client Admin customisation – something along the lines of:

bot_file_upload
bot_image_upload
bot_privs
bot_write_tab_customize
glz_custom_fields – not sure about this as it is paid
hak_tinymce
jbx_multiple_image_upload
jmd_dashboard (or smd_tabber, another one which Stef snuck past me)
rah_sitemap
smd_prefalizer
smd_where_used
msd_piwik_dashboard

The possibility of patterns for this are endless… is that the sort of thing you were after, or have I got it wrong?

(ps – whats smd_ipn?)

Last edited by tye (2011-08-23 07:26:03)

net-carver · 2011-08-23 09:02:31

tye wrote:

I like the idea of this… and hope I’ve understood it correctly – are you are after patterns of plugin installations which would make workflow life easier… if so.

It certainly can include groups of plugins — but — it doesn’t have to be limited to just plugins. Many plugins require additional things (like forms, images, sections etc) in order to do their thing properly, sed_patterns allows you to install the plugins plus all the extras. It won’t be able to insert tags (from the new plugins) into your existing pages or forms but it could break out the required tags into a new form that it installs, meaning that all you need to do to complete integration into your site would be to add…

<txp:output_form name="some_patterns_form">

…into one of your page templates.

How about one for a Client Admin customisation – <snip>

You’re the second to suggest something along these lines, so noted :)

The possibility of patterns for this are endless… is that the sort of thing you were after, or have I got it wrong?

Pretty much endless in the detail but in reality, I think there are several common problems that could use a neatly bundled solution — I hope sed_patterns can allow those bundles to be built and utilised.

(ps – whats smd_ipn?)

It is one of Stef’s more recent plugins that handles PayPal instant payment notifications (IPNs.)

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#1 2011-08-20 22:00:42

New Plugin Idea. Questions to community...

#2 2011-08-21 01:08:13

Re: New Plugin Idea. Questions to community...

#3 2011-08-21 02:04:12

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#4 2011-08-21 04:59:59

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#5 2011-08-21 08:48:52

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#6 2011-08-21 21:23:14

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#7 2011-08-21 22:32:18

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#10 2011-08-22 00:39:36

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#11 2011-08-22 12:56:06

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#12 2011-08-22 13:08:53

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#13 2011-08-22 17:16:53

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#14 2011-08-23 06:35:38

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#15 2011-08-23 09:02:31

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